Joel Klatt explains why he 'loves' Big 12 considering Mexico games

FOX Sports analyst Joel Klatt is a big fan of Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark’s idea to play games in Mexico. Sports Illustrated‘s Ross Dellenger reported the news last week with the capital of Mexico City and Monterrey both under consideration.

In a recent episode of his podcast, Klatt had high praise for the idea from Yormark, saying it could help the conference as it attempts to keep up with the likes of the SEC and Big Ten.

“I love this for a lot of different reasons,” the analyst said. “Is it great for those fans that maybe miss a home game? Not necessarily. But here’s what I know. I know that the major brands in college football are the SEC and the Big Ten. I know that if you’re not one of those major brands, you better do everything in your power to create value for your institutions. To set yourself apart in terms of interest and platform. (Yormark)’s trying to do that. He’s thinking outside of the box.”

Dellenger reported that the Big 12 “expects” to hosts a basketball game in Mexico as soon as the 2024-25 season. Other sports could soon follow, including football, baseball and soccer. Kansas and Houston are reported to potentially be the two teams to play the basketball game in Mexico.

Arena CDMX in Mexico City would be the venue, holding just over 20,000 people.

Joel Klatt calls for Brett Yormark to be involved in expanded College Football Playoff discussion

Yormark was hired as the Big 12 commissioner in August 2022. His background prior to that was mostly in professional sports as he was previously the CEO for Brooklyn Sports Entertainment as well as rapper Jay-Z’s Roc Nation.

Yormark has been aggressive in expanding the conference since his hiring to make up for the losses of Oklahoma and Texas. He helped work out deals with BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF to join the league for the 2023 season.

Because of Yormark’s background and his willingness to “think outside the box,” Klatt wants him involved in the discussion for the new College Football Playoff format when it expands to 12 teams.

“He’s not this normal academic that has grown up in the institution of intercollegiate athletics and is gonna go and do the same things over and over again and be dogmatic in his thinking in what you can and cannot do,” Klatt said. “He is thinking outside the box and he’s doing that in order to benefit his conference.

“That’s why I love it and that’s why it makes me hopeful that guys like Brett or Tony Pettiti, the new commissioner of the Big Ten, will have a significant seat at the table when constructing the new College Football Playoff for 2026 and beyond. We need guys that will think along the lines of Brett and what he’s doing for the Big 12 for the College Football Playoff. Not just sit there and say, ‘well this is the way we’ve always done it. We need to protect the bowls.’ No you don’t. You need to make a Playoff that is best for college football.”