SEC Championships Are Great, but They Aren't Everything

Success in team sports is measured by one thing: championships. 

The way of life in college football is no different, and even more so in the Southeastern Conference.  That is because there is any one of a handful of teams that can win the conference every season.  Tennessee is one of those teams.  It has been a long time since the Volunteer faithful have drank from that championship chalice.  Ten years to be exact.

That drought has fans in various states of distress.  So much so, that some fans continually call for the head of head coach Phillip Fulmer.  For some, the National Championship from ten years ago has carried as far as it can.

However, if you step back a look at it objectively, the Vols have been extremely successful over that stretch.  Not in regards to titles, but overall success.  Tennessee has only had one losing season in that ten year period.  That was the 2005 debacle that no one wants to relive. 

Eight winning seasons, with this one still to be played, in the SEC is a remarkable achievement.  In those eight seasons, Tennessee has finished with between eight and 11 wins.  They also made bowl appearance in each.

Their overall record during that time is 80-34, which is nothing to sneeze at.  That is an average of ten wins per season.  Playing in the SEC makes that an outstanding mark.  But winning no conference championships makes this a non-point, to some anyway.

Championships will always be regarded as the only measuring stick to gauge sports success on.  But looking at it that way will cause you to miss out on enjoying a winning football tradition.

Ten years without an SEC Championship is a long time to wait.  But calling for the coach’s head is not the way to go.  Neither is calling your Volunteers failures for winning ten games in a season.  They play in the best conference in the nation, so winning ten games is an achievement. 

This season does mark the anniversary on Tennessee’s undefeated run to the SEC and National Championship.  So this season shouldn’t be about firing the coach or booing a loss.  This is a season to celebrate the past and cheer the Volunteer legends of the future.  Just remember the last time the Vols traded in an excellent quarterback for an unproven was ten years ago.  Does Tee Martin ring any bells?

It could be this year or maybe next.  One thing is for certain, the end of the ten year championship drought is just around the corner.