Golden: Big 12 commish Yormark drew a line in the sand with his comments on Texas

Brett Yormark took it there.

And he didn’t have to.

When he replaced Bob Bowlsby as the Big 12 commissioner a year ago, he got straight to the point at his first appearance at media days last July in Arlington.

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“The Big 12 is open for business,” Yormark said.

One year later, it has gotten really personal against the league’s resident blue bloods.

The Texas Longhorns open this season at home against Rice on Saturday, but the talk isn't the Owls coming to town. It's about what the commissioner said about its most lucrative athletic department.

Yormark deserves credit for charting an aggressive path toward marking this league viable in the next decade as college football enters a period of uncertainty.

As Texas and Oklahoma — the Big 12's only traditional college football powerhouses — prepare for a move to the Southeastern Conference, Yormark has deftly taken a few meaty bites off what’s left of the Pac-12’s carcass by bringing in Arizona, Arizona State and Colorado to join BYU, Cincinnati, Central Florida and Houston, who are making their conference debuts this fall.

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No one is blaming him for not getting the warm fuzzies when the not-so-dearly departing are mentioned with the SEC, but he made a grievous error when he revealed what we already knew at an annual Red Raider kickoff luncheon in Lubbock last Wednesday.

When discussing the Black Friday showdown between Texas Tech and Texas — possibly the last matchup of a rivalry that dates back to 1928 — Yormark thrust his full public support behind the Red Raiders and coach Joey McGuire, whose team upset Texas 37-34 in overtime last season on the South Plains.

"I'm not going to put any pressure on you, but I'm going to be in Austin on Thanksgiving," Yormark said to McGuire. "And you better take care of business like you did right here in Lubbock last year.”

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His call-out played to thunderous applause in that building but drew an irresponsible line in the sand between his office, Texas and Oklahoma.

Speaking in a friendly room

For what it’s worth, the Red Raiders are a dark horse pick to make it to the conference title game at Jerry World after finishing 8-5 and placing fourth in the league — just behind Texas — in McGuire’s first season. They also beat Texas and Oklahoma in the same season for the first time.

That said, this wasn’t the time or place to wave your public pompoms for one league member over another.

The luncheon was held at the Lubbock Memorial Civic Center, a nice venue with all the accoutrements needed for an exciting event, but the keynote speaker wasn’t dressed to commemorate what this event was about. He should have worn a top hat, red tail jacket and a handlebar mustache because he turned the Big 12 into a big-top that day.

I like a good hype man as much as anybody, but the commish shouldn’t be that guy. Did he learn anything from the years he spent with music mogul Jay-Z, who made millions by keeping his friends close and his enemies closer in his lyrics?

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We all have less than flattering thoughts about people we don’t jive with, but a real boss knows how to not act out of emotion.

This isn’t to say Yormark shouldn’t feel some degree of animosity for the leadership of those schools with the manner in which Chris Del Conte and Joe Castiglione — two of the most high-profile and respected athletic directors in the country and the most important administrators in the league  — helped their bosses secretly broker this move with SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, all the while sharing board rooms with unsuspecting colleagues up until the news broke two summers ago.

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I hated the way it went down, but once those decisions are made, you, as the commissioner, should stay above the public fray. Slide on your designer suit, adjust your Big 12 lapel pin and play your position. Feel any way you want, but watch what you say because Texas and Oklahoma are still members of this league.

Setting the stage for a problematic season

Now if an AD like Kirby Hocutt or Mack Rhoades wants to speak out against those two, that’s fine because they rep for their school, but the league commissioner should serve and publicly support the full membership, not just the ones who are coming back in 2024.

Yormark acted unprofessionally. His comments not only reverberated through the college football world but placed an unnecessary spotlight on the referees this fall.

Now, whenever a call goes against Texas or Oklahoma in a big game, the conspiracists will make themselves known. Even the questionable calls will be viewed under a microscope big enough to stretch well past both sides of the Red River. What happens if an opposing player scores against Texas, gets in UT coach Steve Sarkisian’s face and flashes the Horns down on the Longhorns' sideline: a 15-yard penalty or a blind eye because we know big brother is watching?

And is it really a conspiracy if we already know the commissioner is a fan boy who has lost any semblance of objectivity with his public display of non-affection?

Texas and Oklahoma helped create this monster with their mishandling of a delicate move — even if 99.9% of divorces can get nasty — but the Horns aren’t shying away from wearing the black hat or even the black suit for that matter.

“They've kind of adopted the John Wick mentality,” Sarkisian said about his players, channeling Keanu Reeves’ indestructible human killing machine. Sark says the team has decided to embrace the hate. Fans have already suggested to CDC to print up some T-shirts.

The Horns plan to meet Yormack’s farcity with force on the field. Being hated is nothing new for them.

“We’re the University of Texas and we get it,” Sarkisian said. “We can sit there and be a punching bag or we can go attack the people we’re going to play.”

Yormark’s reckless language may have played favorably to the people in Lubbock and others who don’t reside in Austin or Norman, but he did himself no favors because those words hurt him in the credibility department.

Black Friday will be some scene. Yormark plans to be in the area, but it’s uncertain if he will be allowed within 10 miles of the city limits, let alone in a suite at Royal-Memorial Stadium.

Hey Brett, enjoy that Motel 6 in Hillsboro.

Saturday's game

Rice at No. 11 Texas, 2:30 p.m., Fox, 1300

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Golden: Texas football is Yormark's public enemy No. 1