I know this has been discussed before, but now that we're facing one of the SEC giants in a bowl game, I'm hearing it like never before. I live in Georgia, which is basically owned by UGA fans as opposed to Tech (similar to OU and OSU in Oklahoma). These people hate Florida, they're rivals, yet most of these people are rooting for the Gators against OU, simply b/c of the SEC. On my way into the grocery store the other night I got a "go Gators" from a UGA fan. I was talking to a guy at Church last night and he said it's UGA first, SEC East second, then overall SEC third. What a strange mentality... Why is it the Big 12 does not have this same mentality? The Big 10 does to a certain extent (presumably b/c they have an inferiority complex) as does the PAC10 (see Big 10). However, I don't EVER recall OU or Texas starting a chant of "Big 12 South!!" or "Go Big 12!!" before, during, or after a game, yet these SEC people do it religiously. I honestly don't get it. I know there are OU fans on here that root for Texas in Bowl games (which still baffles me), but overall the "pride" of OU fans comes from rooting for OUr team; period. Overall I do like the B12 to do well (except for Texas), but I don't ever talk about the conference much and it factors very little into my sports brain. What stinks is living out here has forced me to be a B12 apologist, simply b/c EVERY person in the South that's a fan of an SEC team are also rabid SEC fans as well. I've even found myself defending Texas, which makes me hate the SEC mindset even more. I was hoping to adopt UGA as a secondary team to pull for, but with the arrogance of the SEC fan in general, I don't see how I could pull for any SEC team... Maybe Bama. They're SEC freaks as well, but much more low keyed than the rest of them. Maybe b/c out of all the SEC teams, they easily have the most historically winning program, so that might make them a little more respectable toward other programs with similar tradition.
Several reasons 1) College football is like a religion in SEC country. College basketball is nice. Pro Football is nice. Some people may like other sports.....but college football is THE thing. Its just cultural. 2) Auburn going unbeaten and defeating 4 ranked opponents....yet not getting a shot at the MNC game nor getting a share of the MNC in 04 (as U$C got in 03) sent a shockwave through the whole conference. Just the realization that such a thing could even happen....combined with the (correct) perception that ABC/ESPN would always favor U$C/ND/Meatchicken/Ohio State over an SEC team forged the bond even tighter between fanbases who often hate each other's guts otherwise. Then when the mediots tried to push Meatchicken over us despite the fact that their "quality" wins were over a Wisconsin team which beat zero ranked opponents and a ND team which beat zero ranked opponents and despite the fact that they had just lost their last game to OSU in 2006 really cemented the view that to ensure an SEC team would not again be screwed like Auburn was, the SEC needed to win big head to head matchups against other conferences. Just imagine how you would feel if it were y'all who went undefeated and then got left out. Even if it happened to say, Texas or Nebraska....just the fact that such a thing could happen might tend to push y'all toward rooting for other teams from your conference. I'm one who always roots for the SEC team in nonconference games-yes even the detested buttsniffing poodles of UGA.....who must otherwise be destroyed for the good of all mankind.
I'm not trying to be an *** here, but it will never happen. We're Oklahoma, and when we take care of our business we'll always be there in the end. What happened to Auburn in 2004 will never happen to us because we're the Oklahoma Sooners. There is no bluer blood in college football than the stuff that runs through the veins of our program. Other than getting hosed by Notre Dame eons ago, it just doesn't happen to us. We don't give a **** about the Big 12 Conference. We don't give a **** about what our 6th place team does in some crap bowl. We care about the University of Oklahoma, and ONLY the University of Oklahoma. We dominated college football when we were in the Big 8, and we're doing it again now as members of the Big 12. We'd do the same if we weren't in a conference. We're Oklahoma and, when the chips are down, we'll always be on top.
I live in Nashville, TN and I can feel your pain. Most people I work with are either Tennessee fans, or fans of another SEC school. They've been talking the last week how OU would be a mid-level team, at best, in the SEC. My reply has usually been that Tennessee could probably be a top tier team...... in the Big XII North. In the Big XII South, they would be slightly ahead of Baylor(Our Vanderbilt). Most SEC fans are idiots when it comes to reasoning. In the past, they proudly spout off about how good their teams are because they have 5-6 teams ranked at the end of the season. This year? "The SEC is so damn good, the teams just beat up on each other every game and knock each other out of the rankings." WTF??? Didn't Bama go undefeated during the season? Florida is playing in the BCS Championship game, right? The fact is the SEC had 2 good teams this year. Georgia was proven to be a fraud. Who else is there? I feel very good about OUs chances against Florida. I think we'll have a much better understanding of how each Conference matches up after their bowl games. The only thing that worries me is OUs preparation. I honestly believe we would've beaten Florida easily, had we played this past weekend. I think we all know our recent history when it comes to waiting several weeks to play a bowl game.
