re: Just so we are clear on the Big 6...

You have to go back 60 years to find an SEC champ that wasn't a Big 6 school. In 1963 when Ole Miss last won the conference title, the SEC had only existed for 30 years. The distinction of Big 6 comes from only those 6 schools exclusively winning the conference for the latter 2/3 of the conference's existence and continues to grow until someone breaks the mold.

Texas and OU obviously have more history and success than anyone else outside the Big 6 so they're an interesting case, but they still have to earn their way to be considered in that club to make it a Big 7 or 8 imo. Not to mention 5 of those Big 6 schools have won natties since the last time either OU or Texas have. You can rag on Tennessee about being the odd one out in that last group but consider them grandfathered in since they won a natty 2 years before OU's last and 7 years before Texas' last so it's not like they're that far behind and they do meet the SEC champ criteria.