Conference realignment is much like the sports they’re trying to organize. There are winners and there are losers. Even with Southern California and UCLA under contract, the Big Ten is still losing to the SEC, which will meet in Atlanta for its annual SEC Media Days next week.
The Big Ten’s strategy of cornering television markets to make more cash in the short term only makes the SEC stronger. Why? Regional integrity. The SEC is thinking about their future in 10 or 20 years. The Big Ten is thinking about its next television contract, which should be announced any day now.
Philosophically, the two conferences couldn’t be any further apart. The SEC is Socrates. The Big Ten is Beavis. Eventually, the Big Ten will erode the very foundation they are built on. In fact, that may have already occurred.
What about recruiting?
The lifeblood of any college sport is recruiting. Tennessee fans know that more than anyone. They’ve seen the Vols come from Powell High School, California and, even, Australia to improve Tennessee’s football program. Well, it might be time to hit up Cali again, especially the Los Angeles area.
I challenge you to find one young football prospect in the L.A. area that knows what a Rutgers is, as a Tennessee player once famously asked. Do you think that those prospects from California want to travel across the nation for an undisclosed amount of times each year to play conference opponents that are two or three time zones away? It’s time for Tennessee and every other school to start hitting up Southern California.
California prospects have always been more willing to leave their home state. That desire should only increase in the L.A. area now that playing in a completely foreign conference is inevitable.
Unless Elon Musk develops a sustainable, supersonic jet to travel across the U.S., the Big Ten is just too spread out.
Travel woes
Tennessee tight end Jacob Warren addressed conference realignment during his appearance on The Vol Report. Warren was clear; travel would have been a concern had he been a USC or UCLA prospect in L.A.
“I’ve flown to the west coast three times and it’s not a very fun flight” the 6-foot-5, 250-pounder said. “I’m happy we don’t have to deal with it.”
Warren said that the SEC’s normal flights are all two hours or less, meaning they’re manageable even for big guys. The Trojans and Bruins could spend more time on one plane trip than a current SEC team does all season.
Yet there’s another issue for L.A. prospects to consider. No one knows what the schedule is going to look like. It’s quite possible that USC or UCLA would have to play at noon EST, which would be 9 a.m. PST.
A cross-country trip with an early-morning football game can wreak havoc on an athlete’s body clock.
“That bring on a whole other thing,” Warren said. “You have to perform after being on those flights. It’s not like you’re getting the best rest of your life.”
What’s next?
It wouldn’t be a bad thing if the SEC just rested on its laurels when it comes to conference expansion. Why add other teams just because the Big Ten and Southern California are all desperate for more television money so they are making rash decisions?
There’s a big difference between the SEC adding Texas and Oklahoma, as they did this time last year. Adding two teams from 2,000 miles away with very different playing styles like USC and UCLA just doesn’t make any sense for either party.
There has been talk about the SEC adding more schools. However, they’ve all been in or close to the southeast. Oregon hasn’t slipped into the conversation even once. That’s because the SEC doesn’t need to add television markets. The SEC just wants to maintain and improve an already strong product.
Now, I’m certainly not ruling out that a surprise announcement could be forthcoming during SEC Media Days next week. After all, that’s when the Texas and Oklahoma news broke last year. However, I’m not expecting anyone to have to stop the digital presses. Why should the SEC add more teams when they’re already winning?
