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Greg Sankey makes point on SEC concessions during expansion talks

photos -jpgby:Ashton Pollard01/06/22

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Ahead of an all-SEC national championship game on Monday night to close out the College Football Playoff, it’s hard to argue anyone in the CFP world is in a better position than SEC commissioner Greg Sankey.

But while Sankey may be in the driver’s seat, he might be willing to give a little in the interest of the long-term viability and popularity of college football. He expressed his thoughts to ESPN’s Paul Finebaum on “The Paul Finebaum Show” on Wednesday.

“We all have a responsibility to make sure college football is strong across the nation…even though a four-team playoff works for us, creating opportunities is a compelling reason to give a little bit,” Sankey said, per Finebaum.

As Sankey pointed out on the show, nearly half of the country, geographically, is consistently uninvolved in the postseason competition. A Pac-12 team has not reached the CFP since 2016, and only one additional school west of Oklahoma has even been a participant: 2014 Oregon.

The teams have been heavily concentrated in the Southeast and Midwest, with the SEC trouncing the success of everyone else. When Alabama or Georgia is crowned at the conclusion of the game on Monday night, it will mark the conference’s third consecutive national title. Additionally, the SEC has won nine of their 10 semifinal appearances since the playoff’s creation, with the only loss coming in 2014 (Alabama).

Expansion back on the table…again

Sankey is one of four people included in the CFP working group to examine expansion options, the others being Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby, Mountain West commissioner Craig Thompson and Notre Dame athletic director Jack Swarbrick. The group proposed a 12-team playoff in June, further evidence that Sankey is open to other ideas that are not his top preference.

Now, that 12-team format will be discussed, again, by the 11-person management committee (10 FBS conference commissioners plus Swarbrick) on Saturday in Indianapolis, the site of the national championship game. It will be their seventh meeting since June. The expectation is that the group will send a report to the CFP Board of Managers (11 university presidents and chancellors) with their recommendations.

The current CFP contract extends through 2026.

Sankey has been transparent in his wishes, now, it’s up to the others.

“If we are going to move off the four-team format, the proposed 12-team model works well and compared to others, works best. We’ll see if others are prepared to act.”