Interesting stats from Chris Low...
- Thread starter TaterTater
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Tks, we GC fans deserve it. We have been suffering for decades minus a few good seasons. If Clemson can do it, USC can do it.
Since Saban arrived at Alabama in 2007, Florida has won a National Title, Auburn has won a National Title and played in another title game. LSU and Georgia also played in title games. What other conference comes close to matching that?
And while it is Alabama and Georgia, don’t rule out teams like LSU and Auburn. Each of those schools usually have a special season every 3-4 years.
I saw one source says Clemson’s most difficult game is against us in Columbia. Us...we are projected 6-6 or 7-5 by most. 2nd toughest, A&M at home. That says a lot about the ACC.
Look Clemson would do fine in the SEC with the team they’ve built. They are good. Nobody can really deny that. But it would’ve been much harder to build that program going up against better competition. They built that on Spiller outrunning guys bagging groceries now, and Watkins catching balls 15 yards behind Wake Forest-like secondaries. I’d love to see what we could’ve done in 2011-2013 in that conference.
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You made some good points here, both about the SEC and our rise due to the ACC not being as elite. Couple of questions though:
- Do you not agree that the Gamecocks golden years happened during what might be the worst years the SEC East has ever seen? Florida down. Tennessee down. Mizz, Kentucky, Vandy being...well, themselves? The East was powerhouses were STRUGGLING when you guys were finishing in the top 3 of it...so by discounting our success due to a weaker schedule, aren't you in turn discounting yours?
- If being in the SEC is such a recruiting advantage, and Clemson has been able to recruit the way they are while being in a "weak" conference, imagine how much more quickly we may have been able to build what we have now due to the SEC recruiting advantage? We were recruiting well before we starting winning the high profile games...
- I do think South Carolina will be out most difficult game of the year...but shouldn't you as well? Most on this board believes that you are a great team with a tough schedule that will hide it. It shouldn't surprise you that you have the greatest odds to beat us...
You are right on with your second point. Dabo has capitalized on some down years in the ACC and convinced talented players they can come to Clemson to win championships and get to the NFL. He is a hell of a salesman, which is one of his strongpoints as a coach.
To your first point, Missouri did have a couple of good years. They capitalized on the East being down more than you guys were able to. Unfortunately due to a lack of leadership at HC y’all both were unable to keep the momentum going. But we can’t on one hand say that Missouri was a great team that kept you from winning a SEC east title, and on the other discount teams like Syracuse and Miami who have each had ten win seasons in the last couple of years and could have taken the ACC from Clemson, but weren’t able too. Either bad programs can have good seasons and they not be a fluke, or all historically bad programs that have good seasons are a fluke (and just benefit from the competition being down). They may be a bit of a blanket statement, but I think you get my point in this instance?
In the end, I think we both play 5-6 difficult games a season. You play yours during the regular season (which is unfortunate for you) and we play 2-3 in the regular season, and 2-3 in the post season. IMO it all evens out, though I do understand that in some instances you have to do it in consecutive weeks, and with the current landscape of the ACC we aren't facing that challenge often.
Great conversation though!
I'm not going to disagree with the OP. I will concede that top-to-bottom, the SEC has been worse in the last three years than I have seen since we joined the conference in 1992. Our 5-3 SEC record and 2nd place finish in the East two years ago strongly support that conclusion. The ACC, on the other hand, is roughly even, or perhaps a little better, than it has always been over the same span. Clemson has largely replaced FSU at the top and there is a wide gap between #1 and #2.
The stats quoted by the OP give a slight advantage to the SEC. So, in its worst years in decades, the SEC has slipped to the point that it's only slightly better statistically than the ACC. That's what these numbers tell me.
The stats quoted by the OP give a slight advantage to the SEC. So, in its worst years in decades, the SEC has slipped to the point that it's only slightly better statistically than the ACC. That's what these numbers tell me.
If football teams were stocks and I had a 3-5 year investment horizon to find potential college football playoff teams, I'd throw some money at 5 or 6 SEC schools. I can only think of 2 ACC teams that have a realistic shot. Of course we'd all invest in Alabama and Clemson, but if you told me in 2024 that LSU, Auburn, Georgia, A&M, or Florida had made the playoff at least once in the preceding years, that would not seem implausible. Outside of Clemson and FSU, it's really hard to imagine any other ACC teams joining the elites. Whatever the stats may say, they just don't pass the smell test.
I truly wish there would be one weekend where there’s an ACC vs SEC challenge in football and all teams participated.
It's the cumulative effect of the SEC schedule that takes it's toll on any team within the conference. Play a hard nose schedule and win some games and then when it looks like your team is getting a breather by playing a team much weaker than your team right after they have had two weeks to rest and prepare for you can and does make a difference.
The closest we get is the last week of the season.
