The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate athletic conference, participating in NCAA sports, that operates in the Western U.S. The modern Pac-12 conference formed after the disbanding of the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC), whose principal members founded the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) in 1959. The conference previously went by the names Big Five, Big Six, Pacific-8, and Pacific-10. On June 30, 2022, amid the broader 2021–22 NCAA conference realignment, UCLA and USC announced plans to leave the Pac-12 for the Big Ten Conference starting in 2024. With rest of schools deciding to join Big 12 and ACC conferences, only Oregon State and Washington State remained. Both schools lined up scheduling partnerships with the Mountain West Conference and are viewed as Independents regarding the College Football Playoff.
