MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. -- As the value of conference championship games in the College Football Playoff era is called into question by both coaches and administrators, several SEC coaches on Tuesday voiced support for the preservation of the SEC title game while also acknowledging it might not survive the next iteration of the CFP.
The Big Ten, ACC and Big 12 have all recently expressed support for a 24-team playoff model, which would eliminate their lucrative conference championship games.
Georgia coach Kirby Smart said his biggest concern with eliminating the SEC championship game would be lost revenue -- an estimated $80 million to $100 million, according to sources.
"I don't think it's great for the transfer portal to be ending the season that late, and if that championship game is in the way of that, or gets put on the back burner because of that, I think you'd have to accept it," Smart said. "But I'm really more worried about the financial burden that we're under right now of paying for all of the athletic department. And when you take that revenue stream [from the SEC championship game] out, can we make it work, and that is it sustainable to do without it? Would be my biggest concern."
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian said that with the conference moving to a nine-game league schedule this fall, earning a spot in the SEC championship game will be even more difficult and, in turn, rewarding.
"I think it'll be special, and so I'm hopeful that we can maintain that game," Sarkisian said. "I don't know if that's a reality, depending on the change that potentially is coming, but in the short term, while we have it, man, I surely hope those teams that do make it, cherish it."
"It's one of the best games that the SEC puts on every single year. ... We're constantly looking for the next thing, the next thing, the next thing, like that's the answer. Like, man, sometimes you guys just got to slow down and enjoy what you have, and what we have is really good product." Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz
Last week, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti said the conference could "undo our championship game" in time to implement a 24-team field for 2027. On Monday, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said his conference is "pretty committed" to its title game because "we have contracts."
Sankey, however, didn't rule out exploring the idea of a 24- or 28-team field.
Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said he still believes in the SEC championship game.
"It's one of the best games that the SEC puts on every single year, and I don't know why you would get rid of that, just because you know you want to get to the next thing," Drinkwitz said. "We're constantly looking for the next thing, the next thing, the next thing, like that's the answer. Like, man, sometimes you guys just got to slow down and enjoy what you have, and what we have is really good product."
Sarkisian agreed, saying part of the problem in college athletics right now is that everyone is "chasing one goal and losing sight of the small victories along the way."
"We live in an era right now of college football where it's playoff or bust," Sarkisian said, "and I feel for people because there's only 12 teams that get in ... and so the disappointment for the majority of these fan bases, because they all live with a playoff-or-bust mentality. ... We're minimizing the value of an SEC championship, all with the hopes of just winning a national championship, and one team gets one of those."
Vanderbilt coach Clark Lea said every time he meets with his team, he tells them he wants to play in the SEC championship game.
"I want to win one of those," Lea said. "Especially playing in a league like the SEC, the idea that you can leave a field with a trophy that says SEC champion, that is really meaningful to me."