With \u201ctalking season\u201d in the rearview mirror and football season around the corner, here are five things we learned from SEC Media Days<\/p>\n
Texas wants to \u201cfinish the mission\u201d<\/p>\n
Texas College Sports<\/p>\n
Texas has been close under Sarkisian, but not quite gotten over the hump. After back-to-back College Football Playoff semifinals appearances, the Longhorns are ready for the next step.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe key for us this fall, we\u2019ve got to go enjoy this journey,\u201d Sarkisian said<\/a>. \u201cWe need to be present and we need to be present in the moment, enjoy the journey and then ultimately finish the mission.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019ve been close. We\u2019ve been there. We\u2019ve been knocking on the door the last two years. But to go do that, we need to take it one step at a time as we embark on the summit that we\u2019re looking for, and that\u2019s going to take great discipline.”<\/p>\n New starting quarterback Arch Manning will be key to finishing that mission. He admitted that, while he didn\u2019t ever consider leaving Texas, it was tough being a backup<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cHe\u2019s got an unbelievable work ethic. And I think, if he stays true to himself, that\u2019s going to help him navigate these waters as they present themselves,\u201d Sarkisian said. \u201cI think he\u2019s prepared for the moment, but now it\u2019s just time for him to go do it and enjoy doing it quite frankly.\u201d<\/p>\n Related:Many expect Arch Manning to be great. Just good might be enough for Texas to win in 2025<\/a>SEC or Big Ten?<\/p>\n After Michigan and Ohio State claimed the last two national championships, detractors are claiming that the SEC\u2019s reign as the top conference in the sport is over. SEC players and coaches disagree.<\/p>\n \u201cFor all those of you who like to speculate about super-conferences, welcome to one,\u201d SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said. \u201dWe have common-sense geography, restored rivalries, record-breaking viewership.\u201d<\/p>\n Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz spoke bluntly when asked if he thought the SEC still owned the title of top conference.<\/p>\n \u201cThe top? The top, as in number of draft picks in the NFL? Top as in most viewership? Overall top, deepest conference in college football? Look, the more teams you add to the tournament, there\u2019s greater variance to it,\u201d Drinkwitz said. \u201cYou\u2019ve got 16 of the toughest competitors in the world who are head coaches in this league. We\u2019re all driven to achieve the best, whether that\u2019s internally or externally.\u201d<\/p>\n Related:SEC players, coaches defend standing as top conference despite Big Ten\u2019s recent success<\/a>What\u2019s next for SEC schedule, CFP?<\/p>\n If you were hoping there were concrete answers for these questions, you left SEC Media Days empty-handed.<\/p>\n The never-ending discussion surrounding the number of games in the SEC schedule rages on as schools debate whether there should be eight or nine games in the SEC slate.<\/p>\n Sankey said a decision on the 2026 schedule will come soon, though he did tell ESPN<\/a> that he is in favor of nine games because it \u201cwould promote great interest through the year,\u201d but also acknowledged the increased difficulty of SEC teams\u2019 schedules if it went to nine games. Regardless, he knows the clock is ticking.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to make decisions (soon), if we\u2019re going to nine games,\u201d Sankey said. \u201cIf we stay at eight, it\u2019ll probably be a little bit easier logistically.\u201d<\/p>\n For the CFP, Sankey believes expansion \u201cshould be pursued,\u201d but the SEC and Big Ten are at a standstill on what the expanded format would look like<\/a>.<\/p>\n The Big Ten wants a 4-4-2-2-1 format, allotting four automatic bids to the SEC and Big Ten, while two automatic bids go to the ACC and Big 12. The SEC prefers five conference champions and 11 at-large bids.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had a different view coming out of [the SEC spring meetings] around the notion of allocations,\u201d Sankey said. \u201cThe Big Ten has a different view. That\u2019s fine. We have a 12-team playoff, five conference champions. That could stay if we can\u2019t agree.