Brett Yormark shares mindset in finding Big 12 TV deal

Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark was honest about landing a new TV deal for the conference amid a whole lot of things for college football this summer.

The Big 12 landed a deal back in October worth $2.28 billion with ESPN and FOX ahead of officially adding Cincinnati, UCF, Houston and BYU. But the conference had to do something when losing Texas and Oklahoma.

In a new Big 12, Yormark is satisfied with the deal, especially with Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State and Utah coming next season, but is open to a new one at some point. Better safe than sorry.

“When I got this job, the first thing I did was outsource some thinking and strategy because when I inherited that conference, we didn’t have much of an infrastructure here,” Yormark said on The Marchand and Ourand Sports Media Podcast. “But the number one thing that endeavor, you know, was asked to do was to evaluate our TV deal to identify kind of, you know, what the goal post would look like moving forward.

“Could we get something done quickly? And we went into the market, as you know, very quickly, and by October, we had effectively put together a deal with ESPN and FOX. And we had a verbal agreement and it was the right thing for us to do because it became the catalyst for everything we’ve done since then.” 

Big 12 media deal was right decision per Brett Yormark

Amid other moves by the conference, such as expansion, Yormark said getting a television deal was priority No. 1.

“It was the number one catalyst,” Yormark said. “Now at the time, I didn’t realize that was really the last big deal. That was an available media deal, especially in our industry of collegiate athletics. But there was no doubt that at the time we wanted ESPN and still do (want) ESPN and FOX so they could help elevate and amplify our schools, our conference for all the right reasons.”

It wasn’t a shot per se, but Yormark mentioned how linear television was the right move for the Big 12. The Pac-12 was reportedly engaged with its members, at the time, for an Apple TV media deal.

“I do think that you know, on a go forward basis, that digital distribution might be something that will play a big role in that next TV cycle, but right now, we wanted linear,” Yormark said. “We wanted exposure, we wanted marketing, we wanted ESPN and FOX, and I said if I could get a good deal, maybe not a great deal, but a good deal, we’re gonna go early, and my board felt the same way and we did it. And I’m glad we did and, you know, sometimes in life, you got to get lucky.”