Mississippi State Cancels Football Series as a Result of SEC Schedule Expansion

Unlike rivalries like Georgia vs. Auburn, Mississippi State and Washington State haven’t really had a long-standing, intense football rivalry over the years. The connection between these two schools became special because of one legendary coach: Mike Leach. The ‘Father of Ai-Raid’ football. Mike literally turned rock-age running football into the passing-first football that we see today. But unfortunately, Mike passed away in 2022 while coaching Mississippi State. Before that, though, he was the head coach at Washington State, where he really put their program on the map with his exciting Air Raid offense. He made both teams must-see TV.

The SEC’s goal with the new schedule format is to create more matchups between league teams, ensure that every team plays every other SEC team at least once every two seasons, and maximize opportunities for its members to qualify for the College Football Playoff. This shift means some long-standing traditions, like the LSU-Mississippi State rivalry (played 117 times), are being impacted as the league prioritizes other matchups within the expanded conference slate.

Also, the SEC will continue to require each team to play at least one non-conference game against a major opponent from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, or Notre Dame. This boosts each team’s strength of schedule, which matters for College Football Playoff consideration. However, the new schedule might force some schools to cancel or change previously planned non-conference series to make room for the extra SEC game.

What this mean to the SEC?

The principal goal behind this new plan is competitive fairness. By removing divisions and rotating opponents more frequently, the SEC hopes to avoid any kind of imbalance seen in past years when some teams had much tougher schedules than others, recent example would be the Sooners and Gators. According to SEC data, the difference between the hardest and easiest schedules under this new system is less than 10%, compared to over 20% under the old East/West division setup. That means every program from Georgia to Vanderbilt will face a more or less even level of difficulty over time.

Finally, the SEC balanced home and away games to make sure each school gets around seven home games per season. In 2026, half the league will host five conference games while the other half hosts four, and they’ll alternate every year after that. The conference even allowed some back-to-back games at the same venue to make the overall balance work. All in all, this new structure aims to keep the SEC’s traditions intact, give fans more variety, and make the path to the playoff as fair—and competitive—as possible.