There was no shortage of news at the Southeastern Conference spring meetings this past week in Destin, Fla.
League commissioner Mike Slive sharply stiffened penalties for fans storming football fields and basketball courts, and the league banned accepting transfers who have been dismissed because of assault and domestic violence charges. SEC football coaches remain largely opposed to an early signing period in mid-December, while basketball rivalries such as Kentucky-Tennessee were enhanced when the conference increased the number of permanent annual opponents in league play from one to three.
Yet the meetings also served as a four-day tribute to Slive, whose tenure as commissioner finishes today. The 74-year-old Slive, who last fall began treatment for a recurrence of prostate cancer, was originally scheduled to step aside July 31. Instead, executive associate commissioner Greg Sankey will take over Monday.
Slive was appointed the league’s seventh commissioner on June 2, 2002.
Coach Mark Richt participates in a news conference in this Dec. 29, 2014, file photo.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban, center, calls drills as his team warms up before the 2014 Sugar Bowl against Oklahoma in New Orleans.“If you look at where the league was then and where it is now, we’ve come a long way,” Georgia football coach Mark Richt told reporters at the Sandestin Beach Hilton. “His leadership has been great, and when he’s spoken, people have really listened and have truly respected what he had to say.”