Greg Sankey details how Texas' success in Big 12 Championship helps SEC

The Texas Longhorns are looking like they’re finally back, and it’s come during their final season in the Big 12 Conference.

While that may sting the Big 12 a little, as Texas prepares for the conference title game on Saturday, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey is smiling from ear to ear. He knows he’s getting one of college football’s premier programs when 2024 rolls around.

Ahead of the Big 12 title game between the Longhorns and the Oklahoma State Cowboys, Sankey elaborated on how excited he is for Texas to join the SEC.

“I had the opportunity in October to be a part of the OU-Texas or Texas-OU game. I try to walk the line finely on those rivalry games. I was blown away by that experience,” Sankey explained. “The level of excitement around the game itself, but the interaction that existed between myself and just fans in attendance — I had to walk through the old Cotton Bowl stadium, narrow stairways, to catch up. Went to find Jay Hartzell from Texas. I had seen Joe Harris, the president at Oklahoma, walk through the fans, took pictures, heard the SEC chant from both groups. I think that’s an indication of a base level excitement about our new relationship.

“The game that day between at that point two undefeated teams magnifies the natural excitement, and I experienced some of that last year in Austin when Alabama played at Texas and this year when Texas played at Alabama. I experienced that day in College Station when Oklahoma scored the eruption from the Texas A&M fans. I think that’s what makes our conference special. Both of them will fit into these rivalries. They’ll be in new places with new experiences. We’ll send our teams to Austin and Norman, many of them for the first time. It is going to be an incredible season in ’24, and an incredible future for the Southeastern Conference as a 16-member league.”

Alas, Texas has proven they can hang with the SEC’s best in 2023, as they defeated Alabama in Week 2. Most teams can’t say they have a win over the Crimson Tide, even after playing each season, so it’s a huge boon for the Longhorns.

Regardless of their SEC potential, Texas’ mission was clear in 2023, they wanted to win the Big 12, make the College Football Playoff and prove they belong. The first step is squarely in their control, but they’ll need some help afterwards.

We’ll see if the Longhorns get it. No matter what happens, Greg Sankey and many others can’t wait for their arrival in the SEC.