MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. — Greg Sankey will officially take charge of the SEC on July 1 as it expands from 14 to 16 schools.
There are fierce rivalries, fierce recruiting campaigns and passionate fan bases.
Now, a quarterback from one school is filing a lawsuit against the head coach of another school.
So as the SEC spring meetings got underway, the SEC commissioner was asked what he thought about Georgia quarterback Jaden Rashada's lawsuit against Florida coach Billy Napier and program officials over a $13.85 million non-negotiable contract that fell through before he could have signed with the Gators later in 2022.
“I don't like litigation,” Sankey told reporters at the Hilton Sandestin Beach on Monday night. “That's my view.”
Sankey was asked if it was a new reality that players were using NIL as a big factor in choosing a school and that Napier and other coaches were having to deal with that.
“Lawsuits are happening,” Sankey said, “and this isn't the first lawsuit involving a coach in the last year. It won't be the last. We have a legal system, people have a right to complain, and the legal system will sort it out.”
Sankey said he plans to eliminate the 14-team belt with the SEC logo and install a 16-team belt with the Texas and Oklahoma logos.
“It worked for me, but we live in new times,” Sankey said.
Don't expect die-hard Georgia or Florida fans to wear uniforms with rival teams' logos on them.
