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SEC commissioner Greg Sankey posted a curiously timed message on the X platform Tuesday to highlight his conference’s popularity and online presence. The post came after Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark spoke on his own league at the annual Media Day event.
Yormark is in Las Vegas this week to preview the upcoming football season, as well as the overall outlook of the Big 12 moving forward. Much has changed for the league following the additions of Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado, and Utah, as well as the losses of Texas and Oklahoma.
The commissioner was high on both the present and the future, grouping the conference with the Big 10 and SEC while speaking with the media.
“We’re on of the three best conferences in America, and we’re getting better… I will not stop until we’re the No. 1 conference in America. That’s my ambition.”
-Brett Yormark, B12 commissioner
The Big 12 is a notable step below those top two leagues, though it’s gotten creative in finding ways to bridge the gap. That’s included the idea of selling the conference’s naming rights to the likes of Allstate.
Being active in both conference realignment and media rights negotiations has been crucial, and it’s resulted in a 16-team mega-league which Yormark called the “deepest in the country.”
“Every game will matter.”
Had the commissioner not been proactive in that expansion, the Big 12 could’ve easily headed down the path of the PAC 12.
While making his opening statement, Yormark also touched on the league’s booming social media presence, noting that the Big 12 had the second-largest social media following of the P4 conferences.
It wouldn’t take long for Greg Sankey to respond…
Possibly rattled by the comments, or maybe just taking the moment to flex his superiority, the SEC commissioner quickly reminded followers that his league was the most-followed conference in college sports.
He also twisted the knife with a dig at a recent follower boost potentially coming from the additions of Texas and Oklahoma.
For those interested in the @SEC social media following stats… it is just over 2.5 million followers across all SEC social media platforms…that is 280K more than the A4 COMBINED total. In the past 12 months follower growth is up nearly 20% and 500K. #ItJustMeansMore
-Greg Sankey // X: @GregSankey
Not only is the SEC the most popular conference in terms of online following, but it boasts more followers than the other P3 leagues combined.
An intentional jab or coincidental timing? It appeared to be the former!
Sankey hopes to see the SEC display its college football dominance in the year to come. He’ll soon be in Dallas for his own league’s media day spectacle.