Three years after Texas and Oklahoma announced their transfer to the SEC and sparked a tectonic shift in college sports, the Longhorns and Sooners are finally joining the SEC.
On July 1, the departure of the two Big 12 teams became official, as did numerous other conference realignment moves that have reverberated throughout every corner of Division I. The exodus of 10 Pac-12 schools to other conferences will become official on Aug. 1.
In total, 15 FBS schools will change conferences this summer. Including the four Sun Belt changes in 2022 and the 14 other FBS changes in 2023, a total of 33 FBS teams have changed conferences since Texas and Oklahoma announced their changes. That’s nearly a quarter of the FBS, which grew from 130 to 134 teams in that span. And that doesn’t include the three additional changes scheduled for the summer of 2025.
To help you keep track of all the moves, here’s a refresher on what changes are currently in effect (or coming soon) and which schools are in which FBS conferences in 2024.
Big Ten (18 teams)
- USC and UCLA to be added to Pac-12 on August 1 (announced in 2022)
- Oregon and Washington to be added to Pac-12 on August 1 (announced in 2023)
Full members as of August 1, 2024:
When Texas and Oklahoma announced their transfers in 2021, the Big Ten helped form “The Alliance” with the ACC and Pac-12 to slow realignment and keep conferences from destroying each other. Or so it seemed. A year later, the Big Ten announced the addition of USC and UCLA, along with a new television deal. The league had opted not to add Oregon and Washington at the time. But last summer, as the Pac-12 struggled to reach a television deal, Oregon and Washington jumped at the chance to join the Big Ten at a discounted price at the last minute, dismantling the mighty West Coast conference.
The Big Ten eliminated divisions and now has 18 teams, surpassing the WAC of the late 1990s as the largest FBS conference since the Southern Conference had 23 teams in the early 1930s.
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SEC (16 teams)
- Addition of Texas and Oklahoma from the Big 12 (announced in 2021)
Full members as of July 1, 2024:
The move that sparked this wave of realignment is perhaps the easiest to understand. The SEC already had a presence in Texas, and the addition of the historic Longhorns and Sooners programs keeps the conference in contiguous states. Football divisions were also eliminated here.
Big 12 (16 teams)
Full members as of August 1, 2024:
The Big 12 appeared on the brink of collapse in 2021 when it was caught off guard by the elimination of Texas and Oklahoma. Not only did it survive, officially adding four schools last season, but it now expands to 16 teams by taking on the Pac-12’s “Four Corners” schools, which came after more than a year of courtship.
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ACC (17 football teams)
- Addition of SMU from the American Athletic Conference (announced in 2023)
- Will add Cal and Stanford from Pac-12 on August 1 (announced in 2023)
Full members as of July 1, 2024:
(Notre Dame is not a football member)
The ACC made a proactive realignment decision by adding Cal, Stanford and SMU after the Pac-12 collapsed, though NC State had to change its initial position for that to happen. Clemson, Florida State and North Carolina voted against that decision. Clemson and FSU have since filed lawsuits against the league in hopes of voiding the league’s grant of rights and potentially leaving the conference. The realignment may not be complete yet, but the ACC hopes it has stabilized on the back end during this event.
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Pac-12 (Two teams)
- Will lose USC and UCLA to Big Ten on August 1 (announced in 2022)
- Will lose Oregon and Washington to Big Ten on August 1 (announced in 2023)
- Will lose Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado and Utah to Big 12 on August 1 (announced in 2023)
- Will lose Cal and Stanford to ACC on August 1 (announced in 2023)
Full members as of August 1, 2024:
There will be no Pac-12 championship this year with just two teams. Oregon State and Washington State will each play at least six Mountain West football games, but will essentially operate as independent teams. The Mountain West made room for the games by reducing its schedule to seven conference games this season. A potential merger between the two teams is possible, but OSU and WSU have until 2026 to determine their plans.
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American Athletic Conference (14 football teams)
- Lost SMU to ACC (announced in 2023)
- Addition of the military since independence as a football-only member (announced in 2023)
Members as of July 1, 2024:
The AAC has lost four schools to powerhouse conferences in the past two years, but the addition of Army will keep the league at 14 teams. Army and Navy will retain their post-championship weekend game, but it will be a non-conference game and will not factor into potential College Football Playoff scenarios.
Conference USA (10 teams)
Full members as of July 1, 2024:
At one point in 2021, CUSA was down to five future schools. But the league held firm, adding four schools for 2023 and is now at a Round 10 for 2024 with the addition of Kennesaw State. The Owls didn’t start playing football until 2015, but the suburban Atlanta school has been a solid FCS program.
No change: MAC, Mountain West, Sun Belt.
Coming in 2025: UMass joins MAC; Delaware and Missouri State join Conference USA.
(Photo: Daniel Dunn/USA Today)
