Big 12 Announces Record Revenue Distribution
Bob Bowlsby said it on his way out the door last year, and new commissioner Brett Yormark made good on Bowlsby’s words this year.
The Big 12 Conference announced Friday that schools will receive a record revenue distribution of $44 million for fiscal year 2022.
That’s up slightly from the $42.6 million the league’s 10 schools received last year, according to information announced by the league.
“I think we’ll continue to break records for the next two years,” Bowlsby said at last year's spring meetings in Irving, TX.
Yormark and Texas Tech president Lawrence Schovanec, chairman of the Big 12 Board of Directors, staged a video press conference on Friday as the league concluded its annual spring business meetings, which Schovanec called “very productive and substantive.”
In addition to the annual business of announcing the revenue distribution, Yormark said, “we had a great discussion about expansion, and we have a plan. … That being said, we love our current composition. … however, if the opportunity presents itself to create value, we will pursue it.”
Expansion could include a basketball-only school, Yormark said. A question was asked about the Gonzaga model, where the school doesn’t offer football but boasts one of the nation’s elite basketball program. Yormark, who’s a self-described basketball junkie, said that was among the possibilities.
“We’re gonna consider all options,” he said. “We do see the upside in basketball for all the right reasons. We think it's undervalue, and there's a chance for us to double down as the No. 1 basketball conference in America.
“But football is the driver.”
Yormark also said the league will announce a “brand refresh” and more next year, though that was "not a logo change and certainly not a name change."
That’s good timing, since flagship programs Oklahoma and Texas are leaving for membership in the Southeastern Conference in almost exactly 13 months. The Big 12 will rebrand with incoming members BYU, Cincinnati, UCF and Houston, who join officially on July 1.
While joining the Big 12 is a big payday for those schools, joining the SEC is likewise for OU and Texas, who will receive full Big 12 shares on their way out.
“They are not impacted (by leaving early)," Yormark said. "They’re getting their whole distribution this year as the entire 10 members. So (OU-Texas revenue) was not impacted this year.”
The SEC in February announced a total payout of $721.8 million to its 14 member schools, which each received about $49.9 million per school.
That number has been projected to increase significantly after the implementation of the 12-team College Football Playoff and the SEC’s forthcoming new deal with ESPN/ABC.
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