Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt Alludes to Two-Part Expansion Process for the Big 12 Conference
The timeline for Big 12 Conference expansion appears to be moving even quicker than previously reported.
Saturday evening, during halftime of the Texas Tech vs Houston game, Texas Tech Athletic Director Kirby Hocutt (pictured) appeared on the Texas Tech Sports Network radio broadcast.
Hocutt talked with Texas Tech announcers Brian Jensen and John Harris. In response to a question from Harris, Hocutt said that Houston, University of Central Florida, Cincinnati and BYU are "legitimate possibilities for expansion." Hocutt also said there were some additional "unnamed schools" who were possibilities too. Hocutt included in his comments that football success is the "number one" factor for Big 12 expansion.
Hocutt's comments carry some extra weight as he is one of four members of a Big 12 Conference committee on expansion.
Hocutt mentioned that Big 12 Conference presidents are scheduled to talk on Monday. The discussions on Monday could be a lead-up to a September 10 meeting that Sports Illustrated first reported.
The other revelation during Hocutt's interview with Jensen and Harris is that the Big 12 Conference could already be planning a second set of expansion.
Hocutt told the duo that he sees conference realignment being an "eight to 10-year process" for the Big 12. A second set of schools could be invited to the Big 12 Conference once the exits of Texas and Oklahoma, and the integration of the first set of new schools, is completed.
Both The Athletic ($), and Sports Illustrated, are reporting that Houston, University of Central Florida, Cincinnati and BYU are the schools the Big 12 is targeting to put the conference back at 12 teams, once Texas and Oklahoma leave for the SEC.