The Southeastern Conference announced league matchups for the next four years Tuesday, including designating three annual — not permanent — opponents for each of its 16 teams. The retain several traditional rivalries and renew some old ones.
And there are no more lengthy waits to play everyone.
The new format begins next year and runs through 2029, with the SEC having the option to tweak it every four years to maintain competitive balance.
Each team will play three opponents annually and rotate through the remaining 12. The setup ensures that rotating teams square off every other year and every team plays at every SEC venue at least once over a four-year span.
Georgia, for example, will play at Alabama in 2026 and host the Crimson Tide in 2028. The Bulldogs will then host LSU in 2027 and travel to Baton Rouge in 2029.
Fans are sure to gripe about the loss of some traditional series. Alabama-LSU (played every year since 1964) and Florida-LSU (played every year since 1971) will no longer be annual events. But those teams will meet every other year, home and away, under the new format.
Geography and competitive fairness were factored into the decisions but not as prominently as maintaining long-standing rivalries like the Iron Bowl, the Egg Bowl, the Red River Rivalry, the Magnolia Bowl, the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, the Third Saturday in October and the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party.
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The league also renewed rivalries that had been largely on hiatus since conference realignment. But the recent addition of former Big 12 heavyweights Oklahoma and Texas have a few back in the mix.
The Lone Star Shootout featuring Texas and Texas A&M, a game held every year between 1915 and 2011, will now be played annually. So will the Missouri-Oklahoma series. which was played nearly every year between 1910 and 1995. Same for Arkansas-Texas, which ended in 1991 after a 60-year run.
Here are each school’s annual opponents through 2029:
Alabama: Auburn, Mississippi State, Tennessee.
Arkansas: LSU, Missouri, Texas.
Auburn: Alabama, Georgia, Vanderbilt.
Florida: Georgia (neutral site), Kentucky, South Carolina.
Georgia: Auburn, Florida (neutral), South Carolina.
Kentucky: Florida, South Carolina, Tennessee.
LSU: Arkansas, Ole Miss, Texas A&M.
Mississippi State: Alabama, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt.
Missouri: Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M.
Oklahoma: Missouri, Ole Miss, Texas (neutral).
Ole Miss: LSU, Mississippi State, Oklahoma.
South Carolina: Florida, Georgia, Kentucky.
Tennessee: Alabama, Kentucky, Vanderbilt.
Texas: Arkansas, Oklahoma (neutral), Texas A&M.
Texas A&M: LSU, Missouri, Texas.
Vanderbilt: Auburn, Mississippi State, Tennessee.
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The post SEC unveils league matchups for the next four seasons and keeps most rivalries intact appeared first on Associated Press.
