With Oklahoma and Texas joining the league in 2024, the SEC football schedule will have to be adjusted accordingly.
A 16-team league with Oklahoma and Texas coming aboard in 2024 will massively shake up the SEC football schedule.
Where things stand now, the SEC plays an eight-game conference schedule. Six games are played against each team's divisional opponents, a seventh is against a cross-divisional rival (Alabama-Tennessee, Auburn-Georgia, Florida-LSU, etc.) and an eighth rotates among the six other teams in the opposite division. It needed to be revamped for so many reasons. Thankfully, this is happening.
With the 14 member institutions, plus delegates from Oklahoma and Texas, meeting this week for the league's spring meetings, the biggest topic up for debate is what the football schedule looks like beginning in 2024.
It will be one of these two options:
- Eight-game schedule: One annual rival, seven rotating opponents
- Nine-game schedule: Three annual rivals, six rotating opponents
So we're going to debate the pros and cons of these and figure out what to do because … we can.
Pros of an eight-game SEC football schedule
The biggest pro the updated eight-game format has over the nine-gamer is we don't have to deal with the petty arguing wars over an unbalanced home and road split in-conference each season. Yes, it will even out every other year, but SEC football fans and the people associated with the league live to argue in the moment! Five conference road games for a bad team sounds disastrous.
Another huge advantage here is it will afford SEC teams like Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and South Carolina who have in-state rivalries over in the ACC to keep on playing those games without any hesitation. It also would technically allow teams like Alabama and LSU to schedule even more meaningful games in the non-conference. Then again, there isn't any incentive for them to do so…
An eight-game slate keeps scheduling flexibility in a program's back pocket, while also allowing for the revamped intra-conference rotation to set into motion and sort this thing out, alright.
Cons of an eight-game SEC football schedule
There are three major cons with an eight-game conference schedule. The first is you are straight-up killing secondary rivalries. You go in this direction, and you can say goodbye to the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry and the Third Saturday in October being played annually, as well as preventing the Lone Star Showdown between Texas and Texas A&M being a renewed Thanksgiving tradition.
A second is there is no incentive for the Alabamas of the world to schedule anything remotely competitive in the non-conference. The Floridas and the Georgias of the world have to play in-state ACC rivals out of obligation. The third is by going with an eight-game conference schedule, you would be preventing eight more conference games that you could be selling to a TV network.
With the Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12 staying at nine, the SEC won't be given any favors with eight.
Let's take a look at what the good and bad parts to a nine-game SEC football schedule look like.
Pros of a nine-game SEC football schedule
There are so many advantages to this. One, you get to keep secondary rivalries intact, many of whom are better than other league's primaries. A nine-game schedule in a 16-team league guarantees eight more conference games a year. Multiply that by four and you have 32 additional money-making events that will replace Alabama vs. Random Directional Cupcake State University.
I think another advantage here is it curries favor to other Power Five conferences. Going to nine games aligns the SEC with the Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12, and would probably force the ACC to get in line, too. The best thing for college football going forward is for there to be a sports czar or commissioner to oversee it, particularly when it comes to figuring out how to create some parity.
You get greater game rotation, you get to keep more great rivalries alive and it's not like a quality 9-3 SEC team gets left out of an expanded 12-team College Football Playoff anyway. Let's be real.
Cons of a nine-game SEC football schedule
I do get the 4-5 and 5-4 home/road splits can be a divisive issue for some programs, but they are just going to have to get over that. However, I do think one big issue having to do with the ninth conference game is it might prevent bottom-tiered teams from being in a position to go bowling. Now, you have to win at least three conference games to achieve bowl eligibility. Just figure it out!
Another part that could be divisive is who their three permanent rivals are. Alabama would probably play Auburn, Tennessee and LSU, although LSU could easily be swapped out for Mississippi State. Some teams' obvious threes are more menacing than others. This may be something they will want to revisit every four years to help keep the three annual rivalries fresh.
Admittedly, there is a great deal of uncertainty going to nine, but being fearful is not how you win.
Let's assess both sides of the equation and determine which of the two proposals should win out.
What the SEC should do about its SEC football schedule in 2024, and beyond
While I can understand why some schools would prefer to keep it an eight-game schedule, it has to be a nine-game schedule with three annual rivals and six rotating opponents for so many reasons. The single biggest reason why you have to do it is the eight additional conference games you are getting every season. What are they taking the place of? Exactly! You have to have them!
I would still argue that Florida, Georgia, Kentucky and South Carolina will still schedule Florida State, Georgia Tech, Louisville and Clemson annually, and will be encouraged to do so. It probably serves the SEC to require two Power Five games in the non-conference annually, in addition to a nine-game schedule. Again, it is about creating some level of Power Five parity to save the sport.
I find the 4-5/5-4 home/road split to be a moot point because it resolves itself every other year. You don't see NFL teams falling to pieces over their 8-9/9-8 dilemma. They understand this is a business! If you want to keep games on neutral sites, do it. Because let's be real, you're going to watch a compelling game, no matter where it is played. TV ratings are the driving factor in all this.
And above all else, I don't want the SEC to shamelessly kill its high-quality secondary rivalries. Some of my best moments as a Georgia fan have come in the Deep South's Oldest Rivalry with Auburn and that border war we have with South Carolina. I love seeing the Dawgs play those games. I'd rather see those played annually than watch Scott Brooks schedule Dawg Water Tech.
Ultimately, the SEC needs to be smart in this and revisit the three permanent rivals every four years. If something gets spicy with a team somebody is only playing every other year, go mix it up. If one team is getting hosed by its three-team allotment, make an adjustment, I suppose. Either way, those eight additional conference games annually should make a huge difference over time.
SEC football is a television product, so you have to take a chance with the eight additional games.
For more College Football news, analysis, opinion and unique coverage by FanSided, including Heisman Trophy and College Football Playoff rankings, be sure to bookmark these pages.
