Greg Sankey jokes about failed three-conference alliance: 'That's a bad word'

The SEC and Big Ten recently came together to form an advisory group. Importantly, for SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey, this isn’t something that should be called an ‘alliance.’ In fact, for him, it’s a bad word.

Going back to when the news initially broke that the SEC was poaching Texas and Oklahoma from the Big 12, a three-conference alliance formed between the Big Ten, ACC, and Pac-12, which threatened to become a voting block. That didn’t work out, though, largely through further conference realignment.

During a recent appearance on The Paul Finebaum Show, Finebaum asked about this relationship with the Big Ten, going so far as to compare it to that alliance.

“You mentioned the personal relationship that Tony Petitti he came down to see you,” Finebaum said. “That’s interesting, and I’m not looking to dig up old bones, but everyone knows that during COVID, when you and others were trying to find a solution, the Big Ten chose a different route. This is a different time and it’s a different issue. But how important is it to you to — obviously it’s very important — to have this alliance — maybe a bad word.”

At that point, Greg Sankey jumped in to make it clear that alliance is the wrong word to use.

That’s a bad word. We can’t use that. Like, you’re fined on the gotta be an FAA fine for that, or FCC, I guess not FAA,” Sankey joked.

Even though Greg Sankey was joking about the word ‘alliance,’ it’s also easy to see why neither the SEC nor the Big Ten wants to use that word. That three-conference alliance didn’t work. The Big Ten and eventually the ACC poached from the Pac-12, which is down to two member schools heading into 2024.

Paul Finebaum speculates on why SEC, Big Ten decided to partner

When news of the partnership between the SEC and Big Ten first broke, Paul Finebaum shared his personal speculation on why they’d want to come together.

“I think it’s a combination of a lot of things, but I think the biggest issue is all of these court cases that scare everyone inside the arena, so to speak, and I just think it was inevitable. And I think, obviously, it’s Kevin Warren leaving the Big Ten. [SEC Commissioner Greg] Sankey reached out to Kevin Warren in the past and Kevin Warren thought he was always the smartest guy in the room and he never was,” Finebaum said.

“So I think ultimately Tony Petitti having a history with the SEC with some of his other jobs and reached [to Sankey] very quickly.”