Brett Yormark addressed the future of the Big 12 -- and how ongoing College Football Playoff negotiations have effected it -- during a presser in Kansas City on March 12.
Spoiler alert: he kept things close to the vest, but he did hint that things weren't going completely swimmingly for his conference.
"There have been ongoing conversations with respect to the next iteration of the CFP," Yormark said (h/t The Topeka Capital-Journal). "I think it's fair to say we are making progress. We have had a lot of tough conversations.
"I’m looking forward to those conversations and moving forward in the most appropriate fashion. Nothing is definitive yet. Like I said, it's a work in progress, and I think we will get there."
Brett Yormark pushing for Big 12 expansion amid uncertain future for College Football Playoff future
Yormark wants Big 12 expansion, though he may not have much of a choice. Schools like Oklahoma State, Kansas State, and Texas Tech could be looking to join the SEC in the future, and Yormark's conference could rebut by adding Pitt, Virginia Tech, Louisville, and NC State.
Heartland College Sports' Bryan Clinton believes that Yormark is being proactive about expansion by pushing for a look-in provision that leaves the door open for his conference to be aggressive in adding teams.
"The revenue-sharing contract currently being discussed includes a look-in provision encouraged by Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark," Clinton prefaced before saying, "The provision in question concerns, you guessed it, further conference realignment. Now, Yormark could simply be using his forward-thinking mentality to ensure that all bases are covered, but the fact that he’s encouraged the provision to be added feels a bit more intentional than that.
"Is Yormark hinting at something else on the horizon, or does this all add up to a big nothing-burger while the Big Ten and SEC continue to become a bigger and bigger problem for the Big 12?"
This cannot be an easy time for any non-SEC and Big Ten commissioner, but Yormark's conference has a much better chance of making it through with a semblance of appearing like a Power conference than the ACC does.