SEC Football: Why the SEC Cannot Become a Super Conference

Last year’s talks of conference realignment had critics and speculators, like myself, going wild with the prospects of who would end up where.

Once again the idea of conference realignment has come down South to the premier conference in college football.

Now before I lead you down the rabbit hole, I must clarify that when I say a super conference I mean a conference with 16 teams. I don’t consider a league with 14 teams to be a super conference even though that would be larger than any conference in the history of college football.

Texas A&M has recently come into the limelight with sources reporting the administration looking to jump ship for the SEC.

The discussion is still in the preliminary stages and nothing is set in stone.

Now the word on the street is that Florida State is contemplating a move to the SEC.

Reports are that, if offered, FSU would strongly consider an invitation to the SEC.

With the speculation about FSU, many in the media are looking into who else could possibly join, with Oklahoma and Virginia Tech being thrown in the mix. The addition of all four teams would make the SEC borderline ridiculous in size and strength.

This would balance out the SEC at an even 14 teams and give the power conference of power conferences a leg up on all other leagues in the NCAA.

The idea of a 14-team conference is reasonable and many of the inter-division rivalries of the SEC, such as Auburn vs. Georgia and Tennessee vs. Alabama, can be preserved.

However, if Mike Slive and the SEC establishment are feeling greedy and want to go for 16 teams, it could easily be done, but could also become problematic.

In the current format, Georgia, for example, plays the five other teams of the SEC East and three teams from the SEC West. This format offers a strong examination of the competition between the divisions.

If the SEC were to go to a 14-team conference, UGA would more than likely play the six other teams in its division and two from the West. This would allow teams such as the Bulldogs to keep their rivals in the other division.

Now if the SEC wants a 16-team super conference, I project that a team would play the seven other teams from its division, which leaves room for only one cross-division rival.

In this projection, famous rivalries like the Third Saturday in October and the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry would take a back seat to division rivals, and the battle between the divisions would be a minor season objective.

As a fan of the SEC, I would see it as a serious loss if the cross-division games were minimized in the 16-team format.

The case could be made that there could be other reforms to the SEC if 16 teams were allowed to coexist in the same conference. The regular season schedule could be lengthened beyond the usual 14 games, but that arrangement and others would more than likely be up to the NCAA, and we know how long they can take with decisions that don’t involve Ohio State.

As a college football fan, I am looking forward to the possibility and the conversation about conference realignment, and my hope is that it provides the best opportunity for the players, coaches and most importantly the fans.