Tuesday, February 16, 2010

Can the SEC handle two Death Valleys?

It's all just silly talk right now, but let's say this conference shuffling really heats up and Arkansas leaves for the Big 12. Who would you want to bring in? Drop us a line and/or vote in our poll.


Here's how the divisions might shake out if Clemson were in:

EASTERN
Clemson
Florida
Georgia
South Carolina
Tennessee
Vanderbilt

WESTERN
Alabama
Auburn
Kentucky
LSU
Miss. State
Ole Miss

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Virginia Tech makes more sense than Clemson. They would bring in a much bigger TV market.

Unknown said...

Hold on there! What sort of craziness is this? Arkansas leaving SEC?? No way!!!! I am a native Arkansan, ex-Charlottean and I can PROMISE you Arkansas will NEVER go to the Big 12. The state would revolt. We DETESTED the old Southwest Confernce and danced in the streets when we entered the SEC. AR fans chant SEC at every opportunity and we get more money by being in the SEC. Plus, I live in Fayetteville and and work at the University. There have been no rumors reported about it over here.

Anonymous said...

Georgia Tech was in the SEC for a long time. So was Tulane. I double GT would want back in and the SEC wouldn't want Tulane. I doubt Fl. St would want to leave the conference they built, Clemson would make geographic sense but would we want them? Miami would make sense but would they want to leave?

And I agree, I don't really think Arkansas would leave for the Big 12. More likely the B12 would add TCU, BYU, Utah, or all of the above (while dropping dead weight like Baylor).

Anonymous said...

the rumor in chapel hill is that Butch Davis is pushing like crazy to get UNC in the SEC. Seriously.

Rob Cheney said...

I would respectfully disagree that VT makes more sense than Clemson because of its TV market. If there's anything that the ACC expansion debacle has shown, it's that relatively small-market schools like 'Bama, Auburn, Tennessee, and even South Carolina are very profitable for their conferences. Much moreso than BC or Miami are. It turns out that a huge, rabid fan and alumni base is what makes $$$. Not so much the TV market they sit in.

Fanbases that travel across the country for a bowl game. Fans that sell 50000 tickets for spring scrimmages. No matter how good or bad the team is. As it happens, I think VT has alot of that. But I think Clemson does, too. Plus, with Clemson, you capitalize on their natural, intense rivalry with South Carolina.

Anonymous said...

Anything that brings Kentucky into the SEC West is fine with me. Yeah, they beat us last year, but I'd love to make them regret it for about 50 years in a row.

But would we really want an ACC school in the SEC? Any of them? Georgia Tech & Clemson make the most sense, as they already have arch-rivals in the SEC. But again, there is not a single football program in the ACC that is any better than Vanderbilt.

Anonymous said...

Arkansas is NOT going to leave the SEC. This is a stupid rumor with no basis, period. Now, I would vote that we kick out USC-E and replace them with Clemson. Ark has been much more successful than USC-E (3 football championship appearances, SEC titles in B-Ball, and a B-Ball National Championship). We should have taken Clemson during the first expansion.

Anonymous said...

I got a better idea. Let the SEC pull off a 4 way trade between the Big 10, Big East and the ACC. Send Kentucky to the Big 10, Penn State goes to the Big East, West Virginia to the ACC, and in return the SEC gets Clemson, with an option to trade South Carolina for Georgia Tech.

Reasons
1) Kentucky is a better fit for the Big 10
2) Penn State has never been happy being in the Big 10, really a Big East school
3) West Virginia really wants to be part of the ACC
4) Clemson's football program is SEC quality
5) South Carolina adds zero value to the SEC, other than humiliating the SEC with Papa Johns Pizza Bowl loses.