No SEC-Big Ten scheduling agreement reached, but it appears more matchups are on the way

NEW ORLEANS Big Ten and SEC athletics directors spent part of their fall summit discussing a plan to play each other with regularity, perhaps even organizing an annual challenge on the football field.

As for this time at the winter summit ? We didnt talk about it, Illinois athletic director Josh Whitman said.

Advertisement I dont think theres anything imminent, Nebraska athletic director Troy Dannen said.

That doesnt mean the topic was discarded; it was just nudged to the side, with league and school officials consumed with finalizing the House settlement and determining future College Football Playoff models.

Lets go back to Nashville, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said.

I said we could leave it the way it is, we can play more (without a firm agreement), or we could do something definitive.

We had three options.

We still have three options.

When scheduling a football arrangement becomes a priority between the leagues, it has the potential to energize the teams, the fans and their network partners.

During the past three seasons, teams from the Big Ten and SEC have met 24 times, including 19 times in the postseason.

The leagues are tied with a 12-12 record, and their meetings have averaged 8.3 million viewers, according to numbers compiled by Sports Media Watch.

That includes four CFP clashes, five regular-season games and 15 bowl matchups.

The highest-rated game during those three years was the 2023-24 CFP semifinal between Michigan and Alabama in the Rose Bowl (27.76 million viewers).

The CFP semifinal between Ohio State and Georgia (21.74 million viewers) was the most-watched game in 2022-23.

Five SEC-Big Ten matchups exceeded 14 million viewers, and all but four generated at least 3 million viewers.

The opportunities for the programs to face off in the postseason are nearly maxed out.

Last season, they played against each other in four bowls and two CFP games.

But the regular season is when they can find the most growth.

In the past three seasons, the leagues competed only five times in the regular season, and four were last fall.

Those games averaged 5.9 million viewers.

GO DEEPER Alliance with Big Ten could help push SEC to 9-game conference schedule The leagues summit in October came against the backdrop of nonconference games featuring USC-LSU, Texas-Michigan and Alabama-Wisconsin.

This fall, Texas travels to Ohio State in Week 1, Michigan heads to Oklahoma in Week 2, and Wisconsin plays at Alabama in Week 3.

But theres the potential for more matchups, including and beyond the headliners in future years.

Advertisement Missouri and Illinois could ignite the football version of their Braggin Rights mens basketball series, as they did in the early 2000s.

Indiana and Kentucky played annually from 1987 through 2005, with a Bourbon Barrel as a traveling trophy.

Arguably, the nations two best night football environments belong to LSU and Penn State, and they could battle for the top spot in a home-and-home series.

Each stadium and fan base has its characteristics, from The Kinnick Wave at Iowa and Jump Around at Camp Randall Stadium to The Grove at Ole Miss and the 12th Man at Texas A&M.

Those atmospheres lead to great experiences and fan interest.

GO DEEPER SEC, Big Ten discussing changes to championship weekend In the past three seasons, the leagues reach on linear, digital and streaming platforms indicates why the SEC and Big Ten would be drawn to play each other more often.

The teams that currently compete in the SEC appeared in 121 combined games (81 SEC league games) with at least 3.5 million viewers.

The new-look Big Ten posted similar numbers, with its current 18 members appearing in 99 combined games (58 Big Ten league games) with the same viewing threshold.

Then theres the rest of college football, which is partly why the SEC and Big Ten are attracted to each other.

Teams comprising the current Big 12 (40 games) and ACC (37) combined for 77 games, hitting 3.5 million viewers during that three-year period.

Of those 77 games, only 23 (12 ACC, 11 Big 12) featured head-to-head matchups involving teams currently comprising the ACC or Big 12 conferences.

GO DEEPER Big Ten, SEC to push for CFP to be seeded entirely by final rankings Based on each conferences makeup, thats 27 SEC-only games, 19 Big Ten-only games, four ACC-only games and four Big 12-only games that hit 3.5 million viewers during those three years.

Of the 20 highest-rated games in each of the three seasons 60 in all only three (Army-Navy in 2024, Colorado-Colorado State in 2023, Kansas State-TCU in 2022) did not involve a team from the SEC or Big Ten.

This topic isnt going away, and perhaps it isnt a priority this month.

But its almost guaranteed the leagues, the schools and their media partners will revisit it.

Whether it becomes an official policy the Big Ten had a scheduling alliance with the Pac-12 in 2011 that fell apart within six months or merely a suggestion, it appears more SEC-Big Ten matchups are on the way.

(Top photo of Texas defensive back Andrew Mukuba after intercepting a pass against the Michigan Wolverines on Sept.

7: Joe Robbins / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images).

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