Football conference switchers may rake in dough, but championships are far from guaranteed | Strange

There are several reasons for college football teams jumping from one conference to another. There’s money. And, well, money.

We know by now that geographical logic clearly isn’t in the discussion.

And if winning football championships in the new conference is a prime motivation, I’d suggest thinking twice.

Texas and Oklahoma, I’m talking to you.

For all the high-profile conference allegiance switching of the past 30 or so years, only one school has truly found a soft landing. Florida State dominated the ACC from the day it moved in.

From 1992 through 2005, the Seminoles won or shared 12 of 14 ACC titles. Then Virginia Tech arrived. And Clemson muscled up. Florida State is still a player, but last fall’s ACC title was its first since 2014.

Miami joined the ACC in 2004. Titles won? Same number as Nobel Prizes or World Cups. Virginia Tech fared better, four titles early on, but none since 2010.

Nebraska was a powerhouse. Until it left the Big 12 to join the Big Ten in 2011.

Here come the Longhorns − and the Sooners. Will either newly minted SEC program have a shot at a conference championship? The history among league-switchers is not very promising.

The Huskers made the Big Ten championship game in 2012 only to get steamrolled by Wisconsin. Nebraska hasn’t been in even Hail Mary range of a title since.

We’ll get back to the other conferences in a bit. First, let’s discuss the toughest league of them all to win a championship.

When – or if – Texas or Oklahoma wins an SEC football championship it will be historic. None of the four previous expandees has done so.

Arkansas and South Carolina each have 32 years of SEC history. Neither has a title. Both Texas A&M and Missouri are kicking off their 12th season in the league. Any space in the trophy case reserved for an SEC football championship sits empty still.

I…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/football-conference-switchers-may-rake-090655213.html

Author : Knox News | The Knoxville News-Sentinel

Publish date : 2024-07-17 09:06:55

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