Started By
Message
Football Kings of the South
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:32 pm
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:32 pm
Looking back at history, here's how I'd define a program and their ability to say they were the King of the South during that era...
The parameters:
1. There must be a minimum 6-year period of which a team wins at least 4 Conference Titles, with the first and last year of the period bookended with championship seasons. A half a decade or less of dominance is great, but it takes the better part of a decade to be King.
2. During the era, there can't be a stretch of seasons without a conference title lasting longer than 2 seasons.
3. Team must win at least 50% of the conference titles during the period.
4. Some of these claims overlap and that's okay.
***This goes back to the earliest days of football in the South, using the predecessors to the SEC... the SIAA (1895-1921) and the SoCon (1922-1932).
Vanderbilt (1901-1915)
*The original King of the South
*Vandy won 8 conference titles during this 15-year stretch
*Vandy amassed a 61-7-3 conference record during this era (88.0%)
*Won conference titles in 1901, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1910, 1911, 1912, and 1915
Auburn (1908-1914)
*Auburn won 4 conference titles during this 7 season stretch (1908, 1910, 1913, and 1914)
*Conference record during the span was 35-4-3 (86.9%)
*Overlaps with Vandy's claim to the era, however during this seven season stretch, Auburn won 4 conference titles to Vandy's 3 and had a better conference win %, .869 compared to Vandy's .806
Georgia Tech (1916-1922)
*The Rambling Wreck won 6 conference titles in a 7 year stretch
*This is arguably the most dominant era any Southern team ever had.
*GT won conference titles in 1916, 1917, 1918, 1920, 1921, and 1922
*The Yellow Jackets put up an astounding 28-1 conference record during the period (96.6%)
Tulane (1929-1934)
*The Green Wave won 4 conference title during this 6-year stretch (1929, 1930, 1931, and 1934)
*Tulane went 36-4-2 during this era in conference play (88.1%)
Alabama (1930-1938)
*The Tide won 4 conference titles in an 8-year period (1930, 1933, 1934, 1937)
*Bama went 47-5-2 in conference play (88.9%)
*This overlaps with Tulane's claim. Both won four conference titles... Tulane's was more concentrated with them winning 4 in 6 but Bama's run lasted an extra 2 seasons. It's certainly debatable who was the true King but both have a serious claim to it.
Alabama (1961-1966)
*This was Bryant's first stretch of leading Bama to be King of the South
*Bama won 4 SEC titles during this 6-year stretch (1961, 1964, 1965, 1966)
*Alabama went 39-4-1 in SEC play (89.8%) during the period
Alabama (1971-1981)
*After a 4-year struggle, this new era was Bryant's second go of leading Bama to be King of the SEC
*Bama won 9 SEC titles during this 11-season stretch, failing only to win the SEC in 1976 and 1980.
*Bama put up an impressive 69-4 conference record during the period (94.5%)
Florida (1991-1996)
*The Gators won 5 SEC titles in this 6-year stretch (all but '92)
*Florida put up an impressive 47-5 conference record during the era (90.4%)
Alabama (2009-2023)
*Saban led Alabama to be King of the South for a 15-year run... a lengthy run not seen since Vandy a century earlier.
*In total, Bama won 9 SEC titles during the 15-season run (2009, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2023)
*During this stretch, Bama went 117-14 in SEC play (89.3%)
*Technically not enough time has passed for this run to be proclaimed dead. If Bama wins the SEC this season, they would still lay claim.
Can Georgia join the group?
Georgia (2022-2025) is just a couple of more years away from joining the group. The Dawgs have unquestionably been the best program in the South since 2022 (overlapping with Bama's "King" claim up through 2023 at this point). Many 3 and 4-year runs of being at the top have happened through the years and then fallen off. IMO it takes more than half a decade minimum to earn "King" status. The Dawgs are right there... just need another conference title and extend this run another 2 seasons.
Who didn't make the cut??
1. Tennessee during the Neyland era.
While TN put up a dominant conference record, they came up just short of winning conference titles in many of those years. Neyland won the SoCon title in 1927... the next four seasons to follow his teams went a combined 24-1-3 however they failed to win a single conference title in any of those seasons. Every year had either a loss or a tie, and the conference champion each of those seasons (GT 1, Tulane 3) went undefeated. You don't earn "King" status if you slip up every year and can't bring home the trophy.
Neyland was closest again in 1938-1940... winning 3 straight SEC titles. However, World War got in the way and took Neyland away for military service. He returned in '46 and won another SEC title but unfortunately there was a 5-year gap in the middle that the Vols had little to show for.
