Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby to step away from role later this year

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

Big 12 Conference Commissioner Bob Bowlsby announced Tuesday that he will step away from his role later this year, according to a news release from the league. 

Bowlsby will remain leader of the Big 12 until a new commissioner is appointed, at which point he will transition to a new interim role within the Power 5 conference, the release stated. 

"After more than 40 years of serving in leadership roles in intercollegiate athletics, including the last 10 with the Big 12, and given the major issues that college sports in general and the Big 12 specifically will address in the next several years, I have reached a natural transition point in my tenure as Commissioner, as well as in my career," said Bowlsby.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE SPORTS COVERAGE ON FOXNEWS.COM

Big 12 Conference commissioner Bob Bowlsby takes the stage on the first day of Big 12 Conference NCAA college football media days on July 15, 2019, in Arlington, Texas. (AP Photo/David Kent, File)

Bowlsby, 70, has served as the Big 12 commissioner since 2012, and he helped the conference add BYU, Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston, which will join no later than the 2024-25 academic year. Those additions came after Texas and Oklahoma — two of the league's most prominent members — announced they were leaving the Big 12 for the SEC.

"The Big 12 will soon bring in our four new members and negotiate a new grant of rights and media rights agreements," Bowlsby said. "I truly believe the Big 12 and our member institutions are in a strong position now and as we look into the future. As such, this is an appropriate time for me to step away from the Commissioner’s role so that the next leader of