SEC ANNOUNCES FOOTBALL TIE-BREAKING PROCESS
BIRMINGHAM, Alabama (Aug. 21, 2024) — The Southeastern Conference on Wednesday announced new football tiebreaking procedures for the 2024 SEC Championship Game, the first football season since 1991 to be conducted without divisions.
In the event of a tie between teams competing for a place in the Conference championship game, the following procedures will be used in descending order until the tie is broken:
- Head-to-head competition among the tied teams
- Record versus all common Conference opponents among the tied teams
- Record against highest (best) placed common Conference opponent in the Conference standings, and proceeding through the Conference standings among the tied teams
- Cumulative Conference winning percentage of all Conference opponents among the tied teams
- Capped relative total scoring margin versus all Conference opponents among the tied teams
- Random draw of the tied teams
If the regular season standings determine a clear Conference champion and two or more teams are tied for second place, the Conference champion will be the home team in the Championship Game and the tiebreaking procedures will be used to determine its opponent.
If a tiebreaker step produces standings with two teams tied for first place in the Conference, both will qualify for the championship game. To decide the seeding of the two teams, both will progress through the two-team tiebreaker procedures until the tie is broken, which will determine home/away designation for the SEC Championship Game.
The 2024 SEC Championship Game will be held on Saturday, Dec. 7, at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.
The SEC Championship Game has been the most watched conference championship nationally for 15 of the past 16 seasons, including 12 in a row from 2008-2019. The only year it was not No. 1 was 2020 when the SEC did not have a traditional schedule due to the pandemic. The 2023 SEC Championship Game averaged 17.519 million viewers, +61% vs. 2021, and peaked with 22.350 million viewers. It was the most-watched Conference Championship Game on any network in five years.
Complete tiebreaker procedures and examples can be found at www.SECsports.com/FBtiebreaker.
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Southeastern Conference Official Football Tiebreakers
In the event of a tie for a place in the Conference championship game, the following
procedures will be used in the following order:
A. Head-to-head competition among the tied teams
B. Record versus all common Conference opponents among the tied teams
C. Record against highest (best) placed common Conference opponent in the
Conference standings, and proceeding through the Conference standings among
the tied teams
D. Cumulative Conference winning percentage of all Conference opponents among
the tied teams
E. Capped relative total scoring margin (see Appendix A) versus all Conference
opponents among the tied teams
F. Random draw of the tied teams
If a tiebreaker step produces standings with two teams tied for first place in the
Conference, they are both selected for the championship game. To decide the seeding of
the two teams, they will progress through the Two-Team tiebreaker procedures, which will
determine home/away designation for the Conference Championship Game
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- Two-Team Tie for Second Place: In the event two teams are tied for second place in the
Conference standings, the following procedure will be used in the following order:
A. Head-to-head competition among the two tied teams
B. Record versus all common Conference opponents among the two tied teams
C. Record against highest (best) placed common Conference opponent, proceeding
through the Conference standings among the tied teams - If the highest place in the standings with common Conference opponents among
the tied teams includes 2 or more opponents that are also tied:
- The tie lower in the standings will only be broken if the tiebreaker procedure for Head-
to-head competition can break the tie
i. If 2 teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the two-team
tiebreaker procedures for second place
ii. If 3 or more teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the
three-team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for second place - If the Head-to-head tiebreaker procedure fails to break the tie between the teams lower
in the standings, the records of the tied teams against these common opponents will
be combined - If there are 3 or more opponents tied, but not all of them are common opponents, only
the record against common opponents will be considered
D. Cumulative Conference winning percentage of all Conference opponents among the
tied teams
E. Capped relative total scoring margin versus all Conference opponents among the tied
teams
F. Random draw of the tied teams
- Each tied institution’s Athletics Director will join a videoconference, with the
Commissioner or his/her Designee. During the videoconference, each tied
institution’s name will be visibly placed into a drawing. - If there are two or more teams tied for one spot in the Conference Championship
Game, then the Commissioner or his/her Designee will draw one name. The first
name that is drawn wins the random draw and is placed in the Conference
Championship Game as the away team. - If there are three or more teams tied for two spots in the Conference
Championship Game, and a random draw is needed to determine both
participants in the SEC Championship Game, then the Commissioner or his/her
Designee will draw two names. The first name drawn is placed in the Conference
Championship Game and will be the home team. The second name drawn is also
placed in the Conference Championship Game and will be the away team.
3 - Three-Team Tie (or More) for First Place: In the event three or more teams are tied for first place
in the Conference standings, the procedure below will be used in descending order.
After the head-to-head competition among the tied teams, if a tiebreaker step produces standings
with a clear No. 1 team by itself, that team is selected for the championship game and the remaining
teams still in contention revert to the beginning of the applicable tiebreaker procedures (e.g., if there
are three tied teams, the No. 1 team is in the championship game and the other two teams go to the
first step of the two-team tiebreaker procedures for second place; if there are four teams, the No.
1 team is in the championship game and the other three teams go to the first step of the three-team
tiebreaker procedures for second place, etc.).
