MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. – SEC commissioner Greg Sankey walked into a room of reporters nearly two years ago to face a growing pile of questions regarding discussions surrounding conference scheduling. It had been a long few days spent brainstorming in windowless rooms near the stunning emerald coast. The commissioner was seeking clarity.

“I would prefer to not continue to circle the airport with the airplane. I’d prefer to land it,” he said in May 2023.

Two years later, the conference remains without a decision, with potential answers not expected until autumn. The SEC’s extended contemplation over moving from eight to nine league games persists with no conclusion after another round of spring meetings. Their final choice hinges on the future structure of the College Football Playoff (CFP), raising the concern that administrators might need to make scheduling choices before the CFP executives resolve their two contrasting 16-team formats for the 2026 season.

“The pressure point for us is we’re going to have to make a decision about our ‘26 schedule in a timeframe that is shorter than what would be the very specific deadline for making CFP decisions,” Sankey noted. “I’d like to see CFP decisions made in a time-efficient manner. Not a great history of that, by the way. But I’m not sure that we can work through our obligations in as time-efficient as I’d like.”

| Stakeholder Group | Preferred Model | | |——————-|—————-]|–| | Big Ten (ADs) | 4-4-2-2-1 | | SEC (ADs) | 4-4-2-2-1 | | SEC (Coaches) | 5+11 (Leaning towards it) | | Big 12 (ADs) | 5+11 | | ACC (ADs) | 5+11 |

The deadline for the CFP to announce a decision is presumed to be December 1, and SEC administrators seek a resolution to their scheduling model by the first week of the upcoming football season.

The SEC needs only a majority to decide on conference scheduling. However, many coaches have raised concerns about the implications of increasing games, especially given the CFP’s decision to exclude three-loss teams such as Alabama and South Carolina during the initial 12-team playoff.

“We’re all wanting to get to a vote, but if there are still some moving parts, we want to ensure they stop moving before we make a final decision,” said Oklahoma’s athletics director, Joe Castiglione on Tuesday.

CFP executives are primarily focused on two models. The 4-4-2-2-1 format, introduced by Big Ten, includes four automatic qualifiers for both the Big Ten and the SEC, two for the ACC and Big 12, one for the highest-ranked Group of Six champion, and three at-large selections. However, SEC coaches favor a 5+11 model, which consists of five automatic qualifiers for conference champions and eleven at-large selections, surprising athletic directors who mostly advocate the automatic qualifiers for the SEC.

In the meantime, Big 12 athletic directors reiterated during meetings in Orlando on Wednesday that they remain aligned in favor of the 5+11 structure.

“I, personally, if we get where we can with playoffs (selection), think nine (SEC) games makes sense but it doesn’t make sense if we’re not guaranteed playoffs,” remarked Texas A&M’s athletics director, Trev Alberts.

The SEC’s athletic directors currently prefer to wait for the CFP format to be finalized, but with the possibility of that not happening until June 18, there’s uncertainty surrounding whether any significant decisions will be made in a timely manner.

“Can I see a scenario? Sure, I can see a scenario. But is that the most likely scenario? Come back for more,” Sankey teased at the end of a lengthy press conference Wednesday.