Big 12 buyout? Fans, media react to timeline of Texas, Oklahoma joining SEC
By Keith Farner
Published:
As soon as the news came out on Thursday afternoon that SEC presidents and chancellors voted unanimously to invite Texas and Oklahoma to join the league, the next question was would it be sooner than the July 1, 2025 effective date.
Fans and media reacted to the news, and several conversations and reports suggested that ESPN may be in the middle of the financial terms for Texas and Oklahoma to buy their way out of the SEC.
It appears that legal challenges, and financial buyouts are the only things that stand in the way of the Longhorns and Sooners being in the SEC.
Here’s a sampling of the reaction on social media:
Who’s to say ESPN doesn’t take $150 million it saved from the Longhorn Network & finance a buyout. A highly placed P5 source familiar with TV negotiations said ESPN could make that back in 2 years in increased sub fees, commercial revenue. That’s the juice of OU, UT.
— Dennis Dodd (@dennisdoddcbs) July 29, 2021
More legit question: Will Texas home-and-home with Bama in 2022-23 be a conference game?
— G. Allan Taylor (@GAllanTaylor) July 29, 2021
The SEC voting unanimously for and A&M publicly supporting the OU/TX addition is not a surprise. Ever since Mike Slive told his schools to stop with the out loud fighting, they’ve all seen the benefit of that. But this’d be great night to own a liquor store in College Station.
— Ryan McGee (@ESPNMcGee) July 29, 2021
1. SEC votes on big issues are unanimous
2. The 2025 date is there to avoid contract issues. No one expects Texas and OU to linger in the Big 12 for 4 more years.
3. Scheduling issues are down the road (but maybe not for long) It will be interesting to see the 8/9 game vote.— Cecil Hurt (@CecilHurt) July 29, 2021
* Will be much sooner than 2025 (based on covering this up close with Texas A&M a decade ago).
— Brent Zwerneman (@BrentZwerneman) July 29, 2021
This is, unequivocally, the worst mistake the SEC has ever made. Texas will destroy our conference.
— Nick C. de Castro🌹 (@Nickd457) July 29, 2021
Texas is and always has been the diva in the conference (even as they’ve always had all the power). They’re gonna be in for a rude awakening when that shit doesn’t fly in the SEC.
— Alex Seiwert (@AlexSeiwert) July 29, 2021
But for real, has anyone ever actually been happy to have Texas in their conference? Has it ever been a good thing for not-Texas? We hear about all the insane booster stuff and how Texas is only out for Texas and we…extended them an invitation to join the SEC?
— Alexandra Sizemore (@aesizemo) July 29, 2021
Texas in the SEC is gonna be pure comedy https://t.co/Uw2a9rY62L
— mr guy (@crimsonxkai) July 29, 2021
OU and Texas are gonna regret joining the SEC 🌚
— Nιƈƙ (@nicominajo) July 29, 2021
A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.
