SEC Football: Gaslighting at its best
How are we to interpret the SEC's current bowl record?
My question today is, “Have we been gaslit by the SEC?”
As we recover from last week’s bowl games, including the four College Football Playoff Quarterfinals, it’s time we take a moment to reflect on what has happened so far this college bowl season, in particular, the seeming collapse of the SEC, or the “idea” of the SEC that exists and we’ve have been lead to believe, thanks to ESPN/ABC, AP Poll voters, Paul Finebaum, Reddit SEC chat threads and maybe even our very own resident-college-football-expert, John Crimella.
With Texas the only remaining SEC team in the CFP, the conference currently stands with an 8-6 record. The Longhorns, who account for 2 of those 8 victories, will take on Ohio State, the most dominant team in the CFP on Friday.
Texas is a 6-point underdog to the Buckeyes.
That’s a far cry from the dominance we’ve all been lead to believe about SEC football, right?
I mean, this is a conference that has trademarked the phrase, “It Just Means More.”
And we all remember the hoots and hollers of the SEC faithful when Alabama, Ole Miss and South Carolina, all with 9-3 records, were left out of the CFP, right?
The atrocity! An 11-1 Indiana team is in?! Over a 9-3 Bama team, yet? You cannot be serious! Some of you might even have asked yourself, “Seriously?”
Well, let’s dissect just how the all-mighty and powerful SEC has fared against the mere mortal programs in college football.
Florida, one of the true feel-good stories in college football this fall, defeated a short-handed Tulane1 team, 33-8, in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl. A good start.
Texas followed that up with a win over the 9-3 ACC Conference champion Clemson Tigers. The game was never really close, but the Tigers kind of kept it competitive.
Then Tennessee, the No. 3 team in the SEC this season, was manhandled, 42-17, in the CFP First Round by the Big Ten’s Ohio State.
It was cold. Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava’s helmet was cracked by a combination of the frigid cold and the Buckeyes’ defenders. The Volunteers fans, who numbered in the thousands inside the Horseshoe, and SEC fans in general, were mocked by Ohioans who chanted, “SEC! SEC!” in the waning minutes of the game.
A small consortium of fans and the media began to bemoan the idea of “home field advantage,” in the playoffs, read: Playing above the Mason-Dixon line in December.
Then Navy went and wiped the decks with an Oklahoma team who SEC diehards might argue is not a real SEC team. Oil money-rich Texas A&M also fell, 35-31, to USC, the same Trojans who finished ninth out of 16 teams in the Big Ten this season.
Then the fun really started.
Alabama, yes, that Alabama, lost to Michigan! Yes, that Michigan!
Funny, but I remember Indiana, they of the 11 wins, beat Michigan this season. No, it wasn’t pretty, but they handled the Wolverines, something coach Kalen DeBoer, quarterback Jalen Milroe, and the rest of the Crimson Tide failed to do.
In fact, it was the second time Alabama lost to Michigan in 2024, having previously lost 27-20 in the Rose Bowl on January 1st.
Bama fans, like a popular commercial, may have to instead start yelling, “Low Tide.”
Danny Kanell, the former Florida State quarterback and ESPN college football analyst, seems to understand the College Football Playoff and what it’s all about.
Reputations, and those of retired head football coaches, as great as they were, should not count toward qualifying for the post-season.
Then, however, it got worse.
South Carolina, probably the hottest team in the SEC, if not in all of college football entering the post-season, took on Illinois, of the Big Ten, in the Citrus Bowl, where it lost 21-17. Gamecocks assistants may still be trying to hold back coach Shane Beamer from scratching out Illinois coach Bret Bielema’s eyes, all while he sported a Cheshire grin.
The scene became a meme of a meme.
At least the SEC could count on Georgia.
The Bulldogs, winners of two recent National Championships, and coached by Kirby Smart. Quarterbacked by Cars Gunner Stockton, you say? Not a problem!
In fact, the SEC is so deep with the nation’s best players at each position, that certainly Georgia’s freshman quarterback could thwart Notre Dame’s defense in his first college start.
I mean, it’s Notre Dame, after all. When was the last time the Fighting Irish were actually competitive in a game during the month of January?
And just because you’re starting quarterback is out, doesn’t mean you shouldn’t qualify for the post-season. Just ask Florida State fans. Right?
Notre Dame won 23-10 in a game that never even felt that close.
Joel Klatt, FOX college football lead analyst, took to X.
Die it must.
So, as we head into the CFP Semifinals, the SEC’s post-season record is 8-6, with Texas accounting for two of those wins.
Texas, need I remind you, only joined the SEC this past season. If you ask, many SEC fans may put an asterisk by Texas when it comes to real SEC teams, much like Oklahoma.
Name, Image and Likeness has changed the game of football. It will continue to do so.
The expanded College Football Playoff has also changed the game of football.
The concentration of talented players and coaches will now be more equally disbursed around other conferences and the nation, as they follow the money.
I’m sure Tempe, home of Arizona State, is just as nice as Tuscaloosa, Gainesville, Baton Rouge, or Athens in November and December. The Sun Devils also have a pretty good football coach in Kenny Dillingham.
There are now real questions about the SEC after being gaslit about the dominance of the conference the past few seasons.
The first question I have is, will an SEC team be able to win a road playoff game in a cold climate in December?
Is a 9-3 SEC team really better than a 10-2 ACC team or an 11-1 Big Ten team? Based on this year’s playoff and bowl games, the answer is no.
This will only make next year’s CFP selection committee’s job even more interesting.
There are many more “data points” that now show the NIL Era SEC is not what we’ve been expected to believe.
And maybe the CFP selection committee also has to come to the realization that being in the SEC doesn’t necessarily “mean more,” but maybe should mean less.
Agree? Disagree? Let Brian know your thoughts, and be sure to tune into this week’s Tailgators Setup Podcast to hear John’s response on the state of the SEC.
A look at the 2024-25 SEC Bowl Game Record:
Florida 33, Tulane 8 (SEC record: 1-0)
Texas 38, Clemson 24 (SEC record: 2-0)
Tennessee 17, Ohio State 42 (SEC record: 2-1)
Oklahoma 20, Navy 21 (SEC record: 2-2)
Vanderbilt 35, Georgia Tech 27 (SEC record: 3-2)
Arkansas 39, Texas Tech 26 (SEC record: 4-2)
Texas A&M 31, USC 35 (SEC record: 4-3)
Missouri 27, Iowa 24 (SEC record: 5-3)
Alabama 13, Michigan 19 (SEC record: 5-4)
South Carolina 17, Illinois 21 (SEC record: 5-5)
LSU 44, Baylor 31 (SEC record: 6-5)
Texas 39, Arizona State 31 (SEC record: 7-5)
Georgia 10, Notre Dame 23 (SEC record: 7-6)
Ole Miss 52, Duke 20 (SEC record: 8-6)
The Green Wave was playing without starting quarterback Darian Mensah, who entered the transfer portal and will play at Duke.
As a certified hater of all things university of michigan, I'm not saying I liked seeing them beat bama twice in a year. But I didn't dislike it.