This pretty much sums it up. The SEC has six programs (Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Tennessee) that are consistent winners. Every other conference is dominated by the same one or two programs. It's hard to win our conference. It's even harder to make it through our conference schedule and earn a trip to the national championship game. Every national championship our conference wins adds credibility. It ensures that another 2004 Auburn doesn't happen. That's why we root for each other. In years like this one, it allows our one loss champion to surpass all the other league's one loss champions.
On a conference basis, LSU making it to the title game last year with 2 losses should make up for any previous perceived snubs, shouldn't it?
There is some truth to this in that it was easier to do to Auburn than it would be to any of the SEC's other 5 heavyweights (UF, UGA, Bama, Auburn, LSU). That said, the SEC is the only major conference that has its primary TV deal with CBS. All the others are ABC/ESPN so they have no interest in promoting a competitor's "product". That's part of it also. Plus most of the media is located in the Northeast and Midwest and it is no secret that those regions and the South have a historical grudge that goes way back.....so when the Bristol, Connecticut gang at ESPN pushes teams from the Midwest, it dredges all that up too.
I think most of the Big 12 is rooting for us....except for Texass. I would also assume that FSU and Miami may be rooting for us as well...for recruiting purposes.
BTW, everyone else is disillusioned/bored with the Big 10, too. You should save the "SEC" chant for games with them.
No arguments here, but I would say this year has not been business as usual in the SEC. Auburn, Tennessee, Georgia, and LSU all performed well below their expectations. Auburns omission from the BCS Championship game served the SEC notice that their schools need to play a tougher out of conference schedule. Did Auburn do enough during the season to warrant being a top 2 BCS team? No, they did not. Do I think they should've been in the game after watching OU and USC play? Absolutely. Since there is no playoff, you have to build a strong resume. It's easy to look back after the bowl games are played and determine if one team should've been ahead of another. Bowl matchups are usually no different than rankings during the season. Just because you're ranked #1 this week, there's no guarantees for the following week.
Quite correct about fsu and scUM....errr Miami. Both schools have a massive inferiority complex vis a vis UF which has always been the big dog in the state despite their success from the mid 80's up until about 02. Most of us may "hate" UGA but we do at least have a grudging respect for them. There is no such respect when it comes to our retarded little cross state brethren....a situation y'all can probably identify with when it comes to Oklahoma State. It wouldn't matter if they had a nice run against you for a few years or even if they gained national prominence temporarily....you would always be the big dog in Oklahoma. You would always be older, bigger, richer, better academically, have more fans, more media exposure, better facilities, etc. Same deal in Florida. In fact, both of them have completely prostituted their schools (putting up with thugs, ridiculously low academic standards, etc) for the sake of winning football games because they see it as the only way they can actually compete with UF. Therefore when dealing with the few fans they have left now that the bandwagons have emptied out, our standard response is to put on the smuggest smirk we can muster, set the condescension meter to full power and tell them they have a "nice" little team, in their little basketball conference and that they will get to play in a "nice" little bowl game-and they should be happy with this. Needless to say, this never fails to drive them insane. Again......I assume y'all do much the same with Oklahoma State.
See the thread about orange aggy. Some of our fans have a soft spot for them, but I don't really understand the concept of a second favorite team.
I remember Auburn getting crushed as well by SUC the year before. That could have played a factor. As for conference chearleading, I would absolutely cheer for SAXET over a BIG 10 Ten.. That may just be me though- but I agree we like our conference to look strong... It helps in perception. After this year though- I think my hatred for Texas is pretty deep and the mutual respect is curbed... I know it is going to be a war next year and the lines crossed are likely going to be too the point of absolute hatred at any cost..
SEC fans want to do everything they can to perpetuate the myth that the SEC conference is God's gift to college football. If their particular team doesn't achieve glory then why not live vicariously through another team? It's kind of sad. It's also a confederate state thing too. I lived in the south for many years and they still like to think of themselves as southerners first and Americans second, but not in an unpatriotic way, if that makes sense. Anytime the south one-ups any non-confederate state they get a huge woody.
