As the Big 12 was going through its Media Days earlier this week, one of the stories that went under the radar was the formation of the Big 12 Alumni Council. According to the Big 12 website, it was created for the following reasons:
“The Big 12 Alumni Council is comprised of 32 former student-athletes from men’s and women’s programs across each Big 12 institution. The Council was created to leverage the experience and expertise of some of the Big 12’s most notable student-athlete alumni as the Conference enters a new era. These alumni will provide guidance and insights surrounding a variety of topics, including brand building, athlete relations, storytelling, digital content and much more.
In turn, each Council member will receive a variety of resources and amenities, including networking access to the Big 12’s Business Advisory Board for professional networking, league support of council member’s community initiatives, media opportunities on behalf of the league and VIP access to all Big 12 Championships and Conference events.”
Who is on the Big 12 Alumni Council?
The council has one former female and male athlete from each of the 16 Big 12 schools. It is interesting that the conference decided to go with former athletes who may have been separated from their playing days for decades. However, by going with an older group of former athletes, they can gain the opinions of alumni who know more about the school’s tradition, history, and culture.
Here is a complete list of who is on the list.
| Arizona | Richard Jefferson |
| Arizona | Jennie Finch |
| Arizona State | Lawrence Guy |
| Arizona State | Briann January |
| Baylor | Whitney Canion |
| Baylor | Robert Griffin III |
| BYU | Steve Young |
| BYU | Ashley Hatch |
| UCF | Tacko Fall |
| UCF | Shaquem Griffin |
| Cincinnati | Jordan Thompson |
| Cincinnati | Kevin Youkilis |
| Colorado | Joel Klatt |
| Colorado | Shelley Sheetz |
| Houston | Andre Ware |
| Houston | Natara Holloway Branch |
| Iowa State | Ashley Joens |
| Iowa State | Georges Niang |
| Kansas | Wayne Simien |
| Kansas | Lynette Woodard |
| Kansas State | Kindred Wesemann Orpin |
| Kansas State | Tyler Lockett |
| Oklahoma State | Tiffany Bias Patmon |
| Oklahoma State | Brandon Weeden |
| TCU | Marshall Newhouse |
| TCU | Zahna Medley Kindred |
| Texas Tech | Cody Campbell |
| Texas Tech | Carolyn Thompson |
| Utah | Stevenson Sylvester |
| Utah | Charmelle Green |
| West Virginia | Georgeann Wells |
| West Virginia | Mike Gansey |
Unity Continues to Drive the Big 12
The Big 12 has been claiming that it is the most unified conference in the nation, and it has good reason to believe that.
- Every G5 school hopes to leave its conference for a P4 conference. While many Big 12 schools would leave for the SEC or Big 10, it doesn’t appear any are actively looking to leave.
- The Big 10 has teams like Nebraska and Iowa, which are often at odds with the conference. Also, Michigan and Ohio State call all the shots.
- ACC is the next Pac-12. Lawsuits are flying left and right, and rumors are swirling about teams trying to leave. This is the least unified conference in the country.
- SEC schools are all happy to be in the SEC, but if you think Arkansas or Vanderbilt have any say with anything, you’re kidding yourself.
By having an alumni council that reports to Commissioner Brett Yormark, the Big 12 is once again showing how committed they are to the conference’s schools. If the conference wants to play a game in Mexico, perhaps Steve Young can chime in and mention that Mexico has over one million members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints and that BYU would get a good crowd.
First-ever Big 12 Alumni Council, and I’m thrilled & humbled to serve on it
We’re in a very exciting time for the Big 12. Ashley and I are looking forward to being a helpful resource for the Conference, its Commissioner, and its phenomenal student-athletes. Let’s go!! https://t.co/NnfRzEkhXq
— Steve Young (@SteveYoungQB) July 11, 2024
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