2. Ole Miss during the Vaught years
Ole Miss had 6 SEC titles between 1947-1963, but too much time in between some of those to be considered "King". Their best stint was a short-lived 4-year stretch from 1960-1963 in which they won 3 SEC titles... but 4 years isn't long enough IMO.
3. Tennessee under Majors
Tennessee won 3 titles in six years but fell just short of the 4 needed.... plus the 3 season gap in the middle eliminates that period from contention.
4. Auburn under Dye
Auburn got 4 titles in 7 seasons which meets the threshold, but there was a 3-year gap without one in the middle which disqualifies it.
5. Georgia under Dooley.
Similar to Auburn above, UGA won 4 in 7 seasons but there was a 3-year gap without one.
The parameters:
1. There must be a minimum 6-year period of which a team wins at least 4 Conference Titles, with the first and last year of the period bookended with championship seasons. A half a decade or less of dominance is great, but it takes the better part of a decade to be King.
2. During the era, there can't be a stretch of seasons without a conference title lasting longer than 2 seasons.
3. Team must win at least 50% of the conference titles during the period.
4. Some of these claims overlap and that's okay.
***This goes back to the earliest days of football in the South, using the predecessors to the SEC... the SIAA (1895-1921) and the SoCon (1922-1932).
Vanderbilt (1901-1915)
*The original King of the South
*Vandy won 8 conference titles during this 15-year stretch
*Vandy amassed a 61-7-3 conference record during this era (88.0%)
*Won conference titles in 1901, 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1910, 1911, 1912, and 1915
Auburn (1908-1914)
*Auburn won 4 conference titles during this 7 season stretch (1908, 1910, 1913, and 1914)
*Conference record during the span was 35-4-3 (86.9%)
*Overlaps with Vandy's claim to the era, however during this seven season stretch, Auburn won 4 conference titles to Vandy's 3 and had a better conference win %, .869 compared to Vandy's .806
Georgia Tech (1916-1922)
*The Rambling Wreck won 6 conference titles in a 7 year stretch
*This is arguably the most dominant era any Southern team ever had.
*GT won conference titles in 1916, 1917, 1918, 1920, 1921, and 1922
*The Yellow Jackets put up an astounding 28-1 conference record during the period (96.6%)
Tulane (1929-1934)
*The Green Wave won 4 conference title during this 6-year stretch (1929, 1930, 1931, and 1934)
*Tulane went 36-4-2 during this era in conference play (88.1%)
Alabama (1930-1938)
*The Tide won 4 conference titles in an 8-year period (1930, 1933, 1934, 1937)
*Bama went 47-5-2 in conference play (88.9%)
*This overlaps with Tulane's claim. Both won four conference titles... Tulane's was more concentrated with them winning 4 in 6 but Bama's run lasted an extra 2 seasons. It's certainly debatable who was the true King but both have a serious claim to it.
Alabama (1961-1966)
*This was Bryant's first stretch of leading Bama to be King of the South
*Bama won 4 SEC titles during this 6-year stretch (1961, 1964, 1965, 1966)
*Alabama went 39-4-1 in SEC play (89.8%) during the period
Alabama (1971-1981)
*After a 4-year struggle, this new era was Bryant's second go of leading Bama to be King of the SEC
*Bama won 9 SEC titles during this 11-season stretch, failing only to win the SEC in 1976 and 1980.
*Bama put up an impressive 69-4 conference record during the period (94.5%)
Florida (1991-1996)
*The Gators won 5 SEC titles in this 6-year stretch (all but '92)
*Florida put up an impressive 47-5 conference record during the era (90.4%)
Alabama (2009-2023)
*Saban led Alabama to be King of the South for a 15-year run... a lengthy run not seen since Vandy a century earlier.
*In total, Bama won 9 SEC titles during the 15-season run (2009, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, and 2023)
*During this stretch, Bama went 117-14 in SEC play (89.3%)
*Technically not enough time has passed for this run to be proclaimed dead. If Bama wins the SEC this season, they would still lay claim.
Can Georgia join the group?
Georgia (2022-2025) is just a couple of more years away from joining the group. The Dawgs have unquestionably been the best program in the South since 2022 (overlapping with Bama's "King" claim up through 2023 at this point). Many 3 and 4-year runs of being at the top have happened through the years and then fallen off. IMO it takes more than half a decade minimum to earn "King" status. The Dawgs are right there... just need another conference title and extend this run another 2 seasons.
Who didn't make the cut??
