Oklahoma, Texas to become SEC members in 2025

close

Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for July 30

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

The Southeastern Conference (SEC) announced Friday it has granted membership to the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas at Austin starting on June 1, 2025.

Both Texas and Oklahoma’s board of regents unanimously voted to allow the schools to leave the Big 12 Conference and join the SEC at that time. The SEC later confirmed it will allow the schools to take part in athletic competitions starting the 2025-26 academic school year.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

"This is an important moment for the long-term future of the Southeastern Conference and our member universities," SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in a news release. "Oklahoma and Texas are outstanding academic institutions with two strong athletics programs, which will add to the SEC's national prominence. Their additions will further enhance the already rich academic, athletic and cultural legacies that have been cultivated throughout the years by our existing 14 members. We look forward to the Sooners and Longhorns competing in our Conference starting in the 2025-26 academic year."

The SEC will have at least 16 schools at the start of the summer of 2025.

The Longhorns and Sooners leave the conference after several decades. Both schools were a part of the Big 12 when the conference was formed out of the Big Eight and Southwest Conference merger.

ESPN FIRES BACK AT BIG 12 COMMISSIONER'S CLAIM OF SHADY DEALINGS

"The board’s action today is undoubtedly one of the most significant decisions in our more than a century of athletics and is of true importance to the broader university," Oklahoma president Joseph Harroz Jr. said in a statement. "We believe that joining the Southeastern Conference will sustain our tradition of national-caliber athletics excellence, strengthen our flagship university as a whole and serve the wider interests of the state of Oklahoma. The entire Sooner Nation and Oklahomans throughout the state stand to benefit from this move, and we’re thrilled for a new platform to tell the OU story all across the country."

Texas System Chancellor James. Milliken added: "Today’s action by the Board of Regents is in the best interests of UT student athletes, the UT Austin athletics program overall, and the university. This move ensures a strong future for an outstanding athletics program, providing the opportunity for our student athletes to compete at the highest levels."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

The school requested to join the conference on Tuesday. The schools’ membership into the conference is likely to have a broader impact on conference realignment within major NCAA athletics.