Greg Sankey: No Big Ten-SEC Challenge in the works

SEC commissioner Greg Sankey stepped to the podium at the SEC spring meetings in Destin, Florida, this evening to speak to gathered reporters on a variety of topics.

To start, Sankey addressed Arkansas coach Bret Bielema’s comments about a potential Big Ten-SEC Challenge. Let’s just say we won’t be holding our breath for it to happen:

SEC commish Greg Sankey on Bret Bielema’s SEC-Big Ten challenge suggestion: "We generally call those 'bowl games’ "

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) May 31, 2016

Sankey has a point. SEC and Big Ten teams met in four bowl games last year (including Alabama’s 38-0 shutout of Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl) and SEC teams went 3-1 in those games.

The hot-button issue of these spring meetings has been satellite camps (see Alabama coach Nick Saban’s impassioned speech against them), so Sankey also gave an update about where the conference stands:

Greg Sankey says the SEC has had "conversations about conference sponsored" satellite camps. League still would prefer not to have any.

— Marc Weiszer (@marcweiszer) May 31, 2016

However, when it came to the recent scandal at Baylor, Sankey was a little more tight-lipped:

. @GregSankey: I'm not going to talk about Art Briles at the #SEC Spring Meetings. … I'm not going to speculate on that (Briles to SEC)

— John Brice (@JohnDBrice1) May 31, 2016

He did add, however, that the SEC will do all it can to avoid bringing violent offenders to its football fields. He said physical violence would not be tolerated:

.@GregSankey on increasing/broadening language of SEC misconduct policy for transfers: "It's really about interpersonal violence."

— Alex Byington (@_AlexByington) May 31, 2016

And, finally, Sankey wished himself a happy one-year anniversary as the SEC’s commissioner:

SEC commish @GregSankey reminds everyone this is a year since he was introduced as the successor to former commish Mike Slive.

— Alex Byington (@_AlexByington) May 31, 2016

What a year it’s been.