Welcome to Greg Sankey's New-Look SEC
HOOVER, Ala. — Times, they are a-changin'.
Bob Dylan didn't perform a set at SEC media days, but his iconic song permeated Greg Sankey's first "State of the SEC" speech.
Sankey proved during his inaugural address that the moment isn't too big for him and that he's the perfect man to take the lead in the evolving landscape of the SEC.
His new-look SEC includes a step forward into the new millennium, with his old Twitter account that was primarily used to keep tabs on media members who cover the conference becoming an active virtual microphone to connect with fans of teams within the conference.
"What started as a rather fun way for me to anonymously follow many of you has become a bit more popular," Sankey said. "So we have updated my Twitter presence away from the old @gscantweet, which was nothing terribly secretive other than my first and last name initials, a verb and a noun—I think a noun—to @GregSankey. That's the new Twitter handle. You can see it is accompanied by a new avatar, not only lifting the tractor tire—which I think is the most famous tractor tire lifting picture in history now—but also lifting the SEC logo."
A new-look Twitter account is also accompanied by a new set of priorities, with an emphasis on scholars, champions and leaders.
For the second time in as many years, the SEC didn't take home a championship in football in January. While a championship is still a priority, the progress of players off the field is Sankey's primary goal as commissioner.
As was the case with his predecessor Mike Slive, Sankey walks softly, carries a big stick and isn't afraid to take shots at other conferences—in this case, Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany's thoughts on freshman ineligibility.
"Rather than focus on the conversation related to freshmen and eligibility, let's talk about how we, in intercollegiate athletics and as universities, lead by focusing even greater attention on making sure young people are prepared for their college opportunity, promoting a college-going culture and by expecting them to make academic progress each year of their high school academic career so that when they show up on our campuses they're fully prepared to engage in the academic culture which they encounter," he said.
Once thought of as a regional power, the SEC has broadened its horizons over the last decade to become a national power.
That's not good enough for Sankey's SEC.
"As we educate and enhance our competitive success while fulfilling what is a full range of new expectations now upon us, we, the SEC, will occupy a key leadership position within this region, across our country and throughout the world," he said. "And understand that magnifying our global influence is not simply about playing games in London or Asia or South America—although if it's deemed beneficial, our teams will certainly pursue those opportunities."
The conference will place an increased focus on the success of players, both past and present.
Sankey took pride in the fact that former Texas A&M star Dante Hall received his degree in 2014, 14 years after leaving school and entering the NFL. He gleamed when discussing former Georgia linebacker Thomas Davis returning to school and becoming the first in his family to earn a degree. He complimented former Auburn quarterback Cam Newton routinely for returning to campus the last few springs and earning his degree this May.
"We will focus on enhancing the lifelong link that's established between our student-athletes and our universities," he said. "And there are a multitude of meaningful illustrations about how we can achieve our goals, sometimes in new ways, of graduating every student-athlete."
Sankey is also proud to be a trailblazer.
One of his first initiatives as commissioner is an increased focus on player behavior. The conference passed a bylaw at its spring meetings in May that prevents players with a history of domestic assault, sexual assault or sexual violence from transferring in.
Sankey's hope is that the SEC will provide the blueprint for other conferences in how to manage player behavior, what can be done at the conference level and what policies are best left for individual institutions.
"We will appoint a working group on conduct expectations that will engage in reviewing our student-athlete conduct issues and policies; particularly, they will invest time to consider existing campus policies, national requirements and best practices in order to identify appropriate campus and conference expectations," he said.
The moment wasn't too big for Sankey.
His first State of the SEC speech was his chance to not only put his stamp on the conference but announce that it is still the leader in the evolving college landscape.
The new-look SEC is being led by a forward-thinking, innovative, pragmatic commissioner who puts the "student" part of "student-athlete" first, as it should be. A man who's not afraid to ruffle feathers and fight for what he feels is right. A man who recognizes that being the commissioner of the SEC means more than just leading the conference but shaping the landscape of college athletics.
The more things change, the more things stay the same.
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and college football video analyst for Bleacher Report as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on Sirius 93, XM 208.
Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.
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