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Note: For the purposes of this story, we’re defining “hometown” as the city in which each coach was born.

We’ve mapped the hometown of every SEC head coach. With the addition of LSU head coach Ed Orgeron and the subtraction of former coach Les Miles, the league’s footprint shifts to the south.

More specifically, the Big Ten footprint among the hometowns of the SEC’s leading men continues to shrink. Two years ago there were eight head coaches from that region; in 2017 there are just five.

The SEC is becoming more and more a stay-at-home conference. Adding Orgeron to the map makes six the number of head coaches from states with SEC schools in them.

Here’s a closer look at all the coaches divided by region, followed by a table of all the hometowns.

CHART OF SEC COACHES AND THEIR HOMETOWNS

Team Head Coach Place of Birth Population
Alabama Nick Saban Fairmont, W.Va. 18,704*
Arkansas Bret Bielema Prophetstown, Ill. 2,007*
Auburn Gus Malzahn Irving, Texas 232,406*
Florida Jim McElwain Missoula, Mont. 69,821*
Georgia Kirby Smart Montgomery, Ala. 200,481*
Kentucky Mark Stoops Youngstown, Ohio 65,062*
LSU Ed Orgeron Larose, La. 7,400^
Mississippi Hugh Freeze Oxford, Miss. 21,757*
Mississippi State Dan Mullen Drexel Hill, Penn. 28,043^
Missouri Barry Odom Lawton, Okla. 97,017*
South Carolina Will Muschamp Rome, Ga. 35,997*
Tennesssee Butch Jones Saugatuck, Mich. 963*
Texas A&M Kevin Sumlin Brewton, Ala. 5,391*
Vanderbilt Derek Mason Phoenix, Ariz. 1,537,058*

*Estimated as of 2014.
^As of 2010.

SOUTH (7)

South

From West to East on the map:

Team Head Coach Place of Birth Population
Missouri Barry Odom Lawton, Okla. 97,017*
Auburn Gus Malzahn Irving, Texas 232,406*
LSU Ed Orgeron Larose, La. 7,400^
Mississippi Hugh Freeze Oxford, Miss. 21,757*
Texas A&M Kevin Sumlin Brewton, Ala. 5,391*
Georgia Kirby Smart Montgomery, Ala. 200,481*
South Carolina Will Muschamp Rome, Ga. 35,997*

*Estimated as of 2014.
^As of 2010.

Alabama is the only state with two SEC head coaches (Smart and Sumlin).

The addition of Orgeron tipped the scales in favor of the South in regards to region most SEC coaches are from. Before his addition, it was a tie between North and South, both with six. However, subtracting the northern-born Miles couple with the addition of Orgeron gives the South a 7-5 edge. It’s a precarious lead to be sure, but a lead nonetheless.

Freeze, born in Oxford, Miss., is the closest SEC head coach from hometown to his current job. Orgeron, born in Larose, La., is a close second, being less than 100 miles from Baton Rouge.

NORTH-ISH (5)

north

From West to East on map:

Team Head Coach Place of Birth Population
Arkansas Bret Bielema Prophetstown, Ill. 2,007*
Tennesssee Butch Jones Saugatuck, Mich. 963*
Kentucky Mark Stoops Youngstown, Ohio 65,062*
Alabama Nick Saban Fairmont, W.Va. 18,704*
Mississippi State Dan Mullen Drexel Hill, Penn. 28,043^

*Estimated as of 2014.
^As of 2010.

The Big Ten region no longer has the stronghold on SEC coaches, although there are still a handful of them, Nick Saban being one, who grew up just south of the western Pennsylvania state line.

Ohio went from three to two to one SEC coach in a two-year span with the departures of Gary Pinkel and Miles, respectively.

Bielema and Jones are also in this region and for now are still head coaches of their respective schools. However, an upturn in victories will be necessary for each if they want to keep their seats coolish.

Stoops remains a fixture in the region, spending an inordinate amount of time in Ohio sourcing his recruiting classes.

WEST (2)

west

From West to East on map:

Team Head Coach Place of Birth Population
Florida Jim McElwain Missoula, Mont. 69,821*
Vanderbilt Derek Mason Phoenix, Ariz. 1,537,058*

*Estimated as of 2014.
^As of 2010.

Worth noting: Mason is the only SEC head coach from a major metropolis. McElwain was born in the western most area of all SEC head coaches.