SEC Bias discussion

[streettopeschel]

Yes, the Big 12 screwed the pooch on that. 100% agree. They had multiple opportunities in September to end the SEC dominance and couldn't do it. But the transitive property of "Well this one game with this one team that lost means EVERYONE in the Big 12 is WORSE than everyone in the SEC" is nonsense.

that's a strawman Chris. nobody has said that. the sec DOES have some crap teams. much of the east is crap. 

 

[streettopeschel]

One question for ya.

ESPN was behind both the LHN and SEC Network.

We got L. Gallindo.

They got virtually the whole ESPN staff.

You sink your money into your priorities. ESPN/LHN is a control thing, meanwhile they are able to more freely do what they want over at the SEC.

you sink your money into your best ROI. at least i do.

the sec network appeals to 14 fan bases several of which have at least a puncher's chance of winning the conference.  

LHN appeals to one fanbase and that one is a little numb after 5 years of mediocrity or worse. we're lucky they're not just running a test pattern on LHN these days. 

besides...you want finebaum and tebow over galindo?

 

[SFlonghorngirl]

I have no conference bias but do watch tons of college football. The top tier of SEC is by far superior than any conference. I have no issues if 2 teams from SEC make the playoffs. Hell, no issues if 3 make the playoffs this year.

As far as depth from 1 - 12, the PAC 12 has the deepest conference.

Who would win on neutral field?

Miss St vs TCU

Alabama vs Baylor

Auburn vs Kansas St

Ole Miss vs West Virgina

Miss St vs Oregon

Alabama vs Arizona

Auburn vs Arizona St

Ole Miss vs UCLA

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

Even the Rolling Stone is catching on to #SECbias

http://www.rollingstone.com/culture/features/the-worldwide-cheerleader-espn-and-the-college-football-playoff-20141028

 

[streettopeschel]

Rolling Stone is to football discussion what Lukus Alderman is to movie reviews.

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

Rolling Stone is to football discussion what Lukus Alderman is to movie reviews.

Maybe, but do you put much stock into Finebaum's and Musberger's opinions?  Did you read the article?

 

[Sirhornsalot]

I have no conference bias but do watch tons of college football. The top tier of SEC is by far superior than any conference. I have no issues if 2 teams from SEC make the playoffs. Hell, no issues if 3 make the playoffs this year.

As far as depth from 1 - 12, the PAC 12 has the deepest conference.

Who would win on neutral field?

Miss St vs TCU

Alabama vs Baylor

Auburn vs Kansas St

Ole Miss vs West Virgina

Miss St vs Oregon

Alabama vs Arizona

Auburn vs Arizona St

Ole Miss vs UCLA

Agree, although I think you're a Pac 12 girl. 

The thing is, we can't really answer those questions because of the poor scheduling the SEC does. Their position is that their conference is so tough, they have to schedule these second and third tier teams to even it out.

Again, fortifying their position by using their position to do it based on the false assumption that there are no tougher teams than the SEC.

Yet, almost every time we see a Big 12-SEC matchup of fairness, it's a track meet that the SEC loses.

I'm not convinced the top tier of the SEC is the best in the land. They're good, no doubt. But I happen to think either of Oregon or Baylor would take them down, perhaps even TCU. Miss State - jury is still out but they appear to be legit. Ole Miss? Can't be losing to LSU and making them look like they have an offense.

Auburn? paper tiger. But again, a threat to traditionals like Bama because of the offense they can't seem to stop.

 

[LHornjack]

Didn't I read somewhere recently that the "weak" Big 10 had a 17-15 Bowl Record against the SEC..Know they have been blown out in the "Big" games, but if true.....doesn't that say that the conference overall maybe overated...

If not true, please correct me..

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

Of course, one should tip his or her hat to the SEC West for going unbeaten in its games against Power 5 opponents. All four of them. There are some nice wins in there, such as Auburn winning at Kansas State and Alabama (the mightiest of the mighty, and the measuring stick that tells us that the SEC is much better as a whole than all else) did hang on to beat West Virginia. LSU also beat Wisconsin, which is clearly one of the better teams in football's France this season. (The fourth was Arkansas winning at Tech.)

Yes, the SEC West won all four of the games it scheduled against Power 5 foes. That was four non-conference games out of 28 scheduled by the division. Four out of 28.

