Finally! SEC does the right thing in matching what everyone else was already doing

It could be the coincidence of the timing, but all of the talk regarding the SEC schedule and their projection of being all high and mighty came up again following the College Football Playoff changes.

As reported by On3, the conference is now moving forward with a nine-game mandatory rule, coupled with the need for all SEC teams to also schedule a non-conference opponent from either the Big Ten, ACC, Big 12, or Notre Dame. The changes are slated to take place for the 2026 season.

This is the right move that college football fans have been asking for. What this does not mean is that the previous years up until this point do not deserve to be criticized. Until this point, the SEC has refused to match the same approach as everyone else, claiming that their conference schedule was inherently too hard to even warrant consideration to expand.

The proposed switch-up does deserve praise, but it is simply a correction to what already should have been the case.

When the 2026 season does come around, it will then be seen how adding the additional conference game will actually affect things. Most likely, the best in the conference will still be able to stand out and comfortably make the College Football Playoff. It is, of course, possible that a team on the cusp will then be pushed toward the outside of the picture with an additional potential loss to lose. If anything, that helps to clear up the CFP image that much more and then gives a clearer picture of who actually deserves to be in the playoffs.

College Football Playoff implications

Add too that the new CFP changes are in theory going to reward teams for having tough games on the schedule, then there really is not anything of a loss for programs in the SEC while fans get more games that people will want to tune in to and look forward to.

Now the SEC is on an even playing field with everyone else, rather than scheduling a known win that will have a potential spread of around 35 or so.

Making this correction now does not mean that the prior years deserve to go without criticism. This latest news does deserve to be applauded and is a great step for college football.