Dan Patrick: Big Ten, Pac-12 Could Create 'Merger' to Preserve Rose Bowl Contract

The Big Ten and Pac-12 conferences will reportedly work toward "some type of merger" with the goal of preserving their Rose Bowl football contract.

On Tuesday, Peacock's Dan Patrick reported full details of the discussions, which come amid the potential for widespread changes to conference alignment after Oklahoma and Texas formally requested to join the SEC when their media deals with the Big 12 expire in 2025:

The key question is whether the conferences will try to do a full-scale merger or bring together the most high-profile, profitable schools while leaving some of their members out to dry in the process.

Oklahoma and Texas have jump-started a process that's likely to have a massive impact on the landscape of college sports over the next handful of years.

In turn, Andy Staples of The Athletic noted Monday the Big Ten is facing a sudden "eat-or-be-eaten situation," which will likely require significant maneuvering. He suggested a four-division "super conference" with 20 total teams combining the marquee schools of the Big Ten and Pac-12.

While it would create an intriguing group of teams, with USC, UCLA, Stanford, Cal, Oregon and Washington joining the traditional football powers of the Big Ten, there's "no guarantee" the Pac-12 schools would be interested in such a change, per Staples.

The future of the Rose Bowl partnership could come into question if no deal is reached.

Although the Rose Bowl has an agreement as part of the College Football Playoffs, it still maintains its alliance for a matchup between the Big Ten and Pac-12 in years when it's not serving as a CFP semifinal.

The current contract between the Rose Bowl and the conferences run through 2026.