CFB: The State of the SEC

The Southeastern Conference has been one of the most well-know brands in college football for decades, and that was no more apparent than in the BCS Era, stretching from 1998-2013. In 16 championships, the SEC won a record nine titles, including the very first one, when Tennessee defeated Florida State in the inaugural season. And then towards the end of the Bowl Championship Series' run, the coveted conference won seven straight from 2006-2012, with Alabama winning three, Florida taking two titles, and Auburn and LSU grabbing one each. LSU also won one in 2003.

But what's happened since? In the last couple of seasons, the conference has imploded and we've seen teams like Arkansas, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina, and others, that are far from where they'd like to be. All of those programs were once national contenders, and now, only one, South Carolina, is going to reach a bowl game. In fact, the other three have fired their coaches. And they aren't the only ones in the SEC who are looking for a new head man. Mississippi State and Texas A&M are as well. Even teams like LSU and Missouri who have a combined record of 16-8 and are going bowling, aren't what they were three years ago.

The simple answer of why the SEC isn't as prominent as it was, is Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide. Alabama has created a level of unrealistic expectations for other programs, winning four championships since 2009, and reaching the College Football Playoff in each of the last three years. The other SEC schools have watched this success, and are attempting to play catch up, which isn't likely to happen anytime soon. Athletic directors and administrations want to be like Alabama, and because of that dream, they're becoming impatient. I'm going to break down the state of each SEC school, from where they are now, to where they're headed

Alabama Crimson Tide: Alabama lost their most recent game to the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl, their most heated rivalry game, but the season is far from over. The Crimson Tide still have a chance to reach the College Football Playoff for the fourth straight season, and could potentially compete for a championship. Jalen Hurts is just a sophomore, and the defense is stacked full of five-star recruits. Even if Nick Saban's crew fails to reach the CFP, Alabama's reign is far from over. They're in the best spot of anyone in the country, save maybe Clemson, and certainly have the brightest future of any SEC program.

Georgia Bulldogs: Georgia has one loss on the year, to Auburn on the road, but that will be quickly forgotten if the Bulldogs can pull off a slight upset this weekend, and reach their first CFP. Kirby Smart has done a fantastic job of recruiting and has taken an 8-5 team from last year, and have turned them into an 11-1 program, who is one victory away from the Big Dance. He has done so with great defense, a powerful running game, and quarterback play that doesn't turn the ball over. Quarterback Jake Fromm has been a success in his freshman year, and the future is even more shiny because of five-star Justin Fields coming in next year.

Auburn Tigers: Auburn looked dominant last weekend, taking down the Crimson Tide, 26-14, and ascending to the SEC championship game to face Georgia in a rematch. A couple of weeks ago, the Tigers took down the Bulldogs, 40-17, and they're now one win away from reaching their first ever College Football Playoff. Even with two loses, to Clemson and LSU, the CFP Committee would have no choice but to put the Tigers in the semifinals. Gus Malzahn is a great offensive mind, and he's done a great job of recruiting players, like Jarrett Stidham, that fit his style. Auburn isn't too far behind Alabama and Georgia

LSU Tigers: LSU isn't the national contender it was from 2003-2012, but it is back to being a quality team. Yes, the Tigers somehow slipped up and lost to Troy at home earlier in the season, but that game is a throwaway, especially since it was without star running back Derrius Guice. Obviously, that's a game LSU should still win, but it's not going to ruin the program as whole either (i.e. Arkansas' loss to UL-Monroe). Ed Orgeron rebounded nicely and is 9-3 with wins over Auburn, Tennessee, and Texas A&M to end the season. I'm not sure if the Tigers will be able to reach 11-12 wins soon, but a 10-win year is a nice building block.

South Carolina Gamecocks: The Gamecocks were smoked, 34-10, by their in-state rival Clemson, but they're still an upstart program that is seemingly headed in the right direction. Will Muschamp had an incredible defense at Florida, but it wasn't enough to get him over the hump because of porous quarterback play. Well, now he has a quarterback in Jake Bentley. He is just a sophomore which means the Gamecocks can expect two more years of this guy, and they have a pretty attractive team around him. South Carolina finished 8-4 this year, pending the bowl game, but 8-10 wins is a realistic goal for the next 3-5 years. Not bad at all.

