Cincinnati, Houston, UCF to exit AAC for Big 12 in 2023 after settlement
Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF have reached an exit agreement with the AAC and will join the Big 12 on July 1, 2023, the AAC announced Friday.
The three schools and conference settled on an exit fee worth $18 million each, sources told Sam Khan Jr. and Justin Williams of The Athletic.
BYU, an independent in football, is also joining the Big 12 in 2023. As a result, the conference will consist of 14 teams until Oklahoma and Texas move to the SEC in 2025, barring an early exit with a settlement.
The deal Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF struck allows the AAC to welcome six Conference USA programs - Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, North Texas, Rice, UAB, and UTSA - on the same date.
The teams and the C-USA are expected to finalize a deal in the next few days, a source told Chris Vannini of The Athletic.