Longtime Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby will step down later this year, the conference announced on Tuesday afternoon.
A former AD at Northern Iowa, Iowa and Stanford, Bowlsby was hired to be the Big 12 commissioner in 2012. He took over for Dan Beebe.
The 70-year-old Bowlsby will remain commissioner until a successor is chosen before transitioning into a “new interim role” with the Big 12.
“I truly believe the Big 12 and our member institutions are in a strong position now and as we look to the future,” Bowlsby said in a statement today. “As such, this is an appropriate time for me to step away from the commissioner’s role so that the next leader of the conference can take the reins on these significant matters that will come to the forefront before the end of the term of my employment agreement in 2025 to set the stage of the Big 12’s ongoing future success.”
Big news: Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby will step away from the Commissioner’s chair later this year after a decade of leading the league. He’ll remain Commissioner until the appointment of a successor and will then transition to a new interim role with the league.
— Bruce Feldman (@BruceFeldmanCFB) April 5, 2022
Bob Bowlsby will step down as Big 12 commissioner later this year, the conference announced pic.twitter.com/QJVH6ccrDL
— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) April 5, 2022
Bowlsby and the Big 12 took a major hit last summer when conference stalwarts Oklahoma and Texas announced they were bolting for the SEC. In October, Bowlsby called that decision “silly” in an interview with CBS Sports.
In response, the Big 12 welcomed BYU, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF as new members starting in 2023. They will be part of a 14-team league while OU and Texas remain in the Big 12 in 2023 and 2024 before the conference shrinks to 12 teams in 2025.
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