SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey expressed his displeasure with the CFP committee ignoring the strength of his conference’s schedules.
Greg Sankey Defends SEC Strength of Schedule As “Important Factor”
Sankey took the podium on May 26 to open the conference’s spring meetings. He wound up ripping the College Football Playoff committee’s reported revamping, saying it would devalue the work his conference’s schools put in.
“Whether people want to agree with it or not, that’s up to them. We can go through the analytics and show the rigor of our schedule is different than anyone else’s, period,” Sankey said, according to On3.
“We had a learning session in September with the CFP about strength of schedule, and strength of schedule isn’t everything, but it is an important factor.”
Today was as pissed off as I’ve seen Greg Sankey in a public setting.
He understood the subtext of the “good of the game” question quite clearly, and he came back swinging. pic.twitter.com/IqNeghFAH5
— Andy Staples (@Andy_Staples) May 27, 2025
Sankey’s comments were undoubtedly in response to reports after the CFP management committee met last week to vote in agreement on switching the seeding format for the upcoming season’s 12-team playoff.
According to reporting from The Athletic, the new format will support the top-four seeds and their first-round byes being aligned with the final rankings of the selection committee, with no regard for league affiliation. They were previously reserved for conference champions.
The change, believed to be a precursor to a potential expansion from 12 to 16 teams in 2026, compelled Sankey to comment on the devaluing of a conference’s strength of schedule.
“We can go through the analytics and show the rigor of our schedule is different than anyone else’s. Period,” he said. “If you actually go back and do the research, that kind of format could cost us positions depending on the number of teams. I don’t see the critics actually digging into understand that reality.”
Sankey possibly referred to Alabama’s being knocked out of the CFP by lower-placed teams last season.
KEEP READING: ‘Playing Quality Opponents Should Matter’ — SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey Rips College Football Playoff Seeding
Sankey said that SEC internal discussions were behind his stance.
“Well, in our own room, I’ve had athletic directors tell me directly that we’ve given too much away to arrive at these political compromises,” he said.
He stated that further examination of the criteria should be considered and that the SEC would be “interested, not committed” to further changes.
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