By CFN writer Pete Fiutak:
Really, how good is the SEC?No one can deny it’s the best conference going at the moment. No one can deny that the overall speed and talent level is tremendous. The weekly drama is unparalleled, thanks to so many good match-ups, and the overall competition is so tough that it’s just about impossible to get through unscathed. So after the way Florida blew up Ohio State to win the national title, will the conference start to get every benefit of the doubt? It should.Of all the national champions since Florida State won in 1993 (remember that only the BCS champions count in our new world…sorry USC of 2003), only three finished with a loss. Take a wild stab at which league produced those three; yes, the SEC (1995 Florida, 2003 LSU, and 2006 Florida). You can understand why Auburn fans are still angry after their unbeaten team got left out in the cold in 2004. The SEC has proven time and again that when given the chance, it shines through on the highest stage. But really, how good is the SEC? To feed the ego a little more, the league has gone 7-1 in the BCS since 2001, with two national titles, and the lone blemish was Georgia’s 38-35 upset loss to West Virginia in the 2006 Sugar Bowl. In that same time span, the Big Ten went 4-6 (with Ohio State winning three of those), the Big 12 went 3-6, and the ACC was 0-6. Remember, it took USC losing to UCLA and a sizable portion of the voters to go against Michigan just to get Florida in the championship game. Maybe it’s time to start weighing the strength of schedule more when it comes to the SEC, and to realize that a one-loss team here could be the equivalent of an unbeaten team from another conference. That might especially be the case this season. Things have gotten even tougher, with normal bottom-feeders Kentucky and Vanderbilt now good enough to go to a bowl. Ole Miss and Mississippi State are even better than in 2006, when they were more than just competitive by the end the season. And then, of course, there are all the big-name programs. Georgia is getting better with QB Matthew Stafford improving, South Carolina will be better than it’s been in several years, Arkansas has the best running back tandem in the nation, Auburn will be typical Auburn with a fast, nasty defense, Tennessee will be strong again (as long as the receiving corps comes through), and LSU and Florida will open the season ranked among the top five teams in the nation. How good is the SEC? It’s still the best, and it’s only getting better.