NASHVILLE — Greg Sankey has plenty of accolades to discuss for the SEC.
The SEC Commissioner reiterated the ability to put the show on the road, citing the different destinations that SEC Media Days has visited. He referenced the championships, the draft picks, and plenty more accolades for the conference. But as most leaders do, Sankey emphasized the desire to continue improving rather than resting on their success.
SEC Media Days is no longer a small gathering of media and coaches. The event has turned into a four-day extravaganza in various cities and beautiful venues.
“We do something unique in the Southeastern Conference. Actually we do a lot unique, one of which is we have started to move media days to new locations. If you take away the two years of COVID, we’ve now been Birmingham, Atlanta, and Nashville, and there are many thanks and a great deal of work,” Sankey described of the rotating venues that the SEC has taken over. Later, he unveiled that next year’s event will be heading to the Lone-Star State. “I’m also pleased to announce that July 15th through the 18th in 2024, this event, SEC Football Media Days, will be hosted in downtown Dallas, Texas, at the Omni Hotel, where the SEC will light up the Dallas skyline with the colors of the Southeastern Conference.”
Revealing the next venue fits the theme of Sankey’s speech: recognizing current success, yet still looking forward.
Perhaps the most obvious area of success for the SEC has been on-field play. Sankey described this, stating “As a conference we’ve won four straight College Football Playoff National Championships earned by three different teams, and over the past 17 years we’ve had five programs win 13 national college football titles.”
That on-field success has also led to the next level.
“For the young people who want to go pro in sports, it appears the Southeastern Conference is the place to prepare yourself for those opportunities, since in the last year former SEC student-athletes earned the No. 1 pick in the NFL Draft, were drafted 1 and 2 in the Major League Baseball Draft, No. 1 in the WNBA Draft, and were the two highest drafted collegians in this year’s NBA Draft,” Sankey added in reference to the SEC players getting chances in professional sports.
Once again, he did not finish his thought without referencing the future of the conference.
“But even with all of that good news and a time of change, we’re not done,” Sankey said. “As we look forward to the season ahead and the year ahead, it will be our final as a 14-team conference. We’re going to grow to 16 July 1, 2024.”
That comment, of course, references the SEC being set to add two perrinial powers in Texas and Oklahoma next year.
Sankey also touched on other areas the conference will be moving forward in. The new television contract with ESPN, continued work on NIL policies, and even improved regulation on sports gambling was all discussed. It is clear that Greg Sankey and the SEC are not only excited about what they have done, but looking forward to what they can do next in the realm of collegiate athletics.
ESPN Southwest Louisiana’s SEC Media Days coverage is presented by Beal & Hebert.