The Big 12 Conference was founded in 1994, originally as the Big Eight Conference, with members from former Big Eight schools including the University of Colorado, Oklahoma State University, the University of Kansas, the University of Missouri, the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, the University of Oklahoma, Kansas State University, and Iowa State University.
In the year 1996, the University of Texas and Texas A&M University joined the conference, and it became known as the Big 12 Conference. Texas Tech University and Baylor University also joined in the same year.
In the year 2011, Texas A&M University withdrew from the conference and joined the Southeastern Conference (SEC) while the University of Missouri also left and joined the Southeastern Conference in 2012.
However, in 2012, two new schools were added to the Big 12 Conference, namely West Virginia University and Texas Christian University (TCU). The conference has undergone several realignments over the years, but currently, it has ten members, including the Baylor University, Iowa State University, the University of Kansas, Kansas State University, the University of Oklahoma, Oklahoma State University, Texas Christian University, the University of Texas, Texas Tech University, and West Virginia University.
Oklahoma and Texas have withdrawn. Arizona, Arizona State, BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, UCF, Utah and West Virginia have been added. Now there are 16 member schools
Since its formation, the Big 12 Conference has produced many notable achievements in college sports, including national championships in football and basketball. The conference has gained significant recognition as being one of the most competitive conferences in college sports, and it has played host to many thrilling games and athletic performances over the years.