The SEC Network has officially turned one and there is plenty to celebrate!

A year ago today, ESPN unwrapped the network – as part of a 20-year agreement — that has started off so well. It is apparently exceeding expectations – and most importantly – financial projections.

According to NBCSports.com, South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner, during a meeting with both the media and with the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee in February, revealed that the SEC Network is expected to make a profit of $5 million per school in its first year. More importantly, Tanner referred to that $5 million-per-school number as “conservative.”

That’s not all. Here’s what outgoing SEC commissioner Mike Slive told Mr. College Football – aka Tony Barnhart — about the network earlier this year via secsports.com:

“It’s just been amazing. It was just the most successful launch of any network in the history of cable television. Not just sports. All cable television. We are in 65 million homes and available to 90 million homes. We hoped to do 1,000 events in the first year when we combined the SEC Network with our digital network. We will do over 1,400. The student-athletes just love it and so do their parents because if the event is online they can watch from anywhere in the world.”

The SEC Network is an incredibly strong brand name, but for it to work as well as it has, it takes more than live events; it takes quality programming and an outstanding mix of talent. The SEC Network happens to have both.

LIVE FOOTBALL GAMES

During SEC gridiron matchups, you are usually listening live to play-by-play guy Brent Musburger and his analyst partner Jesse (the former ‘Bachelor’) Palmer. The network’s second-string announcers have been Dave Neal and ex-Houston QB and 1989 Heisman Trophy winner Andre Ware. CBS still gets the best SEC matchups of the week, but SEC Network kicked off its initial gridiron slate with a bang, opening with Texas A&M’s opening-night thrashing of South Carolina in Columbia.

THE PAUL FINEBAUM SHOW

One of the SEC Network’s most ubiquitous programming spots, The Paul Finebaum show airs live for four hours every weekday. The former syndicated radio host has perhaps become the face of the Network, interviewing coaches and players around the league — but more prominently, spending hours a day talking SEC football with the fans, such as Phyllis from Mulga, Ala.

SEC NATION

This is the SEC Network’s version of ESPN’s College GameDay, a pregame show that airs every Saturday during the season. SEC Nation is hosted by veteran ESPN voice Joe Tessitore, which is definitely a plus. Another positive about the show is that ESPN tries to hit each SEC campus during the season, which is a good thing if that week’s matchup is a winner, but not such much if it happens to be a dud.

In the last year, analysts who have worked with Tessitore on SEC Nation have included Birmingham radio personality Paul Finebaum, ex-LSU defensive end Marcus Spears and Florida Gators great Tim Tebow, who has left the network to once again pursue an NFL job, this time with the Philadelphia Eagles. SEC Network has announced Greg McElroy as a replacement for Tebow. Kaylee Hartung, an alumna of ESPN’s Longhorn Network, has also appeared regularly on SEC Nation.

SEC NOW

If you’re looking for the SEC Network’s equivalent of SportsCenter, this is it. Dari Nowkhah, another ESPN veteran, typically delivers all the SEC news of the day along with analysts such as ex-Crimson Tide QB McElroy. When she isn’t serving as a sideline reporter during SEC Network football telecasts, former Georgia volleyball and basketball star Maria Taylor fills in for Nowkhah. Other occasional SEC Now contributors have included Barnhart, Tom Hart and former Georgia football All-American Matt Stinchcomb.

SEC STORIED

If you’re a fan of ESPN Films’ documentary series 30 for 30, then SEC Storied is your cup of tea. Some memorable SEC Storied films have included “Going Big,” about Kentucky basketball great Sam Bowie and “The Color Orange: The Condredge Holloway Story,” about the first black starting QB in the SEC. The network recently announced some new SEC Storied titles, which will air in September.

SEC REWIND

If you’re an SEC history buff – or you like to revisit your favorite team’s glory days – then SEC Rewind is the show for you. This series features classic games involving SEC teams – including past BCS Championship games, conference title games and regular-season and bowl matchups that will have you taking a trip down nostalgia road.

SEC INSIDE

As if all the aforementioned high-quality programming wasn’t enough, SEC Network recently announced plans for a new show, SEC Inside – which will air on Wednesday nights and will take an in-depth look at the conference’s football teams and men’s and women’s basketball teams.

Once again, Happy First Birthday, ESPN Network! You’ve come a long way in year one, and here’s to many, many more successful seasons.