Some outsiders have the perspective that school officials are being dimwitted about the situation, but if Utah has a long-term goal in mind for something better than the BIG 12, I could see them settling for the PAC-5 for a year or two as they bide their time if they KNOW they have a good shot at something better.
Are we missing the opportunity cost argument against going into the BIG 12? Once you’re in, you’re locked in for 5+ years, unless you pay some heavy fines to get out, am I right? Utah is not just taking Utah Football into a new conference, it’s taking the whole school, the school of medicine, engineering, etc. to be affiliated with the new conference, and that WHOLE school has a pretty damn good resume. So when you say YES to the BIG 12 you are simultaneously saying NO to other near-term opportunities.
Just my uneducated 10 cents on the situation.