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SEC Sports
We've heard a lot about competitive balance lately. Nick Saban has been talking about it. Ted Cruz has been talking about it. People like me never really stop talking about it.
We all almost certainly have different ideas in mind when we use that term, but allow me to present to you a thought experiment: What if every conference were like the Big 12? What if half the games in the Big Ten went down to the wire in a given week? What if Vanderbilt or Mississippi State could randomly win the SEC out of nowhere? What if half the ACC were still in the mix for a conference title game spot in mid-November? That's a world in which I wouldn't mind living.
In 2024, only two of the four power conferences saw at least 43% of their conference games decided by one score: the Big 12 and the ACC. Only two had at least half their members finish within two games of the top of the standings: the Big 12 and the SEC. And of course, only one had an out-of-nowhere champion.
Preseason conference poll ranking for eventual 2024 champions
SEC: Georgia (first)
Big Ten: Oregon (second)
ACC: Clemson (second)
Big 12: Arizona State (16th)
The top five teams in last season's preseason Big 12 media poll (Utah, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Kansas and Arizona) ended up going a combined 26-35 overall and 13-32 in conference play. Only Kansas State ended up bowl eligible. Meanwhile, the bottom five teams in the poll (Arizona State, Houston, Cincinnati, BYU and Baylor) went a combined 39-25 (26-19).
Arizona State was picked 16th out of 16 teams with good reason: The Sun Devils had gone just 3-9 the year before, one game out of the Pac-12 cellar. An early run of tight wins over mediocre-to-decent teams assured them of a surprisingly solid season, and a late surge brought them not only a conference title game berth but also a blowout win over Iowa State in said title game. They damn near beat Texas in the College Football Playoff, too. It was an incredible rags-to-riches tale, one that it seems the Big 12 is infinitely more likely to consistently deliver moving forward.
In response to last year's incredibly inaccurate poll, the Big 12 elected to drop the preseason poll altogether, which is frankly silly. But fear not: Last year's Big 12 SP+ projections were nearly as inaccurate! So, we can still make fun of the numbers in a few more months, right? It's time to talk about the most unpredictable, wonderfully nonsense-heavy power conference in college football.
Let's preview the Big 12!
More ...
We all almost certainly have different ideas in mind when we use that term, but allow me to present to you a thought experiment: What if every conference were like the Big 12? What if half the games in the Big Ten went down to the wire in a given week? What if Vanderbilt or Mississippi State could randomly win the SEC out of nowhere? What if half the ACC were still in the mix for a conference title game spot in mid-November? That's a world in which I wouldn't mind living.
In 2024, only two of the four power conferences saw at least 43% of their conference games decided by one score: the Big 12 and the ACC. Only two had at least half their members finish within two games of the top of the standings: the Big 12 and the SEC. And of course, only one had an out-of-nowhere champion.
Preseason conference poll ranking for eventual 2024 champions
SEC: Georgia (first)
Big Ten: Oregon (second)
ACC: Clemson (second)
Big 12: Arizona State (16th)
The top five teams in last season's preseason Big 12 media poll (Utah, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, Kansas and Arizona) ended up going a combined 26-35 overall and 13-32 in conference play. Only Kansas State ended up bowl eligible. Meanwhile, the bottom five teams in the poll (Arizona State, Houston, Cincinnati, BYU and Baylor) went a combined 39-25 (26-19).
Arizona State was picked 16th out of 16 teams with good reason: The Sun Devils had gone just 3-9 the year before, one game out of the Pac-12 cellar. An early run of tight wins over mediocre-to-decent teams assured them of a surprisingly solid season, and a late surge brought them not only a conference title game berth but also a blowout win over Iowa State in said title game. They damn near beat Texas in the College Football Playoff, too. It was an incredible rags-to-riches tale, one that it seems the Big 12 is infinitely more likely to consistently deliver moving forward.
In response to last year's incredibly inaccurate poll, the Big 12 elected to drop the preseason poll altogether, which is frankly silly. But fear not: Last year's Big 12 SP+ projections were nearly as inaccurate! So, we can still make fun of the numbers in a few more months, right? It's time to talk about the most unpredictable, wonderfully nonsense-heavy power conference in college football.
Let's preview the Big 12!
More ...
