Is Pac-12 out of Power 5? Exploring NCAA rule book on minimum number of teams required to be part of P5

The Pac-12 has been left decimated by teams leaving the conference, and now the conference likely isn't in the Power Five.

The Power 5 comprises the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten, Big-12, Pac-12 and Southeastern Conference (SEC). It's the highest level of collegiate football in the nation and is considered the most "elite" conferences in the tier.

Now, with USC, UCLA, Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon, Washington and Utah leaving the Pac-12, the future of the conference is unclear. However, according to the rules, conferences need at least six teams to be considered part of the Power 5.

CFB reporter John Canzano first tweeted that the Pac-12 future of being an A5 is up in the air:

"The Pac-12's "A5" status is up in the air. Will be an interesting side show. Also there's $420M in revenue due to the conference this year and WSU-OSU-Stanford-Cal can take an extra chunk to cover "additional costs and damages" caused by the defection of the others," he wrote.

Canzano was then asked about whether or not the Pac-12 can remain as a Power Five when he said that conferences need a minimum of six teams.

"No. Need minimum of six," he added.

The Pac-12 has just four schools left - Stanford, Oregon State, Washington State and California.

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Is the Pac-12 dead?

Currently, the Pac-12 is still a conference, but their future does not look bright. After the news that Oregon, Washington, ASU, Arizona and Utah are leaving, the Pac-12 released a bleak statement regarding their future.

"Today’s news is incredibly disappointing for student-athletes, fans, alumni and staff of the Pac-12 who cherish the over 100-year history, tradition and rivalries of the Conference of Champions.

"We remain focused on securing the best possible future for each of our member universities," the statement read.

There have been rumors of the Pac-12 potentially merging with the Mountain West Conference, which would add some much-needed schools to the Pac-12.

However, at the moment, the Pac-12 is still exploring its next steps and its future. Their statement says that they remain keen on keeping itself alive but will need to add schools to remain a Power Five conference.