The SEC spring meetings are taking place this week in Destin, Florida, and it’s no surprise that the future of the College Football Playoff is a hot topic.
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey was asked Monday night how he balances wanting what’s best for the future of college football with what’s best for the future of the SEC. According to Sankey, the league was watching other conferences when the CFP expanded from four teams to 12 teams ahead of the 2024 season.
“Look at the record: we didn’t need 12. If we had stayed at four, we would have had half of the four last year,” Greg Sankey said.
“I thought the 12-team design was really well thought out at the time. We never had a unanimous vote to support the 12-team playoff. Even though I was involved in that work, it didn’t mean that everyone in this league, when we were four teams, thought it was the best idea. But you engage in that type of problem-solving.”
Greg Sankey also fired back at ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips and Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark after their recent comments about the College Football Playoff. switching to a straight seeding pattern.
According to ESPNPhillips said doing what’s best for the good of the game is a “responsibility I take very seriously,” while Yormark added he hopes what’s best for college football is “the priority” moving forward.
The comments clearly did not please Greg Sankey.
“I don’t need lessons from others about the good of the game. I don’t give lessons to others about the good of the game,” he said. “And coordinating press releases about the good of the game, you know, OK, you can put out your press release, but I’m actually looking for ideas to move us forward.”
Sankey added that he expects there will still be plenty of discussion about the future of the College Football Playoff.
The 2025 playoff format is set with 12 teams seeded 1 through 12. But the format for 2026 and beyond is still to be determined.
“I think I also have a responsibility to push, and I think my members have a responsibility and a desire to push me. And that’s a tough question. Do you want to understand what it means to be in this role? I think about the responsibility that I have here, and I think about the broader responsibility all the time,” Sankey said. “Yesterday I said we are not apologizing here.
“When I come back to the College Football Playoff, I’m open to ideas, but there just aren’t a lot of people coming in. My phone doesn’t ring off the hook with, ‘Hey, here’s another way to look at it.’ So we will continue to be thoughtful. We will continue to try to provide perspective and information to our members and help guide the decision. And finally, I recognize that I am the one who usually finds myself at the podium explaining not only myself, but also us. So good luck to me.
