Report: SEC Moving Toward Conference Only Schedule
The SEC has held out for the playing of their entire 2020 college football schedules, but that hold out seems to be fading according to a report from Sports illustrated's Ross Dellenger late Wednesday afternoon.
Dellenger's story states that "multiple sources" told Sports Illustrated that the officials are moving closer to a conference-only schedule this season.
"During a virtual meeting on Wednesday, a majority of athletic directors approved the idea of an SEC-only, 10-game schedule. However, the schedule must be ratified by league presidents. SEC presidents are expected to meet virtually Thursday to seriously discuss the matter. It is unclear if they will vote then or delay a decision until next week."
Per the report, many inside college football believe that a conference-only schedule could become a minimum requirement for teams to compete in the College Football Playoffs because of the ability for conferences to apply uniform testing measures across their respective leagues.
Also, according to Dellenger, should the conference make this move, each team would have two additional conference games added to their schedule to complete a ten-game slate.
Who would then be added to the Vanderbilt schedule in 2020?
Commodore Country has previously written about the possible opponents that could join the schedule, which included potential games versus Alabama and LSU being likely additions with Auburn, Mississippi State, and Arkansas being other possibilities.
However, according to the report, the Commodores would get Alabama and Mississippi State added to their six SEC East Division games and their scheduled West division games versus Ole Miss and Texas A&M.
The schedule would remain the same as to home and away, but there was no indication as to where the new games would take place, though it would seem likely that one would be home and one away.
Alabama last visited Nashville in 2017, with the Tide rolling over Vanderbilt 59-0 en route to a national championship. The Commodore's last trip to Tuscaloosa ended in a Tide 34-0 shutout win in 2011, which ironically also finished with a national title for Alabama.
Vanderbilt last faced State in 2014, with a similar result, falling to the Bulldogs 51-0 in Starkville. Before that game, the Bulldog's last visit to Nashville ended in a 15-3 win for the visitor.
The vote on the move could come this week, but it is more realistic that it will happen sometime next week.
Either way, the Commodores schedule looks to be getting much more difficult in the process.
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