18-13-6

[Hacksaw]

Who do you cheer for in the NFL?

You might as well ask about tennis or water polo. It's totally different. In the NFL, all you have to do is win. In the college game there are committees of people whose job it is to determine your team's worthiness based on subjective criteria. You need every advantage you can get to be considered for a prestigious bowl game or a playoff slot. Strength of schedule factors in heavily. You have to beat good teams to be viewed as a good team. And most of the games you play are conference games. So if your conference opponents are not respected, then it's unlikely that your team will be. It's really not that complicated.

 

[Hacksaw]

Its unbelievably retarded to cheer for the schools to win that your team is directly competing against for the best recruits.

This is the best argument for rooting against other SEC teams in non-conference games. And it's absurd. We should hope LSU loses, because they are in competition with us for recruits? So Clemson is NOT in competition with us for recruits?

 

[TnVol!]

I dont ever want our league to be weak. When the Vols win the league its meaningful because the league is so strong. Unlike Oklahoma who wins their league every year and gets their ass kicked in the playoff. Go Vols and Go SEC!!!!

 

[17Vols]

Does anyone here wear an SEC t-shirt or have the SEC logo bumper sticker? I’ll hang up and listen

 

[BigOrangeAl 1979]

Rooting for the conference is unbelievably stupid. Notre Dame vs Bama I’m rolling with the Irish. Penn St. vs Florida I’m a Nittany lion and so on you get the point. I pull for one team in the SEC and that’s the Vols and screw the rest. It does not benefit us at all when our rivals are winning big and getting rings. How did Florida winning nattys in 2006 and 2008 help us? How did Bama winning 5 national titles since 2009 help us ? I’ll wait................

 

[TC 83]

All I really want is to have players whose DNA has been spliced with genetic material from Mellivora capensis. Everything else will take care of itself after that.

Yeah I had to google that

 

[Billy Ratliff]

Bama, Florida and Georgia losing won't hurt the SEC as a whole and helps Tenn a whole lot.

Nah. It really doesn’t. Especially now that we have early signing day it’s pretty much a zero effect thing.

 

[VolFan_N_NC]

You forgot 2016 Battle at Bristol Champions and overall Champions of Life, your very own Tennessee Volunteers!

 

[Billy Ratliff]

Because we're in and of the South. Its us against them. We fight for each other.

A lot of SEC “pride” does stem from this imo. The South has historically been the stepchild of the rest of the nation, especially during the long period when (Northeast) media controlled much of the national perception of CFB teams b/c ppl couldn’t watch for themselves on TV. Voting for polls and bowl placement was by media. Even in the modern era the SEC did not get the respect it now commands - remember undefeated AU getting snubbed? All this was much more important prior to the playoff system and the “sunshine” universal TV coverage brings. Media voters had zero accountability and southern teams often got screwed. Nowadays everyone knows we have the best FB and hate the constant threat of two SEC teams in the playoff. But bowl season usually reinforces that respect and imo still helps the conference teams as a whole. OTOH SEC BB gets very little respect and ncaa bubble teams rarely get the benefit of the doubt.

 

[LAVol1]

In the PAC-12, you see what happens when USC and UCLA are down. You see what happens in the Big12 when Texas is down..

Can you remember when UCLA was up? I'm 68 and I can't. It's been mainly USC and Oregon for quite a while, with Stanford up in recent years.

 

[Orange_Crush]

6 different SEC teams have played for a Natty. 5 different SEC teams have won a Natty over the past 25 years.

Consider that in 2017, it was UGA VS Bama, so it was impossible for that to be 6 of 6 (I guess, unless UGA had gotten back and won, but... It's UGA. They have Richt V2.0.)

 

[1Big_Orange_Fan]

You should pull for YOUR TEAM. It benefits UT if FLA, UGA, and Bama all sucks. The other SEC teams as well. What does pulling for your conference gets you?

I agree, I've sat on my bum all day watch Bama, AU, and UGA games just in case one of them can lose. I want them to lose every game.

 

[1Big_Orange_Fan]

Can you remember when UCLA was up? I'm 68 and I can't. It's been mainly USC and Oregon for quite a while, with Stanford up in recent years.

Last time UCLA was up was in '98 if I recall. They were undefeated at the end of the year but got beat at Miami the same day we beat MS State in the SEC championship because that game had been postponed from early in the year due to a hurricane (Andrew maybe?). The thought back then was that Miami got much better as the year went on and that hurricane kept UCLA from playing us for the natty.

 

[firedog28]

You heard what Dabo said after their win , To God be the Glory. So I guess that God almighty is a Clemson Tiger now.How can you recruit against that!!!

 

[R481967]

Actually it does benefit UT if these other SEC teams win, MONEY FROM BOWL PAYOUT. The SEC gets a portion of the bowl payouts and distributes between all teams in the conference.

