The West Virginia Mountaineers' move to the Big 12 Conference "is a done deal," reports Mitch Vingle of the Charleston Gazette. A joint news conference to formally announce the move will take place Wednesday.
West Virginia is expected to join the Big 12 once the Missouri Tigers leave for the Southeastern Conference. The Mountaineers' defection leaves the Big East reeling, as it has already lost the Syracuse Orange, Pittsburgh Panthers, and Texas Christian Horned Frogs within the last year. Andrea Adelson of ESPN notes that West Virginia's departure could jeopardize the Big East's status as an automatic qualifying conference for the Bowl Championship Series, as it will leave it with only five football schools. At present, the Big East champion receives an at-large bid to either the Fiesta Bowl against the Big 12 champion, the Orange Bowl against the Atlantic Coast Conference champion, or the Sugar Bowl against the SEC champion.
The Horned Frogs and Mountaineers will replace the Tigers and the Texas A&M Aggies in the Big 12 upon their move to the SEC. Upon their Big 12 arrival, TCU and WVU will join the Baylor Bears, Iowa St. Cyclones, Kansas Jayhawks, Kansas St. Wildcats, Oklahoma Sooners, Oklahoma St. Cowboys, Texas Longhorns, and Texas Tech Red Raiders.
We'll have much more on this story at SB Nation Pittsburgh as it continues to develop.