6 months ago
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ATLANTA -- Georgia manager Kirby Smart said the SEC coaches haven't reached a statement successful their enactment for a 16-team playoff exemplary that would see the 5 highest-ranked league champions and 11 at-large teams.
But Smart said astir SEC coaches favour that format for 2026 due to the fact that it wouldn't bounds their participants similar automatic qualifiers.
"I deliberation the champion typical exemplary of the champion teams is astir apt the 5-plus-11 model, but I don't deliberation that's a statement successful the SEC," Smart told ESPN astatine SEC media days Tuesday. "... There's been a large strain enactment connected the colleges that are borderline, bubble. These coaches conscionable privation an accidental to get successful that due to the fact that the bigger the playoffs person gotten, it's minimized the bowls.
"You're sitting astatine a mid-tier SEC program, and you request to person a crushed for your instrumentality basal to beryllium excited. You request an accidental for your instrumentality basal to deliberation they've got a chance, and that's hard successful immoderate of the models."
The SEC coaches began to thin towards the 5+11 exemplary astatine their outpouring meetings successful Destin, Fla., aft seeing graphs and elements from a survey of the playoff that simulated what would person happened successful assorted models. The Big Ten has supported a format that includes guaranteed spots for conferences, with the astir going to the SEC and Big Ten, but Ole Miss manager Lane Kiffin said metrics should assistance find the 16 champion teams -- and determination shouldn't beryllium immoderate guarantees for league champions.
"I had a manager that played Clemson past twelvemonth say, 'Put Clemson connected my docket each week compared to playing SEC teams,'" Kiffin said of the defending ACC champs. "But determination mightiness beryllium years that besides the ACC truly does person existent teams. It mightiness alteration each year, but not wherever radical are conscionable successful due to the fact that [they triumph the league championship] oregon adjacent worse, you person a truly bully grounds successful the conference, you're the 2nd squad successful the conference. You didn't triumph the championship, but you lone mislaid 1 oregon 2 games, but you didn't play anybody."
Kiffin said the 13-member enactment committee should beryllium comprised of "educated media people" who ticker a batch of shot -- not radical with affiliations to immoderate schools, arsenic is presently the lawsuit with sitting diversion directors who are recused from voting for their schools and permission the country during those discussions.
"What, are you gonna enactment Robert Kraft successful to determine whether the Dolphins get in?" Kiffin said. "An AD of a school? Like, what?"
As the FBS league commissioners proceed to statement the format for 2026 and beyond, their Dec. 1 deadline looms. South Carolina manager Shane Beamer said the gathering successful Destin was erstwhile the coaches realized, "Let's not conscionable headdress ourselves astatine 4 and anticipation for the best."
"There's years that the SEC legitimately could person gotten possibly 7 teams successful the playoff definite years, if it was 5 automatics and past 11 of the best," Beamer said. "... It mightiness mean that there's not 4 SEC teams oregon 3 SEC teams, but it besides mightiness bushed that determination are 7 oregon 8 SEC teams 1 year."
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey connected Monday said the Big Ten has a "different view" of what the playoff should be, and that could pb to the tract remaining astatine 12. Multiple sources successful the Big Ten person said they won't see a 5+11 exemplary unless the SEC and ACC determination to a nine-game league schedule.
Smart said to spell to 9 league games, helium needs assurance the CFP enactment committee isn't selecting teams "based connected the nonaccomplishment file alone."
"I don't cognize however that tin ever beryllium fair," helium said. "It is what it is: Two conferences are stronger than others, and if you don't hold with that, past you astir apt conscionable don't cognize assemblage football. And for america to accidental that each nonaccomplishment is equal, I don't cognize that the radical successful that country hold with that. I emotion the thought of a nine-game schedule. I deliberation it takes america retired of scheduling issues. It plays a truly beardown league schedule, but not astatine the disbursal of costing america opportunities that our instrumentality bases privation successful the CFP."
