SEC football schedule: Opponents set for eight-game model in 2024 season with Texas, Oklahoma joining league
The SEC schedule will take on a new look in 2024 with the Longhorns and Sooners joining the conference
By
Will Backus
•
3 min read
Opponents and locations were revealed for each SEC team on Wednesday night as the league gave a glimpse into what the 2024 schedule will look like with Texas and Oklahoma joining the league next year. The conference previously announced on June 1 that it will be implementing an eight-game scheduling model which will serve as a one-year placeholder as the league debates future scheduling plans with the Longhorns and Sooners pushing the league to 16 teams.
No specific dates were given for the matchups; those will be released in the future. Among the marquee matchups on the slate for the newcomers in 2024 include Texas hosting Georgia while hitting the road to renew its historic rivalry with Texas A&M for the first time since the 2011 season. Oklahoma, meanwhile, is set to play the likes of Alabama and Tennessee at home and will travel to road dates at LSU and Ole Miss.
In addition to eight conference games, each SEC team will play one opponent from either the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 or a major independent starting in 2024. Some SEC programs have already unveiled nonconference games for 2024 that satisfy the requirement.
Beginning with the 2024 campaign, the SEC Championship Game will feature the top two teams in the overall league standings rather than the top team from each division with the East and West groupings being eliminated after the 2023 season. The aim with the SEC's single-standings format is to have every school play one another at least twice in a four-year span.
Here's a look at the criteria that went into selecting 2024 opponents.
- Home and away designations in 2024 were built with the provision that no school will travel to the same location to which it traveled in 2023. The opponents were determined based on two primary factors: traditional opponents and balance of schedule strength.
- Balance of schedule strength was based on each school's conference winning percentage since the SEC last expanded in 2012. The winning percentages for the performance of Oklahoma and Texas in the Big 12 since 2012 were included in determining 16 positions ranked by winning percentage.
- Each school's schedule will include four opponents -- two home and two away -- whose winning percentage ranked among the top eight conference winning percentages since 2012.
- Also, each school's 2024 schedule will include four opponents - two home and two away -- whose winning percentages ranked among the second eight conference winning percentages since 2012.
- While no school will travel to the same location to which it traveled in 2023, it should be noted that when a long-term schedule format is determined, it may not be possible to structure a schedule that does not include some schools playing at the same location in back-to-back years in the first year of a new format.
So let's have a look now at the exciting matchups we'll be treated to in the 2024 season as Texas and Oklahoma join the fold.
| Team | Home | Away | Neutral |
|---|---|---|---|
Alabama | Georgia, Auburn, Missouri, South Carolina | Tennessee, LSU, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt | |
Arkansas | Texas, Tennessee, Ole Miss, LSU | Auburn, Mississippi State, Missouri | Texas A&M (Arlington) |
Auburn | Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt | Georgia, Alabama, Kentucky, Missouri | |
Florida | Texas A&M, LSU, Ole Miss, Kentucky | Tennessee, Texas, Mississippi State | Georgia (Jacksonville) |
Georgia | Tennessee, Auburn, Mississippi State | Texas, Alabama, Ole Miss, Kentucky | Florida (Jacksonville) |
Kentucky | Auburn, Georgia, Vanderbilt, South Carolina | Texas, Florida, Ole Miss, Tennessee | |
LSU | Alabama, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Ole Miss | Texas A&M, South Carolina, Florida, Arkansas | |
Mississippi State | Texas A&M, Arkansas, Florida, Missouri | Ole Miss, Georgia, Tennessee, Texas | |
Ole Miss | Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi State, Oklahoma | Arkansas, Florida, LSU, South Carolina | |
Missouri | Oklahoma, Arkansas, Auburn, Vanderbilt | Mississippi State, Alabama, South Carolina, Texas A&M | |
Oklahoma | Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee | Auburn, LSU, Ole Miss, Missouri | Texas (Dallas) |
South Carolina | LSU, Ole Miss, Missouri, Texas A&M | Alabama, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt, Kentucky | |
Tennessee | Alabama, Mississippi State, Florida, Kentucky | Georgia, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Vanderbilt | |
Texas | Georgia, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State | Texas A&M, Arkansas, Vanderbilt | Oklahoma (Dallas) |
Texas A&M | Texas, LSU, Missouri | Florida, Auburn, Mississippi State, South Carolina | Arkansas (Arlington) |
Vanderbilt | Alabama, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas | Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, Missouri |
