Since the Southeastern Conference began to feature a conference championship game, six different programs have taken the title.

So if the Big Ten used to be referred to as the “Big Two and Little Eight,” the SEC could be the “Big Six and Little Eight.”

True, all but four programs have played for the championship, and it might be a bit much to put Texas A&M in the same class as Kentucky, Ole Miss and Vanderbilt since the Aggies have only been competing in the SEC West for four seasons.

But the fact is it’s the aforementioned six programs, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU and Tennessee, who have won all of the SEC football championships since 1963, when Ole Miss won the championship.

Kentucky might beg to differ, as technically the Wildcats tied Georgia for the top spot in 1976, but both teams finished 5-1 and the Wildcats’ lone loss was to the Bulldogs. Hence, it was Georgia who went to the Sugar Bowl that season, and one must really go back to 1950 to find the season in which Kentucky ruled SEC football.

But few would suggest the other eight programs in the SEC are a bunch of slouches. They would consider themselves sleeping giants.

Which program has the best shot to become the seventh team to win the SEC Championship Game and maybe stick around awhile? Read on:

1. Ole Miss

It might be surprising because the Rebels have never made the championship game. However, Hugh Freeze has a dark horse contender this year, and Ole Miss has not only defeated division favorite Alabama for two straight seasons but hosts the Crimson Tide this season.

Chad Kelly is the preseason SEC first-team quarterback. Scouts say he has the strongest arm in the SEC. Throw on Freeze’s innovative offensive schemes, and one gets the feeling the Rebels won’t regress in future seasons like they did historically when the Mannings, Archie and Eli, left.

Don’t look for the Rebels to dominate the conference like they did 50 years ago. But even if they won’t be the favorite, a championship this season isn’t out of the question in 2016.

2. Texas A&M

When the Aggies joined the SEC, there were questions as to how well they would fare. After the success with Johnny Manziel, and then ever afterwards in the first game without him — a 52-28 rout of a South Carolina program coming off three straight 11-victory seasons — they proved they belonged.

To put it in perspective, the same questions surrounded Arkansas when it joined the league back in 1992. The Razorbacks’ first game was against a team from South Carolina.

Only they lost to The Citadel, 10-3.

Questions surround this team in terms of how Kevin Sumlin has handled his quarterbacks in the past and the strength of the offensive line. But does anyone really think the Aggies won’t be in the hunt for future conference championships?

3. South Carolina

How many Gamecocks fans does it take to change a light bulb?

Eighty thousand. One to change the light bulb and 79,999 to tell you this is finally the year for South Carolina.

The thing is, there is some truth to the optimism of South Carolina fans. After all, their theory goes, if Clemson could win the national championship in 1981 and play for it last year, why not Carolina?

Last season, South Carolina was the 12th-most prolific state for producing NFL players and often ranks in the top 10 alongside such states as Alabama. Granted, maybe recruiting against Clemson isn’t the same as Georgia recruiting against Georgia Tech, but the Gamecocks did take five straight games from the Tigers from 2009-13. The SEC is a lure.

The facilities, backyard talent and support is there, which is how South Carolina was able to bring in coaching legends like Lou Holtz and Steve Spurrier in the past generation. The question is if Will Muschamp can live up to those standards in future seasons.

4. Arkansas

Here’s something to ponder. If you could go back in time and convince Frank Broyles in 1991 that the Razorbacks would not win the conference football championship for the next quarter century, would Arkansas have joined the SEC and started the domino effect of super conferences?

Possibly. There were, after all, those NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament championships in the 1990s under Nolan Richardson and more money to be had.

But whereas Arkansas was one of the leading players of the old Southwest Conference, they’ve been supporting players for a quarter century.

Still, one of the major elements of any coach’s makeup is personality. And in a league where coaches often come off as bullies and stone faces, Bret Bielema is a refreshing change of pace.

Okay, there’s the little matter of calling out Ohio State in the days before losing to Toledo, but Bielema’s personality stands out among all SEC coaches. Players want to play for charismatic coaches, and Bielema leads the league in this category.

Throw in the fact a new offensive philosophy in football seems to be growing in the state of Arkansas, and if the Razorbacks can capitalize on it, they figure to go far.

5. Missouri

The Tigers may have entered the SEC East when it was down, but they promptly picked up two division titles, and that’s saying something.

The one thing Missouri has going for it that makes it a perpetual sleeping giant is it is the only FBS team in the entire state of six million people that ranks 18th in population nationwide. There is no Tulane, no Southern Miss, not even an Arkansas State and certainly not a Florida State or Miami to take fans or roster depth away.

Now throw in the fact the Tigers figure to get much more attention from Show Me State football fans thanks to the departure of the St. Louis Rams, and there’s something there in the weaker of the two divisions.

Yes, one can wonder after the resignation of Gary Pinkel if the culture of the university makes it the SEC’s answer to Berkeley. But that might be the only thing holding Missouri back.

6. Vanderbilt

The Commodores have not won a football conference championship since 1923. The SEC was part of the Southern Conference then.

But shouldn’t the most intelligent team on the field have a tremendous advantage? Aren’t Nashville and the conference’s smallest enrollment major recruiting benefits in Vanderbilt’s advantage? Haven’t similar schools, such as Stanford and Northwestern, proven they can win? Isn’t Derek Mason from Stanford? Didn’t you read this story from four months ago?