No one needs validation more than Big Ten fans. After decades of being the SEC's little brother they have finally gotten a small taste of success, and instead of enjoying that success they constantly beg for the approval from their big brother the SEC.
Georgia head coach Kirby Smart decided earlier this week to give them a little recognition for the mini run they are currently on. He was asked what has led to the Big Ten finally winning and outperforming the SEC, and he gave an honest answer.
But there's a good chance that Big Ten fans aren't going to be happy with his response.
“Now, the other theory is, and this is one nobody likes to hear, is a lot of SEC coaches say this in my meetings,” Smart said via on3.com. “They say, ‘They don’t have the grind we do. There’s no way. They play three of their nine games are hard. Their bottom four games are not our bottom four games.’ … So there is a theory that we’re beating each other up, and it’s like the intensity, and it wears you down.”
Kirby Smart doesn't think the Big Ten faces the same challenge that the SEC does
Big ten schools just don’t play the same schedules that the SEC does. The best teams in the Big Ten are just as talented as the best in the SEC, no one can deny that, but the middle of the pack and teams at the bottom of the standings are far better in the SEC.
Smart believes that Big Ten teams get to take half their games off because of how bad some of their opponents are. That just doesn’t exist in the SEC. So when it comes time for the playoff the Big Ten teams are well rested while the SEC teams are still licking their wounds after their gauntlet schedule.
Big Ten fans will say this isn’t true, but the data supports Smart’s claims. Last year SEC teams made up 16 of the 17 most difficult schedules in the country. The one team in the top 17 that wasn’t from the SEC? Wisconsin who just so happened to play a road game at Alabama.
Big Ten fans have the right to brag right now, they’ve won a national title three years in a row and that is worth celebrating. But the SEC is still the best conference in the country and Smart thankfully isn’t afraid to say it.
And once Smart wins another national title then they won't be able to say anything again.
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