The 2016 SEC Football Schedule was officially announced today on the SEC Network. Conference play begins on Thursday, Sept. 1 with South Carolina at Vanderbilt.
The 2016 schedule continues the SEC’s 8-game, 6-1-1 format. Beginning this season, the SEC requires each team to play at least one non-conference opponent from another Power Five league, Army, BYU, or Notre Dame.
Featured 2016 non-conference match-ups include Alabama vs. USC (at Arlington, TX), Arkansas at TCU, Clemson at Auburn, Florida at Florida State, Georgia vs. UNC (at Atlanta, GA), Kentucky at Louisville, LSU vs. Wisconsin (at Green Bay, WI), Mississippi State at BYU, Missouri at West Virginia, Ole Miss vs. Florida State (at Orlando, FL), South Carolina at Clemson, Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech (at Bristol, TN), UCLA at Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech.
The 2016 SEC Championship Game will be played at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on Saturday, Dec. 3.
2016 SEC Football Schedules
Composite schedule below.
East Division
- 2016 Florida Football Schedule
- 2016 Georgia Football Schedule
- 2016 Kentucky Football Schedule
- 2016 Missouri Football Schedule
- 2016 South Carolina Football Schedule
- 2016 Tennessee Football Schedule
- 2016 Vanderbilt Football Schedule
West Division
- 2016 Alabama Football Schedule
- 2016 Arkansas Football Schedule
- 2016 Auburn Football Schedule
- 2016 LSU Football Schedule
- 2016 Mississippi State Football Schedule
- 2016 Ole Miss Football Schedule
- 2016 Texas A&M Football Schedule
2016 SEC Football Schedule (Composite)
Thurs., Sept. 1
Appalachian State at Tennessee
South Carolina at Vanderbilt
Sat., Sept. 3
Alabama vs. Southern Cal (Arlington)
Louisiana Tech at Arkansas
Clemson at Auburn
UMass at Florida
Georgia vs. North Carolina (Atlanta)
Southern Miss at Kentucky
LSU vs. Wisconsin (Green Bay)
South Alabama at Mississippi State
Missouri at West Virginia
UCLA at Texas A&M
Ole Miss vs. Florida State (Orlando)
Sat., Sept. 10
Western Kentucky at Alabama
Arkansas at TCU
Arkansas State at Auburn
Kentucky at Florida
Nicholls State at Georgia
Jacksonville State at LSU
Wofford at Ole Miss
South Carolina at Mississippi State
Eastern Michigan at Missouri
Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech (Bristol)
Prarie View at Texas A&M
Middle Tennessee at Vanderbilt
Sat., Sept. 17
Texas State at Arkansas
Texas A&M at Auburn
North Texas at Florida
New Mexico State at Kentucky
Mississippi State at LSU
Alabama at Ole Miss
Georgia at Missouri
East Carolina at South Carolina
Ohio at Tennessee
Vanderbilt at Georgia Tech
Sat., Sept. 24
Kent State at Alabama
LSU at Auburn
South Carolina at Kentucky
Georgia at Ole Miss
Mississippi State at UMass
Delaware State at Missouri
Florida at Tennessee
Arkansas vs. Texas A&M (Arlington)
Vanderbilt at Western Kentucky
Sat., Oct. 1
Kentucky at Alabama
Alcorn State at Arkansas (Little Rock)
Louisiana-Monroe at Auburn
Tennessee at Georgia
Missouri at LSU
Memphis at Ole Miss
Texas A&M at South Carolina
Florida at Vanderbilt
Sat., Oct. 8
Alabama at Arkansas
LSU at Florida (postponed to 11/19)
Vanderbilt at Kentucky
Auburn at Mississippi State
Tennessee at Texas A&M
Sun., Oct 9
Georgia at South Carolina (ppd from 10/8)
Sat., Oct. 15
Ole Miss at Arkansas
Missouri at Florida
Vanderbilt at Georgia
Southern Miss at LSU
Mississippi State at BYU
Alabama at Tennessee
Sat., Oct. 22
Texas A&M at Alabama
Arkansas at Auburn
Mississippi State at Kentucky
Ole Miss at LSU
Middle Tennessee at Missouri
UMass at South Carolina
Tennessee State at Vanderbilt
