Less than two months after Texas and Oklahoma announced their pending departure to the SEC, the Big 12 is wasting no time finding replacements for the two powerhouses. Houston, BYU, UCF, and Cincinnati have all sent in their applications to join the conference, and as of Friday, the schools were unanimously accepted into the Big 12 Conference.

Let’s take a look at why these four schools were selected and what they bring to the conference.

Brigham Young University:

BYU bet on itself when it left the Mountain West in 2010. Most would call its journey a success. Since becoming an independent, the Cougars have won games against high-ranked Power Five schools, including Texas, Wisconsin, and USC. Leading them to these victories were star college players such as Taysom Hill and more recently Zach Wilson.

This partnership seems like a perfect match. The Cougars are independent in football, but their other athletic programs compete in the West Coast Conference. Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy recently said that “Coast to coast, people see BYU as a Power Five team.” The problem is other schools using the lack of a conference championship and Power Five exposure against BYU in recruiting. 

Players love playing for championships and fans love watching their team win trophies. It’s what every kid dreams about. Having the opportunity to play in a New Year’s Six bowl or for a Big 12 title is going to give a huge boost to all the BYU sports programs.

The only con to this addition is Provo, Utah, is not close to the current Big 12 schools.

University of Houston:

Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby met with Houston school officials last Thursday to discuss a potential Big 12 membership. The Houston Cougars have been linked to the Big 12 for years now. After having their first attempt denied in 2016, it now looks like what was once inevitable will culminate. 

Houston is a hotbed for recruiting. UH joining a power-five conference will undoubtedly give it a huge boost in keeping its hometown athletes in the city. 

In the south, football is king. However, this addition moves far beyond just the football program. Houston has a great basketball team that is coming off of a Final Four appearance. UH also has an elite track and field program along with a baseball team that has had success in recent years. Adding the Cougars will give a nice competitive lift in all sports in the Big 12. And as we know, more competition means more viewers, which means more money.

For the Big 12, this is the smartest move it could make. Houston is a huge TV market. After losing Texas A&M to the SEC, the Big 12 took a huge hit in the Houston area. With the potential departure of the Texas Longhorns, the conference needed to react to maintain its presence in the largest city in Texas.

University of Central Florida:

Like Houston, UCF brings the Big 12 a boost in viewership with Orlando being a top-20 market in the country. However, like Texas, Florida is flooded with bigger programs, but the Big 12 should jump at a chance to have a presence in one of the biggest states in the country. 

The Knights have had a lot of recent success in football, and with Gus Malzahn now at head coach, the success is likely to continue. As a program across all sports, UCF is ranked above many Power Five schools, so this move makes sense beyond just football.

University of Cincinnati:

The Bearcats currently have the best football program of the four teams potentially receiving invites. Coming fresh off a New Year’s Six bowl appearance, Cincinnati was able to keep standout coach Luke Fickell and is currently a top 10 team in the nation. Like Houston, the Bearcats basketball program will be a nice addition, creating some intriguing basketball matchups during conference play. 

Cincinnati has to compete with Ohio State which will hurt in terms of attendance, but the city is still a top-50 TV market with a rich tradition.

What happens next:

The four teams could join the conference as early as 2023, but a lot would need to happen for that to occur. The three AAC schools will join no later than July 1, 2024, while BYU will tag along for the 2023-2024 athletic season, according to Bowlsby. In order for the AAC schools to leave the conference, they will have to give a 27-month notice and pay a $10 million buyout fee. So we could potentially see them compete with the likes of Texas and Oklahoma for a year or two. These four schools won’t make up for the loss of the two blue bloods, but as a collective, they can still arguably provide a more competitive conference than the ACC and can remain on par with the Pac-12.