Here’s the Reason The Big 12 Will Have a Title Game in 2017

“If we do nothing, we’ll fall behind the SEC and the Big Ten in terms of [revenue],” Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby told reporters in May at the Big 12 spring meetings in Phoenix. “We may be every bit as competitive as we are today, but we’ll fall behind financially.”

There you go.

That’s why there will be a Big 12 Championship game in 2017. That’s it. That’s the entire list of reasons.

Oh sure, Bowlsby can prop up competitive advantage and data points and statistical models as fronts for why there’s a Big 12 title game (and the impending five-team divisions — which is hilarious).

Here he is banging out those data points by the way.

“The addition of a football championship game allows for a 13th data point for our teams under consideration for the College Football Playoff,” said Bowlsby.

But what really happened is that Bowlsby realized the shortest distance between the Big 12 and the SEC was the straight line to Jerry World and a title game in December 2017.

Adding teams is complicated and adding a network is a non-starter. Both of those things could (and probably would) add money to the Big 12. But adding a single game is easier.

And adding a single game at the end of the year that puts (allegedly) nearly $30M in your conference’s pockets — $3M per team in addition to the money you’re already making — keeps you somewhat financially competitive with the SEC.

Big 12 championship game would bring almost $30 million annually, Bob Bowlsby said. “High 20s,” he said.

— George Schroeder (@GeorgeSchroeder) June 3, 2016

It’s a short-term solution, to be sure, and that might be all the Big 12 needs right now.

I’m not sure how we didn’t see this coming in retrospect. I suppose I wasn’t aware a Big 12 title game was worth $30M. That’s 5x how much the Big 12 gets from placing a team in the College Football Playoff. Five times! The Big 12 gets $6M for making the College Football Playoff and close to $30M (allegedly) for a rematch of a game that’s already been played. Why not make it a three-game series and skip the CFB Playoff altogether?

So while it’s ridiculous that OSU and OU would have replayed Bedlam last year a week later for the Big 12 title, it also would have been beneficial to both schools to the tune of $3 million. That’s bigger and better facilities to contend with the SEC and Big 10, more resources for a thriving athletic department and more hoodies for Gundy.

Win-win-win? I guess. Until a 12-0 OSU gets housed by 9-3 TCU and misses the playoff.