Greg Sankey says SEC did not push for playoff expansion

This week, John Canzano and Jon Wilner interviewed SEC commissioner Greg Sankey on their podcast for the details behind College Football Playoff expansion. Although initially, Sankey was on board with delaying a change, talks rapidly escalated into the ultimate vote ahead of the 2022 season.

“The restart (of negotiations) didn’t come from us (the SEC),” Sankey said. “I left the January meetings in Indianapolis and I was very open with my colleagues to say we’re stopping and we’ll put this aside until the 2026 season… Obviously, things changed over the summer.

“My perspective’s never really changed… Part of the challenge right now, is rather than have used the last 12 months or 16 months to improve upon a recommendation, that recommendation was static and now we’re in a hurry-up offense, if you will, trying to move to a finish line around the ability to implement a 12-team format earlier than the 2026 season.”

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Although the SEC’s coaches and presidents wanted to expand the CFP, according to Sankey, he wasn’t the one who instigated a fresh wave of action to make it happen.

College Football expansion timeline

The College Football Playoff Board of Managers approved the expansion to 12 teams in early September. Now, the biggest question remaining is about when this format could take effect.

According to ESPN’s Heather Dinich, the model will feature the six highest-ranked conference champions followed by the six highest-ranked teams after them. 

“This could be – could be – a historic decision that changes college football’s postseason as soon as 2024,” Dinich said. “Sources indicate that not even people in the room know which way this is going to play out. There are several possibilities that have been mentioned. One is that they agree on a 12-team (playoff) that begins in the 2026 season.

“Remember, this contract goes through 2025. If it happens before 2026, these presidents and chancellors must be unanimous on the format. If it’s not unanimous, they could change it more easily for 2026. Then there’s a sense that they can work backwards and say can we do this for 2024? 2025? There are several options that are on the table. They might not even vote. The question is can they agree on the format, and if so, when?”