SEC Considering Its Own Playoff

[Avenger48c]

Per Greg Sankey, the SEC is apparently considering its own playoff since expansion fell apart. The article includes a generally positive non-answer from Stricklin, as well.

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey confirms they're looking at an in-conference playoff

It feels like a good way for the SEC to cannibalize ourselves unless we're planning on not participating in the NCAA's CFP and claiming NCs for the winner each year.

Thoughts?

 

[rogdochar]

After a bank robbery, who does the FBI expect the most information from --- the teller. :D

 

[AuggieDosta]

It's differant, so I don't like it.

 

[Thick&ThinG8r]

After being a step ahead for years the SEC made a misstep by announcing Texas and Oklahoma were entering the league before expansion of the playoffs was voted on.
We are going to cannibalize ourselves even without our own playoff.

 

[rogdochar]

No problem --- the rest of CFB can have their own secondary playoffs.

 

[CGgater]

After being a step ahead for years the SEC made a misstep by announcing Texas and Oklahoma were entering the league before expansion of the playoffs was voted on.
We are going to cannibalize ourselves even without our own playoff.

It’ll get tougher, but adding tx and ok increase our tv footprint and revenue. I don’t like it, but I understand the money aspect.

 

[GatorJB]

While I am still opposed to the playoff for the national champion, I'm not opposed to using a playoff to figure out a conference champion in a 16 team conference so that there can be smaller divisions and teams can have the opportunity to play everyone in the conference in a 4-year span.

That said, it depends on the model. In my opinion, they need to avoid adding games (unless other conferences add games too), and they dont need to compromise rivalry week after Thanksgiving. If it can be moved, then great, but I doubt other conferences will want to accommodate the SEC in this. It is important that we play and humiliate fsu whenever possible.

 

[Avenger48c]

@GatorJB, there's a cannibalization problem with doing that. I think the SEC wanted playoff expansion to 8 or 12 in the hopes that they could switch to pods and get 3 or even all 4 of the pod winners into the CFP without any kind of SECCG. You could even sell it as good for the players - "Look, we're going to do an 8 team playoff but eliminate the SECCG, so a NC team has the same number of games as before". That all got screwed by the "Alliance" and their priorities.

Without expansion, you will obviously have pod winners left out. If you do a two round/4 team pod winner SEC playoff before the CFP then you make it really easy for the CFP committee to just allow the SEC champ in each year, letting in more teams from other conferences that honestly couldn't beat the 2nd or even 3rd best SEC team in a game. I'd guess that's a big problem from Sankey's perspective; you don't want to make it easier to let less SEC teams in.

It almost makes sense to have an established single level pair of "SECCGs" each year and leave it at two winners. Have it rotate so in year 1 East plays West and North plays South, then in year 2 East plays South and North plays West, etc. Leave two teams as winners of that round and dare the CFP to not allow them both in - I'd bet we'd see both of those winning teams in the CFP basically every year. Christen the SEC Champ as whoever gets furthest in the CFP, with a tiebreaker of head to head/W-L/whatever else if both of them lose in round 1 or something.

 

[GatorKen714]

I can only support this if we get in every year and win.

 

[GatorJB]

@GatorJB, there's a cannibalization problem with doing that. I think the SEC wanted playoff expansion to 8 or 12 in the hopes that they could switch to pods and get 3 or even all 4 of the pod winners into the CFP without any kind of SECCG. You could even sell it as good for the players - "Look, we're going to do an 8 team playoff but eliminate the SECCG, so a NC team has the same number of games as before". That all got screwed by the "Alliance" and their priorities.

Without expansion, you will obviously have pod winners left out. If you do a two round/4 team pod winner SEC playoff before the CFP then you make it really easy for the CFP committee to just allow the SEC champ in each year, letting in more teams from other conferences that honestly couldn't beat the 2nd or even 3rd best SEC team in a game. I'd guess that's a big problem from Sankey's perspective; you don't want to make it easier to let less SEC teams in.

It almost makes sense to have an established single level pair of "SECCGs" each year and leave it at two winners. Have it rotate so in year 1 East plays West and North plays South, then in year 2 East plays South and North plays West, etc. Leave two teams as winners of that round and dare the CFP to not allow them both in - I'd bet we'd see both of those winning teams in the CFP basically every year. Christen the SEC Champ as whoever gets furthest in the CFP, with a tiebreaker of head to head/W-L/whatever else if both of them lose in round 1 or something.

Only having one SEC team in the CFP doesn't bother me. There could theoretically be some years where two could get in, and I agree this would lower those chances. To me, that's not a big deal, but I get that it is a big deal to the conference and Ads because of the earnings potential.

 

[ThreatMatrix]

Ten years from now (maybe sooner) there will be only one conference that matters made up the SEC and whoever we allow to join.

 

[AuggieDosta]

Ten years from now (maybe sooner) there will be only one conference that matters made up the SEC and whoever we allow to join.

Yeah, but that will only last about 230 years before it implodes and another conference takes the reins.

 

[Avenger48c]

Only having one SEC team in the CFP doesn't bother me. There could theoretically be some years where two could get in, and I agree this would lower those chances. To me, that's not a big deal, but I get that it is a big deal to the conference and Ads because of the earnings potential.

There have been two different CFPs that had two SEC teams, and both have led to two SEC teams in the NC game. Both times, the lower ranked SEC team has been the one that won the NC. Much as I'd love to have seen UGly's NC drought continue, it's hard to argue they weren't among the four best teams last year or that Alabama wasn't in 2017. The SEC CFP representative (or representatives) consistently outclasses and overmatches every opponent not named Clemson.

With a four team pod based SEC playoff, we could very well have seen those teams be excluded, and from a selfish perspective it could lead to us being excluded in the future as well. No reason to count out potential SEC contenders by cannibalizing ourselves.