If a tiebreaker step produces standings with two teams tied for No. 1, they are both selected for the
championship game. To decide the seeding (home/away) of the two teams in the Conference
Championship Game, they will progress through the Two-Team tiebreaker procedures.
If the standings produced by any tiebreaker procedure result in a tie at the top that is insufficient for
assigning a championship game participant, but includes one or more teams ranked below the tied
teams, the tied teams at the top of the standings will revert to the beginning of the tiebreaker
procedures and all other teams are eliminated.
A. Head-to-head competition among the tied teams - If there is a complete round robin, meaning all tied teams played each other:
a. If one team has sole possession of the best record among the tied teams,
that team is selected for the championship game
i. If two tied teams remain, they will return to the beginning of the
two-team tiebreaker procedures for second place
ii. If more than two tied teams remain, they will return to the
beginning of the three-team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for
second place
b. If two teams are tied for the best record within the round robin standings,
they are both selected for the championship game
c. If three or more teams are tied for the best record within the round robin
standings:
i. Those teams revert to the beginning of the three-team (or more)
tiebreaker procedures for first place; and
ii. Any teams that do not have the best record within the round robin
standings are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If there is not a complete round robin among the tied teams:
a. If one team beat all the other tied teams, it is selected for the
championship game, and the other remaining teams return to the start of
the tiebreaker procedures for second place
b. If one team lost to all the other tied teams, it is eliminated and the other
teams return to the start of the applicable tiebreaker procedures, unless
there are only two teams remaining, in which case they are both selected
for the championship game
c. If no team either beat all the other tied teams or lost to all the other tied
teams, all the tied teams advance to the next tiebreaker procedure
B. Record versus all common Conference opponents among the tied teams
4 - If one team has sole possession of the best record versus common Conference
opponents among the tied teams
a. The team with sole possession of the best record versus common
Conference opponents is selected for the championship game
b. The remaining teams return to the start of the tiebreaker procedures
i. If there are two teams tied for second place within the “Record
versus all common Conference opponents” standings, they start
at the beginning of the Two-team tiebreaker procedures for
second place
ii. If there are three or more teams tied for second place within the
“Record versus all common Conference opponents” standings,
they start at the beginning of the three-team (or more) tiebreaker
procedures for second place - If two teams are tied for the best record within the “Record versus all common
Conference opponents”, they are selected for the championship game - If three or more teams are tied for the best record within the “Record versus all
common Conference opponents”:
a. Those teams revert to the beginning of the three-team (or more)
tiebreaker procedures for first place; and
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game.
C. Record against highest (best) placed common Conference opponent, proceeding
through the Conference standings among the tied teams - If the highest place in the standings with common Conference opponents among
the tied teams includes 2 or more opponents that are also tied:
a. The tie lower in the standings will only be broken if the tiebreaker
procedure for Head-to-head competition can break the tie
i. If 2 teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the two-team
tiebreaker procedures for second place
ii. If 3 or more teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the
three-team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for second place
b. If the Head-to-head tiebreaker procedure fails to break the tie between
the teams lower in the standings, the records of the tied teams against
these common opponents will be combined
c. If there are 3 or more opponents tied, but not all of them are common
opponents, only the record against common opponents will be
considered - If one of the tied teams (Team A) is in sole possession of the best record against
the common Conference opponent(s) with the best Conference record:
a. Team A is selected for the championship game
b. The remaining teams return to the start of the applicable tiebreaker
procedures - If two of the tied teams (Team A and Team B) are tied for the best record against
the common Conference opponent(s) with the best Conference record, Team A
and Team B are selected for the championship game - If three or more tied teams are tied for the best record against the common
Conference opponent(s) with the best Conference record:
a. The teams that are tied for the best record revert to the beginning of the
three-team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for first place
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b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game. - If all tied teams have the same record against the common opponent(s) with the
best Conference record, proceed to the next common Conference opponent(s)
based on their order of finish within the Conference and continue the procedures
above until all common Conference opponents are exhausted
D. Cumulative Conference winning percentage of all Conference opponents among the
tied teams - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield a clear first place team:
a. The first-place team is selected for the championship game
b. The remaining teams revert to the beginning of the applicable tiebreaker
procedures (i.e., Head-to-Head) - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield a two-team tie for first, those
two teams are selected for the championship game - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield more than two teams tied for
first and there are any teams below first:
a. The teams tied for first place revert to the beginning of the applicable
tiebreaker procedures
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield more than two teams tied for
first and there are no teams below first, advance to the next step in the tiebreaker
procedures
E. Capped relative total scoring margin versus all Conference opponents among the tied
teams - After determining the first-place team using this step in the procedure, the
remaining tied teams still in contention will revert to the start of the tiebreaker
procedures
F. Random draw of the tied teams - Each tied institution’s Athletics Director will join a videoconference, with the
Commissioner or his/her Designee. During the videoconference, each tied
institution’s name will be visibly placed into a drawing. - If there are two or more teams tied for one spot in the Conference Championship
Game, then the Commissioner or his/her Designee will draw one name. The first
name that is drawn wins the random draw and is placed in the Conference
Championship Game as the away team. - If there are three or more teams tied for two spots in the Conference Championship
Game, and a random draw is needed to determine both participants in the SEC
Championship Game, then the Commissioner or his/her Designee will draw two
names. The first name drawn is placed in the Conference Championship Game and
will be the home team. The second name drawn is also placed in the Conference
Championship Game and will be the away team.
