What will the Future Hold for the SEC with Oklahoma and Texas Joining?

By Mackenzie Weissman

IMC Student

Texas and Oklahoma are set to join the SEC on July 1, 2025, but they could potentially join earlier. This leaves SEC fans wondering how this move will affect the conference in the future and the overall outcome of the new teams joining the conference.

Texas and Oklahoma both received around $34 million from the Big 12 within the last year, which could increase to $60 million a year when they move to the SEC.

Adding these teams to the conference will also provide high value for ESPN’s college football season. This will help ESPN account for its $3 billion investment in the SEC.

The SEC will probably expand to a nine-game conference schedule after growing to 16 teams. The additions to the conference will allow each team to play every team in the opposite division once every four years, which is more frequent than before.

I feel as if Oklahoma and Texas will be just the beginning for future expansion in the SEC. I do not like this idea and believe it will lead to the transfer portal ruining college football and becoming a free-for-all like the NFL.

It is speculated the reason behind Oklahoma and Texas’ rush to join the SEC is because they contacted ESPN, and ESPN told them they would call them back and never did. This aggravated the Big 12 because they knew if it was the SEC calling, ESPN would quickly respond to their needs.

I believe the SEC and Big 10 will dominate college football in the years to come, and the smaller conferences will become irrelevant. It is already up in the air whether Florida State, Miami, Clemson and North Carolina will join the SEC in the future This will not be a choice, but it is going to change.

The SEC has asserted dominance over college football for as long as I can remember. This new expansion is the beginning of much more to come. However, only time will tell how whether it was a smark move.