The Southeastern Conference has announced on Thursday it will adopt a 10-game schedule that will only include conference games, a format accepted by two other athletic conferences.
Those games will begin on September 26, three weeks after the previous Labor Day weekend opening.
"This new plan for a football schedule is consistent with the educational goals of our universities to allow for the safe and orderly return to campus of their student populations and to provide a healthy learning environment during these unique circumstances presented by the COVID-19 virus," SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. "This new schedule supports the safety measures that are being taken by each of our institutions to ensure the health of our campus communities."
The SEC announcement has created a conflict with the previously announced ACC schedule, in which teams from both conferences were expected to play one another.
The inter-conference games that have been axed include Georgia-Georgia Tech, Florida-Florida State, Kentucky-Louisville, and South Carolina-Clemson.
The announcement will eliminate other non-conference power 5 matchups like Tennessee-Oklahoma, LSU-Texas, Mississippi State-NC State, Baylor-Ole Miss, Arkansas-Notre Dame, and Vanderbilt-Kansas State.
Playing a conference only schedule may save the SEC millions in a season that may not happen at all because of high coronavirus numbers around the country.
"We believe these schedule adjustments offer the best opportunity to complete a full season by giving us the ability to adapt to the fluid nature of the virus and the flexibility to adjust schedules as necessary if disruptions occur," Sankey said.
© 2026 Newsmax. All rights reserved.