Texas and Oklahoma Formally Petition the SEC for Membership
For the second consecutive day, leadership at the University of Texas and the University of Oklahoma, have taken specific legal steps to ensure their schools can leave the Big 12 Conference and join the Southeastern Conference (SEC) with next to no interference.
Tuesday morning, the presidents of Texas and Oklahoma co-signed a letter asking the SEC for membership, effective July 1, 2025.
Tuesday's letter came one day after Texas and Oklahoma both notified the Big 12 Conference that each school's Grant of Rights (for television/multimedia) to the Big 12 would end with the 2024-2025 athletic year.
The choreographed moves for Texas, Oklahoma, and the SEC could continue later this week as the process continues for Texas and Oklahoma to leave the Big 12 Conference for the SEC.
Texas and Oklahoma have both scheduled Board of Regents meetings for this upcoming Friday, July 30.
Meanwhile, early Tuesday afternoon, Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby released a statement following the latest action by Texas and OU. "The Big 12 Conference has learned that the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas have submitted formal requests to the SEC to be considered for membership beginning with the 2025-26 athletic year. The events of recent days have verified that the two schools have been contemplating and planning for the transition for months and this formal application is the culmination of those processes. We are unwavering in the belief that the Big 12 provides an outstanding platform for its members’ athletic and academic success. We will face the challenges head-on, and have confidence that the Big 12 will continue to be a vibrant and successful entity in the near term and into the foreseeable future," said Commissioner Bowlsby.
Once the existing SEC schools accept Texas and Oklahoma into in the conference, the final piece of the puzzle will be for the lawyers to workout an official separation date between Texas, OU and the Big 12.