Sat., Oct. 29
Florida vs. Georgia (Jacksonville)
Auburn at Ole Miss
Samford at Mississippi State
Kentucky at Missouri
Tennessee at South Carolina
New Mexico State at Texas A&M
Sat., Nov. 5
Florida at Arkansas
Vanderbilt at Auburn
Georgia at Kentucky
Alabama at LSU
Georgia Southern at Ole Miss
Texas A&M at Mississippi State
Missouri at South Carolina
Tennessee Tech at Tennessee
Sat., Nov. 12
Mississippi State at Alabama
LSU at Arkansas
South Carolina at Florida
Auburn at Georgia
Vanderbilt at Missouri
Kentucky at Tennessee
Ole Miss at Texas A&M
Sat., Nov. 19
Alabama A&M at Auburn
Arkansas at Mississippi State
Austin Peay at Kentucky
Chattanooga at Alabama
Florida at LSU
Missouri at Tennessee
Ole Miss at Vanderbilt
UL Lafayette at Georgia
UTSA at Texas A&M
Western Carolina at South Carolina
Thurs., Nov. 24
LSU at Texas A&M
Sat., Nov. 26
Auburn at Alabama
Florida at Florida State
Georgia Tech at Georgia
Kentucky at Louisville
Mississippi State at Ole Miss
Arkansas at Missouri
South Carolina at Clemson
Tennessee at Vanderbilt
Sat., Dec. 3
SEC Football Championship Game (Atlanta)
14 Power 5 games
Georgia plays 2
Vandy plays 0
Rest play 1 each.
Vanderbilt plays at Georgia Tech.
Also, as great as the SEC is finally playing some real out of conference games (which most of the east already did), you still are a Power 5 game short of a real schedule. The Pac 12, Big 10 and Big 12 all play 9 games. But I guess if you want to be compared to the ACC, go right ahead. After all, they are the best football conference out there. (If you don’t get the sarcasm behind this statement, I’m sorry. Schedule harder.)
Better than it has been…
You know it’s going to be real hard to get the SEC to move away from 3 cupcake games.
In my honest opinion (and I think I speak for most CFB fans) 2 cupcake games should be the maximum. Two is MORE than enough to help smaller schools and get a few warm up games. Anymore than that is cowardly. 10 P5 games should be what every team who wants to actually compete should strive for. My team has done this crap in the past and I completely disagree with them. It hurts the fans when you spend 1/4 of your season just blowing out overmatched competition that usually never even stands a chance. Yes, there are those few that get an upset or come close, but that percentage is VERY low. Overall, you should be trying to play teams that you think will give you a good game and help generate more fan support in the seats and on television.
And when I say it’s better than it has been, I mean that some teams were playing cupcakes for ALL FOUR of their OOC games. That was extremely pathetic…
Wrong Common Sense. The B1G Ten and PAC-12 teams that matter (the champions) play *ten* games. The Big 12-2 isn’t a real conference then as their champions play exactly the same number of conference games to be champion as the ACC and SEC do: *nine*. Having a conference championship game brings the ACC and SEC up to the Big 12-2’s level.
David, you’re right that the Big10 and Pac12 play 10 Power-5 games. I meant to say that, so I’m glad you corrected me. As for the Big 12, most still play 10 power 5 games. No one plays less than 9 (i.e. Baylor).
As for the SEC (and ACC), most play no more than 9 Power-5 games, only a few play 10 Power 5 games (i.e South Carolina). However the ACC has a better OOC schedule than the SEC… What this translates to is overinflated records (and thus rankings), and a competitive advantage. The fact that the SEC looks to justify cupcake weekend and the 2-3 other cupcake games against weak Group of 5 teams is disgraceful.