I predict flames for rational thought

 

[R481967]

Seeing as how a lot of our politics is divided on geographical lines, in a lot of respects it's 2020 and in a lot of respects it's still 1865.

I have to admit that I am less than thrilled about seeing folks up North screw up their states up North, leave to come down South where it's better (for a reason) and proceed to try to vote in and implement the same crap down here that screwed things up in the North. Makes me a little unhappy with the folks from the North.

So, yeah. Some things have changed. Some things stay the same.

I apologize for sending this thread off the rails.

Let me begin by saying that I HATE HATE HATE the Gators... but this post has truth oozing out of every word.

 

[R481967]

You forgot 2016 Battle at Bristol Champions and overall Champions of Life, your very own Tennessee Volunteers!

Brick by brick? Glad we won!

 

[Raebo]

Actually it does benefit UT if these other SEC teams win, MONEY FROM BOWL PAYOUT. The SEC gets a portion of the bowl payouts and distributes between all teams in the conference.

It does not matter who wins. The winning and losing team/conference gets the same amount. For the Championship, Oklahoma gets the same payout as whoever wins the championship.

 

[Hacksaw]

A lot of SEC “pride” does stem from this imo. The South has historically been the stepchild of the rest of the nation, especially during the long period when (Northeast) media controlled much of the national perception of CFB teams b/c ppl couldn’t watch for themselves on TV. Voting for polls and bowl placement was by media. Even in the modern era the SEC did not get the respect it now commands - remember undefeated AU getting snubbed? All this was much more important prior to the playoff system and the “sunshine” universal TV coverage brings. Media voters had zero accountability and southern teams often got screwed. Nowadays everyone knows we have the best FB and hate the constant threat of two SEC teams in the playoff. But bowl season usually reinforces that respect and imo still helps the conference teams as a whole. OTOH SEC BB gets very little respect and ncaa bubble teams rarely get the benefit of the doubt.

This. All day long. This is the logical, reality-based perspective. And it's so obvious that only a completely emotion-based perspective can blot it out.

 

[ScottyP5]

You might as well ask about tennis or water polo. It's totally different. In the NFL, all you have to do is win. In the college game there are committees of people whose job it is to determine your team's worthiness based on subjective criteria. You need every advantage you can get to be considered for a prestigious bowl game or a playoff slot. Strength of schedule factors in heavily. You have to beat good teams to be viewed as a good team. And most of the games you play are conference games. So if your conference opponents are not respected, then it's unlikely that your team will be. It's really not that complicated.

My point is, is that if you’re a Falcons fan, and the Saints are in the playoffs, you’re sure as hell not rooting for them to win.

 

[rikberry31]

Can you remember when UCLA was up? I'm 68 and I can't. It's been mainly USC and Oregon for quite a while, with Stanford up in recent years.

They were good a couple years in the 80’s with Troy Aikman.

 

[Hacksaw]

My point is, is that if you’re a Falcons fan, and the Saints are in the playoffs, you’re sure as hell not rooting for them to win.

Right. That's because there's no benefit to the Falcons if the Saints win. CFB is different, because committees evaluate teams and decide who gets bowl berths and playoff seeds. And they take strength of opponents into account when making their decisions. And most of our opponents are within our own conference.

 

[ScottyP5]

Right. That's because there's no benefit to the Falcons if the Saints win. CFB is different, because committees evaluate teams and decide who gets bowl berths and playoff seeds. And they take strength of opponents into account when making their decisions. And most of our opponents are within our own conference.

So Georgia winning last night, that helps Tennessee tonight? That’s all I’m saying, when Bowl season rolls around, I don’t see the “need” to root for Georgia, Florida, Bama....etc. I will be rooting for LSU though only because I hate Clemson. I’m from SC

 

[hog88]

Right. That's because there's no benefit to the Falcons if the Saints win. CFB is different, because committees evaluate teams and decide who gets bowl berths and playoff seeds. And they take strength of opponents into account when making their decisions. And most of our opponents are within our own conference.

If you win the SEC you are in the playoffs so pulling for our fellow SEC rivals doesn't make any difference.

 

[Hacksaw]

So Georgia winning last night, that helps Tennessee tonight? That’s all I’m saying, when Bowl season rolls around, I don’t see the “need” to root for Georgia, Florida, Bama....etc. I will be rooting for LSU though only because I hate Clemson. I’m from SC

Just so we're clear, I don't root for the other SEC teams. And I enjoy the hell out of it when they lose. But I am aware that it's the emotional side of me that causes that reaction.

Georgia winning last night does NOT help us tonight. But more SEC teams winning their non-conference match-ups (including bowl games) enhances the reputation of the SEC as a quality football conference. Let's say we have a great 2020 season and finish with one loss and a top 5 ranking. Being in the SEC increases our chances for one of the four playoff seeds. That's why the SEC is always among the four teams, while the Pac-12 has only been represented twice.