6 - Three-Team Tie (or More) for Second Place: In the event three or more teams are tied for second
place in the Conference, the following procedure will be used in the following order:
After the head-to-head competition among the tied teams, if a tiebreaker step produces standings
with a clear No. 1 team by itself, that team is selected for the championship game.
If the standings produced by any tiebreaker procedure result in a tie at the top that is insufficient for
assigning a championship game participant, but includes one or more teams ranked below the tied
teams, the tied teams at the top of the standings will revert to the beginning of the tiebreaker
procedures and all other teams are eliminated.
A. Head-to-head competition among the tied teams - If there is a complete round robin, meaning all tied teams played each other:
a. If one team has sole possession of the best record among the tied teams, that
team is selected for the championship game
b. If two teams are tied for the best record within the round robin standings:
i. Those teams revert to the beginning of the two-team tiebreaker
procedures for second place; and
ii. All other teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game
c. If three or more teams are tied for the best record within the round robin
standings and there are teams below the best record:
i. The teams with the best record revert to the beginning of the three-
team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for second place; and
ii. All other teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If there is not a complete round robin among the tied teams:
a. If one team beat all the other tied teams, it is selected for the championship
game
b. If one team lost to all the other tied teams, it is eliminated, and the remaining
teams revert to the beginning of the tiebreaker procedures for second place
c. If no team either beat all the other tied teams or lost to all the other tied teams,
all the tied teams advance to the next step in the tiebreaker procedures
B. Record versus all common Conference opponents among the tied teams - If one team has sole possession of the best record among the tied teams, it is selected
for the championship game - If two teams are tied for the best record within the “Record versus all common
Conference opponents” standings:
a. Those teams revert to the beginning of the two-team tiebreaker procedures for
second place
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If three or more teams are tied for the best record within the “Record versus all
common Conference opponents” standings:
a. Those teams revert to the beginning of the three-team tiebreaker procedures
for second place
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game
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C. Record against highest (best) placed common Conference opponent, proceeding through the
standings among the tied teams - If the highest place in the standings with common Conference opponents among the
tied teams includes 2 or more opponents that are also tied:
a. The tie lower in the standings will only be broken if the tiebreaker procedure for
Head-to-head competition can break the tie
iii. If 2 teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the two-team
tiebreaker procedures for second place
iv. If 3 or more teams are tied, they will enter the beginning of the
three-team (or more) tiebreaker procedures for second place
b. If the Head-to-head tiebreaker procedure fails to break the tie between the
teams lower in the standings, the records of the tied teams against these
common opponents will be combined
c. If there are 3 or more opponents tied, but not all of them are common
opponents, only the record against common opponents will be considered - If one of the tied teams (Team A) is in sole possession of the best record against the
common Conference opponent(s) with the best Conference record:
a. Team A is selected for the championship game
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If two of the tied teams (Team A and Team B) are tied for the best record against the
common Conference opponent(s) with the best Conference record
a. Team A and Team B revert to the beginning of the two-team tiebreaker
procedure for second place
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If three or more tied teams are tied for the best record against the common Conference
opponent(s) with the best Conference record
a. The teams that are tied for the best record revert to the beginning of the three-
team tiebreaker procedures for second place
b. The remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game - If all tied teams have the same record against the common opponent(s) with the best
Conference record, proceed to the next common Conference opponent(s) based on
their order of finish within the Conference and continue the procedures above until all
common Conference opponents are exhausted
D. Cumulative Conference winning percentage of all Conference opponents among the tied
teams - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield a clear first place team,
a. The first-place team is selected for the Championship game - If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield two or more teams tied for first:
- The teams tied for first place revert to the beginning of the tiebreaker
procedures - All remaining teams are eliminated from contention in the Conference
Championship Game
- If the standings produced by this tiebreaker yield more than two teams tied for first and
there are no teams below first, advance to the next step in the tiebreaker procedures
E. Capped relative total scoring margin versus all Conference opponents among the tied teams
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F. Random draw of the tied teams - Each tied institution’s Athletics Director will join a videoconference, with the
Commissioner or his/her Designee. During the videoconference, each tied
institution’s name will be visibly placed into a drawing. - If there are two or more teams tied for one spot in the Conference Championship
Game, then the Commissioner or his/her Designee will draw one name. The first
name that is drawn wins the random draw and is placed in the Conference
Championship Game as the away team. - If there are three or more teams tied for two spots in the Conference Championship
Game, and a random draw is needed to determine both participants in the SEC
Championship Game, then the Commissioner or his/her Designee will draw two
names. The first name drawn is placed in the Conference Championship Game and
will be the home team. The second name drawn is also placed in the Conference
Championship Game and will be the away team.
Commissioner’s Authority
Authority to interpret all tiebreaking procedures is vested only in the Commissioner or his/he