Pods have been discussed before

[PirateDawg]

How do you see the 16 teams being broken out in pods?

Here's what I think will happen:

Pod 1 USC, UF, UGA, UK

Pod 2 Bama, Auburn, Tenn, Vandy

Pod 3 MSU, Ole Miss, Arky, LSU

Pod 4 Mizzou, TAM, Texas, OK

This would keep the rivalry games.

 

[patdog]

I think that's pretty close. Only real question if we go to a pod scheduling system is whether we'd get A&M or Arkansas in our pod with LSU and UM. Some think that would be too easy a pod for LSU, but you could make that up by giving them Bama and Florida as permanent opponents from the other pods (if they go with permanent opponents outside the pods). There's lots of ways you could make it work, with or without pods, and with either an 8 or a 9 game schedule.

 

[Mobile Bay]

Swap TAM and Arky and you have my prediction

 

[Maroon Eagle]

I think it'll be podless. Three rivalry games with the other six rotating every two years.

Watch our rivalries be Alabama, LSU, and Florida Ole Miss.

 

[SheltonChoked]

I think it'll be podless. Three rivalry games with the other six rotating every two years.

Watch our rivalries be at Alabama, at LSU, and Florida Ole Miss.

I think it will be this way as well. Easier to balance the schedules, and, when Clemson, FSU, tOSU, and Michigan join, easier to keep the rivalries the same.

 

[patdog]

I doubt we get Alabama as a permanent opponent under any scheduling format. They’d get Auburn, Tennessee & LSU in your 3-6 format.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

I get the LSU argument but MSU is Alabama's most frequently played opponent and also the closest school in the conference.

 

[garddog]

We will end up with Bama, the SEC is not going to end Bama's oldest rivalry.

 

[patdog]

Both of which mean nothing. I'm not going to go all Budaw on you and tell you I know anything for 100% certain, but I'll be surprised if we keep Bama as a permanent opponent. Not many remember but back in the late 80s Templeton had cut a deal with the SEC to replace Bama with Kentucky as one of our 5 permanent opponents. The year Bama was supposed to drop off the schedule was 1992, but we added USC & Ark that year so Bama came right back on to our schedule. But that's probably a big reason why we got Kentucky as our permanent opponent from the East instead of Florida, which had been a permanent opponent for 30 years. So LT wasn't totally useless.

 

[PirateDawg]

I agree. People forget that Larry Templeton is in charge of football scheduling at the SEC headquarters. I'm sure he'll take care of it.

 

[Smoked Toag]

I wish the word "pod" would go away. There's just no reason for it. It started years ago because Bill Connelly came up with this system, but it makes no sense. Pick 2-3 permanents and roll.

The only questions here are how many permanent opponents per team (you could go as low as 2), how many conference games (and thus the need for P5 OOC), and if you continue the championship game. The playoff expansion plays into this, so I doubt many things get decided until then.

But absolutely no need for 'pods'. Not only is the idea dumb, the word itself just sounds weird.

 

[Smoked Toag]

Both of which mean nothing. I'm not going to go all Budaw on you and tell you I know anything for 100% certain, but I'll be surprised if we keep Bama as a permanent opponent. Not many remember but back in the late 80s Templeton had cut a deal with the SEC to replace Bama with Kentucky as one of our 5 permanent opponents. The year Bama was supposed to drop off the schedule was 1992, but we added USC & Ark that year so Bama came right back on to our schedule. But that's probably a big reason why we got Kentucky as our permanent opponent from the East instead of Florida, which had been a permanent opponent for 30 years. So LT wasn't totally useless.

If we only have 2 permanents, then no, Bama won't be one obviously, they'll keep Auburn and Tennessee. But if we have 3, I would be shocked if we weren't the 3rd. Geography says it's a no-brainer.

 

[patdog]

Geography means next to nothing too. A&M and South Carolina are permanent opponents now and you can't find 2 schools in the SEC any further apart.

 

[Smoked Toag]

Geography means next to nothing too. A&M and South Carolina are permanent opponents now and you can't find 2 schools in the SEC any further apart.

Bad comparison, considering Texas A&M's first 6 permanent opponents (the West) are all the schools closest to them. At that point, who cares if it's South Carolina, Missouri or whatever, it's all a flight anyway, from College Station, most likely. And Arkansas had already gotten paired with Missouri for this reason.

