Nick Saban isn’t buying the idea that a few trophies automatically settle the debate over college football’s best conference.
On a recent edition of ESPN’s "Get Up," the seven-time national champion head coach and current ESPN College GameDay analyst pushed back on the notion that the Big Ten has overtaken the SEC simply because Michigan, Ohio State and Indiana have won national championships in the last three years.
"First of all, whoever wins a national championship doesn't define who has the best conference. I think the best conference gets defined by how many good teams you have from top to bottom, and I think the SEC has a lot of good teams from top to bottom," Saban said. "Last year, we had five teams in the playoff in the SEC, which says there's pretty good depth in this league."
That’s the heart of Saban’s case: depth matters more than headline wins at the top. And when you look beyond the marquee programs, the SEC’s argument gets a lot sturdier.
Arkansas and Purdue both finished 2025 at 2-10 overall, but their seasons told very different stories. The Razorbacks dropped six of their 10 games by six points or fewer, including blown chances against Ole Miss and Memphis, a failed fourth-down try on a potential tying drive against Mississippi State and a missed go-ahead field goal at LSU with five minutes left.
Purdue had its own near miss, coughing up a potential game-winning drive against Rutgers in the final minute. But its other two one-score losses, against Minnesota and Michigan, were far less competitive than most of Arkansas’ narrow defeats.
The same kind of contrast showed up when comparing how the Big Ten’s playoff teams were tested versus the SEC’s. Indiana and Oregon both escaped scares at Penn State, though the Nittany Lions still finished with a bowl win.
Meanwhile, SEC teams were grinding through far more dangerous bottom-half opponents. South Carolina pushed both Alabama and Texas A&M to the edge, and Texas A&M trailed the Gamecocks by 27 points at home. Auburn’s offense struggled badly, but its defense still made life difficult for Alabama, Georgia, Oklahoma and Texas A&M.
Florida also gave Georgia a tight game in its first outing after parting ways with Billy Napier, and that result ended up costing Texas a College Football Playoff spot just weeks before Florida fired Napier.
In Other News...
Arkansas Suffers Two Brutal Early Losses Before Fall Camp
Arkansas is already dealing with an early camp setback on the defensive side, with coach Ryan Silverfield confirming that two incoming pieces will not be part of the 2026 season. The news trims depth before fall practice even gets rolling, and it comes at a time when the Razorbacks were hoping to sort through new faces and build some stability up front.
There is at least a little better news elsewhere on the roster, since defensive transfers Braydon Lee and Phoenix Jackson are expected to be available for fall practice. Even so, losing help on the line and in the kicking game before camp puts more pressure on Arkansas to find answers quickly, and it leaves the staff with a thinner margin for error as preparations begin. [Read more 🡒]
Arkansas Finally Got A Big Camp Update That Changes The QB Drama
Arkansas finally has a clearer picture of how its quarterback competition will unfold, even if the answer is still a long way from settled. Ryan Silverfield said the battle between KJ Jackson and AJ Hill is going to run deep into training camp, which fits the reality of a team trying to sort out its most important position while also getting a new roster through a compressed summer schedule.
The timing matters because camp is already shorter than usual with fall classes starting Aug. 17, and the Razorbacks are trying to make every rep count. Silverfield also offered some encouraging injury news on Braydon Lee and Phoenix Jackson, both of whom are expected to be ready for preseason work, but the update was not entirely clean after JLynn Allen was ruled out for the season. [Read more 🡒]
Ryan Silverfield Sent Arkansas Fans A Blunt Message At SEC Media Days
Ryan Silverfield used SEC Media Days to make one thing clear to Arkansas fans: he does not walk into the job as a stranger to the leagues coaching circle. The new Razorbacks head coach pointed to his success against current SEC head coaches from his time at Memphis, a rsum that included multiple wins over familiar names and only one setback, while also noting that his teams were 2-2 against SEC opponents overall.
For Arkansas, the backdrop matters because Silverfields Memphis teams already left a mark on the program in last seasons wild 31-30 comeback win over the Razorbacks. Now he is trying to turn that track record into something bigger in Fayetteville, with the season opener against North Alabama set for Sept. 5 and the early test of how quickly his blunt confidence translates into results. [Read more 🡒]