Pac-12 Trying to Bail on Mountain West Deal That Helped Its Two Surviving Members

The Pac-12 is trying to avoid “poaching penalties” for swiping five schools from the Mountain West. | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

We have reached the point in college athletics realignment where Aesop’s Fables have come into play. Specifically, the farmer and the snake.

In that one, the farmer finds a snake frozen on a winter morning and near death. Wary of the snake’s venom but moved by pity, he warms the reptile to keep it alive. Once revived, the snake does what comes naturally and bites the farmer, who dies.