Pac-12 Championship Game at Levi's Stadium
On Friday, December 6, two of the best teams in the Pac-12 Conference do battle for the right to appear in the Rose Bowl, and for a potential slot in the College Football Playoff. In 2019, the Pac-12 Championship Game plays for the sixth and final time at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, California, which opened in 2013 and seats 68,000. Starting in 2020, the Pac-12 Championship is to be held in Las Vegas at the brand-new Allegiant Stadium, which seats 65,000 for football.
Pac-12 Championship Game History
With the addition of the Utah Utes and Colorado Buffaloes in 2010, the Pac-10 Conference grew to a size where a championship game became feasible and a name change became necessary. The first three championship games were held at the stadium of the team with the better conference record, before a permanent home was established at Levi's Stadium, 40 miles south of San Francisco. Oregon hosted the first Pac-12 Championship Game on December 2, 2011, defeating UCLA, 49-31.
The Pac-12 North has won all but one championship game, with Stanford winning three times, and Oregon and Washington each winning twice. In 2017, the USC Trojans defeated Stanford by a score of 31 to 28, with future New York Jets quarterback Sam Darnold winning the game's Most Valuable Player award. The 2018 Pac-12 title game was a defensive battle, with Byron Murphy's pick-six and first of two interceptions in the game being the difference for Washington in its 10-3 victory over Utah. Winners of the Pac-12 Championship Game have gone on to the College Football Playoff twice, with Oregon winning the 2005 Rose Bowl over Florida State before falling to Ohio State in the first CFP National Championship Game, and Washington losing to Alabama in the 2017 Peach Bowl. Six of the eight Pac-12 Championship Game winners have gone on to play in the Rose Bowl, going 4-2 in the New Year's Day classic.
