Big 12 Won’t Split Into Divisions For Conference Championship In 2017

When it was announced months ago that the Big 12 would look at adding a conference championship game in 2017, it was thought that the league would split into two 5-team divisions (especially since the Big 12 chose not to expand). Today we’ve learned that while we are getting a Big 12 title game, there won’t be divisions.

So that means that in 2017, the top two teams in the standings will meet in the Conference Championship. Here’s what Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby had to say about today’s announcement.

On the plus side; It’s good that the two best teams are guaranteed to meet, that way you don’t get a 10-1 team versus a 7-5 team in the title game. On the down side...

No divisions means the (real) possibility of two teams meeting two weeks in a row. Without expansion, we knew the Big 12 title game would end up being a rematch. At least with divisions, you could make sure everyone played a “division” game the last week of the regular season to avoid the situation we now have.

On the flip side; since the Big 12 went to 10 teams, with the current teams in the league, 2015 is the only time the two title contenders would have played the week before. That’s one time out of five. So while it is a possibility, it’s not a strong one. Of course, knowing the way the Big 12 is handling things lately doesn’t mean they won’t overreact to the possibility.

The only thing we do know, this story isn’t over yet, and won’t be until the first championship game in 2017. The league still has one decision to make; where to host the championship game. As of now, Kansas City, San Antonio, and Arlington are all in the running. No word on when that decision will be made.