Greg Sankey admits mistakes in communication during Oklahoma, Texas expansion talks

Greg Sankey was not forthcoming last year when talks between, and about, Oklahoma and Texas joining the SEC ramped up.

During a visit to Texas A&M on Thursday, he owned up to the lack of transparency. Perhaps playing a well thought out communication strategy, Sankey may have been as open as he wanted to be in order for the additions to go through.

“I didn’t communicate effectively,” Sankey told the Houston Chronicle. “I’ll own that.”

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey to @HoustonChron on keeping Texas A&M, others in dark re: addition of Texas and Oklahoma:
“I didn’t communicate effectively. I’ll own that.”
(Sankey was greeted politely in College Station on Thursday): https://t.co/EWCIFxcwXo via @houstonchron

— Brent Zwerneman 📰 (@BrentZwerneman) February 25, 2022

It appears that it could be difficult for Oklahoma and Texas to leave the Big 12 before the 2025 season, and Sankey has previously acknowledged pre-existing relationships and being respectful of those.

It could be difficult for Texas and Oklahoma to try to get out of the Big 12 earlier than that

Sankey has previously said about the moves, “We’re going to have an orderly transition and that’s why we’re focused on ‘25. But I’m a pretty adaptable person.”

“I don’t know that it is possible, honestly, because there are contractual relationships involving their current conference,” Sankey said, per Gates. “But we have a forward-looking thought process. Part of my responsibility is to be prepared when you have those outreach and we’ll see.”

Keith Farner

A former newspaper veteran, Keith Farner is a news manager for Saturday Down South.