Report: Big 12 won't partner with Pac-12 after talks fail

It appears there will be no partnership between the Big 12 and Pac-12.

Big 12 officials notified the Pac-12 that they are no longer interested in joining forces, leading to the end of partnership talks, sources told ESPN's Pete Thamel.

Multiple factors went into the failed discussions, including a lack of revenue increase for the Big 12, a source from the conference told Thamel.

The Pac-12 reportedly offered pooling rights, a scheduling collaboration, or a full merger to the Big 12, Thamel adds. The Big 12 reportedly were interested in a complete unification, a source from the Pac-12 told Thamel. However, the Big 12 opted not to move forward with any of the three options after considering them over the weekend, Thamel reports.

The conferences' different timelines in media rights expirations reportedly led to the Pac-12 having reservations about a full merger.

The two leagues combining was reported as a possibility earlier this month amid rumors that the Big 12 was discussing adding up to six Pac-12 schools.

New Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said last week that the league is "open for business." The conference is already set to add BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF in 2023, as Oklahoma and Texas are set to leave for the SEC in 2025.

The state of the Pac-12 was thrown into uncertainty after USC and UCLA announced they would be jumping to the Big Ten in 2024. The conference said it would "explore all expansion options" in the wake of their departure.