University of Texas at Austin playing
football against Iowa State University
The Big 12 Conference is a college athletic conference that is part of the NCAA 's Division I . It started when the Big 8 Conference joined together with four colleges from Texas that had been part of the Southwest Conference, and the first games in the Big 12 Conference were played in 1996.
Members
School
Location
Founded
Type
Nickname
Joined
Arizona University of Arizona Tucson, Arizona 1885
Public
Wildcats
2024
Arizona State University Tempe, Arizona [a] 1885
Public
Sun Devils
2024
Baylor University Waco, Texas 1845
Private
Bears
1996
Brigham Young University (BYU)Provo, Utah 1875
Private
Cougars
2023
Cincinnati University of Cincinnati Cincinnati, Ohio 1819
Public
Bearcats
2023
Colorado University of Colorado Boulder Boulder, Colorado 1876
Public
Buffaloes
1996; 2024[b]
Houston University of Houston Houston, Texas 1927
Public
Cougars
2023
Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 1858
Public
Cyclones
1996
Kansas University of Kansas Lawrence, Kansas 1865
Public
Jayhawks
1996
Kansas State University Manhattan, Kansas 1863
Public
Wildcats
1996
Oklahoma State University–Stillwater Stillwater, Oklahoma 1890
Public
Cowboys &
1996
TCU Texas Christian University (TCU)Fort Worth, Texas 1873
Private
Horned Frogs
2012
Texas Tech University Lubbock, Texas 1923
Public
Red Raiders & Lady Raiders[c]
1996
UCF University of Central Florida Orlando, Florida [d] 1963
Public
Knights
2023
Utah University of Utah Salt Lake City, Utah 1850
Public
Utes
2024
West Virginia University Morgantown, West Virginia 1867
Public
Mountaineers
2012
↑ Tempe is home to the main campus. Arizona State has three other physical campuses in the Phoenix area.
↑ Colorado left the Big 12 for the Pac-12 Conference in 2011 and returned in 2024.
↑ Texas Tech uses the "Lady Raiders" nickname for women's basketball. All other sports, whether men's or women's, use "Red Raiders".
↑ The UCF campus has an Orlando mailing address but actually lies in unincorporated Orange County .
Associate members The Big 12 also has 20 "associate members", all of which play one sport in the conference.
School
Location
Founded
Type
Nickname
Joined
Big 12 Sport
Main Conference
Air Force United States Air Force Academy USAF Academy, Colorado [a] 1954
Federal
Falcons
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Mountain West
Boise State University Boise, Idaho 1932
Public
Broncos
2025
Beach volleyball
Mountain West (Pac-12 in 2026)
California Baptist University Riverside, California 1950
Private
Lancers
2022
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling WAC (Big West in 2026)
Denver University of Denver Denver, Colorado 1864
Private
Pioneers
2015
gymnastics, Women's Women's gymnastics Summit League
Florida University of Florida Gainesville, Florida 1853
Public
Gators
2024
lacrosse, Women's Women's lacrosse SEC
Florida State University }}Tallahassee, Florida 1851
Public
Seminoles
2025
Beach volleyball
ACC
Fresno State California State University, Fresno Fresno, California 1911
Public
Bulldogs
2019
Equestrian
Mountain West (Pac-12 in 2026)
Missouri University of Missouri Columbia, Missouri 1839
Public
Tigers
2021
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling SEC
North Dakota State University Fargo, North Dakota 1890
Public
Bison
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Summit League
Northern Colorado University of Northern Colorado Greeley, Colorado 1889
Public
Bears
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Big Sky
Northern Iowa University of Northern Iowa Cedar Falls, Iowa 1876
Public
Panthers
2017
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Missouri Valley
Oklahoma University of Oklahoma Norman, Oklahoma 1890
Public
Sooners
2024[b]
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling SEC
Old Dominion University Norfolk, Virginia 1930
Public
Monarchs
2024[c]
rowing, Women's Women's rowing Sun Belt
San Diego State University San Diego, California 1897
Public
Aztecs
2024
lacrosse, Women's Women's lacrosse Mountain West (Pac-12 in 2026)
South Carolina University of South Carolina Columbia, South Carolina 1801
Public
Gamecocks
2024
Beach volleyball
SEC
South Dakota State University Brookings, South Dakota 1881
Public
Jackrabbits
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Summit League
Tulsa University of Tulsa Tulsa, Oklahoma 1894
Private
Golden Hurricane
2024
rowing, Women's Women's rowing American
UC Davis University of California, Davis Davis, California 1908
Public
Aggies
2024
lacrosse, Women's Women's lacrosse Big West (Mountain West in 2026)
Utah Valley University Orem, Utah 1941
Public
Wolverines
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling WAC (Big West in 2026)
Wyoming University of Wyoming Laramie, Wyoming 1886
Public
Cowboys
2015
wrestling, Men's Men's wrestling Mountain West
↑ Basically all of the Academy grounds lie outside the city limits of Colorado Springs . The U.S. Census Bureau considers the Academy to be the census-designated place of "Air Force Academy", and the U.S. Postal Service calls it "USAF Academy".
↑ Oklahoma had been a full member of the Big 12 from the conference's start of play in 1996 until leaving for the SEC in 2024.
↑ Old Dominion had been a women's rowing associate from 2014 to 2018.
Former members Six schools have left the Big 12 since it was formed, but one has since returned to the conference. Missouri would return to the Big 12 in 2021 as a wrestling-only member, and Oklahoma remained a wrestling-only member after otherwise leaving for the Southeastern Conference. Colorado left in 2011 but returned in 2024.
References
