The drought lasted three years and 38 shows. But when it ended, it did so with a double shot of Big 12 football, Big 12 fans and Big 12 universities.

ESPN’s “College GameDay,” the landmark pregame show that serves as a three-hour promotional vehicle for the host school, aired live from a Big 12 campus Nov. 1 when Utah welcomed Cincinnati.

The following week, “GameDay” was at Texas Tech for the showdown with BYU.

Across the conference, relief and excitement were palpable in equivalent amounts.

“The pregame shows are valuable,” commissioner Brett Yormark told the Hotline this week. “They serve as infomercials for the schools, so those are big moments for us. And there’s a strategy behind it.”

That strategy reflects Yormark’s primary mission, which began three years ago and extends into

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