The Big 12 Conference sponsors championships in 23 sports, 10 men's and 13 women's. The first conference championship awarded was the 1996 softball postseason tournament championship, which was won by Oklahoma.
From 2011 through 2016, the football champion was decided by regular-season play. Previously divisional titles were awarded based on regular-season conference results, with the teams with the best conference records from the North and South playing in the Big 12 Championship Game for the Big 12 title. Following changes in NCAA rules, the Big 12 will reinstate its football championship game in 2017, with the top two teams in the final conference standings advancing to the title game. Baseball, basketball, soccer, and tennis titles are awarded in both regular-season and tournament play. Cross country, golf, gymnastics, rowing, swimming and diving, track and field, and wrestling titles are awarded during an annual meet of participating teams. The volleyball and softball titles are awarded based on regular-season play. Softball previously held a post season tournament.
Membership
Sports
Baseball
All current Big 12 members sponsor baseball except Iowa State, which dropped the sport after the 2001 season. All former Big 12 members sponsored the sport throughout their tenures in the conference except Colorado, which never sponsored baseball during its time in the Big 12.
Men's basketball
Women's basketball
Men's cross country
All Big 12 schools sponsor men's cross country except West Virginia.
Women's cross country
Women's equestrian
Football
Big 12 Championship Game (1996â€"2010, 2017â€"future)
Note: While the team playing in the championship game from 1996 through 2010 was popularly regarded as the divisional champion, the Big 12 did officially recognize co-champions in football, just like it does in other sports. As a result, the following teams are also recognized as champions by the Big 12:
North Co-Champions: Kansas State (1999), Nebraska (2000, 2001, 2008), Iowa State (2004), Kansas (2007), Missouri (2010)
South Co-Champions: Texas (2002, 2008), Texas Tech (2008), Oklahoma State (2010), Texas A&M (2010)
2011 â€" present
When Nebraska and Colorado left the conference after the 2010 season, it left the conference with only 10 members. The conference did not replace the two teams and therefore eliminated the Big 12 Championship game. Under the new format, which remained in place through the 2016 season, every team played each other and the team with the best conference record won the Big 12 title. In the event of a tie between two teams or more teams for the best conference record, then they were determined co-champions. Through the 2013 season, the winner of the head-to-head game earned the BCS berth in the Fiesta Bowl. This was later changed and the league recognized a tie-breaker starting in 2015. The change was made after the B12 was left out of the inaugural four-team College Football Invitational in 2014. The B12 presented TCU and Baylor as co-champs to the College Football Committee in 2014, despite Baylor having the head to head win over TCU. The move was seen as a play by the conference to get two teams invited into the new format, which backfired, leaving both teams out.
Following a 2016 change in NCAA rules that allowed FBS conferences to stage championship games regardless of their membership numbers, the Big 12 announced it would reinstate its championship game starting in 2017. The conference continues to play a full round-robin conference schedule. The top two teams at the end of the conference season (with tiebreakers used as needed) will play in the championship game.
With the launch of the College Football Playoff (CFP) in 2014, which coincided with a reworking of bowl tie-ins, the Big 12 tie to the Fiesta Bowl ended.
- The Big 12's primary bowl partner is now the Sugar Bowl, In years when that game is not a CFP semifinal, the top teams from the Big 12 and SEC, as chosen by the CFP selection committee, will play one another. If either conference provides a team for the CFP semifinals, the top non-playoff team from that conference will go to the Sugar Bowl.
- When the Sugar Bowl is hosting a semifinal, the top Big 12 team not involved in the playoff will receive a berth in either the Cotton Bowl, Fiesta Bowl, or Peach Bowl.
Big 12 Champions (2011â€"2016)
Note: * Head to head winner, though this is irrelevant since Big 12 bylaws had no tie-breaker provisions at the time.
Men's golf
West Virginia added men's golf starting in the 2015â€"16 season.
Women's golf
Women's gymnastics
Denver became an affiliate in women's gymnastics effective with the 2015â€"16 season.
Rowing
In the 2014â€"15 school year, rowing was the only Big 12 sport with affiliate members. Prior to that school year, the Big 12 and Conference USA (C-USA) had a rowing alliance in which all Big 12 rowing schools would participate in the C-USA championship as well as the Big 12 championship. C-USA dropped rowing after the departure of most of its rowing members for other conferences. The Big 12 then took in the three remaining schools from the C-USA rowing league (Alabama, Old Dominion, and Tennessee) as single-sport affiliates.
Since 2015â€"16, the Big 12 also has affiliates in women's gymnastics and wrestling.
Women's soccer
Kansas State announced in 2015 that it would begin sponsoring women's soccer. The Wildcats played their first season in 2016 as an independent, and began playing a full Big 12 schedule in 2017.
Softball
Seven Big 12 schools currently sponsor softball; Kansas State, TCU, and West Virginia do not.
Reference:
Men's swimming and diving
Women's swimming & diving
Men's tennis
Women's tennis
Reference:
Men's track and field
Women's track & field
Women's Volleyball
Oklahoma State has never sponsored women's volleyball as a Big 12 member; it and Vanderbilt are the only two schools in the Power Five conferences that do not sponsor women's volleyball.
Nebraska left the conference in 2011.
Wrestling
Wrestling crowned regular-season champions in 2011â€"12 and 2012â€"13 only.
In 2015, the Big 12 absorbed the Western Wrestling Conference, with that league's six final members becoming Big 12 affiliates effective with the 2015â€"16 school year. Fresno State and Northern Iowa became affiliates in 2017â€"18.
See also
- List of Big Eight Conference champions â€" previous conference of 8 charter members of Big 12
- List of Southwest Conference champions â€" previous conference of 4 charter members of Big 12
Notes
Denotes shared titleâ€
References