Meanwhile MSU and Alabama are a short bus ride apart. If you CAN drive, you do it, unless there is an obvious rivalry. For example, if Tennessee/Florida want to keep that game (which they should), they'll do that in addition to Vanderbilt and Alabama, rather than say, Kentucky and Georgia who are closer. That's understandable. And in our case, maybe Alabama/LSU want to keep their game, but I doubt it, Alabama would rather drive to Starkville and beat up on us.

There's no doubt in my mind our opponents will be Ole Miss, LSU and Alabama in that order, unless we get lucky and Alabama/LSU just absolutely insist on playing each other.

 

[HD6]

If only we had the technology to ban something and it stayed banned. Fingers crossed we get that in the near future.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

Bunt. Just testing...

 

[patdog]

You're thinking of this from a MSU-centric standpoint, not from an overall SEC standpoint. The Bama-LSU game is a huge TV ratings game, a big rivalry game, and has been played every year since 1964. It's going to be played before the Bama-MSU game is. Only way we possibly get Bama is if there are 4 permanent opponents or a pod system comes out very much different that what people are expecting and what seems to make the most sense (or if I'm just very wrong on this).

 

[dorndawg]

If only we had the technology to ban something and it stayed banned. Fingers crossed we get that in the near future.

 

[horshack.sixpack]

View attachment 21318

 

[Smoked Toag]

You're thinking of this from a MSU-centric standpoint, not from an overall SEC standpoint. The Bama-LSU game is a huge TV ratings game, a big rivalry game, and has been played every year since 1964. It's going to be played before the Bama-MSU game is. Only way we possibly get Bama is if there are 4 permanent opponents or a pod system comes out very much different that what people are expecting and what seems to make the most sense (or if I'm just very wrong on this).

If both those teams want to play, yes, I would agree.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Don't forget Ole Miss's frenemy love for LSU -- saying that they're the real rival. The Rebels could insist on playing LSU too.

(This is when we'll be saddled with Florida as a rival in place of LSU.)

 

[IBleedMaroonDawg]

If only we had the technology to ban something and it stayed banned. Fingers crossed we get that in the near future.

View attachment 21319


this guy can maybe help... maybe

 

[garddog]

Don't forget Ole Miss's frenemy love for LSU -- saying that they're the real rival. The Rebels could insist on playing LSU too.

(This is when we'll be saddled with Florida as a rival in place of LSU.)

You do know that LSU's longest rivalry is MSU. Ole Miss longest rivalry is MSU. Alabama's longest rivalry is MSU.

Pods will not work, too many years between playing everyone. 3 or 5 permanent opponents. It boils down to an 8 game or 9 game conference schedule.

3 means 6 and 6 rotating. 9 game conf.
5 means 4 and 4 rotating. 8 game conf.

It probably ends up 5 game because of rivalries.

The SEC markets tradition. They will not blow up 100+ year old rivalries.

 

[Maroon Eagle]

They will blow up 100+ year old rivalries for $$$.

John Cohen will be crying at AD meetings because MSU and Alabama will lose their rivalry, will make a passionate speech about how much Alabama has meant to his family, and his father's role as a longtime law professor there.

And John will be crying all the way to the bank.

 

[notoriousD_O_G]

They will blow up 100+ year old rivalries for $$$.

Exactly. This isn't about "tradition" any more. This is about money. Alabama is the biggest ratings draw in college sports. I just can't see them locking them into playing us every year when they could get the ratings from UT, LSU, and AU instead. All three of those games would draw more.

 

[patdog]

If this was about tradition, Oklahoma-Nebraska would still be a big rivalry. Texas-A&M wouldn't quit playing for a decade. And we'd have 6 major conferences of 10-12 teams each.

 

[Smoked Toag]

If this was about tradition, Oklahoma-Nebraska would still be a big rivalry. Texas-A&M wouldn't quit playing for a decade. And we'd have 6 major conferences of 10-12 teams each.

Well, jumping for the quick payday could explain some of the waning interest across the country. Tradition matters, and I'll take it even further than just the big schools. I think the games like MSU vs. Smaller Regional U (insert any number here, like Memphis, USM or Tulane) could increase interest. Alabama vs. UAB. Auburn vs. Troy. Arkansas vs. Arkansas State. LSU vs. Louisiana Tech. But so many don't want to play them.

You'll never see data to back this up, but it's just one more piece of erosion of the 'tradition' of college football and regional rivalries.

 

[GloryDawg]

View attachment 21318

Technically are those whales?

 

[GloryDawg]

I know they are saying 2025 but what is everyone's prediction as to when it happens?

 

[QuaoarsKing]

I know they are saying 2025 but what is everyone's prediction as to when it happens?

