SOUTHEASTERN CONFERENCE MEDIA DAYS

July 27, 2005

Mike Slive

COMMISSIONER MIKE SLIVE: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. This is the 73rd football season in the Southeastern Conference and we are delighted to have you with us as we begin another great season. As Charles said, we had over 700 folks here for Media Day which the largest we ever had. It's really a tribute to our players and to coaches that competed for the championship. It's evidence of both the media and the fan interest generated by the great traditions, the great rivalries in the Southeastern Conference. In terms of fan interest, I thought you might like to know that we led the nation in total attendance for the 24th consecutive season with more than 5.8 million people turning the turnstyles at our stadiums last year, that's an average of more than 74,000 people a game, and it fills our stadiums to 96 percent of capacity and that's all of our teams. Speaking of attendance, for the tenth consecutive year, as we look ahead to our championship game in Atlanta, the Georgia Dome, in December, the general public tickets are all sold out. The only way to get a ticket now is to work with one of the two participating teams that end up in championship game. As Charles just mentioned, this year, for the first time we're introducing instant replay in the Southeastern Conference. We want to give each of you every opportunity today to learn as much as possible about it while you are here and to make that as convenient as possible. So right after I finish, and I will be brief today, Bobby Gaston will come up and talk to you about instant replay and what our plans are.Following Bobby's remarks, we have arranged here for an ongoing demonstration of instant replay with the equipment we will be using and the process we will be using and the method we will be using, and that's going to be available to you all after at your convenience so that you can cover the other issues and the other folks that want to cover and still get in and take a look at instant replay. It's our hope that you will understand it as fully as we do and understand what it's purposes are what it's goals are and what it's not. And I think the more that you folks know, the more our fans will know and we will all go into the season with a full understanding of this experiment. There will be another significant change this season and the conference will apply its unsportsmanship policy which prohibits fans and other non-authorized personnel from being on the football field. As you know, two different SEC institutions were penalized for violations when fans rushed the court this past basketball season. If necessary, this Fall, similar penalties will result if this rule is not followed. Needless to say, our primary concern. And I saw that there was more litigation with regard to injuries that occurred to the innocent people. But our concern is the safety of our players, our coaches, and all of our fans. On another topic of note, I told you yesterday we have completed discussions with several bowls. And as a result, the SEC will have a bowl alignment for the 2006 through the 2009 post season similar to the alignment we have had over the past four years. In addition, to the BCS, in alphabetical order, bowl partners will include, the Capitol One Bowl, with the Big 10 on the other side, the SBC Cotton Bowl with the Big 12 as the opponent. The Independence Bowl, where we expect to have the Big 12 there, Music City Bowl with the ACC, the Chick Filet Peach Bowl with the ACC, and the Outback Bowl with the Big 10. We're currently in discussion with two other bowls and possibly three other bowls with regard to the final bowl allignment which will then give us the eight that traditionally we've had the last several years. In the past three years, during Media Days, I have spoken about the challenges which face this conference and the initiative we have embraced to tackle the challenges. This year, I will be brief and suffice it to say that we're making significant progress in each of the areas we have identified as challenges including compliance, diversity, academic, and student athlete welfare. But at the same time, we continue to be the most successful across the board competitive athletic conference in the country, across a broad spectrum of sports for men and women. We provide opportunities for over 5,000 student athletes who can compete for national championships, receive a quality education and culminating in their gradation. After all, when that's said and done, that's our ultimate goal. The success last year for us began with Auburn's season, undefeated within the Nokia Sugar Bowl and two teams in the Women's Final 4 in basketball. Sometimes we lose sight of the broad base programs that this league enjoys and it is one the reasons why we deal with our financial issues. It gives us the opportunity to create tremendous opportunity for student athletes in sports. The evidence of our competitive success in all sports is simply in the numbers. Last year, SEC teams won seven National championships and had eight runners up. In half of the 20 sports we sponsored, we had either a National champion or a runner-up. In 16 of the 20 sports we sponsored, SEC teams placed in the top five nationally. 72 of our student athletes, one individual national championships and 554 of our kids won first-team all-America honors. And finally, 159 SEC teams participated in NCAA post-season play, that represents almost 75 percent of all the teams in the league. Equally for me, if not more importantly, more than 2,000 of our kids are student athletes, representing close to 40 percent of all athletes, earned SEC academic honor role status. So by any measure, any measure you choose, we continue to solidify our place as the nation's broad base, most competitive athletic conference. And I am pleased to be able to say that because we continue to make progress in issues that we have come to grips with off the field. But in that area, there are two areas of particular note that I want to mention this afternoon. First, in the academic arena, both our student athletes and our students in general will benefit from this Fall's launch of the SEC Academic Consortium. Initially, the consortium will tie the library resources of the 12 institutions together and provide more and varied study of opportunities for students at Conference institutions on their own. Another initiative will provide leadership training for faculties that aspire to higher careers in admission and education. And then the goal is way the consortium that assures provides exchange opportunities for students and faculty to take advantage of the vast array of academic opportunities to all our students no matter where they are in the world. Secondly, as most of you know, this summer, the Conference entered into agreement for the center for the study and support and society of Northeastern University of Boston to provide special educational program for each of our 12 institutions. This partnership marks the first conference-wide sponsorship of the sports society mentors and violence program or MVP in collegiate athletics. The program is designed for awareness among our students about issues that affect their lives. It's important for us as institutions and it's important for us as a conference to be aware of and help our student athletes face some challenges that we can assist when possible and help them develop understanding and tools for coping with the many off-the-field pressures they encounter. And in the words of Peter Robbie, the director of the Student Support Society, and I quote, "Help promote a culture of respect on their campuses." So ladies and gentlemen, in short, we have got to challenge the young men and women in this conference who represent us and represent our institutions to develop themselves athletically, academically, and emotionally so they'll be equipped to lead happy, successful and productive lives. That's our reason for being. So in closing, we look forward to another great competitive SEC football season. Our attention will be focused on the field and on the talented young men that play this great American game of college football. So I want to personally thank you all for being here and for your kind attention. I hope your work goes well. As the saying goes to all of you who write in the news, "May the news be with you." Thank you.