The SEC East was an inconsistent, underachieving mess during the 2014 regular season, culminating with a devastating 0-4 run against the ACC on the final day of the season in late-November.
Fast forward about a month, and it was the same SEC East that boasted a remarkable 5-0 record in bowl games, logging more bowl wins than the entire ACC combined.
It was a postseason run few saw coming, as the East blossomed from the SEC’s inferior half into the conference’s saving grace during the bowl season.
But what happened in the month of December to make it possible? What could have changed in a month’s time — a month with no games played — to ignite such an overhaul throughout the division?
There were a number of contributing factors that made the SEC East’s unblemished bowl record possible. For starters, a month away from the field meant a month for the East to regroup from a frustrating season capped by a horrific final weekend.
For teams that are in a rhythm of playing week in and week out for three straight months, a full month away from football can really even the playing field. Teams that ended the regular season on hot streaks have time to cool off, and teams limping to the finish — like the SEC East — have time to regroup and move on from late-season struggles.
The month away also allowed the East an extra month of practice to develop its young talent. This is obviously the case for every bowl teams and is certainly no special circumstance for the East, but for a division as reliant on young talent as the East was in 2014 the month away made all the difference.
Georgia freshman Nick Chubb ran for 266 yards against the nation’s No. 3 run defense in his first career bowl game. Florida freshman tailback Adam Lane also set a career high for rushing in his first bowl appearance.
Tennessee’s entire roster was playing in its first-ever bowl game, and the month of preparation allowed Butch Jones to ensure his young core was prepared for the moment and the stakes. If you watched the Vols’ victory over Iowa, it was clear which team was better prepared.
The East’s bowl success could also be credited to the proverbial chip on its shoulder. There was a sense that the East’s mediocrity was holding back the entire conference as teams from the West flooded the national polls, and for proud coaches like Mark Richt and Steve Spurrier that was simply unacceptable. The SEC East was embarrassed by the ACC its last time out, and it was set on proving that weekend was a fluke, and not indicative of the division’s worth. It did just that with five convincing bowl victories.
But most of all, and this is not meant to cheapen the SEC East’s postseason achievement, the East was simply the beneficiary of five favorable matchups this bowl season.
For instance, Mizzou’s greatest weakness this season was its 98th-ranked offense and its inability to move the ball consistently. So what better bowl opponent than a Minnesota team ranked an even more putrid 106th in the nation in total offense?
Florida was reliant on a stellar defense this season, especially its talent-laden secondary, which is why it was fortunate to draw the pass-happy East Carolina Pirates in its bowl matchup.
Georgia drew a Louisville team decimated by injuries at the quarterback and skill positions, and Tennessee and South Carolina were able to draw matchups with teams just as inconsistent as they were throughout the regular season.
The East was still picking on foes its own size, and those matchups all seemed winnable for the East when they were announced in early December.
What the SEC East did in late December and early January was remarkable under any circumstances. In the context of the East’s struggles during the regular season, the achievement was almost fathomable.
But the perfect storm of circumstances came together just in time for the SEC’s other division, giving home that balance will be restored to the conference in the coming years.
A former newspaper reporter who has roamed the southeastern United States for years covering football and eating way too many barbecue ribs, if there is such a thing.
