ATLANTA — It’s cliché to say “what a difference a year makes.” Pretty much every coach who steps to the podium this week at SEC Media Days can fire that one off and get some approving head nods.

For Jimbo Fisher, that cliché phrase was the understatement of, well, the year.

At this time last year, Fisher was in Charlotte for ACC Media Days. He was a few short weeks from leading Florida State against Alabama in what was dubbed “the greatest opener in college football history.” That day in Charlotte, though, Fisher said something that riled some SEC feathers.

“I think we’ve established ourselves as the premier league in college football,” Fisher said about the ACC last year.

Fast forward a year, and yes, Fisher’s answer was different.

The coach who made a $75 million splash this offseason was no longer touting the ACC and its impressive 2016 postseason (how awkward would that have been?).

On Monday, I read Fisher’s quote back to him from a year ago. He didn’t answer my question directly, but instead, he praised his new conference by saying it was responsible for the ACC’s rise.

“I think the ACC’s progression, to where it has become in college football is because of the SEC,” Fisher said. “Being in the South, and not just playing against, but recruiting against and competing against daily in the way that you have to operate your organization. Like I said, when I was at Florida State, we were surrounded by Florida, by Georgia, by Alabama, by Auburn. That was the closest schools to us.

“That’s who our big recruiting battles occurred against … we excelled, and Clemson’s excelled and Miami is taking off. In the South in general because you’re so close, I think it enhanced the ACC’s ability to compete and rise its level of ball because of the recruiting competition. And once you get better players, you play better. The commitment to those universities as far the jobs, the money, the salaries, they’ve grown immensely in the last 5 years, 6 years … we had to compete with the SEC. That raised the level of play in the ACC.”

And yes, of course Fisher said with lightning speed. Ah, my bad. I meant “SEC speed.”

So now, Fisher can admit it — the SEC was the Usain Bolt and the ACC was the sprinter who improved its time because of how hard it was pushed. Got it.

Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Fisher is indeed embracing his new SEC digs. The guy dropped a “howdy” to kick off his opening statement (he didn’t receive a howdy back, which looked like it surprised Fisher).

But in some ways, Fisher reminded everyone that this was the conference “in which he cut his teeth on.” That, of course, was referring to his Auburn and then LSU days, where he coached Nick Saban’s offense. To say that life has changed for Fisher in the 12 years since he left Baton Rouge would also be an understatement.

“If you’re a competitor, why would you run from it? Why don’t you go find out?”
-- Jimbo Fisher on leaving the ACC for the SEC

Fisher spent his last 11 seasons since then establishing himself as one of the top offensive minds in the sport. That got him a national title, the title of “winningest coach in ACC history” (based on win percentage) and a new $75 million contract.

Oh, and it got him a pair of boots at Texas A&M. Can’t forget about those.

This new reality that Fisher faces was one that, as he repeated Monday, he didn’t see coming. Fisher maintained that he had no intention of leaving Florida State. If he did have this in mind a year ago, surely he wouldn’t have fired a bow across enemy lines to declare the ACC the premier conference in college football.

Monday was indeed, a new beginning for Fisher. Though as he responded to in the first question he was asked, he’s plenty familiar with the recruiting. How fitting that Fisher has the No. 2 class in America — it would be a record for him personally and for the Aggies in the recruiting rankings era — and he still doesn’t even have the No. 1 class in the SEC. That belongs to Alabama.

“Join the club,” said basically every SEC coach.

The difference now with Fisher’s new reality is that finishing second to Saban doesn’t even result in being the best team in the division. It’s that exact reason that many scoffed at the notion that Fisher would leave Tallahassee for College Station. To that, Fisher had a simple response on Monday.

“If you’re a competitor, why would you run from it? Why don’t you go find out?” Fisher said.

Fisher didn’t have to do a complete 180 on his 2017 quote at ACC Media Days to share how he felt about the SEC (especially after some smug columnist read it back to him). He didn’t have to hide from the Texas-sized expectations that come with a $75 million contract, either. According to Fisher, A&M’s timeline to win is “immediately” and the timetable is now.

He knows that turning the Aggies’ heartbreaking Novembers into heart-racing division title races is the only way he’s going to make good on that money. That much is obvious. If he doesn’t do that, surely he’ll have plenty of first-hand examples at media days to praise the strength of the SEC.

Welcome to the SEC, Jimbo. Or as you would say now, howdy.