SEC adds 9th league game in 2026, increases chances of playoff expansion

Behind a “hard push” from SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, the league’s presidents voted Thursday to add a ninth conference game starting in 2026.

The SEC joins the Big Ten and Big 12 as power leagues with nine conference games. In 2026, the ACC will be the only power conference playing eight league games. However, the ACC said it would consider a ninth game if the SEC ever added a ninth league game. Adding a ninth SEC game also will provide more revenue to conference members from ESPN as part of their media rights contract, sources said.

The SEC’s historic decision to play the same number of league games as the Big Ten could facilitate a possible compromise between leagues on an expanded 16-team playoff format in 2026, sources said.

“It certainly helps,” a Big Ten athletic director told On3.

Currently, the two leagues are divided.

The SEC and Big Ten have the authority to determine and/or expand the playoff in 2026, but the two leagues can’t agree on a 16-team format. The SEC favors the 5+11 model – five automatic bids to the highest ranked conference champions plus 11 at-large bids – while the Big Ten prefers a 4-4-2-2-1 model, providing automatic bids to the Big Ten and SEC (four each); ACC and Big 12 (two each); one to the highest ranked Group of 6 champion plus three at-large bids.

The SEC has opposed the Big Ten’s automatic qualifier model. With the SEC adding a ninth conference game, would the Big Ten, which has played nine conference games since 2017, consider the 5+11 format, favored by the SEC, Big 12, ACC and Notre Dame?

“It’s hard to tell,” another Big Ten AD said. “It would really depend what criteria are used by the (College Football Playoff) selection committee. My concern is it’s hard to get an apples to apples (comparison) in the (at-large) teams ranked between 12 and 16.

“We’ll consider anything that makes sense. The SEC going to nine games is a step in a direction of conformity to be sure.”

Nov. 30 is the deadline for changing the playoff format for the 2026 season. If the SEC and Big Ten can’t agree on a new format, the 2026 playoff will use the same 12-team format as this season.

The SEC’s move to nine games was a surprise to many. Since splitting into two six-team divisions in 1992, the SEC had played eight conference games for the past 33 years. The SEC has been the most dominating league over the past two decades, winning 15 of the last 19 national titles. A reason many wanted to remain at eight games. “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it,” an SEC AD said.

However, Sankey had been a proponent for a nine-game SEC schedule for a while. He addressed his support of a nine-game schedule at last month’s SEC media days. SEC teams are required to schedule at least one additional high-quality non-conference game from the Atlantic Coast, Big Ten or Big 12 or Notre Dame each season.

“My life doesn’t end if we don’t (go to nine games),” Sankey said in Atlanta. “I think nine games would promote great interest through the year, but it would be hard to coach. I’ve had candid conversations with coaches. I’ve told them that.”

Like the Big Ten, SEC officials and coaches have concerns how the CFP selection committee will value strength of schedule in their rankings.

“Getting the College Football Playoff selection process right is critical,” an SEC source said.

Last year, SMU (11-2 overall, but 0-2 vs. Top 25 CFP teams) received the final playoff bid over Alabama (9-3 overall, 4-1 vs. Top 25 CFP teams). SEC supporters believe the committee didn’t consider Alabama’s tougher schedule in the final rankings.

The College Football Playoff announced Wednesday, it would enhance “the tools that the selection committee uses to assess schedule strength and how teams perform against their schedule … to apply greater weight to games against strong opponents.

“An additional metric, record strength, has been added to the selection committee’s analysis to go beyond a team’s schedule strength to assess how a team performed against that schedule. This metric rewards teams defeating high-quality opponents while minimizing the penalty for losing to such a team. Conversely, these changes will provide minimal reward for defeating a lower-quality opponent while imposing a greater penalty for losing to such a team.”

The SEC’s coaches had been outspoken the past few years in their support at staying at eight league games, but to no avail. However, the SEC’s athletic directors made the decision to add a ninth conference game.

With a ninth conference game, a number of SEC teams will have to revamp their non-conference schedules. Arkansas, Kentucky and Mississippi State are among the SEC teams that already have four non-league games scheduled for 2026, so they will have to drop a non-conference opponent in 2026 and/or reschedulee that game to a later season.

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