For the better part of the last decade, the SEC reigned as the king of college football.
Not only did the conference have the nation’s top team for seven years in a row, it held unparalleled depth and talent. The on-field product only fed into the ravenous appetite of southern fans and created pride across the region.
During that stretch of dominance, the conference was undoubtedly on top of the college football world. Over the past two seasons, however, that has changed.
The SEC is still home to the top team (thanks, Alabama), but an erosion in conference depth coincided with the rise of the Big Ten. Now, the SEC finds itself in an unfamiliar position.
It doesn’t have to stay this way, though, and there are a few ways the SEC can climb back on the horse.
The road to redemption starts this bowl season. Last year, the SEC set an NCAA record with nine bowl victories. With 12 teams playing in the postseason, one more than last year, a good showing would go a long way.
Winning nine games again seems unlikely. After all, the conference is in worse shape than it was last season, and 2015 was considered a down year in the SEC. But this poor situation could actually work in its favor.
SEC teams are favored in seven of the 12 games, but they also have a worse record in just as many of those contests. No team outside of the Crimson Tide has less than four losses, but that offers an interesting opportunity.
If the SEC has a strong bowl season, which would ideally include an Alabama title, the poor records could once again be attributed to conference cannibalism.
That argument only gains plausibility if some of the victories come against the quality opponents on the slate. Say LSU tops Louisville, Auburn beats Oklahoma and Arkansas upends Virginia Tech. It then could be said that the SEC’s middle class is still better than some high-caliber opponents.
It could be said that the conference’s middle class hasn’t gotten worse, it’s just gotten bigger. The Vanderbilts and Kentuckys have risen up instead of the rest of the SEC sliding back.
That line of thinking could pick up steam with several wins in December, but it will take more than that to get the SEC back on top.
With the Big Ten looking like it’s back in the national scene for the foreseeable future, the SEC is simply going to have to get better. There were plenty of close games in 2016, but there weren’t a lot of quality games.
Much of that can be attributed to a new era of quarterbacks, which is also the conference’s best chance at reclaiming its spot on top. There were several teams running out inexperienced players at the game’s most important position, and that inexperience showed on the field.
Moving forward, though, the likes of Jalen Hurts, Jacob Eason, Nick Fitzgerald, Jake Bentley, Shea Patterson, Feleipe Franks and Drew Lock could become the faces of a conference that has so long craved for good quarterback play.
It’s no wonder that the SEC’s heyday coincided with the careers of players like Tim Tebow, AJ McCarron, Aaron Murray, Ryan Mallet and Johnny Manziel. For the conference to get back on top, it is going to need strong play from its quarterbacks.
Next season is going to go a long way towards determining whether that will happen or not. These fresh faces need to take the next step in their development and help their teams become contenders. We already know Hurts is capable of doing just that.
The SEC was built on strong play at the line of scrimmage, but it has lagged behind as the game became more pass oriented and quarterback friendly. It looks like that might change, but it must change sooner rather than later.
Reputation can be a fickle thing. The conference dominated college football for so long that fans outside of the South were ready to root for anyone else. To take back the title, the SEC must prove beyond a doubt it is the best.
That means programs must schedule some quality non-conference games and win them. On opening weekend, the SEC went 6-6 in non-conference games, including some very bad losses. Only Alabama, Georgia and Texas A&M won games against ranked opponents.
These past two seasons have delivered a blow to the SEC’s once sterling reputation. But there is a way to get that reputation back.
A strong bowl season from the conference, coupled with an Alabama national title, could help spin the narrative in the SEC’s favor. Next year, the young quarterbacks need to prove they are capable of taking their teams to the next level. And in the marquee matchups, the conference has to make a statement.
The SEC may be down, but it is certainly not out. Other conferences don’t want to see it dust itself off and get back up, which will only make it that much sweeter if the SEC can get back on top.
