What Will Be The Fallout if The SEC Goes Conference Games Only?
After the SEC athletics directors met in person in Birmingham on July 13, two things seemed pretty certain:
1--There was really not an appetite in the SEC for a scheduling model that included 10 conference games.
2—That it was important—essential in fact—to keep the four SEC/ACC in-state rivalries (Georgia-Georgia Tech, South Carolina-Clemson, Florida-Florida State, Kentucky-Louisville) in any scheduling model that went forward. So there appeared to be a consensus that whatever scheduling model the SEC adopted would leave room for at least one non-conference game.
But earlier this week I began getting feedback that there was a case to be made for a conference only schedule—something the Big Ten and Pac-12 adopted earlier this month.
“We’ve been told from the beginning that we have to be prepared to be flexible and adapt,” the SEC official told me. “Playing conference games only might not be our first choice, but it gives you the maximum flexibility to move games around if there is a problem.”
A story that has changed almost daily since college athletics was shut down on March 12 took another significant turn on Wednesday.
That’s when Ross Dellenger of Si.com reported that the SEC was headed in the direction of a 10-game conference only schedule. Dellenger reported that the majority—not all--of the SEC’s athletics directors had approved the plan, which will be presented to the league’s presidents and chancellors on Thursday.
It is unclear, reported Dellenger, if the presidents and chancellors will make a decision on Thursday or if the matter will be pushed to next week.
When this week began, signs pointed to a decision next week, when the NCAA’s Board of Governors are also supposed to meet on Aug. 4 and discuss the fate of all Fall Sports championships with the exception of FBS football.
The ACC announced on Wednesday that its presidents had approved a scheduling model that called for 10 conference and one non-conference game. Additionally, the ACC announced that the University of Notre Dame would come on board as a full conference member for this season only and be eligible to compete for the conference championship.
But the ACC’s plan called for each team to play a non-conference game to be named at a later date. If the SEC goes to a conference-only schedule, those four rivalry games with the ACC go by the wayside. In fact, if the SEC goes to a conference-only schedule, 12 games against the ACC and Big 12 will not be played. Here is the list:
SEC vs. ACC
Sept. 7—Georgia vs. Virginia (Atlanta)
Sept. 12—Arkansas at Notre Dame; Auburn vs. North Carolina (Atlanta); Miss. State at N.C. State;
Nov. 28—Florida at Florida State; Georgia Tech at Georgia; Kentucky at Louisville; South Carolina at Clemson
SEC VS. BIG 12
Sept. 5—Ole Miss vs. Baylor (Houston)
Sept. 12—Texas at LSU; Tennessee at Oklahoma.
Sept. 19—Vanderbilt at Kansas State.
So why would the SEC do this, particularly since so many quality non-conference games would be lost?
Dellenger reported and other sources have confirmed to TMG that in some game contracts there is a clause that allows the schools to drop a non-conference opponent if the conference makes a change to the scheduling format.
Example: Louisiana-Monroe is scheduled to received $1.8 million to play at Georgia on Sept. 26. If the SEC went to a 10-plus one model like the ACC, Georgia would have to choose among its four scheduled non-conference opponents to fill that slot. Obviously, Georgia would choose Georgia Tech.
The other three non-conference opponents on Georgia’s schedule could claim that excluding them from a payday was arbitrary. But if there were no non-conference opponents in the SEC because the conference changed the scheduling format, the case can be made that no payment is owed.
If the SEC adopts a 10-game conference schedule a couple of quick questions come to mind:
Each team in the SEC currently plays eight conference games—six in its own division, one permanent crossover from the other division, and one opponent that rotates. Would each team keep its current eight games and simply have two added from the opposite division?
How the SEC handles this issue—the two new games assigned to each team—is going to be a talk show host’s dream.
And speaking of divisions: In its announcement on Wednesday the ACC eliminated divisions in favor of a 15-team conference. The top two teams by winning percentage will play in the ACC championship game, which will be moved from its current date on Dec. 5 to Dec. 12 or 19.
Will the SEC do away with divisions? Divisional play has been a core principle since the SEC created the East and the West in 1992. The SEC has always believed that divisional play adds value to the television inventory, especially in November.
Will the SEC move its championship game?
It depends on when the season starts. The ACC announced it would start on Monday, Sept. 7. That gives the SEC 13 or 14 Saturdays to play 11 regular-season games and one championship game.