FAYETTEVILLE - The SEC’s football scheduling format isn’t changing.
During a Sunday meeting in Atlanta, chancellors and presidents of the SEC’s 14 schools voted in favor of teams continuing to play eight conference games: six against teams in the same division with two against opponents in the opposite division, with one being a permanent crossover foe.
One change came with the vote: SEC teams will be required to play at least one team from the other four major conferences (Atlantic Coast Conference, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12) each season beginning in 2016.
“The decision to retain an eight-game conference schedule while adopting provisions to ensure quality nonconference scheduling was a result of constructive dialogue between coaches,athletic directors and university presidents,” Arkansas Athletic Director Jeff Long, chairman of the NCAA’s new playoff committee, said in statement. “I believe that this solution respects the history of traditional SEC matchups while strengthening nonconference scheduling across the board in our league.”
The vote, which was 10-4 according to a New Orleans Times-Picayune report, guarantees Alabama-Tennessee and Auburn-Georgia will remain annual matchups.
“Tradition matters in the SEC, and there is no denying that tradition factor in this decision because it protects several long-standing cross-division conference rivalries,” SEC Commissioner Mike Slive said in a news release. “It has been a hallmark of the SEC over our history to be able to make continued progress while also maintaining traditions important to our institutions.”
Arkansas and South Carolina had been division crossover opponents since both joined the SEC in 1992, but beginning this season Arkansas will start playing Missouri on an annual basis while South Carolina plays Texas A&M.
The Razorbacks play at Missouri this season with their other SEC East game against Georgia in Little Rock.
Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema last spring expressed support for maintaining the SEC’s scheduling format rather than possibly going to nine conference games.
“I’m kind of a big believer in if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” Bielema said.
Bielema has spoken enthusiastically about Arkansas building an SEC rivalry with Missouri, which is replacing LSU as the Razorbacks’ season-ending opponent.
“That would really be neat of the year to make sure you had that dynamic that was a constant,” Bielema said last year. “Just because of the region, because of recruiting, it would be a natural-born rivalry and I think something that we can build as a culture as this continues to move forward.”
Long said Arkansas looks forward to building a rivalry with Missouri in all sports.
“I believe this new rivalry will create excitement for our fans and will benefit both institutions,” Long said.
Arkansas already is in compliance with the SEC’s nonconference scheduling provision with games against Texas Tech (Big 12) in 2014 and 2015, TCU (Big 12) in 2016 and 2017 and Michigan (Big Ten) in 2018 and 2019.
No end date for the extension of the SEC’s eight-game 6-1-1 format was announced, but it will be in place for at least the next 6 to 8 years, LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva told the Times-Picayune.
Alleva was critical of the SEC’s vote Sunday, arguing isn’t fair for LSU to have Florida as it’s permanent cross-over opponent while Ole Miss plays Vanderbilt and Mississippi State plays Kentucky.
“I’m disappointed in the fact that the leadership of our conference doesn’t understand the competitive advantage permanent partners give to certain institutions,” Alleva told the Times-Picayune. “In our league we share the money and expenses equally but we don’t share our opponents equally.”
Alleva said he understand sthe Alabama-Tennessee and Auburn-Georgia games, but said other schools voted for what’s best for them rather than what’s best for the SEC.
“If I’m Ole Miss and I’m playing Vanderbilt, I’ll vote to play Vanderbilt,” Alleva said. “If I’m Mississippi State and I’m playing Kentucky, I’m going to vote to play Kentucky. People voted their own self interest instead of what is in the best interest of competitive balance.”
Alleve said SEC schools could have voted to keep the Alabama-Tennessee and Auburn-Georgia games intact and had the other eight teams rotate cross-over opponents.
“That was brought up but voted down,” Alleva said. “I’m not pushing for the self-interest of LSU. I’m pushing for the equity.”
SEC teams won seven consecutive national championships from 2006-2013 and Auburn lost to Florida State last year in what became the final Bowl Championship Series title game. Four teams will be part of national championship playoff beginning in 2014.
Slive said the strength of the SEC was a significant factor in the decision to keep the conference schedule at eight games and that maintaining the format was a thoughtful and deliberate process that allows teams the flexibility to play non conference marquee games.
“The concept of strength-of-schedule is based on an entire 12-game schedule, a combination of both conference games together with non conference games,” Slive said. “Given the strength of our conference schedule supplemented by at least one major non-conference game, our teams will boast of a strong resume of opponents each and every year.”
Permanent rivals
Alabama (West) vs. Tennessee (East)
Arkansas (West) vs. Missouri (East)
Auburn (West) vs. Georgia (East)
LSU (West) vs. Florida (East)
Mississippi (West) vs. Vanderbilt (East)
Miss. St. (West) vs. Kentucky (East)
Texas A&M (West) vs. S. Carolina (East)
Sports, Pages 15 on 04/28/2014