Paul Finebaum predicts when SEC will adopt nine-game schedule

As college football gets set to take another turn in the next few years as some likely playoff restructuring occurs, there also exists another question. Will the SEC move to a nine-game schedule?

That certainly seems to be the prevailing wisdom. But the conference has moved slowly so far.

ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum joined the McElroy and Cubelic in the Morning radio program on Monday and offered some insight into when things might begin to grind into motion. It’s sooner than you might think, given the topics on the table.

“I think it’s a combination of two things,” Finebaum said. “It’s where is the CFP and how does that or does it not equate to the SEC likely going to a nine-game schedule? They are intertwined, and I know you guys saw the commissioner the other day. That certainly seemed to be on his mind. But the CFP is clearly topic No. 1.”

Once there’s more clarity on the College Football Playoff, conference commissioners like Greg Sankey will have a better idea what the best structure is for the league going forward. That’s likely a nine-game schedule, but it’s not a sure thing.

Regardless, expect that topic to be hit hard and fast at the upcoming SEC spring meetings. And Finebaum made a bold prediction.

“I think the nine-game schedule will come first, Greg,” he said. “I think a week from today as people start showing up in Destin that will be almost done. And then it’s ’26, as everyone knows, that’s when the contract changes or expands. That’s when the CFP expands and gets away from this rather brief 12-game setup. So I think it has to go then. There’s no reason for it to go any earlier or later. So I think it’s pretty cut and dried that that will be it.”

That would be a swift move to a nine-game schedule, but one embraced by most fans. It will create more quality inventory for television partners and fans alike.

Meanwhile, in the background, the conference commissioners are angling toward the future of the playoff. There’s still much to be discussed.

“The four Power Four conference commissioners met on Saturday for the second time in just a matter of days, so clearly they’re not just meeting to talk about the spring flowers,” Finebaum said. “They’ve got something cooking pretty hot and heavy. And certainly some of it has to do with the expected announcement of the House settlement, but I think more of it has to do with CFP expansion. Even more expansion.”

But if the SEC does move to a nine-game schedule, what will it look like? There are a lot of potential permutations. On that, Finebaum was less sure.

“Certainly I don’t know what exactly it’s going to look like,” he said. “I’ve seen a million different plans, as I know you two have, of where does all this fit into the SEC Championship Game, do we have an expanded weekend, how does it equate to AQs leading into the possibility of a 16-team playoff?”

A lot of questions to answer. But if Finebaum is correct, we should begin to get some of those answers soon.