Utah playing a waiting game

Today was supposed to be the big day for the Utah athletic program, the day it received its official invitation to the Pac-10. I guess it could still happen, but if the U. ever does get an invitation to the Pac-10, it will be after a bunch of other schools turn the league down.
For weeks, I heard from fans and read on internet boards that June 11 was the big day Utah would receive its invite to the Pac-10. It was a “done deal” according to some and a few folks wondered why we in the local media weren’t picking up on it. Uh, perhaps because it was never a done deal. I knew it wasn’t, when at the height of all the speculation, a major coach at the U. called a Deseret News reporter to ask what he thought about Utah’s chances of making the Pac-10. If he didn’t know, it wasn’t anything close to a done deal.
The fact is no one really ever knew, including President Michael Young, with whom I spoke for a half hour last week. He hinted that the U. had had talks with the Pac-10, but said it wasn’t “formal” and that Utah had never been invited to join.
So what is Utah’s future now? I’m like Utah football coach Kyle Whittingham who told me a couple of days ago he’s not going to worry about it until all the dust settles. We’ll see what happens. If I had to guess, Utah will end up with most of its same teams it has been with for the past 12 years. It would make sense to add Kansas and Kansas State, if they get left behind from a broken-up Big 12 along with Boise State to make a pretty competitive 12-team league. Both KU and K-State have played in BCS bowls in recent years and both are very competitive in basketball.
There’s also still a chance Utah could end up in the Pac-10, the longer it goes without adding a team to go with Colorado, and making that a 12-team league. I really wonder if the Pac-10 wants to make a 16-team league with schools from more than a thousand miles away, including the likes of Texas Tech and Baylor. Also the Big 12 could be a possibility for Utah if 9 or 10 of those schools stay together and need a couple of more schools to fill out a 12-team league.
The worst possible scenario for Utah would be if four 16-team “mega-conferences” are formed for the purpose of a national championship format and Utah is left out. At that point, Utah would be in the second tier of football schools with no chance for a major bowl or national championship.
It will be interesting to see what happens today and over the next couple of weeks for the Utah athletic program.