I breathed a sigh of relief when the Southeastern Conference released its upcoming football schedule on Monday night.
The league did a remarkable job ripping up the old slate and piecing together a new one in less than two weeks to keep hope alive for college football this season. It took creativity and teamwork by the leagues’s athletic directors and coaches to make that happen in such a short period of time.
In a time when the Pac-12, the Big Ten and several other mid-major conferences postponed the season, the Southeastern Conference elected to receive the kickoff rather than defer to the spring. It remains to be seen which leagues made the right call, but at least the SEC is making an attempt to resume life as it was before the coronavirus struck the heart and soul of our state, nation and our world.
Sure the task will be risky and nothing is for certain, especially when facing an invisible enemy. However, giving the season a try is just what the nation needs after being being stuck in neutral since the SEC men’s basketball tournament was canceled last March.
What transpired during the last couple of weeks is what could be a wave of the future with 10 SEC games, which also would include a pair of non-conference contests next year and beyond. In Kentucky’s case, that may include a season-opener against a non-conference foe, such as schools from the Mid-American Conference, the Ohio Valley Conference and perhaps Conference USA and what has now become the traditional regular-season finale against instate rival Louisville.
Because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, there will be fewer fans in the stands, meaning less revenue for each member institution. Going the 10-game route in the league next season and beyond will result in better conference matchups as opposed to undesirable non-conference games, especially during the first half of the season.
At first glance, Kentucky’s schedule is packed in the back. The Wildcats are at Alabama on Nov. 21, followed by another road contest at Florida. The Crimson Tide is predicted to win the SEC West, while the Gators are one of the favorites in the East.
The home games, especially the first two, against Mississippi and Mississippi State, respectively, should be fun. Lane Kiffin, in his first season at Ole Miss, will return to Kroger Field for the first time since his short stint at Tennessee, while former Kentucky assistant coach and Hal Mumme protege, Mike Leach, makes his first visit to Lexington as an opposing coach.
Kentucky also hosts Georgia, Vanderbilt and South Carolina, both of which are Eastern Division foes. The Bulldogs, along with Florida, are predicted among the top two teams in the SEC East.
After playing a full slate of games in October, the Wildcats get an open date to start November, which couldn’t have come at a better time after playing six straight weeks, including five contests in October.
Now that the schedule is complete, it’s time to start looking ahead to football this fall.
Keith Taylor is sports editor for Kentucky Today. Reach him at keith.taylor@kentuckytoday.com.