WATCH: Greg Sankey takes apparent shot at Kevin Warren leaving Big Ten for Chicago Bears

Just a few days after the 2022 college football season ended, it was announced Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren was preparing to leave to take over as the president and CEO of the Chicago Bears — returning to his NFL roots. Saturday, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey appeared to take a shot at Warren for leaving college sports after three years.

It didn’t take long for him to go back to the NFL, where it’s speculated he wanted to end back up. Sankey alluded to Warren’s situation as part of his speech during Georgia’s championship celebration Saturday.

“We need leaders today in college football and college sports,” Sankey said. “Not leaders who make a stop to build a resume and go on to something else, but those who understand the problems ahead are real and demand our attention.”

Commissioner on commissioner violence. (HT ⁦@jonathanganz⁩) pic.twitter.com/n1X8R95WrL

— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) January 14, 2023

Warren started his career in the NFL with the St. Louis Rams and Minnesota Vikings before taking over for Jim Delaney as Big Ten commissioner in 2020. His tenure was up-and-down with COVID-19 cancellations, an ill-fated Alliance and a multi-billion dollar media rights deal as part of his legacy.

The Big Ten is also preparing to add Pac-12 powerhouses USC and UCLA to the league in 2024 after Warren helped oversee that move. That means the Big Ten will increase to 16 teams that year, keeping pace with the SEC, which is also moving to 16 teams in the future.

How the Big Ten will replace Kevin Warren

As far as who will replace Warren, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported ACC commissioner Jim Phillips is the “speculative favorite” to get the job after finishing as the runner up when Warren got the job in 2019.

Thamel said Phillips is “a consensus builder with experience on campus and someone willing to engage and build better relationships with the athletic directors. With the record-setting television contract opening up the cash flow and expansion tabled for a few years because of ambivalence and lack of profitable options, the next commissioner would need to dial in on governance and helping craft issues related to the future of the NCAA.”

Phillips isn’t the only name to come up, though. The Athletic also provided a list of potential candidates which includes Phillips, UCLA athletic director Martin Jarmond and Ohio State AD Gene Smith. The list ultimately breaks down into three main categories: Current conference commissioners, sitting athletic directors, and options from outside the usual pool of campus options.

On3’s Andrew Graham contributed to this report.