80% 2022
20% 2023

 

[Maroon Eagle]

Sooner rather than later.

2022 - 30%
2023 - 40%
2024 - 20%
2025 - 10%

 

[Go Budaw]

You can’t go to two permanents per team in a 16 team SEC because the math doesn’t work out. Two teams would get left with only one permanent once you started pairing everybody up. It can only be an odd number divisible by 15 (or zero, but that’s not realistic) for it to work. If you do just one permanent, you cut out a bunch of big rivalry games. So it would have to be 3 or 5. If a 17ing 17th team is added, you can do two permanents.

 

[patdog]

That sounds about right. They're not going to stay in the Big 12 for long.

 

[Villagedawg]

Are you sure that's right?

You can’t go to two permanents per team in a 16 team SEC because the math doesn’t work out. Two teams would get left with only one permanent once you started pairing everybody up. It can only be an odd number divisible by 15 (or zero, but that’s not realistic) for it to work. If you do just one permanent, you cut out a bunch of big rivalry games. So it would have to be 3 or 5. If a 17ing 17th team is added, you can do two permanents.

I'm not saying you're wrong, and I definitely didn't score 17 on the math section of the ACT. I am probably missing something obvious, But what am I missing in the following:

MSU plays UM and UK
UM plays MSU and LSU
LSU plays UM and A&M
A&M plays LSU and UT Austin
UT Austin plays A&M and Arkansas
Arkansas plays UT Austin and MO
MO plays Arkansas and OU
OU plays MO and Bama
Bama plays OU and AUB
AUB plays Bama and UGA
UGA plays AUB and UF
UF plays UGA and USC
USC plays UF and UT Knoxville
UT Knoxville plays USC and Vandy
Vandy plays UT Knoxville and UK
UK plays Vandy and MSU

Teams are jus placeholders, not who I think should play whom.

 

[Smoked Toag]

I'm not saying you're wrong, and I definitely didn't score 17 on the math section of the ACT. I am probably missing something obvious, But what am I missing in the following:

MSU plays UM and UK
UM plays MSU and LSU
LSU plays UM and A&M
A&M plays LSU and UT Austin
UT Austin plays A&M and Arkansas
Arkansas plays UT Austin and MO
MO plays Arkansas and OU
OU plays MO and Bama
Bama plays OU and AUB
AUB plays Bama and UGA
UGA plays AUB and UF
UF plays UGA and USC
USC plays UF and UT Knoxville
UT Knoxville plays USC and Vandy
Vandy plays UT Knoxville and UK
UK plays Vandy and MSU

Teams are jus placeholders, not who I think should play whom.

Yep, definitely can do it, with 2 or 3.

 

[Go Budaw]

I'm not saying you're wrong, and I definitely didn't score 17 on the math section of the ACT. I am probably missing something obvious, But what am I missing in the following:

MSU plays UM and UK
UM plays MSU and LSU
LSU plays UM and A&M
A&M plays LSU and UT Austin
UT Austin plays A&M and Arkansas
Arkansas plays UT Austin and MO
MO plays Arkansas and OU
OU plays MO and Bama
Bama plays OU and AUB
AUB plays Bama and UGA
UGA plays AUB and UF
UF plays UGA and USC
USC plays UF and UT Knoxville
UT Knoxville plays USC and Vandy
Vandy plays UT Knoxville and UK
UK plays Vandy and MSU

Teams are jus placeholders, not who I think should play whom.

You are right, I tried to do it in Excel for like 5 min on my lunch break and somehow ended up with a scattered mess and Vandy / SC were left with only each other to play. I recant the above. I guess I’m not qualified to do LT’s job and should refrain from future criticism of him.

 

[patdog]

I'm liking those 2-team permanent opponents for us. Let's put you in charge of scheduling and go with it.

 

[Villagedawg]

I started with two rows of 8 dots on a legal pad.

You are right, I tried to do it in Excel for like 5 min on my lunch break and somehow ended up with a scattered mess and Vandy / SC were left with only each other to play. I recant the above. I guess I’m not qualified to do LT’s job and should refrain from future criticism of him.

Then drew lines from each dot to two other dots. At first, I saw the two end dots only connected to one other dot, and I was like, damn, you sure can’t. Then it hit me. A line from one end dot all the way back to the other end dot to would close the loop.

 

[patdog]

Technically are those whales?

Yes. Technically, dolphins are whales too.

 

[Villagedawg]

Ha! Agreed. I'll let Sanky know I'm available.

I'm liking those 2-team permanent opponents for us. Let's put you in charge of scheduling and go with it.

NT