New Big 12 commissioner hints at Texas, Oklahoma leaving early for SEC
New Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark opened the door for the possibility of Texas and Oklahoma leaving early for the SEC.
Last summer, Texas and Oklahoma shook the college football world by initiating a move from the Big 12 to the SEC.
However, the conference shift couldn’t happen immediately. The original plan was to have the Longhorns and Sooners join the SEC in 2025.
That’s a long time to wait, especially with USC and UCLA announcing a move to the Big Ten in 2024.
Could the timeline potentially speed up? New Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark definitely left the door open on that one.
Texas and Oklahoma could leave for the SEC ahead of schedule
Speaking to reporters at Big 12 media days, Yormark said he is “not against” negotiating with the two powerhouses on an earlier move to the SEC, so long as it’s in the “best interest of the conference.”
With a small group of reporters, new Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said "I'm not against" having negotiations that allow Texas/OU to leave for the SEC early. "But it's got to be in the best interest of the conference, obviously."
— Brian Davis (@BDavisUT) July 13, 2022
Reading between the lines, Yormark is basically challenging Texas and Oklahoma: how much are they willing to pay to get out early?
Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated tweeted that “the price will be steep” for an SEC move by 2024.
Texas and Oklahoma are in a different position to USC and UCLA on this one. The timing of the Trojans and Bruins’ move in 2024 was based on the Pac-12’s expiring media rights deal. They’re simply not signing on to any new deal as they choose to jump over to the Big Ten instead.
The Big 12’s media rights deal doesn’t end until 2025. To make the early jump to the SEC, the Longhorns and Sooners would have to break out of their current deal. It’s a considerably more complex scenario to work out.
That being said, the incentive is high to make an early move to the Southeastern Conference. Texas and Oklahoma are heading to the SEC because of the promise of significantly more money and opportunities. It makes sense for 2024 to feature the great shift in power with Big Ten and SEC super conferences. It’s hard to imagine this deal not getting done a year early with Yormark’s blessing.
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