At the 2022 SEC Media Days, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey talked about what it will take for Texas and Oklahoma to be able to leave the Big 12 Conference early.

With conference realignment being an important topic of discussion in recent weeks, Texas and Oklahoma’s future became part of Sankey’s discussion. Sankey revealed that it is not his decision to decide if Texas and Oklahoma will be able to join the SEC before 2025:

“That’s not up to me. That’s about the relationship between Texas and Oklahoma and the Big 12,” Sankey said.

The two schools will be eligible to join the SEC on July 1, 2025. Until then, Texas and Oklahoma will have to sort out their futures in the Big 12. When it was announced in 2021 that they would be leaving for the SEC, it caused a ripple effect in college football.

At last week’s Big 12 Media Days, Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark did not rule out an early exit from the Big 12 for Texas and Oklahoma. Yormark noted that an early departure needs to make sense for his conference.

If Texas and Oklahoma can figure out an agreement with the Big 12 to leave before 2025, the SEC could add the two schools sooner. Based on Sankey’s comments, Texas, Oklahoma, and the Big 12 Conference are the deciding factors in this particular conference realignment.