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Texas’s FRISCO Brett Yormark was appointed commissioner of the Big 12 Conference on August 1, 2022, and as he nears his third year in charge, he talked about the league’s advancements under his leadership and his vision for the Big 12’s future.
The Big 12’s current position excites me. Yormark stated Tuesday to begin the 2025 Big 12 football media days at the Star in Frisco, saying, “I said three years ago that I wanted to modernize this conference.” I wanted it to look more modern. I wanted to raise awareness among aspiring student-athletes.
I wanted to lay the groundwork so that we might be successful. I adore the direction this conference is taking. When I started this work three years ago, it was all I could have ever wanted, yet it seems like we’re only just getting started. I’m looking forward to our future. Although this conference is not at its peak right now, it will be in the near future.
A dizzying level of change has been a constant throughout Yormark’s tenure. The league added BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF in 2023, as well as Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah in 2024. Texas and Oklahoma, conference mainstays, left for the Southeastern Conference following the 2023 season, but Arizona State’s victory in the Big 12 football championship game in its first season in the league is a sign that the conference is on firm ground.
We’ll be America’s deepest football conference, in my opinion. According to Yormark, no league provides the same level of competitive balance. In terms of lead changes in the fourth quarter and go-ahead scores in the last minute of conference games, the Big 12 led the country last season.
Our star power will be on full show this year, particularly at quarterback. Nine starting quarterbacks who threw for more than 2,400 yards the previous season are back in the Big 12. I really believe that the Big 12 will receive several college playoff bids this season and prove once more that we are a formidable team.
Klieman Bullish on Cats/Cyclones Rivalry
When a member of the media asked Chris Klieman, the football coach at Kansas State, if he grew up rooting for the Hawkeyes or the Cyclones, it was one of the funniest moments of his press conference on Tuesday morning.
I was a fan of Northern Iowa and grew up in Waterloo. I performed there. With a sardonic smirk, Klieman declared, “I was a Panther.” KSU and ISU have a fierce rivalry. As a child, I recall listening to the games and watching them constantly. I am aware that this rivalry is fierce and has been for a while.
The two programs have a great deal of respect.
Texas Flood Victims on Minds of Yormark, Coaches
In his opening remarks, Yormark asked for a moment of silence and mentioned those impacted by the flooding in Central Texas earlier this week, which has so far taken over 100 lives.
Similar remarks were made by coaches who were on the platform, particularly Texas Tech head coach Joey McGuire, who was born and raised in Texas and has coached in the Lone Star State his entire coaching career.
Before I discuss my squad, I want to say that we are praying for everyone in Central Texas because we are proud Texans and nowhere else. McGuire uttered those words.
Based in Frisco, Texas, Stephen Hunt works as a freelance writer.
