Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey addressed the media as SEC Media Days 2026 kicked off this morning in Tampa, Florida.
The commissioner was asked about the possibility of the SEC breaking away from the NCAA. While he said that real conversations are being had about that possibility, it is not the preferred solution.
“I recommend that that not be the direction we pursue,” Sankey said. “I think there are a lot of additional steps or a lot of interim steps, adjustments that can be made. And so that’ll be talked about. I think it’s been talked about for 20 years, 30 years.”
The college football landscape continues to shift, but Sankey continues to value relationships with fellow conferences and exercise patience on any drastic changes to the SEC’s position in the sport.
“When you talk about relationships with other conferences, the need for competition outside your league, the expectations for national championships, the political realities, I think those tell you that, OK, we’ll continue to let this simmer, was the phrase I used this morning, and we’ll think about it,” he said. “And we can think about what a structure could look like. But activating on that, I think, is ought to be a secondary consideration right now.”
Alabama head coach Kalen DeBoer, wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams, safety Bray Hubbard and defensive back Zabien Brown will address the media at SEC Media Days 2026 on Wednesday, July 22.
