One of the biggest topics of the week in college football has been the SEC's expected new scheduling format, which is necessary due to Texas and Oklahoma joining the conference in 2025.

It doesn't appear that the SEC, which has been conducting league meetings in Destin, FL this week, is going to announce a new scheduling format this week. But there are several ideas being kicked around.

The most popular (and seemingly most likely) idea is a 3-6 format. There would be three permanent opponents for each program, then they'd rotate the other six conference opponents each season (this would also move the league from an 8-game conference schedule to a 9-game conference schedule).

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said he has not asked the coaches to vote on a new schedule format, but says they’ll eventually have to.

Could be this week or in a year, but Sankey reiterated “I expect something sooner rather than later”

— Trey Wallace (@TreyWallace_) May 31, 2022

(I took a shot this week at predicting which three permanent opponents would work best for each team.)

Picking three permanent opponents for the Tennessee Vols won't be an easy task if that ends up being the scheduling format that the SEC chooses.

In my predictions earlier this week, I went with Alabama, Florida, and Vanderbilt for the Vols' three permanent opponents.

That would keep several important rivalries alive, but it would also mean the end of yearly matchups against Georgia and Kentucky (Tennessee first started playing Kentucky in 1893 which makes it one of the oldest rivalries in the sport).

Not everyone will be happy with whatever the choices end up being made.

However, based on recent comments from Vols head coach Josh Heupel, I think we can assume that Tennessee will be pushing for Alabama and Vanderbilt to be two of the Vols' permanent opponents if a 3-6 scheduling format is adopted by the SEC.

Heupel, speaking at the SEC meetings in Destin, declined to specifically say which three permanent opponents he wants, but he alluded to the rivalries with Alabama and Vanderbilt being important to UT.

“We’ve got a bunch of really good historic games that our fans have been really passionate about," said Heupel. "[We] want to play in those big games. Obviously, there’s some that have been historic for a long time, inside of our own state and with Alabama.”

Heupel is extremely careful with his words. You won't catch him getting in a war of words via the media. So when he answers that question and points out Alabama and Vandy, it means that those two teams have likely been discussed heavily by Tennessee and the SEC as potential permanent opponents.

I think fans should expect those two rivalries to remain intact if the 3-6 schedule format becomes a reality. The SEC will prioritize historic rivalries and in-state rivalries.

Now, what does that mean for the third opponent? That's tough to say. Florida will obviously be an option, but Tennessee could push for Kentucky. Or even South Carolina. Georgia could be an option as well, but I can't imagine UT would be ok with playing Alabama and Georgia every year.

While we don't know exactly how the scheduling decision will turn out, one thing is certain — big changes are coming to the SEC in the coming years.

Featured image via USA TODAY Sports