Matt Pendleton-Imagn Images
By Chris Marler
The back and forth chest beating that the SEC had with other conferences wasn’t as loud this offseason as the past. That’s what happens when you don’t even play for a shot at the national title for two years in a row.
The grave is dug. The dancing on it is loud.
Most logical people know that losing in the final two minutes of the Semifinals to the eventual national champion two years in a row doesn’t necessarily amount to being a “failure” of a season. That’s been the label the SEC has received though. NIL and the transfer portal have apparently evened the playing field for everyone, and the SEC’s dominance has already come to an end.
Whether that’s true or not isn’t the debate. Rather, what games this season would be the most detrimental for the perception of the SEC around the country and, optically speaking, would only cause more damage than what’s already been done. Clemson beating LSU and/or Ohio State beating Texas doesn’t necessarily cause a fatal blow to the conference’s confidence. These three games would.
- Florida State beating Alabama
There’s no telling what Alabama will look like in year two under Kalen DeBoer, especially with a new offensive coordinator and new quarterback. What is clear is that 1) the assumption is that it will be a playoff caliber team and 2) if they lose to a team that was 2-10 last year, the rest of the season almost wouldn’t matter at all barring they run the entire table.
Florida State was 13-1 a few seasons ago and absolutely deserved to be in the CFP over Alabama. That didn’t happen. While most of the names and faces from that roster are gone, the anger and resentment from Mike Norvell probably isn’t. There’s also the Tommy Castellanos part of this, which is the new transfer QB from Boston College who has openly said what he and this team are going to do to Alabama.
They aren’t scared. Not sure if Alabama should be or not, but they should be scared of what the optics of a loss would be not just for the SEC but their program as a whole.
- Kansas beating Missouri
Kansas isn’t even supposed to be that bad of a football team. Their head coach Lance Leipold has been one of the most heralded and favorite under the radar coaches for media outlets everywhere. That’s why he’s been surprisingly high on so many preseason head coach rankings and lists the last few seasons.
They’re projected to win 6.5 games from oddsmakers, and this is one of the most bitter rivalries that isn’t talked about nearly enough. Maybe that’s because it’s been dormant for a decade, or maybe it’s because it’s just Missouri and another Midwest team SEC fans refuse to care about. Regardless, Missouri is a dark horse for the CFP and looking to win ten or more games for the third consecutive year. That all goes away with a loss in week two against the Jayhawks.
- Virginia Tech beating South Carolina
Depending on what happens to the SEC on Saturday, the lone game on Sunday of opening weekend could have massive implications for the SEC on a national standpoint. The Saturday slate features two top ten SEC teams on the road against two top ten non-conference opponents. LSU goes to Clemson, and Texas heads to Columbus to face Ohio State. Both of those games are very losable and understandably so.
However, South Carolina being a near double digit favorite in Atlanta against Virginia Tech would be not just damaging but incredibly disheartening for one of the few feel good stories in the SEC. The Gamecocks go into this season with something they haven’t had in well over a decade: expectations. Their preseason No. 13 ranking in the coaches poll is not only the first time they’ve been ranked in the preseason since 2014. It’s the highest they’ve been ranked at any point of the season in that same timespan as well.
Wild.
They go into the year with huge expectations and one of the best quarterbacks in the country. However, if they get off to a slow start like last year, the conversation about how top heavy the league is gains a lot of merit and validation.
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