SEC Media Days 2022: Most Notable Comments from Monday

Rob Goldberg @@TheRobGoldbergFeatured Columnist IVJuly 18, 2022

AP Photo/John Bazemore

Some of the biggest names in college football provided their thoughts on the 2022 season at Monday's SEC media day.

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey took the stage first and had a lot to say about the conference's expansion in relation to the rest of the country.

Rob Fischer @thefishnation
Updates from SEC Media Days 🏈 Commissioner Greg Sankey asked if SEC additions of OU & UT “trumps” the moves of the B1G <a href="https://t.co/0LuyTsgGsZ">pic.twitter.com/0LuyTsgGsZ</a>

"Those two additions actually restore rivalries," Sankey said of Texas and Oklahoma. It offers a contrast to the Big Ten's addition of USC and UCLA.

Sankey provided further thoughts on the direction of the league:

Brett McMurphy @Brett_McMurphy
SEC commish Greg Sankey said he told the league's football coaches, regarding everything going on in college athletics: "It is never going to be the same, but it doesn't have to be the way that it is."

Pete Thamel @PeteThamel
Sankey on potential SEC realignment: "There’s no sense of urgency in our league. No panic in reaction to others' decisions. We know who we are. We’re confident in our collective strength."

𝕋𝕣𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕤 𝕃. 𝔹𝕣𝕠𝕨𝕟 @Travis_L_Brown
"This is a super league," Greg Sankey said of the current SEC.

College football fans should probably brace themselves for more changes to the overall structure of the sport.

Several coaches also took the podium, including new LSU coach Brian Kelly.

Kelly surprisingly joined the Tigers from Notre Dame in December and adopted somewhat of a Southern accent in his introductory speech, which he discussed at media day:

Bruce Feldman @BruceFeldmanCFB
Brian Kelly, asked about his Southern accent/favorite Southern food: "Understand, I've got a Boston, Midwestern and Louisiana accent now. It's three dialects into one. So it's no longer 'fay-muh-lee.' I got like all kinds of stuff to throw at ya, so just be ready!"

Kelly also clarified that he is here to stay, telling reporters: "This is my last stop."

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Perhaps the most notable comment from Kelly came during a discussion of name, image and likeness rights, saying his team wouldn't be "outbid."

Brody Miller @BrodyAMiller
Brian Kelly was asked about <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/LSU?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#LSU</a> having less funds than other schools. "I don't know that we have less funds ... I feel very comfortable that what we're doing with NIL is competitive to anyone else. I don't think we're being outbid by anyone."

It represents an interesting mindset about the NIL practices that likely go against the spirit of the new rules.

Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin went even further to knock the system under NIL rules:

Ryan Kerley @RyanCKerley
Lane Kiffin: “Players go to where the most money is” He said with a disappointed tone

Brad Logan @BradLoganCOTE
"This was not thought out at all and has created a massive amount of issues." -Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin on the current NIL structure.<a href="https://twitter.com/Rebels247?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Rebels247</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/247Sports?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@247Sports</a>

Dan Wolken @DanWolken
Lane Kiffin: "If you have boosters out there deciding who they're going to pay to come play and the coach isn't involved in it, how does that work? They just pick who they want and tell you who to play too? And when they don't play, how is that going to work out?"

Gentry Estes @Gentry_Estes
Lane Kiffin to <a href="https://twitter.com/JoeGoodmanJr?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@JoeGoodmanJr</a>'s question about succeeding at NIL: "You have really good boosters. That's how you do well at it. I'll say what other people don't say. It's like a payroll in baseball. ... Get ready for the people that have the most money to get the best players."

Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz added similar thoughts:

Dave Matter @Dave_Matter
Drinkwitz is very concerned about the direction of college sports and touching on it here. "What are the guiding principles in college football and college athletics going forward? ... It's time for college athletics to set a course and vision for the future."

Players are finally getting a chance to profit off their name, image and likeness, but some teams appear to be taking advantage of the system.

There was also plenty of discussion about on-field play from the coaches:

Matt Stahl @mattstahl97
Drinkwitz on how SEC East has improved through his tenure: "It's a strong league. I mean every time you turn on the tape you're facing a guy who's going to play in the NFL and probably going to get drafted in the first two rounds."

Brett McMurphy @Brett_McMurphy
Last year, Ole Miss set an FBS record w/49 4th down attempts. Lane Kiffin: "We sell that we believe in you. We play so aggressively. It's not easy to do but there's a reason we do it."

Kelly also answered questions about his ability to step in and compete in the SEC.

"I've had success at Notre Dame, Cincinnati, Central Michigan, wherever I've been," he said. "So running a program and then player development, I think those are the most important things. I don't think that needs to be geographical in a sense."

SEC media days will continue Tuesday with Alabama coach Nick Saban, Mississippi State's Mike Leach, South Carolina's Shane Beamer and Vanderbilt's Clark Lea.

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