SG Broadband Community

Utah will join the Pac-10 Conference as its 12th team -- with an announcement coming as soon as Friday, a source tells ESPN.

According to the Salt Lake Tribune, Utah's Board of Trustees will hold a public meeting Thursday afternoon. The meeting agenda was not revealed.

Mountain West Conference commissioner Craig Thompson, interviewed Tuesday, would only say that he has been in contact with the Pac-10 regarding Utah.

"I did state yesterday morning that I had not spoken to [Pac-10 commissioner] Larry Scott," Thompson said during a break at the Collegiate Commissioners Association meetings. "Twenty-four hours is a long timeframe."

Asked if it was his understanding that an invitation had been extended to Utah to join the Pac-10, Thompson said, "I don't know. I just need to defer all comments."

The Pac-10 grew by one last week when Colorado accepted its invitation to leave the Big 12. Meanwhile, Scott also attempted to lure Texas and four other Big 12 schools. The conference would have become a 16-team league had Texas joined with Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas Tech and Texas A&M.

Instead, those schools decided to stay in the Big 12.

When the news came down that Texas and the rest were not joining Pac-10, Scott said he called Big 12 commissioner Dan Beebe to congratulate him for saving his conference.

The addition of Utah is likely to bolster the Pac-10's football profile. Since 2003 the Utes have been a powerhouse in the Mountain West -- a perfect 6-0 in bowl games during that span, including a 2-0 mark in BCS games which capped off undefeated seasons.

Additionally, the Utes bring Salt Lake City's TV market, which is the 31st largest in the nation.

Qwijib0 wrote:I kinda hate that the PAC10's round robin schedule is ruined.

Although being in the all-but-finalized south division with the two noobs and a castrated USC should be good for Arizona. We'll see though-- I'm sure we'll find a way to screw it up.