SEC Reveals Tiebreaker Rules for Title Game in Expanded 16-Team Divisionless Format

Timothy Rapp@@TRappaRTFeatured Columnist IVAugust 22, 2024

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With the addition of Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC this season, the conference has moved to a 16-team, no-divisions format in league play.

That could potentially mean a chaotic race to the SEC Championship Game. On Wednesday, the conference outlined its tiebreaker procedures should two or more teams be tied for one of the title game berths, per ESPN’s Chris Low.

The following tiebreakers will be applied, in order, until the tie is broken:

Head-to-head record.Record against shared conference opponents.Record against the highest-placed common opponent in the conference standings “and proceeding through the standings among the tied teams.”Cumulative conference winning percentage of conference opponents.”Capped relative scoring margin versus all conference opponents among the tied teams. Formula will include a cap of 42 points scored on offense and 48 points allowed on defense.”Random draw.The team atop conference standings at the end of the season will be the home team in the conference championship. If two teams are tied for first place in the conference, both will reach the conference title game, but the team that wins the tiebreaker will be the home squad.

The game will be played a neutral location, however, hosted by the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Dec. 7.

The fascinating aspect of this, of course, will be if more than two teams are tied for any of the potential title game berths. It will be interesting to see the reaction to a team missing out on the SEC Championship Game due to an obscure tiebreaker scenario.

Such is the new world of FBS football, as conference alignment has completely altered the sport. Like the SEC, the Big Ten has also moved to a divisionless format, which could ultimately prove even more complex and controversial given it has 18 members compared to the SEC’s 16.