SEC schedule expansion tied to massive media rights payday, Playoff power grab, player pay

At SEC Spring Meetings, discussions heated up about the potential addition of a ninth conference game. While it means another SEC game for Texas, it also has greater ramifications and context across the college football landscape.

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Most SEC teams and coaches welcome the idea of an extra conference game, as long as they won’t be punished for it. An extra conference game will inevitably result in worse records amongst the conference, potentially leading to less representation in the College Football Playoff. Before the SEC moves to nine games they want assurance that the increased strength of schedule will get its due respect. The format of the College Football Playoff following the 2025-2026 season will be the biggest determinant for a ninth SEC game. 

As a new potential playoff format looms, the SEC and Big 10 will have massive leverage in these negotiations. The 2025 playoff format was just finalized with some concessions made by those leagues, but the future appears to reside in the hands of the Big 10 and SEC.

The College Football Playoff’s television deal with ESPN runs through 2031-2032. The SEC’s media rights deal ends in 2033-34. The Big 10’s media rights deal ends in 2029-30. The Big 12’s media rights deal ends in 2030-31. The ACC has already signed a deal through 2036. Once the SEC and Big 10 lock up what should be record television deals in the early 2030s, deals that should dwarf ones that go the Big 12 or ACC’s way, they’ll have even more leverage to make drastic decisions that could alter the future of college athletics. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said earlier this week that some of his constituents wonder why they’re even in the NCAA. If the money’s right, then the Big 10 and the SEC could do something unprecedented. But other teams and leagues won’t want to be left behind. Something, or someone, will have to give. It won’t be the leagues with the power of the purse.

On the format itself, the proposed 16 team playoff model that would likely move the SEC to nine conference games includes four automatic qualifiers for both the SEC and Big 10, two apiece for the ACC and Big 12, one Group of Five bid, and three at-large bids for all conferences. A ninth SEC game makes even more sense under this model that is more similar to the NFL. It creates a structure where SEC teams will be focused on their conference record and reaching the top four of the SEC standings, and the playoff committee rankings become a second priority (similar to conference seeding in the NFL). 

This is where SEC and Big 10 dominance becomes a positive feedback loop. As the two dominant conferences the SEC and Big 10 are able to establish a system where half the playoff spots go to teams in their conferences. Therefore, the SEC and Big 10 will have more significant conference games each year in comparison to the rest of the country, leading to more lucrative television rights deals that generates more money to pay players. That’s something the SEC tried to drive home to media in Destin this week.

The @SEC just gave reporters in Greg Sankey’s final press conference this week a packet of analytics to illustrate this: pic.twitter.com/JZJMGKGwFW

— Heather Dinich (@CFBHeather) May 29, 2025

Seth Emerson of the Athletic reported that for adding a ninth conference game, ESPN is willing to pay the SEC an additional $50-80 million to be divided amongst all schools. With the expectation that the House settlement will eventually be approved by Judge Claudia Wilken, this is significant for generating revenue under the new revenue-sharing agreement and incoming NIL oversight. Teams have already begun exploring avenues for extra revenue such as the University of Tennessee who has already announced they will be implementing a “talent tax” with season tickets. Texas is increasing the per-game football ticket price this year because of new costs it will have to cover.

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The SEC and the Big 10 essentially hold the power to steer the sport in whichever direction they believe benefits them the most. In this constantly evolving era of college football, the discussions surrounding adding a ninth SEC game are seldom about scheduling, but strategy and the battle for supremacy. As the SEC sets itself up to maximize postseason participation, television revenue, and establish long-term leverage, a ninth conference game becomes a key piece to a much larger puzzle.

The SEC is no longer positioning itself to be competitive, but to control the future of the sport.