Earlier Years of SEC Football Scheduling

[SNAFU]

This was a great historical read that I did not know about.

It wasn’t until the late 1960s that the conference finally agreed on some semblance of rotating: two permanent opponents and rotating everyone else. Before that and without regulations about the number conference opponents teams should play every year, some teams played as few as four SEC games, while others played as many as seven. In 1952 when the conference stepped in with new regulations – every team had to play at least six – there was a loophole: All six didn’t need to be against teams actually in the conference.

"While the SEC assigned the years that teams would play each other, it was up to the schools to negotiate the dates and locations of those games. “We had some controversies,” said Roy Kramer, the former SEC commissioner and Vanderbilt athletic director. “On one or two of those occasions the conference had to step in and say, ‘You’re going to play on this date.’” One of those was Georgia and Tennessee, when told to work out a home-and-home for the 1980-81 season. They couldn’t come to an agreement, and then-SEC commissioner Boyd McWhorter called Kramer.

“We’re putting together a brand new scheduling committee, and we’d like you to be on it,” McWhorter told him. Kramer agreed, but never heard back. So he called back McWhorter, who provided an update.

“Roy, you’re the committee,” he said. “We have an issue between Georgia and Tennessee, you’re brand new and kind of neutral in all this, I’ll let you talk to them and work it out.”

Georgia’s AD was Joel Eaves, and Tennessee’s AD was Bob Woodruff. They weren’t on speaking terms at the time, and privately complained to Kramer about the other. When Kramer looked at each team’s schedule, there was only one available weekend they could play in 1980: the opening week of the season. Kramer called each separately.

“Is this the conference telling us to do this?” Woodruff asked. “Yes,” Kramer replied, only slightly twisting the truth. “Well, I’ll do it if the conference is telling me to do it,” Woodruff said. “But I’m not doing it because Georgia’s asking me to do it.”

The result of that game was UGA winning 16-15- Herschel's freshman year when UGA won the NC.

Summary from Seth Emmerson's article in The Athletic

 

[TAF]

The result of that game was UGA winning 16-15- Herschel's freshman year when UGA won the NC.

was there...

 

[GAVol]

That old 6 team SEC schedule probably made Johnny Majors' career. We saved a lot of seasons with that Ole Miss, UK, Vandy finish every November.

 

[esarmstrong]

Went to both games. We lost both games. The first was a close 1 point loss and the second was a 44-0 pasting by the Dogs. Herschel ate our lunch.

 

[esarmstrong]

That old 6 team SEC schedule probably made Johnny Majors' career. We saved a lot of seasons with that Ole Miss, UK, Vandy finish every November.

Majors didn't start beating these teams every year until 1985, when we beat all three. After that, we went on a tear where we beat all three every year until we stopped playing Ole Miss every year in 1992 with the advent of divisional play.

 

[maxorange]

Majors didn't start beating these teams every year until 1985, when we beat all three. After that, we went on a tear where we beat all three every year until we stopped playing Ole Miss every year in 1992 with the advent of divisional play.

Tennessee was like 40-0 in November at one point in the 90s. The soft SEC schedule and Tennessee dominance made it a beast late in many seasons.
...except, they just couldn't get past Bama. Bama was ok-good, but Tennessee choked on them a number of times (1990 being a catastrophe).

 

[WillisWG]

That old 6 team SEC schedule probably made Johnny Majors' career. We saved a lot of seasons with that Ole Miss, UK, Vandy finish every November.

as Johnny said " they remember what you do in November"

 

[unfrozencvmanvol]

This was a great historical read that I did not know about.

It wasn’t until the late 1960s that the conference finally agreed on some semblance of rotating: two permanent opponents and rotating everyone else. Before that and without regulations about the number conference opponents teams should play every year, some teams played as few as four SEC games, while others played as many as seven. In 1952 when the conference stepped in with new regulations – every team had to play at least six – there was a loophole: All six didn’t need to be against teams actually in the conference.

"While the SEC assigned the years that teams would play each other, it was up to the schools to negotiate the dates and locations of those games. “We had some controversies,” said Roy Kramer, the former SEC commissioner and Vanderbilt athletic director. “On one or two of those occasions the conference had to step in and say, ‘You’re going to play on this date.’” One of those was Georgia and Tennessee, when told to work out a home-and-home for the 1980-81 season. They couldn’t come to an agreement, and then-SEC commissioner Boyd McWhorter called Kramer.

“We’re putting together a brand new scheduling committee, and we’d like you to be on it,” McWhorter told him. Kramer agreed, but never heard back. So he called back McWhorter, who provided an update.

