USC and UCLA are moving to the Big Ten in Conference Realignment Image Courtesy ocregister.com

Conference Realignment hit College Football hard in 2023. With so many teams moving around, it can be difficult to keep track of where everyone is playing. Below is a primer of where every team moved in this wave of conference realignment and when they’ll start playing there. This includes the recent SEC, Big Ten, Pac 12, American Conference and Conference USA realignment moves.

Conference Realignment Timeline

2022:

Marshall, Southern Miss and Old Dominion leave Conference USA and James Madison transitions from FCS to join the Sun Belt.

2023:

Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston leave the American Conference and BYU stops being independent to join the Big 12.

UAB, Rice, UTSA, North Texas, FAU and Charlotte leave Conference USA and join the American Conference.

Sam Houston State and Jacksonville State (AL) transition from FCS to FBS to join Conference USA.

2024

Texas and Oklahoma leave the Big 12 and join the SEC.

USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington leave the Pac 12 and join the Big Ten.

Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah leave the Pac 12 and join the Big 12.

Cal and Stanford leave the Pac 12 and SMU leaves the American Conference to join the ACC.

Kennesaw State transitions from FCS to FBS and joins Conference USA.

Continue reading for summaries on all of the recent conference realignment moves, by conference!

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SEC Conference Realignment Summary

Texas and Oklahoma are joining the SEC in 2024 – Image Courtesy cnn.com

The first announcements of teams moving around in this wave of conference realignment came from Texas and Oklahoma, who announced they were moving from the Big 12 to the SEC in February 2021. Texas had been the primary revenue earner in the Big 12 and creators of the Longhorn Network (which effectively operated as a Big 12 network). That being said, they desired more money (as all schools do) and took the opportunity to jump up to the SEC. Both teams are set to formally join the conference in 2024. Time will tell how these teams perform in arguably the strongest conference in the country.

Big Ten Conference Realignment Summary

Washington and Oregon will join the Big Ten in 2024 – Image Courtesy latimes.com

The Big Ten followed with some blockbuster announcements of their own in July 2022. USC and UCLA announced they were leaving the Pac 12 and joining the Big Ten, cementing the SEC and Big Ten as the two most dominant conferences. This also greatly expands the footprint of the Big Ten to the Pacific Ocean – a move they were about to double down on. After a few weeks of rumors intensifying, the Big Ten announced Oregon and Washington would also join the Big Ten. All four teams are set to formally join the conference in 2024.

Big 12 Conference Realignment Summary

Colorado and Utah will join the Big 12 in 2024 – Image Courtesy cubuffs.com

The Big 12 took a gut punch with the news of Texas and Oklahoma departing. Immediately, the narrative that the Big 12 was inevitably set to dissolve spread about. The Big 12 responded decisively, announcing the planned addition of BYU (formerly independent) and three of the best programs from the American Conference; Cincinnati, UCF and Houston. While they don’t quite replace the brand power and revenue of Texas and Oklahoma, these schools certainly help the Big 12 retain its “Power 5” status. All four teams joined the conference in 2023. But, that wasn’t the end of conference realignment for the Big 12. Once the Pac 12 began to fall apart, remaining schools began to seek safety in other conferences. Colorado was the first to jump ship, announcing a deal to join the Big 12 in 2024. Shortly afterward, the “four corners” schools of Arizona, Arizona State and Utah all agreed to join in 2024 as well.

ACC Conference Realignment Summary

Cal and Stanford will join the ACC in 2024 – Image Courtesy pressdemocrat.com

While no schools departed the ACC in this round of conference realignment, the writing was clearly on the wall that the ACC needed to strengthen itself or appease Florida State and Clemson in order to not get picked off by the SEC and/or Big Ten. Furthermore, the raid on the Pac 12 led to its remaining schools immediately investigating their options to join a more stable conference. Cal and Stanford eventually found their safety in the ACC, who also added SMU (who agreed to forgo 9 years of revenue sharing in order to join). All three teams are set to join the conference in 2024.

Pac 12 Conference Realignment Summary

WSU and Oregon State are, as of now, not departing the Pac 12 – Image Courtesy oregonlive.com

The Pac 12 was absolutely decimated in this round of conference realignment, with UCLA, USC, Oregon and Washington departing for the Big Ten; Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah leaving for the Big 12 and Cal and Stanford leaving for the ACC. Oregon State and Washington State are set to be the only remaining members of the conference in 2024. No moves have been announced, but it’s expected either a combination of Mountain West and potentially American Conference schools will join the Pac or the remaining two schools will join the Mountain West, formally dissolving the Pac 12.

American Conference Realignment Summary

After losing its (arguably) top 3 schools in UCF, Cincinnati and Houston to the Big 12, the American Conference began its own wave of expansion. The American solely targeted Conference USA, adding Rice, UAB, FAU, UTSA, North Texas and Charlotte.

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Conference USA Realignment Summary

Oh, how conference realignment damage trickles down. After a wave of realignment events set off by Texas and Oklahoma joining the SEC, the Conference USA was hit hard by 6 of its schools departing to the American Conference as well as Marshall, Old Dominion and Southern Miss leaving to join the Sun Belt in 2022. Conference USA responded by targeting schools at the top of the FCS level; Sam Houston State and Jacksonville State (AL) joined the conference in 2023 and Kennesaw State is set to join the conference in 2024. Furthermore, Liberty and New Mexico State ended being independent and joined the conference in 2023 as well.

Sun Belt Conference Realignment Summary

The Sun Belt was really the first conference to formally gain members from this wave of realignment, when Southern Miss, Marshall and Old Dominion joined from Conference USA in 2022. James Madison also joined at the same time, transitioning to FBS from the FCS level.

Are you a fan of conference realignment? Are you concerned about the direction the sport is going? Let us know in the replies or on Twitter @CFBSelect.