Changes on horizon for Big 12 as BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, UCF officially join league
The Big 12 is entering a new era.
Four new schools will officially join the conference Saturday. Two founding members will officially leave for the SEC one year later, on July 1, 2024. In between, fans will be treated to what promises to be a wild season of athletics in a new-look league that will feature 14 college towns in eight states.
The Big 12 flag will fly from Orlando, Florida to Provo, Utah. BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and Central Florida are the new kids on the block. Oklahoma and Texas are lame ducks counting down the days until they move into a new neighborhood.
This isn’t the Big 12 your father grew up watching.
Changes are on the horizon. In another 12 months, even more will be on the way. Things could really shift down the line if conference realignment strikes again.
For now, though, let’s focus on how the Big 12 will look and feel as a 14-team conference..
Here is everything you need to know about what changes are in store for the upcoming year.
How will football scheduling work?
Say goodbye to the round-robin scheduling format that has worked so well with 10 teams over the past dozen years.
It is one of the unfortunate losses that came from the latest round of conference realignment. The days of everybody playing everybody and one true champion are in the past. It’s simply not possible for 14 teams to play each other during the course of a single season.
But divisions aren’t coming back either. The old North/South split remains extinct and seems unlikely to return even after Oklahoma and Texas depart the conference.
In its place is a brand new scheduling format that will protect traditional rivalries and allow teams to cycle through other opponents on a semi-regular basis.
Fans can expect the Sunflower Showdown to be played every season. Same with Farmageddon and many of the other Big 12 rivalries that don’t have catchy nicknames, such as Baylor vs. TCU and Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech. But there will be seasons when K-State doesn’t play West Virginia or Houston. There will also be seasons when KU avoids Baylor and UCF.
That will lead to some very different schedules within the league. Some will be harder than others. Some will look like a cake walk. For example, Oklahoma arguably has the softest schedule in the Big 12 this season with no games against Baylor, K-State and Texas Tech. But Iowa State got stuck with a much harder slate that features games against Baylor, K-State, Oklahoma and Texas.
It’s the price of doing business in a 14-team conference. Schedule strength should become less volatile when the conference drops down to 12 members in future years.
At the end of each season, the two teams at the top of the Big 12 standings will play for a conference championship at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.
What about basketball scheduling?
Basketball will follow a similar model as football, but it will be a bit more complicated.
Some rivals will play each other twice every season. Others will play each other only once. Some might not see each other at all over the course of an 18-game league schedule. Protected rivalries next season are expected to include KU/K-State, Oklahoma/Oklahoma State, Texas/Texas Tech, Baylor/TCU, Cincinnati/West Virginia, Houston/UCF and Iowa State/BYU.
When asked about the topic recently, K-State basketball coach Jerome Tang said he had no idea what to expect outside of the Wildcats playing the Jayhawks twice a year. It will be interesting to see what the basketball schedules look like next season.
The conference basketball tournaments in Kansas City will also be expanded to accommodate the new teams. That means there will be more than one day at each the men’s and women’s events that features a full slate of four games.
What will athletic budgets look like without Oklahoma and Texas?
The Longhorns and Sooners have operated with much larger athletic budgets than their Big 12 peers for decades.
In the most recent fiscal year, Texas led the conference with $239.3 million in revenue and Oklahoma ranked second at $177.3 million, according to USA Today. There was a big drop-off to No. 3, with Kansas coming in at $118 million.
That means the Jayhawks will be the biggest spenders in the new Big 12, followed by:
Iowa State $111 million
Texas Tech $110 million
West Virginia $105 million
Oklahoma State $104 million
Kansas State $100.8 million
UCF $89.2 million
Cincinnati $83.3 million
Houston $78 million
That data does not include private schools Baylor, BYU and TCU.
It would seem Houston may need to find new ways to invest in athletics, while UCF isn’t far behind current Big 12 members. Everyone else is on a fairly even playing field when it comes to finances. For the first time, no Big 12 athletic department will dwarf any of the others in terms of budget.
Which new member will make the biggest first-year impact?
That depends on the sport.
In football, the answer is most likely UCF. The Golden Knights are coached by Gus Malzahn and they are coming off a nine-win season. John Rhys Plumlee is also back as quarterback for UCF. Malzahn is no stranger to a power conference, going back to his days at Auburn in the SEC. That makes them the most dangerous newcomer on the gridiron.
But Houston coach Dana Holgorsen knows the Big 12 inside and out. He has made the transition up to the Big 12 before, when he led West Virginia out of the Big East. And don’t forget that BYU is accustomed to playing a difficult schedule.
Wins could be hard to come by for Cincinnati, though.
Teams have historically struggled as they transition into a new conference. When TCU and West Virginia joined the conference in 2012 they both had their worst seasons in several years and finished 7-6. Then they each only won four games in Year 2.
But one of these new teams could buck that trend.
In men’s basketball, Houston is the obvious answer. Kelvin Sampson should have the Cougars ready to challenge Kansas right away, considering how strong they have been in recent years.
Houston is also traditionally one of the nation’s best teams when it comes to golf. BYU has won recent national championships in women’s cross country and men’s volleyball.
Interestingly, UCF has never won a NCAA championship in any team sport. It will join K-State and Virginia Tech as one of the few power-conference schools in the nation that are still looking for their first national title.
What new rivalries could develop in the Big 12?
Saying goodbye to traditional rivalries is one of the worst things associated with conference realignment.
Baylor, TCU and Texas Tech are all used to circling Texas on the schedule as a monumental game. But after this season, that will no longer be the case.
Houston gets one shot to host Texas this season. That should be a thrilling game for the Cougars. But then what?
Oklahoma State lives to beat rival Oklahoma. Who fills the void after the Sooners leave for the SEC?
That question may take a few years to answer. But Houston seems like a natural rival for other teams in the Lone Star State. In basketball, Kansas and Houston could become an exciting rivalry built on strong competition, if not hatred.
The Cowboys could look south or north for a new rival. Perhaps K-State, KU or Texas Tech could become a team they love to beat.
A new rivalry could blossom between Cincinnati and West Virginia, given their proximity.
Maybe BYU and UCF could learn to hate each other as the league’s two outpost schools. But it may take some time to develop new rivalries beyond their respective home states of Utah and Florida.
The process officially begins Saturday.
