Big 12 open to further expansion if 'opportunity presents itself'

The Big 12 is happy with its current membership but remains open to expansion, commissioner Brett Yormark said Friday, leaving the possibility of further realignment beyond the four new schools the conference is set to add on July 1.

"We love our current composition. We love the four new schools that are coming in next month," Yormark said. "However, if the opportunity presents itself to create value, we will pursue it."

The Big 12 has been at the center of seismic conference changes across the Football Bowl Subdivision, beginning with the shocking announcement that Texas and Oklahoma would leave the league and join the SEC in 2024. To replace the Longhorns and Sooners, the Big 12 added Brigham Young, Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston to form a 14-member league for the 2023 season.

Speaking after the end of the league's spring meetings in West Virginia, Yormark said Big 12 presidents and athletics directors "had a great discussion about expansion" and that the league will "consider all options."

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That includes the evaluation of schools from a basketball-only perspective, such as Gonzaga, and current Bowl Subdivision programs that place a heavier emphasis on basketball, namely defending national champion Connecticut.

"We do believe in the upside of basketball moving forward as a collective group," Yormark said. "We think it’s undervalued. And there’s a chance for us to double down as the No. 1 basketball conference in America."

At the same time, "football is the driver," he admitted, "and we all know that."

From a football perspective, the Big 12 could attempt to wrestle away current members of the depleted Pac-12, including Arizona, Arizona, Colorado and Utah. The conference could also evaluate successful Group of Five programs such as Boise State, Memphis and San Diego State.

With membership set to drop back to 12 teams in 2024, the league's decision regarding future expansion is contingent on several key factors, including availability, location and potential financial impact. The conference agreed last October to new rights deals with ESPN and FOX worth over $2 billion.

The Big 12 distributed $440 million to its members during the 2022-23 year, Yormark said. While Texas and Oklahoma agreed to a combined $100 million exit fee to join the SEC, the two schools received a full payout for 2022-23.

"We have a plan," said Yormark. "As I’ve said all along, we have an appetite to be a national conference in our makeup, from coast to coast."