Joe,
Read this and get back to me. I don’t know what else I can say to have you even consider another thought process. For the record, the BCS was manipulated to favor any team that played an extra football game (aka conference championship game), any team that dominated out of conference play (playing 3-4 Group of 5 teams), and only 8 conference games.
http://www.thepostgame.com/commentary/201208/better-without-em-northern-manifesto-southern-secession-chuck-thompson-sec-bcs
I counted an impressive 9 non-conference true road game. 4 total games outside the south, 2 of those include MSU, must be nice in the south seeing as they try so hard not to leave it. (LSU vs Wisconsin in Green Bay almost makes it 10, but Green Bay is not Madison).
How can CBS be happy with the November 19th slate. It’s getting even worse.
Most likely it will be Arkansas vs Miss St, depends on how Mizz & Tennessee does.
When you’re the SEC, you love the late November cupcake games.
It’s what ya do.
1. Eliminate the nov 19 week along with other conferences poor week.
2. Big 5 championship games start playoffs along with 6 at large teams.
=
16 team playoff without adding any games.
Benefits:
1. incorporate the old Bowl Games.
-Rose: Pac 10 / Big 10 champs etc.
2. 16 team set bracket to allow workers to submit sheets to management for entertainment purposes only.
“2 cupcake games max” will require some serious reshuffling in the Big 10, since they currently have six or seven on their schedules.
There are cupcakes in every conference, including the SEC. There might be a few less of them one year and a few more another year. The difference usually with the SEC, is people view the middle of the pack teams as better than other conferences. I don’t know if that’s necessarily true every season though. I wish we had more SEC OOC games against P5 so we could make this claim.
Ohh and just because more SEC teams sit there ranked doesn’t paint the whole picture either. Those rankings are nothing more than a guess. 10 SEC teams (including ARK, TENN, AUB) were ranked in the preseason and that showed to be nothing more than a farce. People have used those early rankings in their claims as to the greatness of the SEC.
The SEC is good, but it’s really overblown and exaggerated.
I’m just trying to point out the fallacy of equating non-Power 5 teams with cupcakes, while overlooking the fact that so many non-Power 5 teams on SEC schedules (like Western Kentucky this year) are ranked higher than half of the Big 10. I’m all for limiting the number of cupcakes, as long as we do so with conf as well as non-conf games. Otherwise, the limit would be unfair.
Western Kentucky lost to perennial bottom feeder Indiana and barely beat Vanderbilt. They are the epitome of a Group of 5 team worthy to play instead of an FCS team.
Top tier conferences: Power 5 Conferences… Top/Middle Tier: AAC… Middle Tier: Mountain West… Bottom Tier: MAC, C-USA, Sunbelt… FCS: if you schedule, then you better schedule 2 power 5 conferences (AAC teams included).
I’d say something close to minimum scheduling: 10 Power 5 games (includes AAC), 1 MW/MAC game, 1 C-USA/Sunbelt/FCS game.
“Perennial bottom feeder” Indiana. And yet Ohio St. escaped in that game.
And that’s the point that even most bottom feeders in the P5 are much more competitive than MOST G5 teams…
True as to some Power 5 conferences, not others. So, why should those “others” get five cream puffs while limiting the SEC to two (three if Vandy is on their schedule).
Because when you play in a conference, you don’t know which conference opponents will be cream puffs, average, or great. It’s all an assumption.
I can’t stand how everybody just presumes the SEC conference schedule is a juggernaut before a game has even been played. Some of the teams in that conference are looked at as much better than they actually are. Thus giving the perception you are going by that there will be less cream puffs.
But like I said earlier, the SEC usually seems to have much better middle of the pack teams. It is fair because it’s the conference you chose to play in. Any conference can be loaded with great teams some seasons and not so much on other seasons. But it also doesn’t necessarily guarantee that your schedule will be anymore loaded with cream puffs than other conferences just because of this myth we hear about how great the SEC West is.
So you’re going to argue in favor of these 3 cupcake OOC games? Seriously? You are defending this? You are a fan and you should be in the group of people wanting to see better games. How can fans really sit there and justify this? It hurts all of us. Fans should want their program to schedule the best whenever possible. And two cupcake OOC games is MORE than enough. Don’t care what you say, I am 100% right on this.
