College Football Bombshell: Texas, Oklahoma To Join SEC in 2024, One Year Earlier Than Expected
College football realignment took another bombshell turn as Texas and Oklahoma will join the SEC in time for the 2024 football season, one year earlier than it was expected they would move.
The Big 12 confirmed the news on Thursday night and comes after a year of speculation that the schools were finding a way to move early.
The agreement is subject to the final approval from the governing boards of Texas and Oklahoma and includes what is expected to be a major financial cost incurred by both schools for leaving the Big 12 early.
What it costs for Oklahoma and Texas
Part of the cost for the early exit will go to the Fox network to compensate for the network's projected lost revenues from what is the equivalent of seven games that it was supposed to air.
College football insider Brett McMurphy revealed that instead of paying the exit fee, the Big 12 let OU and Texas leave early by forgoing $100 million of revenue distribution. Of that amount, Fox will receive $20 million.
The $80 million left from that amount will be divided by eight remaining Big 12 schools, around $10 million each.
Also, OU and Texas will not get a full share of SEC revenue for their first year in the conference, according to that reporting.
What the Big 12 said
"As I have consistently stated, the conference would only agree to an early withdrawal if it was in our best interest for Oklahoma and Texas to depart prior to June 30, 2025," Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark said in a statement.
"By reaching this agreement, we are now able to accelerate our new beginning as a 12-team league and move forward in earned with our initiatives and future planning.
"I appreciate the approaches of OU president Joe Harroz and UT president Jay Hartzell to ensure an amicable conclusion to this process, and look forward to the bright days ahead for the Big 12 Conference."
Those bright days include the addition of new members BYU, UCF, Cincinnati, and Houston in what will be a 14-team Big 12 for the 2023 college football season.
But after this year, the Big 12 will not have Texas or Oklahoma in it.
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