SIAP...but this is a good article from The Athletic that points out some nightmare scenarios for the SEC with possibilities of multiple ties at the end of the season and no real fair way to break them.
If there are ties for picking the top two teams to play in the SEC Championship (a real possibility) ...might a team be better off NOT playing in the SEC Title Game? It's certainly possible.
"The operating assumption is the loser of the SEC championship game is still a shoo-in, having been good enough to be one of the conference’s top two teams. But what if they’re not?
One need only examine some of the schedules above to come up with plausible scenarios: LSU going 7-1 in conference but losing its opener to Southern California and getting creamed in the SEC title game; Missouri going in 7-1, the one loss a decisive one at Alabama, then also getting beaten badly by its opponent in the SEC championship.
Would 11-2 in that scenario, if there aren’t many quality wins, still be enough — especially if other SEC teams are only 10-2 but played harder schedules?"
There's a good reason the SEC STILL hasn't announced the criteria and tiebreakers for selecting it's top-two teams for the SEC Championship Game...it's going to be a nightmare!
FULL ARTICLE: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5672541/2024/08/01/sec-football-standings-tiebreakers/
If there are ties for picking the top two teams to play in the SEC Championship (a real possibility) ...might a team be better off NOT playing in the SEC Title Game? It's certainly possible.
"The operating assumption is the loser of the SEC championship game is still a shoo-in, having been good enough to be one of the conference’s top two teams. But what if they’re not?
One need only examine some of the schedules above to come up with plausible scenarios: LSU going 7-1 in conference but losing its opener to Southern California and getting creamed in the SEC title game; Missouri going in 7-1, the one loss a decisive one at Alabama, then also getting beaten badly by its opponent in the SEC championship.
Would 11-2 in that scenario, if there aren’t many quality wins, still be enough — especially if other SEC teams are only 10-2 but played harder schedules?"
There's a good reason the SEC STILL hasn't announced the criteria and tiebreakers for selecting it's top-two teams for the SEC Championship Game...it's going to be a nightmare!
FULL ARTICLE: https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5672541/2024/08/01/sec-football-standings-tiebreakers/
