Kirby Smart said the SEC should consider operating on its own if college sports cannot enforce unified rules, arguing a breakaway could make programs financially stable enough to support all sports.
Smart tied that warning to unchecked spending and looming revenue-sharing pressures, saying the current model could damage Olympic sports as schools keep pushing costs "on the tab."
Steve Sarkisian echoed the enforcement critique, saying rulebreakers now face little deterrence because they can challenge penalties in court and win injunctions.
Playoff expansion still hovered over the meetings, but coaches underscored conflicting incentives: Mike Elko joked he would want a 40-team field to protect his job, while Eli Drinkwitz noted last year's expected move to 16 teams never happened.
The comments turned the SEC spring meetings into a broader warning that governance and financial instability—not just the 12-team playoff's future—are now the sport's central threat.
With top teams spending double the new revenue cap, can any regulation truly stop college football's financial arms race?
As hundreds of college teams are cut, are we sacrificing future Olympic athletes for a semi-pro football system?
With rosters changing yearly, has the era of NIL and transfers destroyed the fan loyalty that built college sports?