Three Takeaways From Brett Yormark’s Big 12 Media Day Address
Jul 9, 2024, 1:08 PM
Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark addressed the media at Media Days in Las Vegas. (Liz Parke/Big 12 Conference)
(Liz Parke/Big 12 Conference)
LAS VEGAS – Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark had his annual football media day state of the conference address.
Here are three takeaways from his commentary that took place in front of more than 500 credentialed media members.
“Deepest Football Conference in America”
Brett Yormark is known for “doubling down.” He doubled down on the locations of Big 12 Championships and now he’s doubling down on what he views the 16-team conference will look like.
Brett Yormark: "We will be the deepest conference in America. And every week will matter. We have star power in parity."#Big12
— Mitch Harper (@Mitch_Harper) July 9, 2024
During his State of the Conference address, Yormark said the Big 12 will be the “deepest football conference in America.”
After saying it once, he followed it up by saying, “Let me say that again. We will be the deepest football conference in America. And every week will matter. We will have star power in parity.”
The 16-team Big 12 is competitive. But what it lacks is a clear-cut bell-cow brand. Who will that be? Regardless if one emerges or not, the league is confident the parity will win the day.”
Big 12 is set to compete at the highest levels
After the House v. NCAA settlement, the revenue-sharing era has arrived in college athletics.
Schools could be paying up to $22 million back to their athletes. The details of how that plays out are still being sorted out, but the Big 12 plans to be part of the mix.
Yormark said the league “will thrive and compete at the highest levels.”
He also noted that he will let the schools decide how quickly they reach the $22 million threshold.
“I will not stop until we’re the number one conference in America”
A lot of conversation for Yormark was centered around comparisons to the Big Ten and SEC.
Those two conferences are making the most money and are looking to establish themselves away from the pack.
“I will not stop until we’re the number one conference in America.” – @Big12Conference commissioner Brett Yormark #KSLBig12 #Big12 pic.twitter.com/BfQVwdIyMf
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) July 9, 2024
“We’re one of the three best conferences in America, and we’re getting better,” Yormark said. “Think about where we were 24 months ago and think about where we’re at today. I will not stop until we’re the number one conference in America. That’s my ambition. I shouldn’t have anything but that.”
Could he accomplish that? It’s hard to picture right now as the last National Champion in football in this league was Colorado in 1990.
Before that, it was BYU in 1984.
Still, it’s a power league that is pushing to reach the highest levels of the sport.
Mitch Harper is a BYU Insider for sports.ksl.com and hosts the Cougar Tracks Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and Cougar Sports Saturday (12–3 p.m.) on KSL Newsradio. Follow Mitch’s coverage of BYU in the Big 12 Conference on X: @Mitch_Harper.