1. Tennessee during the Neyland era.
While TN put up a dominant conference record, they came up just short of winning conference titles in many of those years. Neyland won the SoCon title in 1927... the next four seasons to follow his teams went a combined 24-1-3 however they failed to win a single conference title in any of those seasons. Every year had either a loss or a tie, and the conference champion each of those seasons (GT 1, Tulane 3) went undefeated. You don't earn "King" status if you slip up every year and can't bring home the trophy.
Neyland was closest again in 1938-1940... winning 3 straight SEC titles. However, World War got in the way and took Neyland away for military service. He returned in '46 and won another SEC title but unfortunately there was a 5-year gap in the middle that the Vols had little to show for.
2. Ole Miss during the Vaught years
Ole Miss had 6 SEC titles between 1947-1963, but too much time in between some of those to be considered "King". Their best stint was a short-lived 4-year stretch from 1960-1963 in which they won 3 SEC titles... but 4 years isn't long enough IMO.
3. Tennessee under Majors
Tennessee won 3 titles in six years but fell just short of the 4 needed.... plus the 3 season gap in the middle eliminates that period from contention.
4. Auburn under Dye
Auburn got 4 titles in 7 seasons which meets the threshold, but there was a 3-year gap without one in the middle which disqualifies it.
5. Georgia under Dooley.
Similar to Auburn above, UGA won 4 in 7 seasons but there was a 3-year gap without one.
4
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:42 pm to AUTiger789
LSU not even getting the nod under the honorable mentions for their 2001-2011 run is a decent troll, intentional or otherwise. Four conference titles, two national titles, and a third title appearance. Finished with two losses or fewer six times. Finished 6–2 in conference or better seven times.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:44 pm to AUTiger789
First off, this was a great read and good info. Objective and unbaised. So I don't want my next comment to come across as shite talk or anythign, beucase that isn't the case.
But IMO bama's true reign of terror under saban ended, for the sake of THIS THREAD, in 2020. Of course they won 2 more SEC titles, but someone wins an SEC title every year. 2020 was their last natty though while UGA won two of them during the time you have listed for bama, which just logically can't be correct.
It should pretty plainly be UGA from 2021-present. We're talking about a 5 year period with 2 natties and 3 SEC titles. Which, for comparison's sake, is the same resume as the 5 year run for bama directly preceeding from 2016-2020.
But IMO bama's true reign of terror under saban ended, for the sake of THIS THREAD, in 2020. Of course they won 2 more SEC titles, but someone wins an SEC title every year. 2020 was their last natty though while UGA won two of them during the time you have listed for bama, which just logically can't be correct.
It should pretty plainly be UGA from 2021-present. We're talking about a 5 year period with 2 natties and 3 SEC titles. Which, for comparison's sake, is the same resume as the 5 year run for bama directly preceeding from 2016-2020.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:51 pm to VagueMessage
quote:
LSU not even getting the nod under the honorable mentions for their 2001-2011 run is a decent troll, intentional or otherwise.
Strong run, but way too many gaps between titles.
SEC titles in 2001 and 2003.... then 3 consecutive seasons without one.
Another title in 2007.... then 3 consecutive seasons without one.
And while minimum conference win% wasn't one of the original parameters, it is a strong indicator of the run. Every aforementioned "King of the South" during their prescribed era had a conference win% of 87% or better during the period.... LSU from 2001-2011 won just 73.1% of their SEC games. IMO you aren't ever "King" if you're losing more than 1 out of every 4 conference games.
Had they beaten Georgia for the title in 2005, their 2001-2007 run would have qualified despite just a 75% conference win % during those years. But alas they lost that game.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 12:55 pm to WG_Dawg
quote:
But IMO bama's true reign of terror under saban ended, for the sake of THIS THREAD, in 2020. Of course they won 2 more SEC titles, but someone wins an SEC title every year.
I definitely see your point. However through 2023, Bama had won 3 of the previous 4 SEC titles... 4 of the previous 6... 7 of the previous 9, etc.
It's hard to say Bama's stint as king ended in 2020 when they turned right around and won the SEC again in 2021 and 2023. That 2023 team was 9-0 in SEC play so it's not like it was a fluke.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 1:13 pm to AUTiger789
quote:
Bama had won 3 of the previous 4 SEC titles... 4 of the previous 6... 7 of the previous 9, et
all good accomplishemnts. But UGA fans were told repeatedly under Richt that our SEC titles and averaging 10 wins a year eveyr year didn't mean a thing if you can't win the big one. From 2021-2023 bama won zero national titles while UGA won 2. I jsut don't see how that can be overruled.
quote:
It's hard to say Bama's stint as king ended in 2020 when they turned right around and won the SEC again in 2021 and 2023.