We note their unflinching bravery in the face of such non-conference scheduling fury.

https://kansasstate.rivals.com/content.asp?CID=1698267

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

— Twitter API (@twitterapi) November 7, 2011

 

[J.B. TexasEx]

This satirical script of ESPN's "College Game Day from East Lansing" is pretty damn funny!

http://www.elevenwarriors.com/college-football/2014/10/42559/first-look-espn-college-gameday-in-east-lansing-ohio-state-michigan-state

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

I have no conference bias but do watch tons of college football. The top tier of SEC is by far superior than any conference. I have no issues if 2 teams from SEC make the playoffs. Hell, no issues if 3 make the playoffs this year.

As far as depth from 1 - 12, the PAC 12 has the deepest conference.

Who would win on neutral field?

Miss St vs TCU

Alabama vs Baylor

Auburn vs Kansas St

Ole Miss vs West Virgina

Miss St vs Oregon

Alabama vs Arizona

Auburn vs Arizona St

Ole Miss vs UCLA

3 SEC teams? Is that a serious statement? Why does the rest of the CFB world even play if nothing they ever do will be good enough... Hypotheticals don't matter and every body wants to play the "who would win game." Answer, nobody knows until they actually play on the field. So giving the SEC all this hypothetical cred is ridiculous IMO.

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

Anybody that says there is no SEC bias is completely out of touch with reality... That bias is responsible for so much of the success the SEC has had. 

A commentator said it best earlier today... May have been Lugenbill... "The SEC west wants nothing to do with the SEC east." The sec east isn't even partially in the discussion about the sec, even for sec fans. 

Week 1(preseason) saw an a&m team that lost Money Manziel as well as many more to the NFL, ranked 21 AP. South Carolina was number 9 AP. NEITHER TEAM EARNED THOSE PRESEASON RANKS... a&m stomps SC and VAULTS to number 9 in this great land of ours. a&m beats up on a jr high football team the next week and goes to #7. Beats jr high team number 2 and moves to #6 in the US of A, and Kenny wants to trademark the name KENNY TRILLA. They then drop 3 straight to the first legitimate teams they played all year... And they could viably lose 3 more games. 

LSU has not looked good at all. And realistically Hugh Freeze should be fired for how he managed that LSU game. Went for it 2 times on 4th down vs kicking a FG when they were in range and what do you know, they lose by 3. To me there is something sketchy about how that game went down but that is neither here nor there. 

The thing that the SEC does better than anybody else in the country is construct their schedules... Miss St has 4 games left in the season and two of them are UT Martin. So they basically have a bye week in between them and Bama and then another bye between them and Ole miss. Oh and they didn't play a school with an actual football program until 4 weeks into the football season. Hey... maybe that makes them geniuses. But you for damn sure shouldnt get propped up as the best division out there if you orchestrate your schedule to be the easiest possible, which is what most sec west teams do. Miss St will get credit for beating 2 top ten teams(a&m and LSU) though neither are remotely close to the top ten currently. 

IMO the worst part about college ball is the preseason rankings... They give an absolutely unfair advantage to any team placed in the top 10. 

Blows my mind that the Big12 and anybody else are called a bunch of whiners because of the things going on... a&m jumped from 21 to number 9 for beating a HORRIBLE south carolina team and all KState has done since narrowly losing to Auburn(beating themselves) is win and win and win and week 10 is the first time they saw the inside of the top 10. Oh and lets not forget that Snyder is doing what he does with 1 and 2 star talent! I believe KState is coached better than any team in the nation and would put money on them vs just about any team in the country, with a week to prepare. 

I am not arguing that I would love for my Horns to be given the favor... I am a Horns fan first and a CFB fan very closely second... I just want to see these kids across the country be given the chance to compete FAIRLY without a bunch of clowns(GROWN MEN AND WOMEN) deciding their fate. I don't think that is too much to ask. I def feel the SEC west sliding so this should work itself out soon. Kiffin will be the end of Bama, Miss St and Ole Miss are one year wonders, and LSU is too young with terrible qb play. 

Thats just my 2 cents which is likely worth more like 1... Is there some emotion involved, yeah. But I can support all my arguments. Ahahaha...

