Pac-12 commissioner Larry Scott is looking for a fresh start with his newly expanded conference. From a new TV contract, set to be negotiated this year, to fresh faces in Utah and Colorado, the Pac-12 is in the midst of some serious changes. On Friday, Scott addressed one of the other major gripes about the conference he oversees by hiring former Vice President of NFL Officiating Mike Pereira to lead the conference's football officiating.
If you follow the Pac-12, you know that football officiating has been a serious point of contention recently. It goes beyond the normal scope of complaints about officials, with the perception of the Pac-12's overall officiating at an all-time low. Calls are missed, games are changed and officials have played far too big a role in the outcome for many fans' liking.
With Pereira, the Pac-12 gains immediate credibility. He's spent the last year on FOX, popping in during games to explain calls, make judgments on the job officials are doing and point out both the good and bad calls throughout games. Now, he'll take that voice and those demands for accountability to the Pac-12, where he's charged with changing the perceptions of the conference's officiating, while also fixing a broken system.
It's going to take time, but Pereira is a start -- and a good one at that. Once again, Scott is taking the necessary steps to improve the Pac-12 as a whole. From expansion to revenue to officiating, his fingerprints are all over the conference, and the moves he's made have been a positive overall.