Pac-12 commissioner reveals why Colorado State fits the league's goals
· Yahoo Sports
Teresa Gould spent the weekend watching one of the Pac-12's newest members make its debut in the league.
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Gould, the Pac-12 commissioner, was in Fort Collins for Border War weekend as the Colorado State football team beat Wyoming 35-13.
It was a notable result for the Pac-12, an on-field win in the lingering Pac-12 vs. Mountain West battle. Gould attended CSU's pep rally in Old Town the night before the game and saw a program record crowd at Canvas Stadium as the Rams won the Bronze Boot.
Ahead of the game, Gould spoke to a group of reporters on a variety of topics. Here's what she said about CSU and the Pac-12.
Teresa Gould on why the Pac-12 wanted Colorado State
"You look around and when I think about the experience I've had here over the last 48 hours, the stadium is going to be packed today, there is fandom and passion in this community. I was at the pep rally last night and it was just incredible, the tradition.
"This is a college town and so CSU, it has an unbelievable elite institutional academic reputation, great leadership alignment with (president) Amy (Parsons) and (athletic director) John (Weber), great investment from the institution into athletics and a real desire to continue to build the tradition to be great and be competitive.
"This place is amazing and more people need to know about it. And that's where I think the Pac-12 and the association of Pac-12 hopefully can help elevate the brand because it's exactly what we are about in the new Pac-12."
Teresa Gould on if she's been surprised at the support for CSU
"I personally was not surprised and part of that is a byproduct of I've been in the West for a really long time and so I was very, very familiar with CSU and the longstanding volleyball tradition and legacy and I have been around and followed CSU for a very long time.
"I also have the benefit of having a lot of family in the area. I have family members that are alums of CSU and have spent a lot of time in Northern Colorado and so I wasn't surprised. I will say, every time I come here, my kind of support and just admiration for what is here is, goes up. You know, I stood out on that plaza at the pep rally last night, and I'm like, this place is awesome. We need more people to know that. We need more people to see that and feel that and understand that outside of this region."
Teresa Gould on goals for Year 1 of the new Pac-12
"Well, look, we've talked a lot about the North Star is having a team in the CFP (College Football Playoff), right? I mean, that is the pinnacle of college football. That is the investment that is being made across these eight programs, hiring these great legendary coaches like Coach (Jim) Mora and getting these talented athletes, everybody's trying to win a conference championship and get to the CFP, and so that is one of our metrics, and that is our North Star in Pac-12 football.
"I would also say it's critically important from a brand perspective that when folks either show up at one of our stadiums or turn on a television, that they see fandom, that they see communities who care about their programs, like what we're going to have today here in Fort Collins. We need to look like we matter in the college sports ecosystem, and we do.
"What you're going to see here today is very different than what we've seen on some of the TVs that we've turned on this morning and so the fandom and the crowd support and the attendance is really important, and then, of course, eyeballs always matter. We are fortunate that 50 out of 50 football games are on national television. All over the country, people can easily watch Pac-12 football and we are the only conference that has that.
"Part of that was an intentional and strategic decision to be able to demonstrate to the country that our product really matters and that it has significant economic value and so we need people to watch our games. So those are some of the measurements. We want butts in the seats. We want fandom in our stadiums. We want eyeballs on our games so that our viewership is representative of the strength of this league and team in the CFP, you know, five-plus teams in postseason bowls. Those are all the metrics that we're looking for."
Teresa Gould on Power 5 status and the Pac-12
"We are a top-five conference, right? I don't know what a power conference means. I don't know what autonomy conference means because nobody has defined that. Nobody has answered that question. What I know is the things that we control, which is butts in the seats, eyeballs on the TV, winning games, competing, that we are a top-five conference. The data shows that. The metrics show that, and that's what we're going to lean into.
"We don't control any of those other things. I don't control whether the NCAA decides to answer that question for me or not. I don't control what the folks on TV, how they refer to conferences. What we are leaning into is we're going to pave our own path and control what we can control, and this is a power league."
Sports reporter Kevin Lytle can be found on social media on X, Instagram and Threads @Kevin_Lytle and on Bluesky.
This article originally appeared on Fort Collins Coloradoan: Pac-12 commissioner reveals why Colorado State fits the league's goals