re: A case study for division realignment

Geographically, the divisions would be thus:
East:
Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, Auburn, Vanderbilt

West: Texas A&M, Mizzou, LSU, Alabama, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Miss State

The issue came down to rivalry games and traditions.

Traditional rivalry games (or potential ones) for each team include:
LSU: Texas A&M, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Miss State, Alabama, Auburn, and Florida (basically, its whole damn schedule)
Texas A&M: LSU, Arkansas, Mizzou
Arkansas: LSU, Mizzou, Ole Miss
Ole Miss: LSU, Alabama, Vanderbilt, Miss State, Arkansas
Miss State: LSU, Ole Miss
Auburn: Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Florida
Alabama: LSU, Auburn, Tennessee, Ole Miss
Tennessee: Vanderbilt, Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Florida
Georgia: Auburn, South Carolina, Florida
Florida: LSU, Georgia, Tennessee, South Carolina, Auburn
South Carolina: Georgia, Florida
Mizzou: Kentucky, Arkansas, Texas A&M
Kentucky: Tennessee, Vanderbilt, Mizzou
Vanderbilt: Ole Miss, Tennessee, Kentucky

People are going to lose rivals no matter what.

quote:

---

This. Just last year, Tennessee and Florida were both very weak. From 1992 to 2002, Tennessee and Florida - get this - BOTH finished in the TOP 12 for 10 straight years. Both finished in the top 5 several times, and one year they finished in the top 3. It was an incredible run by those two teams, not that long ago, who both "pulled down" the relative strength of the SEC East last year.

Any attempt to balance a conference is virtually impossible, unless you try to do it every one or two years, and even then it won't foresee cinderella teams (and scheduling would be a nightmare.) It just can't be done. The best you can do is try to get all the teams to play as much of the conference as possible.

---

Agreed. it is cyclical. In a few years the East might be the stronger of the two...or at least a bit more even. You start messing with things too much and you end up with REALLY uneven divisions.

quote:

---

Move Gumps east and Mizzo west. Problem solved.

---

Exactly. BUT without Mizzou in the East gumps say no to expansion and we are at an awkward 13 teams.

I would rather have a Mizzou in the west and be LA LA LA about geography than only having 13 teams.

quote:

---

Or, instead of having 13 teams, we could have just given Arkansas the boot and stayed at 12. No problems.

---

No, because that would have made Mizzou a geographic outlier WVU in the Big 12-style.

quote:

---

We don't want them. They are crazy and should remain your problem. We'll take the Aubies.

---