Since there isn’t one single team in the history of football that knows how good their conference schedule will be, they should schedule more games against bigger name/usually competitive programs OOC. If you have 4 of these OOC games, I would say that scheduling 3 weak games is a sissy move. I don’t think you can really argue that because again, your conference schedule strength is just a guess years in advance when you schedule these OOC games.
In the SEC, each team averages about five NFL draft picks per year over the last decade or so. So when you play anyone in the SEC, you’re playing top-notch talent across the board. No other conference can claim that. Indiana and Rutgers aren’t getting players drafted. Neither is Texas Tech or Iowa State.
So, the SEC is still the best. It must suck to be a fan of another conference and always have to look for flaws with the SEC to make you feel better about your conference.
Yeah, they usually average the most (when comparing amount of teams in a conference to amount of draft picks since some conferences have 10, 12, and 14 teams)
So I guess that tells the whole story right? Louisville and Miami were right near the top with most selections in the draft so they should have had better than 6-7 and 9-4 right?
Flawed logic my friend. You can have all the NFL/superstar talent you want, and it sure will help, but that talent needs to come together as a FULL team. You can’t use criteria like this to say which conference is the best. There are several factors to why I would give the edge to the SEC. But it’s not a wide gap like some people think it is..
Hopping on with what TRAVIS B says, if you and the rest of the SEC think you are so great, why don’t you put your money and schedules where your mouths are and start playing real out of conference competition. 10 OUT OF CONFERENCE GAMES, minimum. No excuses.
What? You scared, bro?
You mean 10 P5 teams right common sense??
TRAVIS B, yeah, that’s what I meant. I think you knew that though. 10 Power 5 games would be so entertaining, fair and balanced for college football fans everywhere.
See, you bring up two teams in a conference. EVERY SEC team puts players in the draft. EVERY ONE. So there isn’t a week off in the SEC. In the ACC, during the conference schedule, you get weeks off. During the Big Ten conference schedule, you get weeks off. During the Big 12 conference schedule, you get weeks off. Not so down south.
SEC talent does come together as a full team. That’s why every year, there are numerous SEC teams at the top of the pile.
And I love how the fans of the Big Ten or Big 12 or any other conference hide behind the “you should play ten Power Five games” argument.
Face it. Ohio State will play ten Power Five games, but only two of them will be close. And that’s not because Ohio State is so good, it’s because the Big Ten is bad. You can go through the other conferences just the same.
Only in the SEC, where teams are stocked with REAL talent across the board, is just about every game competitive.
I know, it’s not Ohio State’s fault Indiana, Illinois, and Purdue suck…. But you can claim them as a strength, either. Playing those teams is almost like playing Akron or Georgia Southern or Troy.
The gap between the SEC may not be as wide as I think it is, but it’s certainly not as close as you think it is, either.
Joe, there is nothing I can do to change your opinion.
ONLY in the SEC? Yeah, I think the majority of unbiased fans would agree that is a bit delusional.
Those same people probably were the ones that bought Milli Vanilli albums back in the day thinking they were the next big thing, too. So what they think doesn’t matter.
1.) Just last year Indiana (the worst B10 team) beat Missouri (the SEC East champion). At Mizzou.
2.) The great SEC West went 2-5 in bowl games (the two they won were the worst two in the division).
3.) Ohio State and Wisconsin both beat Alabama and Auburn (in the south for bowl games).
4.) When you go 4-0 out of conference (playing 4 cupcake games) and 2-6 in conference, you should not go to a bowl game.
5.) I don’t care what team you are, a Power 5 game from any conference is NOT a cupcake game, maybe except for Kansas.
6.) I dare you to read this article that articulates why everyone (except for SEC fans) knows this ridiculous article you SEC fans are making is just plain wrong: http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/the-worldwide-cheerleader-espn-and-the-college-football-playoff-20141028
argument***, not article, lol
You can’t base dominance on one game. You also have to realize in every game one team will win and one team will lose.
However, over the last decade, or even longer, the SEC has dominated the sport. From non-conference wins, to postseason awards, to NFL draft picks, the SEC is clearly the best.
