Sankey aims to be ‘statesman’ but also ‘forceful’

DESTIN, Fla. — As college athletics faces historic changes, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said he’s trying to find a balance between being a “statesman” and being “forceful” in his opinions, knowing his conference and the Big Ten have positioned themselves in leadership roles capable of influencing the future landscape.

“There are times when I think I have a correct perspective that I’m clear in sharing, but I think this becomes a we issue,” Sankey told reporters following the first day of SEC spring meetings. “I said to my presidents — I was very direct — ‘You expect me to be a statesman, there’s times you have be forceful,’ and you have to find a balance in these leadership positions between both.”

The SEC formed an advisory group with the Big Ten in February and Sankey said it was an “important opportunity,” especially coming out of a series of national meetings in which progress was stalling — including with the NCAA Division I Council. The advisory group was formed, he said, to “narrow that conversation” because “you don’t solve really big problems with big rooms filled with people.”

The SEC football and basketball coaches, athletic directors and administrators began tackling those issues here following the landmark NCAA settlement of House v. NCAA and two related antitrust cases that will result in $2.7 billion in back damages and a new revenue-sharing model.

The balance of power further tilted in favor of the Big Ten and SEC after the commissioners agreed to the new College Football Playoff revenue distribution model, which further separated the SEC and Big Ten from the others financially by giving each school more than $21 million annually.

Sankey and Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti have worked more closely than their predecessors, but their FBS peers have agreed that the “relationships have been strong” as they discuss weighty national issues like possible roster caps and how Title IX will factor into the settlements.

“That doesn’t mean I haven’t had a phone call from one of my colleagues saying, ‘Why did you do this?’ or ‘Why did you say that?'” Sankey said. “That’s OK. That’s the way this big college athletics issue that involves 32 Division 1 conferences … that’s the way it works. That’s our reality.”

Sankey said the discussions this week are centered around what they can do at the conference level, but future SEC expansion isn’t at the top of the priority list right now. This was the first time Texas coach Steven Sarkisian and Oklahoma coach Brent Venables participated in the spring meetings, as their respective schools will officially join the SEC on July 1.

That doesn’t mean Sankey’s not paying attention to the ongoing lawsuits in the ACC. The ACC, Clemson and Florida State are embroiled in lawsuits over the grant of rights agreement intended to keep ACC schools in a TV contract through 2036 — an agreement those two schools argue is no longer financially competitive and that has their fans, according to a FOIA request made by ESPN, demanding they leave the league.

“I said to my presidents — I was very direct — ‘You expect me to be a statesman, there’s times you have be forceful,’ and you have to find a balance in these leadership positions between both.”

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey

“I’m aware of what’s happening around us,” Sankey said. “I think we’re in a really, really great position as a league. … We respect that there are agreements and situations that prevent a lot of movement and so our focus has been on our 16 — mine has been — but I pay attention. … We’d be fine if everyone stayed in their current alignment.”

Earlier this month, there were multiple reports that private investment firms have created a platform to help college athletic departments find funding — a revenue source Sankey cautioned against. He pointed out that professional leagues have policies about how private capital is deployed, which he said is “a cautionary note that suggests people should consider carefully whether they move into it.”

“In my experience, those involved in private equity want to be paid back,” he said, “so I would caution people around the notion of short-term fixes.

“I understand why private equity is interested in college sports,” he said. “If I was on the outside looking in at all the good that’s happening around college sports I’d want to be a part of that action as well. I’d take that interest as a compliment.”