Utah literally tried to cancel us as a program by, among other things, refusing to play us until the legislature got involved.
And while we would certainly have loved to have been invited as well, if you look at the former Pac 12 teams in their new conferences they look terrible (except Oregon), which is the only true way to see your conference strength vs others. And all the Utes grandstanding maybe doesn't look so grand after all, despite them thinking they are the best thing since sliced bread.