clock menu more-arrow no yes mobile

Filed under:

The SEC Should Have More Good Teams Than the Big 12

This kind of math isn't even the hard kind.

By David Wunderlich
Jamie Squire

Gary Pinkel said something on the SEC coaches' teleconference today that was sure to get some people worked up:

And sure enough, it did:

How you define "a lot" and "good teams" will determine how much you agree with Pinkel (or not), but Matter is right. At present, seven SEC teams are in the top 16 of the BCS. The Big 12 has only two in the top 16. Even as some SEC teams fall out of there from playing each other more (MSU and A&M, talking to you here), the conference will still have more teams up that high than the Big 12 will at the end of the year.

This shouldn't be too big of a deal, given that the SEC has 14 teams versus the Big 12's ten. Take a broader view of what "good team" could mean beyond just the top 16 of the polls.

Let's say by a more generic definition of "good teams" that 60% of both of the SEC and Big 12 count as good. Rounding down for the former, that means the SEC has eight good teams versus six for the latter. That's only two teams different, but it would mean the SEC has 33% more good teams than the Big 12 does. That might count as "a lot" more for some people. Even if the SEC was composed of 50% good teams versus 60% for the Big 12, the SEC still comes out ahead at seven good teams versus six. That's not "a lot more" by any definition, but it shows the margin of error that the larger league has.

Both the SEC and Big 12 are good this year. I can't imagine anyone arguing with that point, particularly in comparison to the mediocre ACC, the rapidly crumbling Pac-12, and the horror show that is the Big Ten. The SEC does have more good teams, though, primarily because it has more teams, period. There really shouldn't be anyone getting worked up over Pinkel's statement today.

More From Team Speed Kills