Did The SEC West Get Exposed By a Poor 2014 Postseason?
By Ty Duffy
Conferences are defined by big game performances. At least, snickering folks have been telling the Big Ten that for years. If that mantra is valid, it may be time to reevaluate our reverence for the SEC West. The reigning “Best Division in College Football” entered bowl play. The five best teams went down in the 2014 postseason, some badly.
* Alabama lost the playoff semifinal to Ohio State 42-35. That stings – it’s the Big Ten, the Buckeyes and Urban – and it was no fluke. Alabama was outplayed and outcoached. SEC defense? The Tide gave up 230 yards and two touchdowns on the ground to Ezekiel Elliott. Lane Kiffin’s offense? Converted 2-of-13 third down attempts.
* Auburn lost to a Big Ten team as well, 34-31 in overtime to Wisconsin. That was a Badgers team that lost its head coach and was fresh off a 59-0 defeat in the Big Ten title game. That big, bad SEC front allowed 356 yards and three touchdowns on 49 carries by Melvin Gordon and Corey Clement. The Badgers spotted Auburn three turnovers and still won.
* Top 10 Mississippi State fell 49-34 in the Orange Bowl to Georgia Tech, a nerdy ACC school that struggles to pull in Top 60 recruits in state. The Yellow Jackets carried the ball 61 times, for 452 yards and six touchdowns.
* An aggrieved TCU curbstomped Ole Miss 42-3. Bo Wallace was Bo Wallace. The Rebel run game produced just nine yards on 37 carries.
* LSU lost 31-28 to a 7-5 Notre Dame team. John Chavis’ defense allowed the Irish to convert 11 of 17 third down attempts. Les Miles found a way to lose despite having a kickoff returned for a touchdown and averaging 8.4 yards/play.
Bert beat Texas. The Aggies outlasted West Virginia. Neither cleanses the perceptual palate of the aforementioned defeats. So, what do we take from this?
Bowl results can be fluky. The first rule of bowl results is not to read too much into them either way. The regular season provides a larger, more coherent sample. All seven SEC West teams in the SRS Top 30 says more than five one-off exhibitions.
There isn’t a combined narrative thread. Each situation was different. Auburn and Mississippi State had staff turnover. Ole Miss had injuries. LSU was young with an erratic quarterback. Alabama had never quite figured things out, in any phase. The SEC West produced no truly great team. The division ran into two teams, TCU and Ohio State, with great coaches playing great football.
The SEC West should improve. There’s little reason for SEC fans to fret. Alabama could be waning. Mississippi State may not be able to sustain double-digit wins. It’s not clear what Ole Miss’ ceiling is. But, Gus Malzahn’s Auburn team, now featuring Will Muschamp’s defense, is just getting rolling. Texas A&M and LSU have frightening young talent that will mature. Bret Bielema has just begun construction at Arkansas.
But, the rest of college football could be catching up. Other conferences are investing in top caliber coaches. The Pac 12 goes 12 deep with good coaches. The B1G East now features Meyer, Harbaugh, Dantonio and Franklin. Three of the Big 12’s smallest programs are orchestrated by Snyder, Briles and Patterson. Schools outside the South are recruiting better. Meyer built Ohio State by reaching outside Ohio and following the SEC blueprint: speed at the skill positions and a ferocious defensive line. The first two teams who played their way to the title game through a playoff came from north of the Mason-Dixon.
This is more significant for discussion season. The SEC has racked up wins. Media coverage and national interest in the conference have snowballed. Social media entrenches conventional wisdom, rather than challenging it. Call it #narrative or what you will, but the college football hive produces a static, extreme perception of SEC greatness. Fans bought in and will be humbled. College football, like many walks of life, is cyclical. It is far more fluid and moderate than we believe. Analysis should reflect that and be less reliant on truisms.
[USA Today Sports]