Three More Schools? The Big 12 Announces Another Expansion

In a statement released to the media, the Big 12 Conference wrote, “The Big 12 Board of Directors has voted unanimously to admit Arizona State University, Arizona University, and the University of Utah to the Big 12 Conference.”

"We are thrilled to welcome Arizona, Arizona State, and Utah to the Big 12," Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark wrote. “The conference is gaining three premiere institutions both academically and athletically, and the entire Big 12 looks forward to working alongside Presidents, Athletic Directors, Student-Athletes, and Administrators.”

The Big 12 is no stranger to expansion teams. After the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma announced that they were leaving the Big 12 for the SEC Conference, the Big 12 has been on the warpath. Since the announcement, the Big 12 has added eight schools to the conference. BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF (University of Central Florida) all joined the Big 12 and will participate in the conference for the first time in 2023. 

Then last week, the University of Colorado announced they were leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 12. It’s clear that the latest three schools saw the writing on the wall and jumped at the chance to join another large conference before the Pac-12 became defunct. Unfortunately, the four remaining schools in the Pac-12, Stanford, Oregon State, Washington State, and Cal, will have some tough questions and even tougher decisions to make in the near future. However, for the Big 12 Conference, all it can say is that it will be fine without Texas and Oklahoma.

Big 12 Football kicks off on Friday, September 1, when the Missouri State Bears travel to David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium in Lawrence at 7 p.m.