Canzano: Oregon President Schill Takes the Lead as Pac-12 CEO Group Chair

University of Oregon president Michael Schill became the latest chair of the Pac-12 CEO Group on July 1. He replaces Colorado chancellor Phillip DiStefano.

Our own John Canzano spoke with Schill about the promotion inside the conference, but the Oregon president “downplayed the promotion.”

“… the chair essentially works with the conference’s executive committee and commissioner to set agendas for meetings and coordinate decision making,” Canzano writes.

Schill told him, “As you might imagine from a group of presidents of universities … the chair of the Pac-12 does not make decisions independent of the rest of the board.”

Obviously there are a ton of questions up in the air for Schill, and the entire Pac-12 CEO Group, to ponder. Specifically in sports, will there be a college football season? What to do with Larry Scott? The name/image/likeness conversation happening nationally and “the conference’s most critical financial question” the media rights contract, which is “up for bid in 2024”.

“With respect to the short-run, we are all working hard to plan for the resumption of intercollegiate athletics this school year if we can do so in a way that is safe for our student-athletes and our communities,” Schill told Canzano. “We hope that will happen.”

Finally, Canzano describes why he likes Schill as the next leader of the Pac-12 CEO Group.

“Schill, Harvard and Yale educated, is the perfect choice as new chair. He’s a legal expert who co-authored the best-selling casebook used in American law schools. His background makes him a helpful voice in the room during important decisions,” he writes.

But the biggest reason Canzano likes the move? “… it signals a full-blown changing of the guard in the conference.”

For context, only two Pac-12 presidents (Arizona State’s Michael Crowe and UCLA’s Gene Block) were around when Larry Scott was hired as commissioner in 2009. The other 10 presidents are “new, energized, and aware of the revenue stream that the Pac-12 can potentially add to their bottom line,” Canzano writes.

You can check out the full article here.

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