Three days into the Southeastern Conference spring meetings in Destin, Florida, SEC leadership struck a scheduling compromise.
In one of the week’s hottest topics, the SEC approved a one-year plan of an eight-game league schedule for the 2024 season, according to multiple reports.
The scheduling model goes into effect when Oklahoma and Texas join the SEC next season.
“Over time, nobody is shying away from anything,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey told credentialed reporters. “We just didn’t add another game during a period of transition.”
Along with eight games, the league agreed to eliminate the SEC West and East divisions, with the top two teams in the standings at the end of the year playing the SEC Championship Game.
What this means for Mississippi State
With the format in place, not much changes for Mississippi State.
An eight-game model, which was one of two options along with a nine-game format, would allow for one annual opponent and seven rotating games on each team’s schedule, if the league decided to continue down the route past the 2024 season.
According to Sankey, each team’s eight games will be decided by fairness and balance, as well as traditional rivalries.
For MSU, its annual Egg Bowl matchup against Ole Miss will likely be a protected matchup, though other SEC West rivalries, like against Arkansas and LSU, may be pushed aside.
The 2024 SEC schedule is set to be released June 14 on SEC Network.
Had the league decided to go to a nine-game schedule, which is still a possibility at some point in the future, many of the conference’s secondary rivalries as well as proximity matchups would be preserved, as each team would retain three annual opponents.
Speculation about MSU’s three annual opponents included Ole Miss and then two of Alabama, Auburn, Texas A&M and Kentucky.
The SEC is also requiring each program to schedule one Power Five non-conference game.
MSU currently has a Power Five team on its schedule through 2031, with future home-and-homes against Arizona State (2024-25), Minnesota (2026-27), Texas Tech (2028-29) and Washington State (2030-31).
New policy on field storming
The SEC also approved a new field storming policy Thursday, instituting a $100,000 fine paid directly to the opposing institution on the first offense, $250,000 on the second offense and $500,000 on each following offense, per a media release.
The new policy allows for field or court stormings without penalty only after all visiting team personnel and game officials are safely off the playing surface.
Per the release, each school must also provide security and uniformed law enforcement around each team and game officials before, during and after a game to prevent contact with fans.
A path to and from team and official areas must also be secure and accessible to the general public, and in the event of a field or court storm, equipment such as rope, barricades and expandable tunnels will be used to secure a clear path.
The new policy, which goes into effect immediately, will also allow visiting teams to forgo postgame handshakes when a field or court storm occurs, to get back to a secured area as soon as possible.
Justin Frommer is the Mississippi State sports reporter for The Dispatch.
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