SEC commissioner throws shade on UCF’s schedule
Sankey discusses Knights’ omission from the CFP
NEW YORK — Southeastern Conference Commissioner Greg Sankey recommended UCF look “inward” to address strength of schedule issues that have held back the Knights in the College Football Playoff rankings.
Central Florida was ranked eighth in the final playoff rankings by the selection committee on Sunday after finishing a second consecutive regular season undefeated. The top four teams make the playoff. The Knights, who have won 25 straight games and consecutive American Athletic Conference championships, were never given any serious consideration for the playoff. They will instead play LSU in the Fiesta Bowl a year after they declared themselves national champions following a Peach Bowl win over Auburn.
For the past two seasons, the committee has cited the Knights’ schedule, which lags behind Power Five conference schools in degree of difficulty, as the reason they have been left out of the playoff conversation.
Sankey was asked about UCF and its place in the playoff picture during a radio interview at the Learfield Intercollegiate Athletics Forum on Thursday. The commissioner compared UCF’s situation to when the SEC placed only three teams in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament in 2016.
“We weren’t living up to our expectations. Rather than point to the selection committee, other people … we looked inward and said: ‘How do we adjust to the circumstances around us?’” Sankey said. “I would observe that’s the challenge for everybody at the FBS level.”
Sankey later told reporters the SEC encouraged its schools to start scheduling more difficult nonconference basketball games as a way to build tournamentworthy résumés.
“When it was us and when it was men’s basketball, we knew we had two top-50 teams in 2015-16, which means you had virtually no top-50 wins in men’s basketball. How are you going to access those wins? You have to improve your nonconference schedule,” Sankey said.
UCF athletic director Danny White has been highly critical of the playoff selections and he objected to the comparison between college football’s postseason and scheduling process and college basketball. Nonconference football games are typically scheduled years in advance. In basketball, schedules are often completed months before the season. White also noted 3 percent of FBS teams make the playoff while 19 percent of Division I teams make the men’s NCAA Tournament field of 68.
“Basketball teams are rewarded for playing tough teams such as UCF through metrics like RPI or NET, while football teams avoid us because they’re concerned about the ‘eye test,’” White told AP in a text message.
“As I’ve said many times, we are willing to play any Power Six program in the country,” White said, using the AAC’s slogan. “The challenge is that not many are willing to play us.”
The biggest obstacle for the Knights when it comes to the selection committee seems to be a lack of games against teams highly regarded by the committee. UCF played no opponent that finished in the committee’s final top 25. The rest of the top six each faced at least two teams in the committee’s final rankings.
“I don’t think there are simple solutions necessarily,” Sankey said. “There are solutions. One’s going to have to evaluate their circumstances fully to make those decisions. My observation is there is a need to look inward. “
White, who said there is nothing UCF can do inwardly “to fix an inadequate postseason for college football,” has called for an expanded playoff.
AWARDS: AP player of the year Kyler Murray adds the Davey O’Brien Award as the nation’s top quarterback as ESPN’s College Football Awards show in Atlanta began. Before the show started it was announced that Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa won the Walter Camp Player of the Year Award.
The last five winners of the Walter Camp have gone on to win the Heisman, but only five Heisman winners have failed to win AP Player of the Year since the award started in 1998.
Murray beat out Tagovailoa and Washington State’s Gardner Minshew II for the Davey O’Brien. The other finalists for the Walter Camp were Murray, Minshew, West Virginia quarterback Will Grier and Kentucky linebacker Josh Allen.
Allen took home the Chuck Bednarik Award (best defensive player) and the Bronco Nagurski Award (outstanding defensive player)
For a full ist of award winners see page B6
GEORGIA TECH: Temple coach Geoff Collins has met with school officials about the vacant head-coaching position, The Associated Press reported.
Paul Johnson, who is stepping down after 11 seasons as coach of the Yellow Jackets, will coach Georgia Tech against Minnesota in the Quick Lane Bowl on Dec. 26 in Detroit.
TEXAS TECH: Coach Matt Wells has brought six more of his assistant coaches from Utah State to be on his staff with the Red Raiders. Utah State (10-2) plays North Texas in the New Mexico Bowl at Dreamstyle Stadium on Dec. 15.
When Wells was hired away from his alma mater last week to replace Kliff Kingsbury, he initially also brought offensive coordinator David Yost and defensive coordinator Keith Patterson with him.
Now outside receivers coach Jovon Bouknight, defensive backs coach Julius Brown, offensive line coach Steve Farmer, running backs coach DeAndre Smith, tight ends/inside receivers coach Luke Wells and strength and conditioning coach Dave Scholz are going to Texas Tech.
NORTH TEXAS: Quarterback Mason Fine has been named Conference USA player of the year. He’s the first Mean Green player to win it in successive years. Fine, who threw for 3,743 yards, 27 touchdowns and five interceptions, appears in the Dec. 15 New Mexico Bowl vs. Utah State.
NEW MEXICO STATE: Jamin Smith, a senior offensive lineman from Castle Rock, Colo., has been named winner of the Pervis Atkins Spirit Award. Atkins played for the 1960 undefeated Aggies and is a College Football Hall of Famer. This award was created by Albuquerque resident Charlie Rogers; its winner is selected by coach Doug Martin and his staff, and it goes to the player who demonstrates Atkins’ qualities of leadership and “being a champion on and off the field.”