The Lake Woebegone Conference: What If Alabama Is Just Above Average?

With the last two conference champions going on to win the national title, and projections of a legendary "speed" advantage that will continue to pay dividends to conference members for generations to come, the conventional wisdom has at least one SEC team playing for a crystal trophy in January.

But just as the nation's financial markets are working their way through turbulence caused by overvalued real estate, there are reasons to wonder whether the football properties in the SEC are experiencing a serious asset bubble of their own.

Not even halfway through the season, eight of the 12 SEC teams have already made an appearance in the Associated Press' top 25. Only Mississippi, Mississippi St., Arkansas, and Kentucky have yet to be ranked.

The pollsters' irrational exuberance has already led both Tennessee and South Carolina to default on their top 25 mortgages. The Vols (now 1-3) got dumped in week one by UCLA (now also 1-3.) South Carolina's brief appearance in the poll came to a crashing halt when it ran into the Pit Yorkies of Vanderbilt.

And that was just the first two weeks of the season. On the momentum of beating South Carolina, Vandy has inched its way up to No. 21 in the present poll. With their last winning season coming shortly after President Reagan's first, the question of foreclosure on the Pit Yorkies is probably a matter of "when" rather than "if."

But no matter, the pollsters have more easy credit to lend. Kentucky is still unbeaten and knocking on the door. Ole Miss, at 3-2, has a fresh Gator hide hanging on the wall. In a conference where fortunes are made and lost in an eyeblink, they're both just one upset away from the spotlight.

If they pull it off, that would make them the ninth and 10th SEC teams to crack the top 25 this season.

Yet prices at the top of this market are soft. Last week, three of the top five teams were from the SEC. The two highest—No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Florida—were severely exposed as something well short of championship-ready teams. No. 5 LSU even had some headaches in the first half against Mississippi State.

Defenders of SEC supremacy will doubtless suggest that this just proves how tough the conference really is. But Tennessee's collapse against UCLA isn't the only evidence of trouble in non-conference games.

Before beating No. 4 Florida, Ole Miss lost to Wake Forest, which lost to Navy.

Alabama, now the No. 2 team in the nation, allowed four sacks, put up just 172 yards and scored only a single offensive touchdown against Tulane during week two—a game 'Bama won 20-6. Alabama's defense, now considered world beaters, gave up 318 yards to the Tulane offense that day.

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