Quantcast
Channel: College Hotline » Nick Saban
Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 10

Five reasons the SEC rules college football (in case you need convincing)

0
0

I was thinking about this in my post-draft daze, and it’s to draw the ire of west coast and Pac-10 fans who think I give the SEC too much credit/respect.

But the truth hurts: It’s the absolute, undeniable king.

Reason No. 5: Three consecutive BCS champs (and four of the last six).

Would the ’06 Gators, ’07 Tigers and ’08 Gators have beaten USC under a Plus-1 format? Don’t know. Doesn’t matter.

Reason No. 4: 37 picks in the 2009 NFL Draft.

It’s the third consecutive year, and 10th in the last 12, that the SEC has led all conferences in draft picks.

Reason No. 3: Meyer. And Saban and Miles and Richt and Spurrier and Kiffin and Petrino and Nutt and Johnson.

No conference can match that lineup when it comes to coaching ability, charisma and endlessly-entertaining arrogance.

(Notice I didn’t include Chizik.)

Reason No. 2: 37,936.

That’s the average attendance for the 12 just-completed spring games, and it includes the 1,000 who showed up at Vanderbilt.

Tennessee and Florida both drew over 50,000 fans. Alabama checked in with 84,050.

(Yes, yes, yes: I realize Ohio State drew something like 95,000 for its spring game. But until the Buckeyes come close to hanging with an SEC school/USC on the field, it doesn’t matter if they pack 200,000 into Ohio Stadium in April or October. They’re a pretender.)

Reason No. 1: TV contracts.

Last summer, the conference announced separate 15-year deals with ESPN and CBS (for football and men’s hoops) worth more than $3 billion combined. That breaks down to almost $20 million per school per year in TV money alone.

Add the revenue generated from BCS games and all those ticket sales, and money will be less-than-zero object for the SEC schools when it comes to paying coaches in the coming decade.

My guess is that within two or three seasons, either Meyer or Saban will sign a deal worth more than $7 million a year.

The post Five reasons the SEC rules college football (in case you need convincing) appeared first on College Hotline.


Viewing all articles
Browse latest Browse all 10

Latest Images

Trending Articles





Latest Images