Not just last year. Not the year before. Every. Single. Year.
And don’t fool yourself. There is a reason why LSU and Alabama have a tough strength of schedule and Michigan State and Ohio State don’t and it’s all about the conference slate. Every institution that ranks strength of schedule puts the SEC as the toughest for a reason. Because it is.
And if quoting an article from a bunch of washed up pot heads is the best you got, you might want to rethink your stance.
Even when recent history shows you how overrated the SEC was, you are arguing they are great… I guess that’s the great thing about the CFP, which SEC fans love to hate, because it exposes how overrated the SEC is.
Just last year, the SEC east lost to the worst team in the big ten. (Indiana beat Mizzou!!!) Wisconsin beat Auburn, Ohio State manhandled Alabama, LSU got licked by a crappy ND team with a QB making his first start, Miss State got ran over by Georgia Tech, and Ole Miss got donkey-stomped by TCU.
Georgia and Mizzou won their bowl games… If you want people to admit that the SEC is great, then play an equal schedule in terms of equal power 5 games, then have your best teams beat the other teams in bowl games. The last two years you had an opportunity to prove you were still great, then you wet the bed and are now blaming it on the dog. Man up, schedule hard, and win.
Just this year, not mentioning Auburn’s near fiasco with Jacksonville St, the SEC has lost to Toledo (Arkansas), Memphis (Ole Miss), Western Kentucky & Houston (Vanderbilt). Your good losses were Oklahoma (Tenn) and Texas Tech (Arkansas).
I know you’d like to think that the league winning seven straight national titles on the field is over rated, but nobody will ever come close to that.
And I am sure the NFL taking more SEC players over the last ten years means that the SEC is surely overrated. Right? But then again, nobody is even close.
Oh, and by the way a fourth of those players taken in the NFL Draft were taken in the first round. Just another sign that the SEC is definitely overrated.
BUT INDIANA BEAT MISSOURI!
Yeah, okay, that proves nothing. You want to pick and choose what facts are considered and not take into account the totality of the evidence which shows that the SEC isn’t just better than other conferences… it’s a LOT better than the other conferences.
If you want the Big Ten to be considered equal, then boot the crappy teams from the conference and bring in teams that actually matter. You think Purdue is a match for anyone in the conference? How about Minnesota? Oh, I know, Illinois… now there’s a powerhouse team year in and year out.
Seriously.
And Houston and Memphis weren’t good losses? Do you even watch football?
Hell, the Big Ten lost TWO games to Bowling Green. At this point they should be leading the Big Ten Legends division.
Face it, cupcake, the SEC is lightyears ahead of the rest of the college football world. You don’t have to agree. But it’s still true.
Joe, just play a real schedule, which means 10 Power 5 conference games. If you do that and win, then I will GLADLY say the SEC is best.
The fact that you are 14 teams and only play 8 games is tragic for any college football fan.
See. You’re arguemnt is flawed. You count Indiana the exact same as Michigan State. Alabama is the same as Vanderbilt. It doesn’t work that way. Maybe if you simply don’t understand the game, it works that way, but anyone with a shred of knowledge about the game understands the teams stand on their own merits. Playing Memphis this season is simply tougher than playing Wake Forest. It’s that simple. You can’t understand it, but that’s more of a you problem. Cling to your flawed notions all you want. The SEC will cling to remaining the best football conference in the nation.
If you’re afraid of playing Vanderbilt, then you and the rest of your conference is a joke. If Indiana can beat Missouri, if Iowa State can beat Texas, then any Power 5 can beat anyone. That’s the point.
For the record, Miami has many draft picks each year. But guess what? They suck at football. A team is greater than its members. Remember that.
Joe will never admit he might actually be a little bit wrong. So it’s probably best to give it a rest.
I just said Vanderbilt is not Alabama. You act like all Power Five schools are interchangeable… and the fact is they aren’t.
But, in college football, on a given day, any team can beat most any other team. That’s why it is so great. Dominance can’t be measured on a single weekend. It is earned over the course of a decade.
