SEC Schedule: League May Not Expand to Nine Conference Games

When Greg Sankey arrived at the SEC Media Days podium, the commissioner had at least a dozen pressing matters to address that impact the future of college football. Journalists in the room were probably most focused on his assessment of the House settlement implementation and the future of the College Football Playoff, but one matter means more to Big Blue Nation: the schedule.

Upon the arrival of Texas and Oklahoma into the league, the SEC defied a standard set by other conferences, limiting the league to eight conference games, rather than expanding to nine. League officials agreed to this format for two seasons before considering a long-term plan. That expires following the 2025 college football season.

Why does this matter more for Kentucky football fans? Expanding to nine SEC games puts the Governor’s Cup rivalry game with Louisville in jeopardy. The good news: It doesn’t sound like the SEC is eager to add another conference game.

Two Things That Must Happen to Expand the SEC Schedule

First and foremost, follow the money. The SEC will not add another conference game if they aren’t going to financially benefit. The league locked in an agreement with Disney as its exclusive TV partner prior to schedule expansion talks. In May, we learned ESPN/Disney is willing to pay the SEC between $50-$80 million more per year for an additional SEC game.

That could solve one problem, but there’s an even bigger one at hand. The SEC only received three bids in the first 12-team CFP. Since Alabama, South Carolina, and Ole Miss got shut out, league officials have whined about the selection process. They feel the selection committee did not properly weigh the league’s strength of schedule.

“In the SEC, we’re not lacking for quality competition among our 16 football teams, but we’re going to continue to evaluate whether increasing the number of conference football games is appropriate for us,” said Sankey. “As I’ve said repeatedly, understanding how the CFP will evaluate strength of schedule and even strength of record is critically important in our decision-making.”

Timetable on a Final Decision

The current 8-game SEC schedule format expires after this season. With time ticking, we anticipated that it would be a primary talking point during the SEC Spring Meetings, but revenue-sharing and other matters became bigger priorities. That doesn’t mean Sankey is dragging his feet, although he is unwilling to give an exact timetable on when we will know how the future SEC schedule will work.

“It won’t linger terribly much longer. We have to make decisions about the ’26 season and adjust. If we’re going to go to nine games, then there have to be games moved or rescheduled. If we stay at eight, probably a little easier on that part of the logistics,” Sankey said.

Once the league reaches a final decision, it’s going to be one that sticks. Sankey does not want this to be a lingering topic of discussion.

“I generally like to get out of the football scheduling decision questions, so that suggests a longer term would be better,” said Sankey. “One of our learning experiences from our expansion to 14 (teams in 2012) and we had two years and then 12 years. Our discussion now is perhaps look-ins every so often would be wise. So while you may want to answer it once and for all, I do think there’s an expectation that we’ll at least have look-in opportunities should the schedule.”

Since Texas A&M joined the league in 2012, Aggie fans have yet to make a trip to Lexington. Hopefully, the next long-term plan for an SEC schedule allows league opponents to regularly play one another, all while still preserving arguably the greatest rivalry game for Kentucky football fans.