West Virginia football doesn’t appear until Day 2 of Big 12 Media Day in the afternoon at the Dallas Cowboys practice facility in Frisco, Texas. But that didn’t mean there wasn’t plenty to talk about when half of the other coaches took the podium, and the Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark took the stand in a lengthy introductory press conference.
Yormark made headlines a couple of times in his opening remarks and then with the questions that followed, but the biggest was when he announced the Big 12 had partnered with Monster Energy to be the entitlement partner of Big 12 football and men’s and women’s basketball. The deal is reported to be roughly $20 million annually, and it’ll pay the 16 Big 12 members around $1 million each year.
This was a promotion for the reported No. 1 energy drink company domestically from last year’s deal, where Monster was the official energy drink of the conference.
“Monster Energy represents drive, edge, ambition, qualities that mirror our student-athletes and the Big 12 Conference,” Yormark said.
Monster will have a co-branded logo with the Big 12 Conference, which will be featured on football and basketball jerseys, fields and courts, with additional integration across conference digital and social media channels. The jersey logos are a new addition to college athletics this season after the Division I Cabinet approved them in January. The Mountaineers haven’t announced their other jersey partnership yet, and according to the deal, no team can have another energy drink patch.
More details on the deal and what other content will come will follow in the coming months before the start of the season.
The Monster Energy deal wasn’t the only hot topic discussed while Yormark was on the stage. Yormark opened the floor to questions, and the first question he was asked about was ex-Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby.
Sorsby was the headline of the offseason, especially in the Big 12. The former Cincinnati quarterback transferred to the Red Raiders in the transfer portal, with a big N.I.L price tag to come with it. Sorsby was investigated for sports gambling while in college, and even entered a gambling addiction program in late April. After an investigation found he placed thousands of bets online, while even on the team at Indiana, the NCAA deemed him ineligible for the 2026 season, which was his final year in college.
Sorsby was granted a preliminary injunction by a judge that made him eligible for the 2026 season. But, that came with backlash, including from athletic directors and coaches around college football and the Big 12. Eventually, Sorsby and Texas Tech decided it would be best he head to the NFL and not play this season.
A reporter asked about Yormark’s support throughout the months-long situation regarding Sorsby and Big 12 member Texas Tech.
“Let me start off by saying I appreciate the question,” Yormark said. “I appreciate other questions that are probably going to come forth today. Today is not the time to address that issue. Today is about celebrating the upcoming football season and celebrating our 16 schools, but I appreciate the question, so thank you.”
That wasn’t the end of the Sorsby and Red Raiders question for Yormark. He had a heated interaction with Red Raiders podcaster Sean Dillon. Dillion questioned Yormark’s remarks about supporting all 16 members when he thought the Big 12 didn’t help in regard to throwing the tortillas on the field, or during the Sorsby situation.
Yormark marched over and told Dillion to stand up and reask the question. After, Yormark replied.
“No, I didn’t say greater than 12,” Yormark said. “You misquoted me. I said we’re going forward as 16 strong, and that’s my answer to your question, but thank you for that question. Appreciate it.”
Yormark also touched on his support for the Protect College Sports Act and the expansion of the College Football Playoff. He also talked about adding another conference game. Yormark brought it up at the spring meetings, but he said it’ll be based on the CFP expansion. He talked about how there are still global ambitions to play games internationally.
With all the questions and concerns, Yormark made it clear he’s made every decision with his 16 schools in mind.
“There has never been a better time than right now to be part of this conference,” Yormark said. “We look forward to moving ahead as 16 strong and leveraging our scale and collective influence within college athletics to deliver monster moments all year long.”
