U. Missouri will officially be moving to the Southeastern Conference from the Big 12, effective July 1, 2012, according to the Associated Press.
The SEC voted unanimously to allow Missouri into the conference for next season, according to the report.
Missouri’s addition will make it the 14th school in the SEC with the addition of Texas A&M. The two schools will be the first additions to the SEC since 1991, when Arkansas and South Carolina joined the conference to bring it to its current format of 12 teams.
“The Presidents and Chancellors of the Southeastern Conference are pleased to welcome the University of Missouri to the SEC,” said Florida President Bernie Machen in a statement. “The University of Missouri is a prestigious academic institution with a strong athletic tradition and a culture similar to our current institutions.”
Missouri is the fourth team to leave the Big 12 since July, when Nebraska and Colorado departed for the Big Ten and Pac-12. It will also be joining the SEC with Texas A&M, which announced its move from the Big 12 in September.
Missouri was a founding member of the Big 12 in 1907 — then known as the Big Eight — and has competed in the league ever since.
Missouri’s supposed departure was met with a response from the Big 12, as it added West Virginia to the conference in the event of a departure from the Columbia, Mo., school. However, West Virginia is facing legal troubles with its current conference, the Big East, with its move to the Big 12 — which is slated to take effect July 1, 2012.
The Big East has been trying to enforce its 27-month notification policy for members trying to exit the conference, which would keep West Virginia out of the Big 12 for the next two years. A lawsuit has been filed in retaliation to this by West Virginia, which is currently pending.
West Virginia’s acceptance into the Big 12 was a move made in anticipation for Missouri’s departure, since the conference needs 10 members to keep its TV contracts intact, according to the report.
In the official news release from the Big 12 on Oct. 28 did not list Missouri as one of the 10 schools of the conference, a clear indication that the school was already out the door at that point in the conference realignment debacle.
There is a possibility, though, that Missouri could stay in the Big 12 until West Virginia is officially able to escape its legal troubles with the Big East and join the conference, according to the report.
The SEC has been working on schedules for a 13-member conference next season, it told the Associated Press.
As for what conference Missouri would be in once it enters the SEC, Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long tweeted that Missouri will most likely be in the SEC East.
Big 12 Interim Commissioner Chuck Neinas declined requests for comment.