DALLAS — It was at SEC media days three years in the past when information broke, unexpectedly to commissioner Greg Sankey, that his convention was about so as to add Oklahoma and Texas. Sankey hoped to make use of this 12 months’s media days to herald the official addition of the 2 soccer powers — and whereas he did, he ended up fielding extra questions on what comes subsequent in enlargement.
In all probability nothing, Sankey tried to emphasise, rising exasperated at one level throughout a question-and-answer interval following his opening remarks.
“I’ve responded thrice the place our focus lies. Our focus is on our 16 members,” Sankey stated. “I’ve a duty to concentrate, however I’m actually not going to gas hypothesis on what occurs subsequent. We will actually stay at 16 for a protracted, very long time and stay extremely profitable.”
The SEC kicked off the most recent realignment wave when it took Oklahoma and Texas from the Massive 12 three years in the past. There was finally seismic change elsewhere: the Massive Ten increasing to 18 members by including West Coast faculties, the ACC including three groups decidedly not on the Atlantic Coast, and the Pac-12 dwindling to 2. Sankey used his opening remarks to humble brag about the place his convention ended up when the smoke cleared.
“We all know who we’re within the Southeastern Convention. We’re the one convention at this degree the place the title nonetheless means one thing: the Southeastern a part of america, the place after we expanded, we truly restored historic rivalries,” he stated. “Our enlargement restored historic rivalries whereas including solely 100 miles to our longest earlier campus-to-campus journey.”
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Sankey additionally stated the SEC was “proudly at 16 groups at this time and can have 16 groups tomorrow.” That opened the door to questions, snarky or not, about Wednesday and past.
Clemson and Florida State are at the moment suing the ACC to get out of its grant of rights settlement. A media member requested Sankey if he’s persevering with to observe the case, and in the event that they achieve court docket, what the ramifications could be for the whole faculty sports activities panorama.
Sankey expressed sympathy to his fellow commissioner Jim Phillips on the ACC, whereas additionally not closing the door on something, however sending the message that the SEC doesn’t need to do something. It may be selective, because it was in taking Oklahoma and Texas.
“They’re not the one cellphone calls I’ve ever had,” Sankey stated. “However I’m not concerned in recruitment. Our presidents have been clear that I’m not going to entangle us in litigation round enlargement. So I concentrate however I’m not engaged in these conversations. In actual fact, as I perceive, the difficulty (within the ACC) is agreements have (been) signed and choices have been made amongst a convention, and the query is are these going to be honored as they have been established. Apparently, that’s for a court docket to resolve.
“The broader implications, clearly if issues change there’s a brand new degree of uncertainty. It already creates hypothesis that I believe is counterproductive. However I don’t spend an unlimited quantity of my time excited about it.”
Sankey was additionally requested if the SEC would ever department out past its present footprint. He leaned again on the SEC’s final two expansions, which noticed it add Texas A&M and Missouri in 2012, then go into Oklahoma this 12 months, together with doubling down in Texas.
“You’ve seen how we’ve made choices during the last decade-plus, for contiguous states to hitch,” he stated. “I believe that’s extremely smart. It offers outstanding energy. And I’m not going to guess on what occurs subsequent.”
In his opening remarks, Sankey addressed the general state of school sports activities, hitting on the standard matters: The proposed settlement within the Home v. NCAA case, the need for federal laws to handle NIL and different points. He additionally alluded to the tried assassination of former President Donald Trump, tying it to the divisiveness within the nation, and that in school soccer video games you possibly can see Democrats and Republicans alike at video games.
“We’d like extra of what faculty soccer does on this nation, not much less,” Sankey stated.
Sankey additionally reiterated his need for fixes that preserve the game afloat. He spoke because the longest-tenured commissioner among the many energy conferences, and one of many two or three strongest individuals in faculty athletics. And that energy derives largely from the SEC’s highly effective place, together with the Massive Ten as the 2 richest and steady conferences. That contrasts with the uncertainty within the ACC, and the Massive 12 being open to personal fairness and naming rights with a purpose to get extra income.
As he did at SEC spring conferences just a few months in the past, Sankey downplayed his curiosity in that, or a brilliant league, or a lot of any exterior involvement.
“We now have new-wave entrepreneurs who wish to be in on the so-called entrance finish of a brand new paradigm for school athletics,” Sankey stated. “We’ve been extremely profitable, and I perceive why so many exterior of the campus and convention realm are all in favour of coming in and being part of it, however that duty lies with us to deliver individuals into the answer, to not cede authority to exterior actors.”
(Photograph: Bryan Terry / USA Right this moment)
