Splitting the scheduling baby

How it’s starting…

SEC commish Greg Sankey asked about benefits of 9-game SEC schedule: “opportunity to play (secondary rivalries) every year instead of every other year. Those are huge games.” Sankey also mentioned amount of “passion” league games draw. He said decision will not be money driven &…

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) May 29, 2023

How it’s probably gonna go.

As officials arrive Monday for this week’s meetings, they are (hurray!) closer to a resolution on the scheduling format. But it’s not what many expected.

Under consideration is a one-year, temporary eight-game conference schedule in 2024 that will, at least for one year, preserve both primary and secondary rivalries.

Why eight? Capilouto’s concerns are echoed by many in the league. What’s the impact of a ninth league game on an athlete’s health? And how will the selection process play out in an expanded CFP?

But a third question has lingered and gone mostly unanswered for a year now: the extra money from ESPN, which is not contractually required to provide more money for a ninth game.

Without the incentive of additional revenue from the network, more than half of the league is in support of remaining at eight games in the first year that Texas and Oklahoma begin play in 2024. The expectation is that ESPN, in the midst of layoffs, will not commit to additional revenue for a ninth game—at least not now.

The temporary, one-year eight-game model is a placeholder for a potential nine-game schedule to start in 2025, if ESPN enhances the deal.

Boy, that has the sad inevitability of truth to it.  Dreams die hard, especially when they’ve got a dollar sign floating in front of them.

When they say it’s not about the money, SEC spring meetings edition

Nothing like rolling out the greatest hits.

“It is very fair to say that it is not just about the money,” says Kentucky president Eli Capilouto. “As we focus more on student-athlete well-being, one has to understand the implications of this in light of new (CFP) formats and length of the season. What does it all mean in a bigger context is what we should consider. What does it mean for bowl participation and length of season? All those things come first.”

Bonus points for the doing it for the kids reference… although that “focus more” is a bit revealing, no?

More money talk with Greg Sankey on the scheduling format debate and ESPN additional revenue:

"(If) all you do is chase money, you make really bad decisions and I'm watching that in college sports right now. … We won't do that here."

— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) May 29, 2023

Yeah, right.

Jeff Schultz ($$):

The reality is that even if the SEC rejects a proposal to increase each football team’s conference schedule from eight to nine games, every member school still will be able to do the Scrooge McDuck swan dive into a pile of gold coins. Because when every university from Georgia to Vanderbilt begins the year with a $50 million distribution from conference media rights before ever having to schmooze a donor or sell a ticket, a T-shirt or a $7 hot dog, there’s not a lot of motivation to change.

This is why I have no sympathy for the Haves versus Have-Nots debate in the conference. If Kentucky, Vanderbilt and Mississippi State want to complain they can’t compete with the revenue streams at Georgia, Alabama and Texas A&M, they can always leave the SEC and take less of a financial guarantee somewhere else.

Heh.  Whatever else happens this week, I don’t foresee a rush to the exits.

Your cheery Tuesday morning thought

More than that, it just feels right.

Keeping ’em guessing

One more note from that Dennis Dodd article:

Now balance that against the desires of media rightsholders. In general, more is better when it comes to televising conference games. Now take the No. 1 league on the planet and add eight more games (in a nine-game format) and eyeballs become even stickier on the SEC.

ESPN will have an active voice in the discussion. SEC membership has not been told how much extra ESPN is willing to pay for a ninth game, according to 247Sports.

Does that mean Mickey hasn’t told Sankey, or Sankey hasn’t told the schools?  If it’s a case of the former, that’s actually a good negotiating strategy — make the conference show its cards first.  If it’s the latter, though, that makes me think Sankey doesn’t want to be the bearer of bad news… yet.

Doing it for the coaches, when it just means more

Kentucky’s coach yearns for a simpler time.

