MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. — A search for clarity and organization has been on display at the SEC Spring Meetings, but to this point, neither has emerged.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey has done his best to keep followers abreast of the goings on amid a labyrinth of issues that would have Good Will Hunting’s head spinning.
Where to start?
Many college fans have punted their attention elsewhere, frustrated and fatigued by what’s become a dull-witted judicial process that’s dragged out over five years despite well-defined directives to compensate past players for usage of their Name Image and Likeness and provide guard rails for future dealings.
The orderly objective of roster limitations has been turned upside down by the federal judge in California, who will not approve the landmark case unless those limitations are installed in phases, or to put it another way, “grandfathered in.”
The evolution of collegiate athletics is essentially on hold until that case is determined, but it is, things will move quickly, with stipulations to begin on July 1.
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Sankey has been in discussions at the SEC Spring Meetings this week with league presidents, athletic directors and head coaches to, among other things, strategize the best course of moving forward on scheduling and playoff models with the CFP anticipated to expand from 12 teams to 16 teams beginning with the 2026 season.
The SEC’s league scheduling model is also being discussed as it would pertain to the different CFP models on the table.
The SEC currently plays an eight-game league schedule and appears reluctant to move to nine unless a new CFP format guarantees four teams will automatically qualify for the 16-team field.
“People want to say, well, you need to play nine games, you need to play eight games,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “We don’t really know which one of those is until we know the playoff format.”
The automatic qualifier model (AQ) is on the table, and would consist of the SEC and Big Ten getting four teams each, the ACC and Big 12 getting two automatic bids and the highest-ranked Group of 5 team getting a spot along with the three highest-ranked at-large selection based on the CFP selection committee rankings.
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Those CFP rankings, it should be noted, have been heavily scrutinized after only three SEC teams made the 12-team field last year as a result of the schedule strength metric not carrying enough weight for three-loss teams like Alabama and Ole Miss to be ranked ahead of two-loss ACC Championship Game loser SMU.
The AQ model appears to be the choice of the Big Ten and has been under serious consideration from the SEC, but the Big 12 and ACC have pushed back.
The SEC, seemingly in response, is now considering a “5-1-1” playoff model for a 16-team playoff, which would involve the top five conference champions, along with the next 11 teams based on rankings.
If the 5-1-1 were to be adapted — the deadline for the CFP to determine its playoff model is before Dec. 1 — the SEC could be inclined to maintain its current eight-game schedule.
Sankey has said that if the league were to stay with an eight-game league schedule, traditional rivalry games could be protected.
Per Sankey, “We’re attentive to real key rivalries and have models that can accommodate them that have been shared and will be continued to be shared.
Georgia, for example, would continue to play rivals Florida and Auburn under a modified eight-game model being discussed.
The other 16-team playoff-related issue that could be on the table, should the AQ model be adapted, would be the process for determining the four teams that would represent the SEC.
There has been discussion of “play-in” games that would act like a playoff.
Sankey said Tuesday night that SEC coaches have expressed an interest in maintaining the SEC Championship Game.
It’s possible the SEC Championship Game could continue to exist in concert with play-in games pitting the league’s No. 3 team vs. the No. 6 team and the No. 4 team playing the No. 5 team — on the higher-seeded teams’ home campuses.
The 16-team playoff proposal preferred by the SEC and Big Ten would favor the idea of a “double-bye” for the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds — adding more weight to the conference championship games.
The double-bye model, however, has a complex process of games that flies in the face of the tradition-oriented college football fan base, many of who are still working to get comfortable with free agency along with a growing playoff field that’s resembling the NFL format with each passing iteration.
Beyond the scheduling and playoff models, the SEC leaders have gotten dialed in on a preference for one transfer portal window — as opposed to the two that have been utilized most recently.
Smart, after attending the AFCA coaches convention in Charlotte, N.C., earlier this year, has spearheaded the movement for one portal window that would take place in January.
Sankey said Tuesday night it would be a 10-day window that would take place after the New Year’s Day postseason games.
Coaches and athletic directors are pessimistic any final decisions will be made this week, in terms of the league voting on schedule or playoff models, but the SEC will depart on Thursday with a general sense of direction.
For the moment, SEC leaders and the rest of the collegiate athletic world is waiting for House vs. NCAA ruling, which would represent the first domino to fall in what has become a complex process of events.
