Greg Sankey addresses Texas, OU move following decision to cancel multiple future series with Oklahoma

Oklahoma was scheduled to face off against Georgia next season, with it being labeled as a nonconference showdown. The SEC changed those plans, advising the Bulldogs to cancel the matchup along with a home and home series Tennessee had with the Sooners.

Now, SMU will travel to Norman next year while Ball State will head south to Athens.

Since the first matchup between Oklahoma and Georgia was scheduled for 2023, questions were asked about conference realignment. At some point, Oklahoma and Texas will join the SEC and become full-time members. However, according to SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, that will not be the case for the 2023 season.

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Greg Sankey said next year’s Alabama-Texas rematch will still be played as scheduled. Because of that, the SEC commissioner says it’s “a pretty good sign that conference alignments are gonna stay that way next year.”

The first matchup between head coaches Nick Saban and Steve Sarkisian was a classic, with Alabama escaping with a victory. When the two meet up in Tuscaloosa next season, an improved Texas should be rolling into Bryant Denny Stadium. Another classic should be on the cards.

But the bigger story is the SEC staying with 14 teams next year. If that remains true, nothing will change, at least from a scheduling perspective. The conference will continue their business as usual.

The Big 12 would be a different story. Four teams will enter the conference before next year, with BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF accepting their invites. Fourteen teams will be in the Big 12 if Oklahoma and Texas stay.

Scheduling will have to change there as well, ditching the round-robin format. While it might be a short-term fix, the conference has a new, if not brief, era upon them.