Taking the same "clear and direct" approach he took with members of the media that he did with the league's coaches in Destin, Fla. earlier this spring, Sankey discussed the problems with NIL, conference realignment and the expansion of the college football playoff.

"It is never going to be the same, but it doesn't have to be the way that it is. We're dealing with complex problems that won't be solved by complaints, by accusations, by finger pointing, or by offering simple solutions," he said. "What is needed now is collaboration, deep thinking about real world solutions, and everyone participating in the conversation."

Sankey said that the past year has proven that the current collegiate athletics system, including the NCAA in its current form, is broken and in need of revamping.

"This is not about tweaking the model we have. We cannot go on as we are," he said.

Sankey, who is serving on the Division 1 Transformation Committee, hit the NCAA for being inefficient and bureaucratic.

"I have a rule book that simply grows and grows and grows. We have a governance process that has key committees and councils populated by participants who rarely, if ever, speak and who are being asked to make important national policy decisions when they may not have that same authority on their day-to-day work context on campus," he said. "We have a bureaucratic process that leaves issues languishing for months or for years. Again, it's correct, we can't go on as we are."

When discussing NIL, Sankey said that all college sports, but football in particular, needs a "clear, enforceable standard" across the board. He said the current situation, with rules varying from state to state, is untenable.

"We need clarity from the NCAA national office on what's happening and what will happen under the NCAA Division I board of directors' directive," Sankey said.

In spite of the "headwinds" facing college sports, the SEC commissioner said the conference remains extremely strong. Sankey indicated that overall strength will allow it to stand pat and not look at further expansion, even with the Big 10's addition of USC and UCLA.

"There's no sense of urgency in our league, no panic and reaction to others' decisions. We know who we are. We are confident in our collective strength," he said.

When asked if the league's already-announced additions -- Texas and Oklahoma -- could join the SEC before 2025, Sankey demurred.

"That's not up to me. That's about the relationship between Oklahoma, Texas and the Big 12," he said. "We are focused on the addition being effective July 1st, 2025."

When it came to discussion of the College Football Playoff, Sankey was blunt in his comments, indicating other conferences will have some work to do to get the SEC back on board after walking away from initial proposals of a 12-team playoff last summer. The conference, he said, is against the idea of automatic qualifiers and would remain so.

"If we're going to go back to square one, we're going to take a step back from the model introduced and rethink the approach, number of teams, whether there should be any guarantee for conference champions at all. Just earn your way in," he said.