During that 3 year time frame they won 2 SEC titles and zero nationals, while UGA won 1 SEC title and 2 nationals. I'm not saying they went from top fo the mountain to in the gutter, because that's obviously not true. But when you talk about multiple years-long stretches of "best program during this time", as we're doing in this thread. You simply can't put any other program in the space that contains 2021 and 2022.
UGA is the only SEC program to win a national title since 2021. We have won 3 of the league's 5 SEC titles during that time frame. Logically speaking UGA has to be the team that coincides with those years.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 2:09 pm to WG_Dawg
quote:
But UGA fans were told repeatedly under Richt that our SEC titles and averaging 10 wins a year eveyr year didn't mean a thing if you can't win the big one.
Richt won a whopping 2 SEC titles during his 15 seasons as head coach... with his best stint coming 2002-2005 when he won 2 in 4.
This is not the same as Saban's tenure at Bama.
quote:
From 2021-2023 bama won zero national titles while UGA won 2. I jsut don't see how that can be overruled.
If you're looking at just that snippet of time you might have a point, but you're completely taking out of context the fact that Bama's SEC titles in 2021 and 2023 directly connect to a period in which they won 6 national titles and 7 additional SEC titles. I mean that's a big part of the story here.
quote:
But when you talk about multiple years-long stretches of "best program during this time", as we're doing in this thread. You simply can't put any other program in the space that contains 2021 and 2022.
Sure you can. Go back to December 2023...
Alabama had just beat Georgia for the SEC Championship... Bama's 8th win over Georgia in their 9 previous matchups. Alabama was headed to the College Football Playoff. Georgia was not.
No person at that time of December 2023 who just watched Bama best Georgia again (8th win in 9 tries)... with Bama moving on the the playoff and Georgia not... was saying that the Saban Dynasty was completely dead and Georgia had surpassed Bama as King of the South. No serious person at least.
Sure I think most would say Kirby had pulled Georgia up to Bama's level the past 2 seasons, but being that Bama was headed to the Rose Bowl to try to win their 2nd national title in 4 seasons... and their 7th in 15 seasons... no one was saying the Saban Dynasty was dead and Georgia had passed Bama by.
If Georgia keeps doing what they've been doing, I think it's obvious that Georgia's time as King of the South will have undoubtedly have begun back in 2022 and will have overlapped with Saban and Bama's period with that title. But at the end the day, we're only 4 years into this run.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 2:21 pm to AUTiger789
quote:
Richt won a whopping 2 SEC titles during his 15 seasons as head coach... with his best stint coming 2002-2005 when he won 2 in 4.
This is not the same as Saban's tenure at Bama.
I never compared the two coaches to each other. My point is that during our 40 year drought we could hold every accolade under the sun and people still would simply point to our lack of national titles. You can't have a 3 year time frame (2021 - 2023) where one team wins a national title 66% of the time while another wins none, and claim the none-team was the better program. It just can't be.
quote:
If you're looking at just that snippet of time you might have a point, but you're completely taking out of context the fact that Bama's SEC titles in 2021 and 2023 directly connect to a period in which they won 6 national titles and 7 additional SEC titles. I mean that's a big part of the story here.
I am very much looking at that brief snippet of time beucase that's the time period you've chosen. It wouldn't make a hill of beans' difference to put 2009 - 2020 for bama and it would still be completely right and undebated. Squeezing that last 3 extra years though was just kind of pointless.
quote:
Go back to December 2023...
Alabama had just beat Georgia for the SEC Championship... Bama's 8th win over Georgia in their 9 previous matchups. Alabama was headed to the College Football Playoff. Georgia was not.
Yep, and if we were talking about bes program from the last 9 years prior to then, or in 2023 itself, you'd be right. But we're talking about differnet time frames.
quote:
No person at that time of December 2023 who just watched Bama best Georgia again (8th win in 9 tries)... with Bama moving on the the playoff and Georgia not... was saying that the Saban Dynasty was completely dead
you're right, because saban may have been 1 month away from winning yhet another national title. He hadn't yet retired yet either. I'm typing from 2026 though so we know reality.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 2:24 pm to AUTiger789
I understand your parameters, but Tennessee from 1938-1940 absolutely deserves to be there. Its the most dominant defensive 3 years in football history. You can’t penalize them because of WW2 which was the only thing that stopped them
This post was edited on 7/2/26 at 2:29 pm
Posted on 7/2/26 at 2:34 pm to AUTiger789
quote:
Strong run, but way too many gaps between titles.
SEC titles in 2001 and 2003.... then 3 consecutive seasons without one.