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

This just in... Ole Miss loses 2 weeks in a row annnd find themselves dropped only to number 11 and ahead of several 1 loss teams that haven't lost in a while... The bias is real. To say that the committee won't be influenced by what ESPN pumps nonstop is just naive...

 

[streettopeschel]

yawn to sec bias influencing the panel. they have ADs from every conference plus folks who have no reason to put SEC teams in there. it's not an espn panel. y'all know that right?

i'd ask again...is jeff sagarin's computer subject to espn sec bias?


ole miss lost an excruciatingly close game to the #3 team and fell out of the playoff to 11. that doesn't seem unreasonable to the non-paranoid.


let it play out. i'll bet no more than 1 sec team is in the final 4. fsu is a virtual given. they won't get beat. i don't see oregon getting beat either. that's 2. tcu is in great shape and i expect them to run the table. that will be 3. the sec west is a circular firing squad and only one will survive. 

and then 'conspiracy-guy' will be forced into retirement.

 

[BevoBlake]

yawn to sec bias influencing the panel. they have ADs from every conference plus folks who have no reason to put SEC teams in there. it's not an espn panel. y'all know that right?

i'd ask again...is jeff sagarin's computer subject to espn sec bias?

ole miss lost an excruciatingly close game to the #3 team and fell out of the playoff to 11. that doesn't seem unreasonable to the non-paranoid.

let it play out. i'll bet no more than 1 sec team is in the final 4. fsu is a virtual given. they won't get beat. i don't see oregon getting beat either. that's 2. tcu is in great shape and i expect them to run the table. that will be 3. the sec west is a circular firing squad and only one will survive. 

and then 'conspiracy-guy' will be forced into retirement.

I'm not concerned with how the bias effects the panel. Like you, I don't think it will be that impactful. What I am concerned about is the way ESPN is able to affect recruiting with their bias coverage, reports and rankings. When the biggest sports network on television and radio is force-feeding SEC Greatness down the throats of young recruits, they begin to develop a mindset. Allow me to plug V for Vendetta for a second:

We are told to remember the idea, not the man, because a man can fail. He can be caught, he can be killed and forgotten, but 400 years later, an idea can still change the world. I've witnessed first hand the power of ideas, I've seen people kill in the name of them, and die defending them...

An idea is an incredibly dangerous thing and the ESPN network is putting this idea into young athletes heads all over the country. It's one of those "start telling a lie enough and you'll start to believe it yourself" kind of things. 

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

Its not a matter of it being an ESPN panel... No matter what your beliefs are, the media prior to the new system and the current media have an influence on the voters. ONE conference gets total love. Kinda hard to look past that... No matter who you are. Whether you are for the SEC or not its hard to look past that. 

Final second losses happen weekly... Ole Miss lost two games in a row. One of those to the 24th ranked team. Its not paranoia if it legitimate. There aren't many teams that could lose to a barely ranked team and still stay that far in the mix. At least I've never seen it...

However, I think you are correct... I don't foresee any more than one sec team making it. Its interesting that the only "circular firing" squad is mentioned is the sec's... At this point in the season, if a team loses, the likelihood is that its to a conference foe. 

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

I'm not concerned with how the bias effects the panel. Like you, I don't think it will be that impactful. What I am concerned about is the way ESPN is able to affect recruiting with their bias coverage, reports and rankings. When the biggest sports network on television and radio is force-feeding SEC Greatness down the throats of young recruits, they begin to develop a mindset. Allow me to plug V for Vendetta for a second:

An idea is an incredibly dangerous thing and the ESPN network is putting this idea into young athletes heads all over the country. It's one of those "start telling a lie enough and you'll start to believe it yourself" kind of things. 

 My exact point... Well said! Cant tell me 15-18 year old kids aren't heavily influenced by the bias.

 

[Bevostuntdouble]

If the bias were something that just effected this season then it is what it is... But the SEC bias is so much further reaching than that.

 

[streettopeschel]

look at the list of voters and tell me who is most likely to be influenced by an sec-biased media. condi rice? barry alvarez? tom osborne? pat haden? the ad of clemson? the former pres of the ncaa who was an oregon grad? the former superintendent of the AF academy? ty willingham? i'm forgetting a couple.

there's one sec rep...the ad from arky. the one guy who might have been biased, archie manning, pulled out

a good conspiracy needs a motive. not much motive for the folks above to stack the deck with sec teams. just the opposite actually.