And for the last decade, the SEC has dominated the college football landscape and there is no sign they won’t continue that into the next decade.
Joe,
delusional: noun – a belief that is not true
insanity: noun – something that is very foolish or unreasonable
You are delusional, and what you are saying is insanity.
With that said, when Vanderbilt or Wake Forest or Indiana or Kansas or Colorado still USUALLY beats all of its Group of 5 opponents (this year was a particularly bad year for them), its clear to everyone that it is harder to play the worst team in a Power 5 conference than the best team in a Group of 5 conference. What don’t you get about that? Seriously? Is it that hard to understand? With exception to very few Group of 5 teams (some AAC, Boise St, and any other random team), the worst team in a Power 5 conference is better than almost all Group of 5 teams. That is not arguable. Do you understand? I’m not trying to take away from the SEC. I’m just trying to show you that the top teams in the country not from the SEC can easily play with the SEC on any given day. The only reason they don’t play is because the SEC would rather schedule 8 conference games and 4 OOC games in SEC country against weak Group of 5 teams. Those are the facts.
You can level all the insults at me you want. I’m not in third grade, so they matter little.
The fact is there are teams in Power Five conferences that are Power Five teams in name only. Texas Tech isn’t TCU. They just aren’t. Purdue isn’t Michigan State. They just aren’t. To claim that just because they are a Power Five team they are somehow superior to a Group of 5 team is absurd.
Just as it is to claim it is ‘harder to play the worst team in a Power 5 conference than the best team in a Group of 5 conference’ as if the conference a team plays for actually matters. What matters is that a good football team is a good football team. It doesn’t matter if they are called Louisiana State or Boise State.
Oh, and the SEC, has a lot of good football teams. Look at last night’s rankings. But what do those idiots on the committee know, right? Obviously, you are much smarter than they are.
What matters is quality wins versus quality opponents and the SEC schedule gives teams plenty of chances to do that in the conference and outside as well. The Big Ten plays a weak conference schedule by comparison and a weak out of conference schedule. Everyone that knows anything about football knows that it’s not as tough to win the Big Ten or the Big 12 as it is the SEC. Again, not my words, check any strength of schedule ranking out there and get back with me. They all say the same.
See, not everything is created the same no matter how much you claim it to be.
Here are the real top 12 rankings:
** Note, these will change based on success of teams each week **
1.) Iowa 8-0 – beat 6-2 Pitt (only other loss to 7-1 UNC), beat 7-2 Wisconsin (only other loss to 7-1 Alabama), baet 6-2 Northwestern (beat 7-1 Stanford, only other loss to 6-2 Michigan)
2.) Clemson 8-0 – beat 7-1 ND (beat 6-1 ND, beat 7-1 Temple, beat 5-3 USC), beat 5-3 Miami Fl (beat 6-2 Duke, lost to 7-1 Florida), beat 5-3 NC State
3.) LSU 7-0 – beat 7-1 Florida (beat 6-2 Ole Miss), beat 6-2 Miss State (only other loss to 6-2 Texas A&M)
4.) Michigan State 8-0 – beat 6-2 Michigan (beat 6-2 Northwestern and 6-2 BYU, only other loss to 7-1 Utah), beat 5-3 Oregon (lost to 7-1 Utah), beat 5-3 Air Force (lost to 6-1 Navy)
5.) Memphis 8-0 – beat 6-2 Ole Miss (beat 7-1 Alabama, only other loss to 7-1 Florida) beat 6-2 Bowling Green (only other loss to 4-4 Tennessee)
6.) Ohio Sate 8-0 – beat 7-2 Penn State (only other loss to 7-1 Temple)
7.) ND 7-1 – lost to 7-1 Clemson, beat 5-3 USC (beat 7-1 Utah, lost to 7-1 ND and 5-3 Washington), beat 7-1 Temple (beat 6-2 Penn State), beat 6-1 Navy
8.) Stanford 7-1 – lost to 6-2 Northwestern (beat 6-2 Duke, lost to 8-0 Iowa and 6-2 Michigan), beat 6-2 UCLA (beat 6-2 Utah, only other loss to 4-4 ASU), beat 5-3 Washington State, beat 5-3 USC (see above), beat 5-4 Arizona
9.) Florida 7-1 – lost to 7-0 LSU (see above), beat 6-2 Ole Miss (beat 7-1 Alabama, only other loss to 8-0 Memphis)
10.) Alabama 7-1 – lost to 6-2 Ole Miss (lost to 8-0 Memphis and 7-1 Florida), beat 6-2 Wisconsin (only other loss to 8-0 Iowa), beat 6-2 Miss State (only other loss to LSU)
11.) Utah 7-1 – lost to 5-3 USC (lost to 7-1 ND), beat 6-2 Michigan (see above), beat 5-3 Oregon (see above) beat 5-3 Cal
12.) TCU 8-0 – beat 5-4 Texas Tech
13.) Baylor 8-0 – beat 5-4 Texas Tech
14.) Oklahoma State 8-0 – beat 5-4 Texas Tech
“Real” Top 12?
