Brett Yormark calls completing Big 12 media rights early critically important

When Brett Yormark took over as Big 12 commissioner nearly a year ago, he faced a tall task in creating long-term stability for the conference’s future. The league was facing the imminent departure of Oklahoma and Texas for the SEC, and there was uncertainty about its direction despite adding four new schools — BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF.

As Yormark thought of ways to increase the Big 12’s stature in college football, negotiating a new TV deal made the top of his list. The conference’s current deal was set to expire in 2025 and other leagues such as the SEC and Big Ten had already reached agreements on media rights deals of their own.

That in mind, Yormark had to act fast, and he did. A little less than three months into his tenure as commissioner, the Big 12 reached an agreement with ESPN and FOX on a six-year extension worth $2.28 billion set to run through 2031.

Looking back on all that he has accomplished so far, Yormark still views that as his biggest win.

“I thought that was critically important,” he told FOX Sports’ Joel Klatt. “I was asked at my first media days what did I think of the TV landscape and would I accelerate my negotiations, because we had two years before we were effectively at the table. I felt that was something we had to do. We had to solidify our future, create stability and clarity for the members in our conference.

“When I look back on that, I think it served as a catalyst for everything we’ve done since because there’s an opportunity cost to such a long negotiation. The fact that we were able to get it done in 90 days, put it behind us and focus on all the other things, I think, was a great boost to our future.”

Yormark went on to explain that the Big 12’s TV deal accounts for 60% of its revenue. With schools set to split an average of $380 million each year, it’s not only secured the commitment of current programs, but made the conference an attractive candidate for expansion.

Yormark said in a recent interview with On3’s Eric Prisbell that he would be “disappointed” if the Big 12 doesn’t get to 14 teams within the next two years. It’s been rumored that Colorado has already had conversations about joining the Big 12. The Pac-12 having yet to reach an agreement on its new media rights deal is a big reason why.

Additionally, Yormark said that reaching an agreement on the TV deal has given the Big 12 a “voice” when it comes to hot-button issues such as College Football Playoff expansion, NIL and the transfer portal. The conference now finds itself in a much more comfortable position compared to a year ago, and Yormark contends that moving swiftly on the media rights negotiations is where it all started.

“I know stability gives you a seat at the table,” he said. “It gives you that voice that we certainly are looking for long term. And we’ve leveraged it. …I think it gave us the green light to really start thinking about the conference differently. To grow it, to diversify it, to think about an international strategy, to create new IP and to think a little bit more into the future.

“When it does come to expansion, I love the makeup and the composition of our conference today. But if there’s something that’s additive, we certainly need to pursue it. I think that TV deal gave us a right to do it. So it was a true catalyst. It was the instigator, if you will, for everything we’re doing. Today and moving forward.”