• Big 12 schools make a statement with ‘landmark’ 13-year TV deal

    Fox and the Big 12Last summer, the Big 12 Conference appeared on its deathbed, as rumors of multiple teams leaving the league swirled. After a crazy month, the league held together (thanks in part to the efforts of Baylor Nation), and the conference’s 10 remaining members maintained the Big 12’s place among the top conferences in the nation.

    The conference received an additional statement of support Wednesday with the announcement of a “landmark” 13-year deal with Fox Sports that reportedly more than quadruples the Big 12’s annual TV revenue. Fox will carry a minimum of 40 Big 12 games a year — nearly double the current number — on FSN, FX and Fox College Sports, and beginning in 2012, every Big 12 home football game will be televised on ABC, a Fox network or by institutional platforms. Fox also will broadcast a minimum of 40 other Big 12 events, from women’s basketball to conference championship events in a variety of sports; the league’s current agreement with ABC/ESPN for over-the-air football and men’s basketball rights remains in place through 2015-16.

    The new contract with Fox speaks to the value the national media places on the Big 12, but also says something about the commitment Big 12 schools are making to one another. Even when the Big 12 announced it was staying together last June, some people still predicted that the league might only last another couple of years. A 13-year commitment is nothing to sneeze at, and Big 12 Commissioner Dan Beebe is to be credited for helping pull the league and this deal together. “The new Fox contract and rights that fulfill the agreement solidifies the commitment of the Big 12 member institutions to one another and the conference for the long term,” said Baylor Director of Athletics Ian McCaw. “Baylor will benefit greatly from having long-term conference stability, enhanced revenue and increased media exposure that resulted from this successful negotiation.”

    We are in it for the long haul, and Baylor Bears should be both grateful and proud to be a part of such a fantastic league.

    Sic ’em, Big 12 Conference!