SEC coaches say they feel 'misled' after voting to make their conference schedules harder

Joel Klatt discusses the impact of a 24-Team College Football Playoff and what that could mean for potential SEC and Big Ten Matchups.

The SEC has, for years, enjoyed a significant non-conference schedule advantage over its competitors in college football.

The former iteration of the Pac-12 played nine conference games, as does the current Big Ten. The Big 12 is requiring its teams to play nine conference opponents. But until now, the SEC allowed its schools to play just eight. Four non-conference games, eight against other SEC opponents.

Some schools took advantage of this by giving themselves a "free" win with that extra non-conference game. In fact, in a recent interview, Lane Kiffin bragged about his scheduling of practices while at Ole Miss. His teams went 20-0 in non-conference games, because he specifically avoided tougher opponents.

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Lane Kiffin speaks at a press conference as he is introduced as the new head football coach of the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, La., on Dec. 1, 2025. (Tyler Kaufman/Getty Images)

That strategy meant his teams started each year 4-0. That meant his teams needed to go just 5-3 in the SEC to win nine games, or 6-2 to reach 10 and put themselves in position to reach the College Football Playoff. Even more impressive was that Kiffin and others in the SEC frequently scheduled an FCS opponent for late November. Essentially giving his team an extra late-season bye, while avoiding the pitfalls of recency bias among poll voters that can stem from a November loss.

FLORIDA STATE-GEORGIA SERIES CANCELLATION IS OMINOUS SIGN FOR FUTURE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL

Well, those days are now officially over. The SEC