In letter, Pac-12's George Kliavkoff cites 'significant' financial, mental health concerns on UCLA move to Big Ten

In a letter provided to the University of California Board of Regents ahead of a closed-door session Thursday to discuss UCLA's proposed move to the Big Ten conference, Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff detailed «significant concerns» he had with the move, including student-athlete mental health, increased travel and operational costs, and negative impacts on both Cal's revenue and the UC system's climate goals.

Klivakoff's letter was provided in response to a request from the regents for the conference's perspective on UCLA's move, according to a source.

«Despite all the explanations made after the fact, UCLA's decision to join the Big Ten was clearly financially motivated after the UCLA athletic department managed to accumulate more than $100 million in debt over the past three fiscal years,» Kliavkoff wrote.

From there, he made the case the increased revenue UCLA will receive would be completely offset by the increased costs coming from increased travel, the need for competitive salaries within the Big Ten and game guarantee expenses.

«UCLA currently spends approximately 8.1 million per year on travel for its teams to compete in the Pac-12 conference,» Kliavkoff said. «UCLA will incur a 100% increase in its team travel costs if it flies commercial in the Big Ten (8.1 million increase per year), a 160% increase if it charters half the time ($13.1 million per year), and a 290% percent increase if it charters every flight ($23 million increase per year).»

Kliavkoff did not cite how those figures were calculated or indicate if there was genuine belief that UCLA would consider charter travel for teams other than football and basketball.

According to a source familiar with UCLA's internal estimates about increased travel