According to who?
Massey has Clemson, Ohio State, LSU, Alabama, TCU, Notre Dame, Florida.
About half from the SEC. Go figure.
Joe,
When you eliminate FCS and lower tier Group of 5 teams from these teams’ schedules, you get a more accurate assessment for where these teams should actually be ranked. The fact that the SEC plays on average 1 Power 5 game less matters.
Joe,
First off, I’m not even going to argue how bad the SEC East is.
Second, here are all of the Power 5 OOC games by the great SEC West, in addition to their losses to Group of 5 teams. [***For the record, Group of 5 wins should not be counted as part of a record, but group of 5 losses should count.***]
Alabama (7-1):
Beat (7-2) Wisconsin 35-17 @ Arlington, Texas
Arkansas (4-4):
Lost to (5-4) Texas Tech 35-24 @ Arkansas [in addition to Group of 5 loss, losing to (7-1) Toledo (16-12) @ Arkansas]
Auburn (4-4):
Beat (4-4) Louisville 31-24 @ Atlanta, Georgia (neutral site)
LSU (8-0):
LSU beat (3-5) Syracuse 34-24 @ Syracuse
Miss State (7-2):
N/A
Ole Miss (7-2):
N/A [in addition to Group of 5 loss, losing to 8-0 Memphis 37-24 @ Memphis]
Texas A&M (6-2)
Beat (4-4) Arizona State (38-17) @ Houston, Texas (1 hr away from A&M)
Are you really telling me this division is great when the only opponents they play are in their conference? Wisconsin is the only credible opponent, and they have a brand new coach and a young team. Each one of these teams are middle of the road. Then your division plays 3 more WEAK OOC games, or in the case of Miss St, 4 OOC games.
This isn’t us calling the SEC weak, it’s us calling your schedule weak. To get respect, you must play for respect. That means 10 Power 5 games like the rest of everyone else. Until then, you will hear us roar. (Yes, that’s a Katy Perry-Ole Miss reference.)
There is a reason the SEC West went 2-5 in bowl games last year.
The two they won were the worst two. Good job!
Joe,
Have you noticed every single person outside of SEC folks thinks you are wrong. You are like a liberal thinking Hillary Clinton didn’t lie before Congress!
You notice how a lot of people that bought Milli Vanilli records later regretted it?
Look, everyone thinkings I’m wrong doesn’t make them right. In this case it makes them morons.
The SEC has more players drafted by the NFL. That means there is more NFL talent on the field in most SEC games than in a month of games by some Big Ten teams.
Year in and year out, the SEC wins more of their nonconference games than they lose. When they play other teams out of conference, they win.
Year in and year out the SEC is rated as the toughest conference by people who actually know the game, not some wannabe sitting in his basement hiding behind a keyboard crying about how the SEC is overrated.
Oh, and the SEC has seven national titles in row to show for it.
All arguments are invalid.
Let Alabama have a schedule with Indiana, Illinois, Purdue, Northwestern, Penn State, Maryland and Rutgers on it. I’m sure they’d much rather play those teams than Mississippi, LSU, Arkansas, Texas A&M, Florida and Tennessee.
