Texas A&M Officially A Member Of The SEC

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COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- After a long process and clearing several legal hurdles, the Texas A&M Aggies are officially a member of the SEC, the league announced Sunday in a press release. The move will take place July 1, 2012 and the Aggies will compete in the SEC beginning in the 2012-2013 academic year.

"The Southeastern Conference provides Texas A&M the national visibility that our great university and our student-athletes deserve," said Texas A&M University President R. Bowen Loftin. "We are excited to begin competition in the nation's premier athletic conference. This is a 100-year decision that we have addressed carefully and methodically, and I believe the Southeastern Conference gives the Aggies the best situation of any conference in the country."

This is the conference's first expansion since 1991, when the conference added Arkansas and South Carolina in August and September, respectively. It was the first conference in the nation to add two divisions and institute a championship game.

"The Southeastern Conference Presidents and Chancellors are pleased to welcome Texas A&M University to the SEC family," said Dr. Bernie Machen, chair of the SEC Presidents and Chancellors and president of the University of Florida. "The addition of Texas A&M University as the SEC's 13th member gives our league a prestigious academic institution with a strong athletic tradition and a culture similar to our current institutions."

During their time in the Big 12, the Aggies won 53 conference championships over all of the sports, including seven baseball titles, but just one in football, coming in the 1998 season.