Missouri Tigers: Missouri was the SEC East division champions in 2013 and 2014, but neither team was able to take that next step and win the conference, which would have put them into the national spotlight, and definitely in 2013, it would have meant a BCS title appearance. And then the Tigers had a couple of down years after those veterans graduated and, Gary Pinkel, their long time head coach decided to retire. Barry Odom wasn't in a very good spot so 2015-2016 were difficult, but 2017 has been a different story. After starting a miserable 1-5, Missouri has won six straight. With Drew Lock under center, I like this team going forward

Mississippi State Bulldogs: Mississippi State has been one of the most consistent programs in the SEC over the last decade because of Dan Mullen leading the team, but according to Sports Illustrated among others, Mullen is signing a head coaching deal with Florida, where he was previously the offensive coordinator under Urban Meyer, when his QB was Heisman winner, Tim Tebow. Mullen was able to do a lot with a little, taking the Dak Prescott-led team to the 2014 Orange Bowl. Even without Mullen anymore, the Bulldogs have established a winning program. And with Nick Fitzgerald returning, they'll get 7+ wins again.

Texas A&M Aggies: Texas A&M is in one of the more precarious spots, because according to ESPN, the Aggies have fired Kevin Sumlin after six seasons. The good news for Sumlin? His buyout is $10.4 million and is due to him within 60 days of being fired. Not a bad consolation prize. Texas A&M was 51-26 (!) under Sumlin, including wins over Arkansas, Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, and UCLA. There isn't much more he could have done. Texas A&M will continue to be a good job because it's one of the top recruiting schools, but I think eight or nine wins is the ceiling for almost any coach here.

Florida Gators: Florida is one of many teams in the conference that are experiencing coaching changes during the offseason, and after Jim McElwain was let go after 2+ years, it seemed like the Gators were heading for a slide. McElwain led Florida to back-to-back SEC title games, but lost both to Alabama. That wasn't enough for the school. Florida went 4-8 this season, which included losses to two of their three rivals, in Georgia (42-7) and Florida State (38-22). However, I actually think the Gators are in a solid spot. Mullen is coming over from Mississippi State and I think he'll get this team back to it's winning ways sooner rather than later. Expect him to go after a couple of graduate transfer quarterbacks, possibly Manny Wilkins (Arizona State), J.J. Cosentino (Florida State), or Jalan McClendon (NC State). If he can snag a good QB that fits his offensive game plan, then I could see Florida getting back to 8-10 wins in less than a full year

Kentucky Wildcats: Kentucky is currently 7-5, and is going bowling for the second consecutive season, under Mark Stoops. He has done a great job at Kentucky, and even though they're far from contending on a national level, going to a bowl game is virtually the best case scenario for the Wildcats every year. A lot of this Kentucky team will graduate at the end of the season, but Stoops has gotten Kentucky into a position where they're expected to win 6-8 games year in and year out. In the SEC East, where they're clearly in a better spot than Vanderbilt and Tennessee, the Wildcats should continue to go bowling for the foreseeable future.

Ole Miss Rebels: Ole Miss has decided to make interim head coach, Matt Luke, the full-time head coach according to ESPN and others. He went 6-6 in his first year as the Rebels coach, which is pretty impressive considering he was promoted to head coach (from co-offensive coordinator and offensive line coach) less than a month prior to the beginning of the season, after Hugh Freeze was let go suddenly. Freeze's allegations about prostitution and recruiting violations is going to cast a cloud on top of the Ole Miss program for years to come, so even if there is success on the field, there are going to be restrictions coming soon.

Arkansas Razorbacks: Arkansas lost to Missouri on Black Friday, on a buzzer-beating field goal to finish the Razorbacks' season, but the year had been over for a while. At least that's how it seemed. Arkansas was 4-7 and had no chance of going to a bowl game, heading into the final game of the regular season, and that was it. They lost, and Bret Bilema was told he had been fired, while still on the field. We pretty much all knew it was coming, though. After what seemed like a decade of Brandon and Austin Allen behind center for this team, they don't really have a direction. According to SEC Country, maybe Brett Venables will be hired

Vanderbilt Commodores: Vanderbilt started the season 4-0 with a win over Kansas State, but that instantly came crashing down with a beatdown against Alabama and a couple of others losses to Georgia, Florida, and others. Vanderbilt isn't going bowling, and it's hard to see if this team is really going anywhere. Derek Mason is a good coach, and seems to be a great motivator, but that likely won't be enough to win here. It's just simply not a football school. Vanderbilt fans will shift their focus to basketball season for the time being, but that may not last long either, given that the team is riding a three-game losing streak.

Tennessee Volunteers: Tennessee fired Butch Jones less than a month ago, after having back-to-back 9+ win seasons, but in the midst of a horrific year, he was let go. Brady Hoke was promoted to interim head coach. That went just about as bad as expected. Tennessee went 4-8 this year, and was winless in the SEC. The Volunteers don't have direction at all right now, nor do they have a legitimate quarterback, or a coach. And after the Greg Schiano debacle, where it was reported that they'd hire Schiano, before going back on their word after backlash on Twitter, this football team has become an embarrassment. Maybe Tennessee will make a splash hire (Mike Gundy?) and he'll get it turned around. Right now, though? Tennessee is a near disgrace.

Photo Credit: SEC Country.