Amid a shifting landscape in college athletics, the Big Ten and Southeastern conferences announced Friday they have formed a joint advisory group “to address the significant challenges” in college sports and for student-athletes today.
The group will be made up of university presidents, chancellors and athletic directors, who will look at issues such as pending litigation and recent court decisions, differing state laws and proposals for governing college sports.
“The Big Ten and the SEC have substantial investment in the NCAA and there is no question that the voices of our two conferences are integral to governance and other reform efforts,” said Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti in a statement. “We recognize the similarity in our circumstances, as well as the urgency to address the common challenges we face.”
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey agreed.
“There are similar cultural and social impacts on our student-athletes, our institutions, and our communities because of the new collegiate athletics environment,” he said. “We do not have predetermined answers to the myriad questions facing us. We do not expect to agree on everything but enhancing interaction between our conferences will help to focus efforts on common sense solutions.”
The conferences did not announce when their work would begin and said its composition has yet to be decided.
The Big Ten and the SEC have driven some of the most significant changes with their expansion. This fall, the Big Ten will grow to 18 teams with the addition of Oregon, Southern California, UCLA and Washington. The SEC, which is adding Texas and Oklahoma, will have 16 teams.
–Field Level Media