“Since I’ve been in the league, there have been 23 head coaches fired,” said Kentucky coach Mark Stoops, who is entering his 11th season with the Wildcats. “When they add a ninth game, that percentage is only going to go up.”

Yeah, financially speaking, we’ve all seen how there’s nothing worse than being a fired SEC head coach.

Wannabee in Urnge

This is adorable.

The Tennessee Vols are wisely taking a page out of the Georgia Bulldogs’ page this offseason.

Last year, the Vols were at their best when they were the “hunter” as opposed to the “hunted”.

Tennessee’s two losses in 2022 came when they were ranked No. 1 before playing Georgia and when no one was giving South Carolina a chance to win in Columbia.

In Tennessee’s two losses, they didn’t get a chance to play the disrespect card that they utilized for most of the season.

Yeah, that’s why they lost.

Warren admitted that he didn’t realize Tennessee would be getting everyone’s “best shot” until the Vols’ loss to South Carolina last season.

Old habits die hard, apparently.

How I spent my Memorial Weekend holiday

Great catching up with ⁦@CoachDanMullen⁩ today in Georgia

Thanks to all the Georgia fans that spent the afternoon driving by singing the “Redcoat Band Chant” on their boats 🤷🏻‍♂️#ItJustMeansMore 🤙🏻 pic.twitter.com/Yq1EC8daLB

— Shane Beamer (@CoachSBeamer) May 29, 2023

That is exactly why we honor those who served.  Salut!

Random SEC conference game scheduling thought

Consider this:  if you’re Greg Sankey, you’ve been adamant that the additions of Texas and Oklahoma, plus a nine-game conference schedule, bring greater value to your broadcast contract beyond what’s already been negotiated.  If ESPN refuses to budge, why would you turn around and give them the extra games for nothing?

All in this together

Translation: They don’t want to pay to dump games you didn’t want to see anyway.

So loser thinking gains momentum.

Remember, if you have Texas and Texas A&M in the same league and don’t have them playing football every year, you’ve done something colossally stupid. https://t.co/6H0PSQpdrB

— Andy Staples (@Andy_Staples) May 26, 2023

Marcello:

Seven schools prefer expanding the schedule to nine games, sources told 247Sports this week. Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi State and South Carolina oppose the nine-game model. Both models eliminate the SEC’s Eastern and Western divisions, and will require new tiebreaker rules…

Meanwhile, three schools remain on the fence in the scheduling debate — Auburn, Ole Miss and Tennessee — and Vanderbilt has remained silent in industry circles, sources told 247Sports.

I assume the fence sitters are waiting to see if Sankey is able to get Mickey to deliver on a bigger financial package for nine games.  If not, they’re likely no votes.

Unlike some, I don’t begrudge the Mississippi schools and Vanderbilt their place in the conference.  There’s history there and those schools do have some programs — not football, of course — that are competitive nationally.  What I do begrudge is the selfish prioritization of bowl eligibility and an extra home game against a cupcake over the logic of a nine-game conference schedule in a sixteen-team conference.  And being pissy about guarantee game cancellations at a time when a giant new TV contract is rolling in?  Give me a break.

As for Auburn taking a stance that would end the Georgia rivalry as an annual series… well, fuck you, Tigers.

What passes for deep thought in Tuscaloosa

Shot.

Sophie’s Choice here if you’re UGA’s administration:

Say it’s about the money, so you don’t have to admit Georgia wants to be insulated from playing a decent schedule. https://t.co/fEawmB598Y

— Roll ‘Bama Roll (@rollbamaroll) May 26, 2023

Chaser.

Georgia in the past few years has scheduled home-and-homes with Ohio State, Clemson, Florida State, UCLA, Notre Dame, Louisville, Oklahoma and Texas, and neutral site games against Oregon and Clemson, in addition to the annual game with Georgia Tech. https://t.co/CT9mRU2pJ4

— Seth Emerson (@SethWEmerson) May 26, 2023

RBR, y’all ain’t even trying any more.  Sad.