As the Pac-12 continues to look for ways to proceed now that Southern Cal and UCLA have departed for the Big Ten, the conference is open to another partnership.

John Canzano has reported that a source with knowledge of their conversations said Pac-12 leaders are now considering a “loose partnership” with another conference. Presumably, that conference is the ACC or maybe the Big 12. The immediate reaction to this is it brings back memories about the short-lived “Alliance” between the Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC.

Canzano interpreted the latest statement on Tuesday from the Pac-12 that conference leadership was given the go-ahead to accelerate its media rights negotiations, and that ESPN potentially is initiating the “loose partnership” discussions.

In the era of TV rights, which conference is more appealing?

The ACC could potentially share a media rights deal with the Pac-12 and ESPN, as it already works with both conferences. It could also result in the 10 remaining Pac-12 teams sticking together and the winner of that “10-team division” playing in an ACC vs. Pac-12 championship game in Las Vegas at the end of the season. Also, there could be some attractive regular-season crossover games between the entities in football and men’s basketball.

“Geography aside,” Bob Thompson, the former president of Fox Sports Networks, told Canzano Tuesday, “(the ACC) has significantly better TV markets than the Big 12.”

It’s clear that all of these discussions remain fluid, and something to keep an eye on for a while.