“Roy, you’re the committee,” he said. “We have an issue between Georgia and Tennessee, you’re brand new and kind of neutral in all this, I’ll let you talk to them and work it out.”

Georgia’s AD was Joel Eaves, and Tennessee’s AD was Bob Woodruff. They weren’t on speaking terms at the time, and privately complained to Kramer about the other. When Kramer looked at each team’s schedule, there was only one available weekend they could play in 1980: the opening week of the season. Kramer called each separately.

“Is this the conference telling us to do this?” Woodruff asked. “Yes,” Kramer replied, only slightly twisting the truth. “Well, I’ll do it if the conference is telling me to do it,” Woodruff said. “But I’m not doing it because Georgia’s asking me to do it.”

The result of that game was UGA winning 16-15- Herschel's freshman year when UGA won the NC.

Summary from Seth Emmerson's article in The Athletic

That game the next year in Athens was a gnarly one.

 

[Volfan1000]

The result of that game was UGA winning 16-15- Herschel's freshman year when UGA won the NC.

was there...

Bates must have felt like a bowling pin after that run by Walker.

 

[onevol74]

That old 6 team SEC schedule probably made Johnny Majors' career. We saved a lot of seasons with that Ole Miss, UK, Vandy finish every November.

Actually you are wrong. The 6 team SEC schedule was before Majors. And Majors played a national power almost every year. Those first two years we played UGA and Southern Cal back to back. I think he also played Bama and #1 Pitt back to back.

 

[GAVol]

Actually you are wrong. The 6 team SEC schedule was before Majors. And Majors played a national power almost every year. Those first two years we played UGA and Southern Cal back to back. I think he also played Bama and #1 Pitt back to back.

I never said the overall schedule was weak or that it started with Majors; just that there were years like 86, 88, 90 where we’d underachieve and limp a little into November and then reel off those 3 easy wins.

 

[unfrozencvmanvol]

I never said the overall schedule was weak or that it started with Majors; just that there were years like 86, 88, 90 where we’d underachieve and limp a little into November and then reel off those 3 easy wins.

Folks on here get angry at 100% fact sometimes.

 

[Savannahbayvol]

Majors didn't start beating these teams every year until 1985, when we beat all three. After that, we went on a tear where we beat all three every year until we stopped playing Ole Miss every year in 1992 with the advent of divisional play.

Fulmer was 45-3 against USC, UK and Vandy.

 

[Savannahbayvol]

This was a great historical read that I did not know about.

It wasn’t until the late 1960s that the conference finally agreed on some semblance of rotating: two permanent opponents and rotating everyone else. Before that and without regulations about the number conference opponents teams should play every year, some teams played as few as four SEC games, while others played as many as seven. In 1952 when the conference stepped in with new regulations – every team had to play at least six – there was a loophole: All six didn’t need to be against teams actually in the conference.

"While the SEC assigned the years that teams would play each other, it was up to the schools to negotiate the dates and locations of those games. “We had some controversies,” said Roy Kramer, the former SEC commissioner and Vanderbilt athletic director. “On one or two of those occasions the conference had to step in and say, ‘You’re going to play on this date.’” One of those was Georgia and Tennessee, when told to work out a home-and-home for the 1980-81 season. They couldn’t come to an agreement, and then-SEC commissioner Boyd McWhorter called Kramer.

“We’re putting together a brand new scheduling committee, and we’d like you to be on it,” McWhorter told him. Kramer agreed, but never heard back. So he called back McWhorter, who provided an update.

“Roy, you’re the committee,” he said. “We have an issue between Georgia and Tennessee, you’re brand new and kind of neutral in all this, I’ll let you talk to them and work it out.”

Georgia’s AD was Joel Eaves, and Tennessee’s AD was Bob Woodruff. They weren’t on speaking terms at the time, and privately complained to Kramer about the other. When Kramer looked at each team’s schedule, there was only one available weekend they could play in 1980: the opening week of the season. Kramer called each separately.

“Is this the conference telling us to do this?” Woodruff asked. “Yes,” Kramer replied, only slightly twisting the truth. “Well, I’ll do it if the conference is telling me to do it,” Woodruff said. “But I’m not doing it because Georgia’s asking me to do it.”

The result of that game was UGA winning 16-15- Herschel's freshman year when UGA won the NC.

Summary from Seth Emmerson's article in The Athletic

UT and UGA went 30 years(38-68) without playing. Then they played in 68-69 and 72 and 73 before playing in 80-81.

 

[#1fulmerite]

Fulmer was 45-3 against USC, UK and Vandy.

Can one just imagine how much better off we would have been over the past 15 years had we not got rid of a multiple SEC championship and NC coach?