Alabama running back Trent Richardson (3) evades Texas defenders to score a 49-yard touchdown during the second quarter of the BCS Championship NCAA college football game in Pasadena, Calif., Thursday, Jan. 7, 2010. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson)The Southeastern Conference and the Big 12 Conference have announced an agreement in which the football champion from each league will meet in a bowl unless one or both are selected in the four-team playoff for the national championship.
The agreement begins with the 2014 season and is for five years.
"A new January bowl tradition is born," SEC commissioner Mike Slive said. "This new game will provide a great match-up between the two most successful conferences in the BCS era and will complement the exciting postseason atmosphere created by the new four-team model. Most importantly, it will provide our student-athletes, coaches and fans with an outstanding bowl experience."
If one or both of the league champs are selected to play in the playoff, another team from each conference would be picked for the Big 12-SEC matchup.
An SEC or Big 12 representative has played for every BCS championship since 2003. Champions from the SEC and Big 12 played for the BCS title after the 2008 and '09 seasons, when Florida defeated Oklahoma and Alabama defeated Texas.
Specific details, including how the host site of such a matchup will be determined, will be announced later according to a release sent by the SEC.
"Our goal is to provide the fans across the country with a New Year's Day prime-time tradition," acting Big 12 Conference commissioner Chuck Neinas said. "This is a landmark agreement between two of the most successful football conferences during the BCS era to stage a post-season event.
"The creation of this game featuring the champions of the Big 12 and SEC will have tremendous resonance in college football."
For more information, read Saturday's Times Free Press.