On Friday, it was announced that Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston will officially transition from the AAC to the Big 12 conference beginning in the 2023 season, per 247sports.com. All three schools emerged as powerhouses in the AAC this past year. Cincinnati won the AAC and even earned a Final Four spot in the college football playoffs. Meanwhile, Houston finished second and UCF was third in the conference. The three schools undeniably earned their entry into the Big 12.
AAC commissioner Mike Aresco commented on the news. He began by thanking the presidents of each university. He then explained how each school left a positive impact on the AAC.
“All three institutions enjoyed tremendous success under the American Athletic Conference banner, and all three were instrumental in taking the conference to great heights, both athletically and academically. We wish them the best and look forward to having them compete in our conference in 2022-23.”
2022-2023 will be the final season Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston compete in the conference before heading over to the Big 12. Despite the upcoming move, all three teams would love nothing more than to win the AAC in their final season.
The news of their departure has been known for sometime. But it was unclear when they would officially make the transition. All three schools helped speed up the process due to their strong 2021 performances.
Other AAC teams will be glad to see them go after the trio dominated the conference last season. Cincinnati, UCF, and Houston will need to prepare for extremely difficult competition on a consistent basis upon entering the Big 12 in 2023.
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