Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark said he supports a 24-team CFP field because of “the access,” but also that it “takes some hiss, some heat out of this system, and I think that’s good for everyone.” Yormark, appearing on “Big 12 Today,” said the cost of building rosters currently is “all based on what does it cost to be one of 12.” He added, “Right now, it’s about spending the resources to be one of 12. That changes dramatically when you go to, you got to be Top 25.” Yormark said “too many good teams are being left out” of the CFP as it currently is set up, and so the “obvious is more access.” He added, “More access would be great for the Big 12.” Yormark said the CFP management committee, which includes the 10 conference commissioners and Notre Dame AD, “just needs to roll up our sleeves and do the work, because there’s a lot of work that needs to be done around 24.” He noted there could be “unintended consequences” of expanding to 24, but also they need to “start modeling” what the economics of expansion look like. Yormark: “If you go to 24, you get rid of your champ game, and the champ game for the Big 12 is very valuable.” Yormark also hits on a number of other topics across college sports and the Big 12:
- On the Big 12’s private capital deal with RedBird: “At the core, it’s about how do we create value for our member institutions, and the best way to do that is through our commercial business, and RedBird has an incredible ecosystem that they’re a part of.”
- On the future of the Big 12’s media rights, with its current deal running through 2030-31: “The streamers are going to be much more active than they were in our last deal. … There isn’t a player out there that I haven’t contacted, chatted with, just in an effort to be ready.”
- On the NCAA basketball tournaments expanding to 76 teams: “I don’t think there’s a better and more marquee event in U.S. sports than what takes place during March Madness. … Having said that, modest expansion was certainly what I was looking for, and I think that’s what ultimately happened, and I do believe that the Power Four, but specifically the Big 12, will be a beneficiary of that” (“Big 12 Today,” 5/20).
