The Big 12 may not split into divisions when it expands amid realignment, source says
The Big 12 may not split into divisions once it expands, a source said.
The belief has been that the conference would return to divisions once it grows to 14 teams in 2023-24 before dropping to 12 teams in 2025 after Texas and Oklahoma depart for the SEC.
League officials and athletic directors met last week during the Big 12 basketball tournaments in Kansas City, and no decisions have been finalized. Three division models were presented and there wasn’t a consensus favorite among the group, according to a source.
Another source said that the league could proceed without divisions. NCAA rules state that any league with more than 12 teams must split into divisions for football, but a source said the NCAA is close to passing legislation that would drop that requirement.
“It hasn’t been decided that divisions is even the best route,” a source said. “We won’t have this finalized until later this spring.”
The decision will likely be made during the league’s meetings May 2-4 in Phoenix. How the league looks going forward remains a central talking point for those within it.
BYU, Houston, Cincinnati and Central Florida are all expected to join the league by the 2023 football season. Texas and OU are expected to honor their media rights contracts before departing for the SEC for the 2025 football season.
So there will be a 14-team league for two seasons (2023-24) before dropping to 12 teams in 2025. If the league goes the divisions route, it may be preferable to separate OU and UT to avoid a reshuffle in a couple years.
At the end of the day, the league continues to evaluate all of its options. A source did indicate that the conference would likely continue playing nine conference games in football in the revamped league. How those games and opponents would be scheduled is to be determined.
As far as basketball, the league would like to stick with the 18-game conference schedule in some fashion. Again, how opponents would be scheduled or rotated over years is to be determined.
When the Big 12 formed in 1996, it was broken into “North” and “South” divisions. That format lasted until 2010 when the conference shrunk to 10 teams with schools such as Texas A&M, Nebraska, Missouri and Colorado departing in the previous round of realignment.
The Big 12 didn’t have a conference title game in football from 2011-16 because NCAA required leagues to have at least 12 teams to stage that game. Legislation was eventually passed that allowed the Big 12 to reinstate the game in 2017 and it’s been played at Arlington’s AT&T Stadium since.
Outside of the division chatter, other conversations centered on other pressing topics facing college athletics today with players being compensated for their name, image and likeness and the ever-growing NCAA transfer portal.
This story was originally published March 14, 2022 at 5:00 AM.
