After months of speculation and criticism surrounding Alabama’s exclusion from the 2024 College Football Playoff, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey finally addressed the controversial decision at this week’s spring meetings. His measured response reveals deeper concerns about the selection process and hints at potential changes for college football’s postseason format.
Sankey’s Measured Response to Alabama’s Playoff Exclusion
Speaking at the 2025 SEC Spring Meetings in Destin, Florida, Sankey was asked whether he was surprised by Alabama’s omission from the 12-team playoff despite finishing with a 9-3 record and notable victories over top-tier opponents. His response was notably diplomatic yet pointed.
“I don’t know that I’d say surprised. I think that’s one of the realities,” Sankey stated. However, he quickly pivoted to broader concerns about the selection criteria, referencing comments he made earlier in the season about evaluating teams with challenging schedules versus those with easier paths.
Sankey elaborated on the fundamental issue he sees with the current system: “But I spoke in July at media days, asking how will a 9-3 team, and I used Georgia as a really good example given their three really difficult road games, how do you evaluate that against other teams that don’t come anywhere close to that?” This question gets to the heart of his argument that the strength of schedule should carry more weight in playoff selections.
Criticism of Selection Committee’s Priorities
The SEC commissioner didn’t mince words when he discussed what he sees as seriously flawed thinking in how teams are selected. His biggest complaint was that the committee seemed to care more about teams having perfect or nearly perfect records than actually beating really good teams.
“It’s clear that not losing becomes, in many ways, more important than beating the University of Georgia, which two of our teams that were left out did,” Sankey remarked. This statement directly referenced Alabama and Ole Miss, who defeated Georgia during the regular season but were ultimately excluded from the playoff in favor of teams with better records but weaker schedules.
Sankey’s frustration extended to the broader implications for college football scheduling and competition. “If we’re gonna just incentivize wins, playing fewer winning teams can get you to more wins. I don’t think that’s great for the football,” he explained.
This perspective highlights his concern that the current selection criteria could encourage teams to schedule weaker opponents to protect their records rather than seek challenging competition.
The commissioner’s comments show the tension that’s brewing in college football right now. Everyone’s trying to figure out the best way to balance team records, strength of schedule, and quality wins when picking playoff teams. And as the sport potentially grows beyond 12 teams, you can bet these arguments will only get more heated.
KEEP READING: Greg Sankey Calls Out CFP Critics For Ignoring Facts Behind SEC-Big Ten’s Automatic Qualifier Proposal in 16-Team Format
Sankey’s response to Alabama’s being left out was pretty telling—it wasn’t overly dramatic, but you could see he had some concerns about how the whole selection process works.
He might not have been shocked by the decision. Still, his comments clarified that the SEC will keep fighting for evaluation methods that reward teams for playing tough schedules and beating good opponents rather than just racking up wins against weaker teams.
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