UF-FSU
SC- Clemson
UK - Louisville
I copied and pasted the below info from another thread but i think it applies here as well. You can't look at the end results without taking a deeper look at how the teams got there. Based on difficulty of schedule, a slightly better than average ACC team can likely cruise through a season only losing 2 or 3 games, while a slightly better than average SEC team will more than likely lose 4 or 5 games.
IMO, the real question is a 2 or 3 loss ACC team, with a much easier schedule, better than a 4 or 5 loss SEC team with a much more difficult schedule? I don't think so, yet that 2 or 3 loss ACC could end up ranked while the 5 loss SEC may not.
(copied and pasted from another thread) From Phil Steele's magazine
Among the power 5 conferences
The 6 easiest schedules in the country all reside in......
The ACC
66. Clemson
68. Syracuse
69. Miami
74. NC State
75. Virginia
86. Virginia Tech
Next easiest in the power 5 in Wassu at 61.
Toughest schedules
1. South Carolina
2. Auburn
4. Texas A&M
6. LSU
7. Tennessee
10. Florida
Good point, but we were missing 8 defensive players and 1 of our best offensive weapons. UVA beat us, but they didn't beat us at full strength. We had 7 true freshman, a former walk on, and a converted RB playing defense.
What point do you think I was trying to prove? That you are tool trying to stir up something on a Gamecock fan site?
Surprised I missed the 2017 VT, I remember watching that Oklahoma State game.
Used to be fun to watch.
Every SEC East team needs to end their season with an ACC team.
ACC cherry pucks easy opponents to add to their conference , Putt , Syracuse and Boston and then bitches about having to travel to go play them.
The midget conference is perfect for the taters egos. Plus putting two people on the committee is epic tater style.
The midget conference is perfect for the taters egos. Plus putting two people on the committee is epic tater style.
I didn't try to stir up anything. For the most part people have had great conversation on this thread.
As far as what point you are trying to make, I'm not sure. I was just going off the fact that you said "I can prove my point" and then listed out incomplete stats, followed by a question that I then provided an answer too. Why does that make me a tool?
I maybe in the minority but that just comes across as an excuse from disgruntled fans.
TaterTater may be an enemy but he’s asking legit questions. He’s not a troll and he’s been respectful. His data is interesting. I think most Clemson fans know the SEC is the best conference. I for one, don’t believe there is that much separation between Miss St, SC, Auburn, Tenn, Florida and NC State, Miami, BC and Virginia. The difference is we also have to contend with Bama, GA, and LSU.
We just got smoked by UVA. It’s just ridiculous to wave the SEC flag right now. We can make excuses. We chose the SEC and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Just shut up and win.
We just got smoked by UVA. It’s just ridiculous to wave the SEC flag right now. We can make excuses. We chose the SEC and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Just shut up and win.
I see that. I agree with Muschamp that it's not an excuse, but it remains a factual statement.
I just think there's natural rivalries with SEC East and ACC that could be used. (ignoring Missouri because they truly belong in the SEC West)
All this conference vs conference talk would have some weight if played each other at the same time.
There's been plenty of times we beat Georgia at the beginning of the year but by the EOY they were a much better team.
I'll dial back on what I said.
I looked at your history of posts and you weren't a typical Clempson fan coming on here to start crap at the beginning of the season.My bad.
I don't think those figuers show anything to do with SEC vs ACC. If anything it shows the ACC is even more top heavy now that FLorida State has taken a dive. ACC now is kinda like the SEC in 2010-2011.
I'll dial back on what I said.
My bad.
I don't think those figuers show anything to do with SEC vs ACC. If anything it shows the ACC is even more top heavy now that FLorida State has taken a dive. ACC now is kinda like the SEC in 2010-2011.
Appreciate that. I may throw some jabs in good fun, but my hope is to just engage/create discussion. I’m in Tenn surrounded by Vols, so I don’t have many Gamecock fans around me to engage in some good banter with haha
I know the pain. The last 10 years.. my hate for Clempson has started to get topped by my hatred of 10AhC, Jawja, and BuckNuts
Until we develop quality depth at most positions, we will suffer later in games when some of our starters are wore down. Because we have younger players grabbing alot of playing time tells us, the quality of athletes we are recruiting and signing is climbing each year. One may argue that we are always a young team and need 2-3 years of continued recruiting success to build quality backups.
We need to start getting "package deals" regularly. Lloyd and Tank/Doty and Hemingway, we hope we have.
Didn't Hilinski recruit us first? Thought he did The taters had the Nagata brothers and 2 other Nigerians show up on their doorstep, like Ryan did.
Ryan is/was our best recruiter. He can tell his story of finding a great place to play. He has friends and former opponents out west. We kicked open the door in Texas and California this year, let's keep it open. Will has to have some connections in Texas and Louisiana.
If or when we change HC, I would love to have Dino in Columbia.
Yes. I was referring to them beating Alabama in the SEC finals this year (IMO) and making it to the finals this season to face Clemson.. I was not referring to seasons past. Kudos to you as my original post has been edited for clarification on my part.
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