Texas, Oklahoma are set to join SEC, re-sparks major rivalries for Texas A&M

Oklahoma and Texas will join the SEC one year earlier than expected. The two schools have reached an agreement with the Big 12 to leave the conference for the SEC in 2024, the Big 12 announced Thursday.

As a result of the agreement, the two teams will owe a combined $100 million to the Big 12, and much of that figure will go to the eight legacy universities to help account for an expected decrease in revenue in 2024.

The Sooners and Longhorns were previously set to join the SEC in 2025, when the Big 12’s media rights contract expires. However, both programs and the Big 12 have come to the mutual decision it would be best to accelerate the transition, which was announced in July 2021. 

The move will coincide with several other big changes across college football in 2024. That includes the expansion of the College Football Playoff to 12 teams and the additions of USC and UCLA to the Big Ten.

How the move affects Texas A&M moving forward

There are several ways the move for these two programs to the SEC will affect the Aggies, some of which are general changes the rest of the SEC will feel along with some the Aggies will feel on an individual level.

The general changes will simply be to the schedule, now that is likely the current division system will be altered. It is unlikely we will see the SEC stick to an East and West division, likely meaning the Aggies will see more of a rotation of SEC opponents every few years. There has been no announcement yet what that system will look like, but a common idea brought up is a “pod” system. The pods are four seperate 4-team groupings, where you always play your pod and rotate through the others on a yearly basis. The pods will likely be based on location and current rivalries.

Speaking of rivalries, this is where another major change will come for the Aggies.

The Aggies should be in some of the sports biggest games

Every football fan in the state of Texas and probably around the country, knows the significance and longtime strife surrounding the historic rivalry game between the Texas Longhorns and Texas A&M Aggies. The last time the two teams played was 2011, before the Aggies left the Big 12. Now, we should see the two play each other every year.

The yearly matchups in College Station and Austin are going to be some of the most energetic gamely

Although the Longhorns control the all-time record at 76-37-5, the rivalry should become one of the most significant ones in the country moving forward.

The same can also be said of the game between Oklahoma and Texas A&M. That rivalry is slightly less historic, Oklahoma leading 19-12 all time. The last time the two played was 2013, which Texas A&M won.

Because of the regional recruiting battles occurring often between the two programs, many of the players, coaches, and fans will know each other, helping form an emotional, heavy game. It is not a guarantee like Texas is, but is possible we see Oklahoma in the same pod/group as Texas A&M moving forward.