In late August, news broke that despite previous assurances and stances, Oklahoma and Texas were going to try and leave the Big 12 Conference earlier than 2025.
Those attempts have stalled out and it looks like the Longhorns and Sooners will be in the Big 12 for two more seasons.
That is the latest from ESPN’s Pete Thamel.
Thamel reported early Friday morning that at this point any early exit for Oklahoma and Texas “is unlikely to come to fruition,” after negotiations between the schools, the conference (Big 12) and television partners (ESPN and Fox) proved to be too complicated.
“(The) parties couldn’t come to terms amid a complex negotiation between two schools (OU/Texas), two networks (ESPN/Fox) and the Big 12,” Thamel wrote on Twitter.
An “industry source” told Thamel: “There’s no formal timeline or brink from which you can’t come back, but this is where things are right now — a deal is unlikely.”
Earlier this week, CBS Sports’ Dennis Dodd reported that Texas and Oklahoma “recently made an offer to the Big 12 and Fox to leave the league one year early for the SEC,” but that offer was rejected (the specifics of the offer were unknown to Dodd and CBS Sports sources).
One of the major issues in any early exit for the Longhorns and Sooners is that Fox and ESPN (but mostly Fox) needed to be compensated for losing Texas and Oklahoma from the programming lineup.
CBS Sports reported that that could have involved “a series of nonconference games involving both schools being played in Big 12 stadiums once Texas and Oklahoma joined the SEC,” though that idea appears to have lost any traction.
Dodd did quell rumors that the delay in the release of the Big 12’s schedule for next season came about because of Texas and Oklahoma, though.
“There was speculation that Tuesday’s release of the 2023 Big 12 schedule was connected to the Texas-Oklahoma issue,” Dodd wrote. “In other words, nothing could happen until it was known when the programs would leave the league.
“Not true. The league faced a deadline of early February from their rightsholders to get the schedule done. Fox and ESPN needed to start scheduling games themselves.”
Texas and Oklahoma still would like to leave for the SEC a year early, Dodd wrote, but at this point, “complications are numerous.”
Oklahoma is scheduled to make a visit to Provo this season to play BYU on Nov. 18, while the Cougars will travel to Austin to take on Texas on Oct. 28.