But, the SEC doesn’t play real road games! Right? That’s the argument, right? Well, Ohio State doesn’t have to compete with anyone in their own state for recruits. Georgia has to compete with Tech, Clemson, Florida, South Carolina, Auburn, Alabama, Tennessee and everyone else for players in their own state. And all of those schools are within a few hours of each other.
Texas A&M could play quality opponents every week and never leave the state of Texas. Ohio State couldn’t play two weeks back to back in their state. Five SEC states have Power 5 teams from another conference in their state. Only three Big Ten teams have that kind of competition.
They don’t have to go far to play quality opponents. Ohio State HAS to leave Ohio. Minnesota HAS to leave Minnesota. Nebraska HAS to leave Nebraska. Wisconsin HAS to leave Wisconsin. The SEC doesn’t have to go all over creation to play quality teams. There are a hundred of them within a few hours of each other.
But when the SEC does go on the road outside the South… they win. Regular season. Bowl games. It doesn’t matter. The SEC is still best.
What bowl games are you talking about? The SEC West just got smoked 2-5 in bowl games. Your best two OOC game this year are Alabama over a mediocre 7-2 Wisconsin team. Your second best OOC game is Texas A&M beating a 4-4 ASU team in Houston! Your third best OOC game is Arkansas losing to 5-3 Texas Tech… There’s also 4-4 Louisville, and 3-5 Syracuse… I’m sorry, but that’s just unacceptable.
Watch ESECPN all you want and listen to their skewed computer rankings all you want, but when bowl season comes along, just like in 2013 and 2014, the SEC will get smoked.
Again, you are trying to apply very precise pieces of data to a decade. It simply doesn’t work that way.
The US won the space race. But, there were points along the way where there were rough spots, including the loss of three astronauts. But the US still won the space race.
The SEC doesn’t win every out of conference game. But they win them when they count far more often than anyone else.
Dominance is established not in a game or month, but over years and through the last dozen or so years there isn’t a conference better than the SEC. That’s a fact.
Joe,
When you have no facts to back yourself up on, you shoot all the way back to 2006-2013, thinking the SEC was the best throughout that time. Every single person knows that the team of the decade was the University of Southern California, then Texas, then Alabama, followed by Florida, Ohio State and Michigan. That is not arguable.
The BCS, which favored wins against bad group of 5/fbs teams, was the reason for this false sense of SEC dominance. If the CFP existed, the SEC would have continuously lost to USC. Just look at the track records of USC destroying Auburn and Arkansas. Also, your second to last week of the season FCS cupcake weekend got the SEC into so many titles games because of the carnage of other conferences actually playing real competition.
I know you love your SEC, but outside of Alabama, the conference is a disgrace to football. You only look into the window where SEC always reigns supreme, even when all of the other windows point to an SEC grave reading RIP.
Good-bye and good riddance to your ignorant sense of self-worth.
The BCS wasn’t the reason for the ‘false sense of SEC dominance.’ SEC dominance was the reason for SEC dominance.
And it’s funny, you talk about how the BCS favored wins over bad teams, but talk up the nine conference game schedules when they include the likes of Rutgers and Illinois.
The disgrace to football are fans like you who obviously know so little of the game that you can’t see the SEC is really as great as it is. Look, the NFL could spend their money on anyone and more often than not they are spending that money on players from the SEC because they want the best players.
You can’t argue that. That’s not BCS bias, or ESPN bias or anything other than them voting with their pocketbooks.
Fact.
Joe,
Read this and get back to me. I don’t know what else I can say to have you even consider another thought process. For the record, the BCS was manipulated to favor any team that played an extra football game (aka conference championship game), any team that dominated out of conference play (playing 3-4 Group of 5 teams), and only 8 conference games.
http://www.thepostgame.com/commentary/201208/better-without-em-northern-manifesto-southern-secession-chuck-thompson-sec-bcs
Travis B and Common Sense, what conference is your favorite?
Big 10 and SEC would be 2nd…
why dose cbs always show georgia and florida and they play in jacksonville