From OnlineAthens.com
June 1st, 2016 01:21 PM
DESTIN, Fla.--SEC commissioner Greg Sankey didn’t mince words after Arkansas football coach Bret Bielema floated the idea of a football nonconference challenge series against the Big Ten or ACC.
“We generally call those bowl games,” said Sankey in shooting down the idea.
He was less direct when asked at the SEC spring meetings about possible chatter of divisional realignment--specifically Auburn moving from the SEC West to the SEC East, Sankey said: “Well, I don’t answer a hypothetical.”
Auburn coach Gus Malzhan told ESPN.com in April that he thought “there will be a discussion,” about realignment and he wouldn’t oppose the Tigers moving to the SEC East,
“I’ve read those stories,” Sankey said.
Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said Wednesday that he has also read about movement between divisions and said that talk isn’t taking place in the meeting rooms.
“Somebody keeps asking me that question and I keep reading about it, but it hasn’t been discussed at all,” Foley said. “Obviously it’s a slow news time of the year and stuff comes up and I get that but that hasn’t been discussed at any AD meeting. I just had an AD meeting in May. We had one in March. We had one in December and obviously have one now and it hasn’t even been discussed in any of those meetings.”
The SEC West has won the last seven SEC championships and the division that also includes Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Arkansas has won more 70 percent of head to head games since 2009.
“There’s an ebb and flow between those divisions, but there’s great competition in both,” Sankey said. “The chance to be in Atlanta means something to both teams.”
One thing the SEC isn’t considering is ditching divisions entirely.
“We have a long history of divisions that has worked incredibly well,” Sankey said. “I think they have meaning for us. When the (NCAA) proposal was introduced we did not support the elimination of divisions to sponsor a football championship game.”
...READ MORE HERE...
June 1st, 2016 01:21 PM
DESTIN, Fla.--SEC commissioner Greg Sankey didn’t mince words after Arkansas football coach Bret Bielema floated the idea of a football nonconference challenge series against the Big Ten or ACC.
“We generally call those bowl games,” said Sankey in shooting down the idea.
He was less direct when asked at the SEC spring meetings about possible chatter of divisional realignment--specifically Auburn moving from the SEC West to the SEC East, Sankey said: “Well, I don’t answer a hypothetical.”
Auburn coach Gus Malzhan told ESPN.com in April that he thought “there will be a discussion,” about realignment and he wouldn’t oppose the Tigers moving to the SEC East,
“I’ve read those stories,” Sankey said.
Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley said Wednesday that he has also read about movement between divisions and said that talk isn’t taking place in the meeting rooms.
“Somebody keeps asking me that question and I keep reading about it, but it hasn’t been discussed at all,” Foley said. “Obviously it’s a slow news time of the year and stuff comes up and I get that but that hasn’t been discussed at any AD meeting. I just had an AD meeting in May. We had one in March. We had one in December and obviously have one now and it hasn’t even been discussed in any of those meetings.”
The SEC West has won the last seven SEC championships and the division that also includes Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Arkansas has won more 70 percent of head to head games since 2009.
“There’s an ebb and flow between those divisions, but there’s great competition in both,” Sankey said. “The chance to be in Atlanta means something to both teams.”
One thing the SEC isn’t considering is ditching divisions entirely.
“We have a long history of divisions that has worked incredibly well,” Sankey said. “I think they have meaning for us. When the (NCAA) proposal was introduced we did not support the elimination of divisions to sponsor a football championship game.”
...READ MORE HERE...
