The SEC now means even more SEC.
The SEC announced on Thursday that starting in 2026, the conference will switch from an eight-game to a nine-game SEC schedule. There will still be no divisions in the 16-team league.
Moving forward, each SEC team will face the same three conference opponents every season, while the other six slots will rotate as every team will play each other at least once every two years.
SEC announces new 9-game conference schedule
This historical decision that's been discussed for about four years finally happened just a day after the College Football Playoff announced it would put more emphasis on strength of schedule when deciding the playoff field, which currently sits at 12 teams (for now).
Boasting itself as the toughest conference in college football, the SEC didn't see a need to play another conference game like the other leagues if its members would still be punished for having more losses, even if the quality of opponents was greater. But now, that extra conference game could now actually benefit its members.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey is apparently going all out in making sure SEC members still endure the toughest set of schedules in college football. On top of an additional conference game, SEC programs must also include Notre Dame or a team from another Power Four conference on its nonconference slate.
Going forward, the Sooners and every other SEC team will get just two opponents a season that aren't in the Power Four.
“Adding a ninth SEC game underscores our universities’ commitment to delivering the most competitive football schedule in the nation,” Sankey said in a statement. “This format protects rivalries, increases competitive balance, and paired with our requirement to play an additional Power opponent, ensures SEC teams are well prepared to compete and succeed in the College Football Playoff.”
For the Sooners, who are entering Year 2 in the SEC, their future schedules are stuff of nightmares now.
Before, eight conference games meant another lackluster nonconference opponent while still also scheduling one Power Four foe every season, including Michigan this season. These first two seasons in the SEC, OU avoided the likes of Georgia, Florida and Texas A&M, but going forward, it will now be a team of that caliber instead of someone like Kent State or Temple, while also still needing to play a Michigan or Nebraska.
In 2026, the Sooners will travel to Michigan on top of their new nine-game SEC slate. OU actually already has a Power Four team on its nonconference schedule every year until 2031, including SMU, Houston and Nebraska. The Sooners are also supposed to have a home-and-home series with Clemson in 2035 and 2036.
The days of prancing through a schedule like the Sooners did for decades in the Big 12 are over. It'd be easy to say this was what the Sooners signed up for when they joined the SEC, and although they've proven they won't back down from any competition, OU still never predicted the road to ever get this hard.
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