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The Pac-12 has begun the process of separating from commissioner George Kliavkoff, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
The move has been anticipated since the Pac-12 collapsed on Aug. 4, when five schools bolted for other leagues after Kliavkoff failed to negotiate a satisfactory media rights contract.
Kliavkoff reports to the Pac-12 board of directors, made up of the presidents of the two remaining schools, Washington State's Kirk Schulz and Oregon State's Jayathi Murthy.
Under the terms of a court order, Schulz and Murthy are required to notify the 10 departing schools of any board action.
Few details are available at this point, including whatever severance package might be in line for Kliavkoff, who was hired in the spring of 2021.
Less than three years later, the 12-team conference he inherited is down to two members.
The other 10 will join new leagues this summer.
Kliavkoff's contract is believed to have at least two years remaining with an expected salary of approximately $3.5 million annually, based on data from the Pac-12's tax filings for the 2022 fiscal year.
According to a mediated settlement between the two remaining schools and the outbound 10, conference liabilities are considered a shared expense. Kliavkoff's contract seemingly would fit under that category.
The Pac-12 office released the following statement in response to a request for comment:
"The Pac-12 Conference Board has given the departing 10 schools notice of a proposed leadership transition with an invitation to provide comment. We expect to provide more information following a decision in the coming days."
That "transition" seemingly will include the appointment of a replacement for Kliavkoff.
Teresa Gould, the Pac-12's deputy commissioner, is well respected by the schools and considered a likely option — not only as an interim commissioner through the spring but perhaps to manage a scaled-down version of the conference for the 2024-25 school year and beyond.
WSU and OSU plan to operate as a two-team conference in football, under the Pac-12 banner, for the next two seasons; their basketball teams and many Olympic sports will be housed in the West Coast Conference.
By the fall of 2026, the 'Pac-2' must expand, or the Pac-12 will no longer be recognized as an official conference.
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Jon Wilner has been covering college sports for decades and is an AP Top 25 football and basketball voter as well as a Heisman Trophy voter. He was named Beat Writer of the Year in 2013 by the Football Writers Association of America for his coverage of the Pac-12, won first place for feature writing in 2016 in the Associated Press Sports Editors writing contest and is a five-time APSE honoree. You can follow him on Twitter @WilnerHotline or send an email at jwilner@bayareanewsgroup.com.
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