Sankey’s SEC sets stage for College Football Playoff overhaul

MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. — SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is leveraging his league’s clout to reshape the College Football Playoff.

The result very likely could permanently alter the sport’s power structure. Arkansas is just glad to have a spot on the right bus.

If that's not clear, it wasn't hard to read between the lines.

The next playoff format, set to debut in 2026, will be decided by the sport’s two most influential leagues: the SEC and the Big Ten.

Everybody else can scramble for what's left because those two conferences simply don't have to worry abou them.

It's business, not personal.

"Look at the track record," Sankey said. "We didn’t need [a 12-team playoff]. If we’d stayed at four, we would have had half the four last year.

"I don’t need lectures from others about good of the game. I don’t lecture others about good of the game."

The most-discussed model for the expanded CFP is a 16-team field that would grant four automatic bids each to the SEC and Big Ten, two each to the ACC and Big 12, one to the highest-ranked Group of Five champion, and three at-large spots.

This "4-4-2-2-1-3" model is designed to guarantee the SEC and Big Ten a dominant presence in the playoff, reflecting their recent consolidation of college football’s top programs and television markets.

It's probably not a wild bet at least two of those spots most years would go to the SEC and Big Ten. Notre Dame would account for one of those at-large spots a lot of the time.

While Sankey has publicly maintained that the SEC is "not committed to any particular format," he has left little doubt about his priorities.

"We’re trying to find a format to determine, whatever number it is, the best teams in college football," Sankey said. "We should be using football information to come to football decisions."

The ACC and Big 12 isn't too fond of that and have countered with proposals to secure three automatic bids each or to eliminate guaranteed spots altogether.

Their resistance is rooted in concerns that codifying the SEC and Big Ten’s dominance would further marginalize their leagues and reduce national competitiveness.

Whether that goal is stated or not is pretty clear. If nothing else, it sets up a path that will either get that super conference without the NCAA or radically change things.

Sankey is unmoved by what he sees as coordinated messaging from rival commissioners. He simply doesn't really care.

"You can issue your press statement," he said, "but I’m actually looking for ideas to move us forward."

He has pointed out the SEC might actually be giving up potential playoff spots under the proposed model compared to an all at-large system.

The league is willing to make that trade for guaranteed access and scheduling stability.

A major point of negotiation is the SEC’s conference schedule.

Critics have long argued that the SEC’s eight-game league schedule gives its teams an easier path to the playoff.

Sankey is now offering to move the SEC to a nine-game schedule — a move he supports for financial reasons — in exchange for the four automatic bids.

"His goal seems to be to leave them a choice that isn’t really a choice," one observer noted.

Sankey has also cited pointed to Nebraska's cancellation of a home-and-home series with Tennessee as evidence that the current playoff selection process discourages marquee non-conference games.

"Sankey agrees with [Nebraska coach Matt] Rhule," noting that the system currently rewards teams for scheduling weaker opponents, which is "not good for the game."

By guaranteeing more playoff spots, Sankey argues, teams would be incentivized to schedule tougher non-conference matchups, preserving the sport’s most compelling regular-season games.

The proposed format could include conference "play-in" games during championship weekend, where teams ranked third through sixth in the SEC and Big Ten would battle for the remaining automatic bids.

There is also discussion of a "double-bye" for the top two seeds, adding further strategic layers to the postseason.

In other words, there's some more attractive TV matchups there that probably would generate more dollars. That's the ultimate goal in most decisions.

The CFP’s management committee is expected to meet again in June, with a decision on the new format looming.

Despite Sankey’s public openness, the momentum is clearly behind a model that cements the SEC and Big Ten as college football’s power brokers.

As Sankey put it, "Ultimately, I recognize I’m the one who ends up typically in front of the podium explaining not just myself but ourselves".

Former Alabama coach Nick Saban, who once opposed playoff expansion, now supports a larger field.

"I think expanding the playoff and having as many teams involved as we can without playing too many games for the players is probably a good thing," he has said.

The new playoff format will determine not just who competes for a national title, but which conferences remain relevant — and which risk falling behind.

Sankey and his Big Ten counterpart Tony Petitti hold the cards. Everybody else has to just wait to see if they’ll accept an offer they can’t refuse.

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