After it appeared that the Texas Longhorns and Oklahoma Sooners would have to wait until the 2025 season to begin SEC play, a report surfaced on Thursday night that states otherwise.
The holdup on the early exit to the SEC from the Big 12 came down to money that Fox would lose with the two top draws in the conference leaving early. Sports Illustrated’s Ross Dellenger reported that the Big 12 and TV partners reached an exit agreement.
Texas and Oklahoma would owe a combined $100 million fee and can begin playing in the SEC starting in 2014. One final run in the conference they called home since 1996.
Dellenger tweeted, “The $100M exit fee will be distributed to the eight legacy Big 12 members, offsetting what was supposed to be a $5-8M reduction in distribution in 2024. A big win for Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark, who aggressively pushed the networks to compromise.”
This is a win-win for both parties involved. The Longhorns and Sooners can prepare for life in the SEC.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1374]
[mm-video type=video id=01graa1dt1e5h4hqxncb playlist_id=01eqbz52bnpekkafqb player_id=01eqbvp13nn1gy6hd4 image=https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/video/thumbnail/mmplus/01graa1dt1e5h4hqxncb/01graa1dt1e5h4hqxncb-e0ce49cff7995b6cdcc296f0192655f8.jpg]