JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – New SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey was in Jacksonville Thursday as the keynote speaker for the Jacksonville Sports Council's annual Speaker Series luncheon.
Sankey became the eighth commissioner of the Southeastern Conference on June 1, 2015 after serving on the SEC staff for 13 years in various leadership positions. He was an integral part of former commissioner Mike Slive's efforts to reshape the SEC's governance, enforcement and compliance program. Sankey said that as the newest SEC commissioner, he recognizes he has some big shoes to fill.
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"Part of the honor is to know who I am following," Sankey said. "That creates expectations, and there is pressure with the job, but I understand that and look forward to meeting the high expectations."
Sankey takes over the SEC at a time of unprecedented success in both athletics and academics. He recognizes that there is a microscope of sorts that his conference operates under due to that success, something Sankey says comes with the territory;
"People may love or hate the SEC, but they care and I think everyone cares in a way about the Southeastern Conference, and that's a good thing. I don't see it as 'us versus them.' I see it as just us."
The Southeastern Conference has a long-standing football foothold in Jacksonville with the annual Florida-Georgia game and the now TaxSlayer Bowl. With the improvements made to EverBank Stadium, questions of possibly hosting a National Championship semifinal are being raised. It is something that Sankey would not rule out as being possible.
"Our affiliation with the TaxSlayer Bowl is a great thing to have again. It has great history here and the leadership of the city and the leadership of the bowl can make an argument that they should be considered to have it. That's a good thing."
He was also very instrumental in working with the JAXSPORTS Council to bring the 2016 Women's SEC Basketball Tournament to Jacksonville.