\u201d<\/p>\n Jackson Arnold\u2019s OU departure explained<\/p>\n Former five-star and Denton Guyer product Jackson Arnold\u2019s time at Oklahoma didn\u2019t go as planned. In his first year starting for the Sooners, he was benched and later transferred to Auburn<\/a> after the Sooners\u2019 time in the SEC began with a resounding thud.<\/p>\n Oklahoma coach Brent Venables was candid on what went wrong for Arnold at Oklahoma, even admitting the Sooners tried to keep him around.<\/p>\n \u201cHate what happened,\u201d Venables said. \u201cWe wanted to keep him. We tried to keep him, but I think he just needed a fresh start. I don\u2019t want to speak for him, but he was wonderful.<\/p>\n \u201cUnfortunately for him, everything around him wasn\u2019t helping him be successful. So, he had no chance in some ways, under the circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n Arnold makes his return to Oklahoma when Auburn visits the Sooners in an early-season SEC clash on Sept. 20.<\/p>\n New era of NIL<\/p>\n During Sankey\u2019s opening address, he discussed the arrival of revenue sharing in college football<\/a> and the uncertainty surrounding it.<\/p>\n \u201cIn the middle of anything significant, it will get messy,\u201d Sankey said. \u201cThat doesn\u2019t mean you leave or in a marathon, it doesn\u2019t mean you step off the course. The burden of making a new system work is certainly on commissioners and conference offices, but the responsibility is shared with our campuses and campus leaders.\u201d<\/p>\n Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss\u2019 always-outspoken head coach isn\u2019t buying the salary cap rules. Under the settlement, each school can now share up to about $20.5 million with their athletes.<\/p>\n \u201cI think it\u2019s obvious people aren\u2019t staying within the cap, so I think the whole thing will be, \u2018What does that look like?\u2019 That\u2019s what we don\u2019t know,\u201d he said. \u201cWhat does it look like when you don\u2019t and what are the punishments for that? Do you win and that comes later?\u201d<\/p>\n Related:NCAA House settlement FAQ: How will the historic ruling impact Texas college athletics?<\/a><\/p>\n As college athletics enter a new era of NIL, only time will tell how enforceable the new rules are. Coaches are building their rosters without knowing how the new rules surrounding revenue sharing work.<\/p>\n \u201c[We need] something uniform that has some teeth to it, where it is what it is supposed to be,\u201d South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said. \u201cAnd if somebody is not doing what they\u2019re supposed to be doing, it\u2019s going to be enforced, and there\u2019s going to be repercussions.\u201d<\/p>\n Other coaches say the $2.8 billion antitrust settlement that began on July 1 levels the playing field and will be good for a lot of teams in college football.<\/p>\n \u201cFinancially with revenue sharing I think we are finally back on even keel with everybody, which we weren\u2019t,\u201d said Arkansas coach Sam Pittman. \u201cIf I was going to make an excuse, it would be financially is why we haven\u2019t done quite as well.\u201d<\/p>\n As the college football world continues to adjust to the new rules, the discourse surrounding revenue sharing could look quite different at next summer\u2019s SEC Media Days.<\/p>\n After encouraging first season at Texas A&M, it\u2019s go time for Mike Elko\u2019s Aggies<\/a>Why Olivia Miles put WNBA dreams on hold, transferred to TCU for one more year in school<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Texas](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/46TGX6E4YRFFTPNVKV4QJEAJAQ.jpg\")
Texas quarterback Arch Manning meets super-fan Connor Petroziello, 13, at SEC Media Days in Atlanta, Ga., Tuesday, July 15, 2025.(Maura Carey \/ AP)<\/p>\n![\"SEC](\"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/THKRG3LHEBDTFO3WKJSR673PUY.jpg\")
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey discusses the annual conference highlights with Chief Public Relations Officer for the University of Arkansas Kevin Trainor, sitting right, at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Monday, July 14, 2025.(Hunter Dawkins \/ AP)<\/p>\n