Photo: David Leong-Imagn Images
Alabama athletic director Greg Byrne said Thursday that the SEC Championship Game “has run its course” and urged the conference to consider ending the December title game as the College Football Playoff expands.
Greg Byrne’s blunt assessment landed today in USA TODAY, where he said “I think the ship has sailed. It’s run its course,” arguing that an expanded College Football Playoff reduces the marginal value of a conference final and increases injury and seeding risk for top programs. Byrne said he favors a 16‑team playoff and urged conferences to “pick a lane” rather than keep enlarging the field.
“It’s a great event,” Byrne said of the SEC Championship Game. “I don’t like the idea of it going away, but I think it’s reality, with an expanded playoff.”
The comments are notable because the SEC title game, first played in 1992, is a major television and revenue event and Alabama has won the most SEC titles (11) — making Byrne’s stance striking coming from one of the game’s biggest beneficiaries. He called the game “a great event” but said reality may force change as the CFP expands.
In the most recent edition of the SEC Championship Game, Georgia defeated Alabama, 28-7.
Voices from other programs have echoed similar thinking. Texas athletic director Chris Del Conte has also publicly questioned the point of the SEC Championship Game and suggested the league should rethink whether it’s necessary in an expanded playoff era. Former Ole Miss and new LSU head coach Lane Kiffin has also echoed that sentiment.
For now, the SEC Championship Game stays on the calendar, which is slated for Saturday, December 5 this season. But Byrne’s public call ensures the title game’s future will be a central topic as CFP expansion talks continue. Expect the conference, broadcasters and member schools to weigh financial tradeoffs, competitive fairness, and player health before any formal change.
