From Big 12 media days in Arlington to the SEC’s gathering in Nashville, the pending realignment of Oklahoma and Texas created a palpable buzz. Though the Big 12 and Brett Yormark want to move on, there was a lot of OU-Texas talk inside AT&T Stadium.
The same could be said at SEC media days.
Even though the two schools are still just under a year out from joining their new digs in the SEC, they created a buzz over the last few weeks as anticipation builds.
July 1 is a long way away, but that didn’t stop The Athletic’s Seth Wasserman (Subscription Required) from putting each of the SEC teams into tiers ahead of the first season as a 16-team league.
This week, it was notable how many media members who cover Oklahoma and Texas were present and asking questions, even though the Sooners and Longhorns don’t join the SEC until next year. It served as a preview of how much different, and harder, the conference will be next year: two more big-time programs, a different schedule format, perhaps one more conference game in 2025. – Emerson, The Athletic
The new-look SEC is going to be a banger.
For Oklahoma and Texas, the Red River Rivals joined Alabama, Georgia, and LSU as teams that are championship caliber. Wasserman defined championship caliber: “Be a consistent, realistic contender for a championship.”
Now, the Oklahoma Sooners are one of the best programs in the history of the sport, but to be put in the rarified air of Alabama and Georgia at this stage of the realignment game feels a bit premature.
Alabama has been the best program of the last 15 years. Georgia dominated the college football scene for each of the last two seasons. Even LSU had the most dominant offensive season in college football history in 2019. Though they might have taken a step back from Joe Burrow’s historic season, they’re still a threat to contend each year.
The Sooners are in a retooling after a 6-7 mark in Brent Venables’ first season. There’s no doubt reason for optimism for Oklahoma. Venables and his coaching staff put together top-10 and top-five recruiting classes in their first two cycles in Norman. In the 2024 cycle, they look like they’re trending toward another top-five class. But at some point, the results on the field have to follow.
As for the Longhorns. They’re the Big 12 front-runners in 2023. Yet, it’s been more than a decade since they’ve won the conference and are two seasons removed from a five-win season. They have the talent and the recruiting, but it feels odd to put them in the same tier as Alabama and Georgia. At least Oklahoma can tout conference titles in the last decade. The Longhorns? Not so much.
Oklahoma and Texas are still in prove-it mode. Texas is a year ahead of the Sooners in its coaching transition retooling. But both should be considered in the next rung of teams that are College Football Playoff caliber squads. Teams like Tennessee, Texas A&M, Florida, and Auburn.
Wherever the Sooners land in the SEC hierarchy, the goal is still the same, and the expectations are high. Oklahoma is about winning championships, and the Sooners will not settle for anything less.
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