The University of Colorado has officially received and accepted an invite to the Pacific Ten Conference. 

This news wasn't unexpected, as Colorado has looked like a lock for the Pacific Ten since both theirs and Utah's names were mentioned earlier this year. The move also signals the collapse of the Big 12 - which could be made even more official by the end of the week when Nebraska, following speculation, decides to join the Big Ten. 

What will be left is a fractured conference that should, at least by mid-summer, lose its two best programs when Oklahoma and Texas join Colorado in the newly established Big Sixteen - the first true mega-conference of the BCS era. 

It's unclear what the Big Ten will do now, but expect them to push their numbers up to sixteen as well and the SEC will probably follow in the future, though they have more wiggle room due to how dominant many perceive their conference.

Then there is Utah. Poor Utah. A few months ago, had news of Colorado being invited to the Pacific Ten been released, we all would've thought it surely meant the Utes were next. But as the news trickles out and each additional detail is known, it becomes more and more clear Utah isn't anywhere in the Pacific Ten expansion picture. 

Our cue, most likely, comes if one Big 12 school decides to opt on not joining a west coast conference. But even then, after all we've seen the last two weeks, who's to believe the Pac Ten wouldn't just go after Kansas or Kansas State? Or hell, maybe even Nebraska. 

Ultimately, when the smoke clears, we'll have a better picture. But right now, it's looking like the best case scenario is a Mountain West with Big 12 scraps and hopefully BCS inclusion. And like I said, that's the best case scenario.