SEC Football: Believe the Hype

Some writers may claim that the SEC's reputation for dominance is in fact a product of hype.

I've put together a collection of statistics to rebut this falsehood.

Since SEC expansion in 1992, the SEC and Big 12 are tied for the most national championships (AP/USA Today), with five each.

During that time, the SEC has had more teams with national titles than any other conference: Florida—1996, 2006; LSU—2003; Tennessee—1998; Alabama—1992.

Since 2000, the SEC has the nation’s best nonconference record (including bowl games): 247-95, for a .722 winning percentage.

Using current conference alignments, SEC teams have appeared in more bowl games (352) than teams from any other conference. Since 2000, the SEC has more bowl appearances (52) and bowl wins (29) than any other conference.

Much of that success is no doubt due to the elite competition within the conference: SEC intra-conference games had the closest scoring margin of any conference in 2006 (11.14 points per game).

Here's a look at the breakdown: 

2006 OVERALL NONCONFERENCE RECORDS
(Includes Bowl Games)
Conference        W-L                                                                                ACC                 33-23
Big East          37-8
Big Ten           31-10
Big 12            36-20
Conference USA    21-32
MAC               14-38
Mountain West     19-21
Pac-10            25-12
SEC               47-10
Sun Belt          11-31
Western Athletic  21-21

SEC NONCONFERENCE RECORD
(Since 1992 - Regular Season Games Only)                                                   Year     App.   W-L       Pct.  Bowls
1992      36   27-9      .750    5-1
1993      36   28-7-1    .792    2-2
1994      36   27-8-1    .764    3-2
1995      36   29-7      .806    2-4
1996      36   27-9      .750    5-0
1997      36   32-4      .889    5-1
1998      36   27-9      .750    4-4
1999      36   28-8      .778    4-4
2000      36   27-9      .750    4-5
2001      36   29-7      .806    5-3
2002      49   37-12     .755    3-4
2003      46   31-15     .674    5-2
2004      36   25-11     .694    3-3
2005      28   21-7      .750    0-0
2006      48   41-7      .854    6-3
Combined
TOTALS   575  442-131-2  .770   59-41 (.590)  501-172-2 (.744)

The numbers speak for themselves: the SEC is truly THE powerhouse in college football.