Another title in 2007.... then 3 consecutive seasons without one.
And while minimum conference win% wasn't one of the original parameters, it is a strong indicator of the run. Every aforementioned "King of the South" during their prescribed era had a conference win% of 87% or better during the period.... LSU from 2001-2011 won just 73.1% of their SEC games. IMO you aren't ever "King" if you're losing more than 1 out of every 4 conference games.
Had they beaten Georgia for the title in 2005, their 2001-2007 run would have qualified despite just a 75% conference win % during those years. But alas they lost that game.
LSU is never a dominant program, even in baseball to some extent. They just have an insane knack for getting hot and winning titles. It's like catching lightning in a bottle, but they keep doing it.
Expounding on the baseball piece, LSU has been to Omaha 20 times and won it all 8 times. 40% of the time that LSU has been to Omaha, they've won it all.
Compare that to someone like Texas, who has made Omaha 39 times and won 6 titles. That's only 15%, and still pretty high compared to many.
In football, LSU has made the CFP once and won it all. They made the BCS national championship 3 times and won it twice.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 2:38 pm to VFL67
quote:
I understand your parameters, but Tennessee from 1938-1940 absolutely deserves to be there.
It was a solid 3-year run. I just don't think a 3-year run is long enough to establish a reputation as King, Dynasty, or whatever you want to call it.
Ole Miss won 3 SEC titles from 1960-1963.
Georgia won 3 SEC titles from 1980-1982.
Auburn won 3 SEC titles from 1987-1989
Heck Florida won 2 national titles between 2006-2008.
All of these are undoubtedly impressive, short runs of greatness. But IMO there's an extra level of greatness that comes with doing it for a period that lasts the better part of a decade. When it goes that long, a program built something that exceeded the period of one great player or a great class.
Had Neyland not left UT in 1935 and again from 1941-1945, I think he'd be in the same category as Bear Bryant. But unfortunately his time at Tennessee was chopped into 3 stints. Tennessee took major steps backwards each time he left.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 3:02 pm to AUTiger789
I like how everyone makes an accomplishment by their team fit the criteria in these threads (I also do it).
With that said, I like informative subjects like this and enjoyed it. Tulane was a surprise.
With that said, I like informative subjects like this and enjoyed it. Tulane was a surprise.
Posted on 7/2/26 at 3:10 pm to WG_Dawg
quote:
My point is that during our 40 year drought we could hold every accolade under the sun and people still would simply point to our lack of national titles.
I honestly don't think National Titles are that big of a deal when talking about who's top dog of the South. I mean, we've been spoiled the last 20 years to assume if you can't win a national title, you've failed. But historically speaking, this is not at all the norm.
As VFL pointed out, Tennessee's 1938-1940 run in the SEC was one of the most dominant 3 year records in SEC history... they were 18-0 in SEC play, outscoring opponents 409-21. But that '39 and '40 team both got beat in bowl games when they faced solid teams from outside the South. The South just wasn't as strong for most of CFB's history.
Bryant's 1978 national title team won every SEC game... but lost at home to USC.
His 1977 team won every SEC game, but lost to Nebraska. His 1974 team won every SEC game, but lost to Missouri. His 1974 team won every SEC game, but lost to Notre Dame. His 1973 team won every SEC game, but also lost to Notre Dame.
quote:
You can't have a 3 year time frame (2021 - 2023) where one team wins a national title 66% of the time while another wins none, and claim the none-team was the better program. It just can't be.
Again you're taking it out of context by ignoring what happened before. I mean look at it by season:
Alabama 2009-2023, final ranking:
2009: #1 National Champs, SEC Champs
2010: #10
2011: #1 National Champs
2013: #1 National Champs, SEC Champs
2014: #4 SEC Champs
2015: #1 National Champs, SEC Champs
2016: #2 SEC Champs
2017: #1 National Champs
2018: #2 SEC Champs
2019: #8
2020: #1 National Champs, SEC Champs
2021: #2 SEC Champs
2022: #5
2023: #5 SEC Champs
You can't declare the run dead after 2020 when they followed that up with three out of three Top 5 finishes and 2 SEC titles. The run clearly wasn't over. Yes Georgia snuck 2 titles in but that's not all that different from Auburn and LSU each winning a title in the midst of Bama's run.
I mean I could say Auburn beat Bama in 2010 and went undefeated to win the National Title so Bama's dynasty clearly didn't start until years later, but that would be ludicrous. Auburn had one good year. Georgia had two. We're not talking who was great for 13-month blips... we're talking about long, sustained runs of dominance.
Page 1 of 1
Back to top
Follow SECRant for SEC Football News