Paul Finebaum has given up on defending the SEC’s dominance in college football, but his SEC Network colleague, Peter Burns, is still fighting the good fight. Following Ohio State’s victory over Notre Dame for the national championship, the Big Ten has achieved back-to-back titles for the first time since 1942, after Michigan’s win last season. This marks a significant shift in the landscape of college football, especially in light of the new NIL rules and player mobility.
Despite recent evidence, it’s not unexpected for someone affiliated with the SEC Network to cling to the defense of their conference. Burns echoed sentiments heard prior to the playoff, when teams like Alabama, Ole Miss, and South Carolina were overlooked in favor of Indiana and SMU. Although those teams faced heavy criticism after being defeated by Notre Dame and Penn State, it’s worth noting that Indiana put up a tougher fight against Notre Dame than Georgia did.
In a post on X, Peter Burns labeled the Big Ten’s recent success as “nonsense,” attributing Michigan and Ohio State’s achievements as mere “nice outliers.” He stated:
No, The Big 10 hasn’t surpassed the SEC as a football league.
2 teams having historic runs in back-to-back seasons is a nice outlier rather than the norm.
Incredibly top-heavy league who’s had just 2 teams that have won a title in 35+ years
Stop this nonsense.
— Peter Burns (@PeterBurnsESPN) January 22, 2025
However, Burns neglects to mention that the Big Ten claimed several marquee victories over SEC teams in the postseason, finishing 5-1 against the SEC, which included Michigan’s win over Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl and USC’s triumph over Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl. When mid-tier Big Ten squads are defeating SEC teams, this undermines any claim of SEC superiority. Moreover, Ohio State’s wins against Tennessee and Texas, along with Alabama’s defeat of Michigan last year, emphasize this trend.
Even some of Burns’ ESPN coworkers, like Adam Rittenberg, who has closely followed the Big Ten, took issue with Burns’ post as it attempted to sustain the crumbling myth of the SEC’s supremacy:
Both leagues are top-heavy, PB, and the SEC still has a bit more overall depth. The thing that pisses off a lot of people is when objectively average or slightly above average SEC teams reflexively get ranked because of … what? The league’s rep? Media influence?
— Adam Rittenberg (@ESPNRittenberg) January 22, 2025
It remains to be seen if Illinois will receive the same polling favoritism that Ole Miss enjoys annually. Moreover, the SEC has witnessed notable outliers in recent years beyond the Alabama-Georgia dominance of Nick Saban and Kirby Smart, capturing five of the six SEC titles in the CFP era, with only Joe Burrow’s LSU team managing to break that cycle. Since Urban Meyer’s era, Florida has not captured a title, nor has Auburn since Cam Newton.
While one can manipulate facts to support any narrative, the reality of this year’s college football landscape cannot be denied. This doesn’t diminish the SEC’s historical greatness, nor does it preclude future dominance. Yet, for now, the Big Ten is reveling in its success. Peter Burns and others will likely continue to assert that the SEC reigns supreme where it counts most – in hypothetical matchups that they can never truly lose.
