Sooners are SEC-bound despite what skeptics say
Ten reporters and OSU softball coach Kenny Gajewski were talking the Bedlam rivalry on a chilly morning last week. Then Gajewski dropped a bombshell.
Concerning OU’s eventual move to the Southeastern Conference, Gajewski turned skeptic.
“I don’t even know that they’re going to the SEC,” Gajewski said. “Do you think so? You think that’s all going to happen? I just think there’s a lot of unknowns.”
Gajewski admitted he’s a conspiracy guy, and the chaos that has come to college sports is enough to make anyone wonder about the future.
“I just think this whole thing is going to blow up,” Gajewski said. “I just think this whole thing is going in a weird place. Everybody’s kind of jockeying.”
So count him as dubious that the Sooners and Texas are SEC-bound.
“Until it happens and happens for sure and they have that patch that doesn’t say Big 12, it says SEC...” Gajewski said.
But Gajewski has it all backward. The chaos and weirdness of college sports in the ‘20s is the reason OU and Texas would not consider changing their minds about defecting from the Big 12. The chaos and weirdness, embodied by the transfer portal’s immediate eligibility rule, which has caused a land run on free agency, and the name, image and likeness bull market, which is causing economic lunacy among boosters and fear among administrators, would make a school run even more swiftly toward the SEC.
The primary reason for OU’s and Texas’ decision was money. Increased conference payouts, primarily through the
“I don’t even know that they’re going to the SEC. Do you think so? You think that’s all going to happen? I just think there’s a lot of unknowns.” OSU softball coach Kenny Gajewski, on OU’s move to the SEC
television package. What exactly has occurred that has made money less important? Nothing. Finances are driving college sports more than ever before.
Bigger staffs. More administrators. More amenities. What major school is seeking to step back and try to rein in the madness? Not one that I know of. Whether you're a blueblood or a little engine that could, you're charging into the flames of the chaos.
I'm not saying OU is without regret over the SEC decision. Maybe the Sooners have some. I'm not saying the Sooners don't have some anxiety about the future.
But I am saying the Sooners are going full bore toward the SEC, in every decision they're making. From personnel to infrastructure to economics.
OU is planning for life in the SEC. Lincoln Riley didn't talk about it much in his four months as an SEC-bound Sooner coach. But Brent Venables has talked openly about it in his five months as an SEC-bound Sooner coach.
Look at the staffing. Have you seen all the new positions created around OU football? It's impossible to keep up with them. Have you heard Venables talk about the facility upgrades he desires? That's not to stay ahead of Texas Tech. That's to keep up with Alabama.
OU is acting like a school about to jump from a $38 million a year conference payout to a $70 million a year conference payout. There's no turning back.
Now, Gajewski's view of the landscape isn't myopic. The college landscape is crazy. But that just means more changes, not reverting to previous relationships.
Fewer and bigger conferences. The demise of the NCAA. A Power 5 Conference jailbreak from mid-majors. Anything seems feasible.
Anything except going back. That does not seem feasible. Chaos brings more change. Not less.
Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription.