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re: The Great SEC Paradox: Why Do Yesterday's Wins Matter More Than Today's
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:38 pm to Craw_Dad
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:38 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
This is just an observation I've made and I think it's a bad look.
...why? We follow our teams and want them to win the games that they play. Presumably we all go into each season hoping (some with more hope and and some with less) that our team might catch lightning in a bottle and win the conference or maybe even the national championship, or at least score wins over our rivals. When that does occur, why would you not celebrate it? And if your team has more wins and championships than other teams, why would you not celebrate that too? "Nothing succeeds like success," I believe the saying goes. You can claim that a tradition of winning is meaningless to predicting future results, but the history of the sport just doesn't bear that out. Tradition on its own won't win anything, but a winning tradition is a good indicator that a particular team/school has the characteristics needed to win at a high level, and a strong predictor of that team's future success.
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Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:40 pm to Hback
quote:
Not sure how being proud of a team's history and tradition is a bad look.
It isn't. You've turned my argument into a strawman. I never said celebrating your team's history is a bad look. I said using that history as an excuse to take an unearned air of superiority toward a 2025 football team is a bad look.
I think it's great for Alabama to celebrate their 1925 team at halftime. I'm guessing the PA announcer won't follow up the celebration with "Vanderbilt is terrible and this 1925 Alabama team is proof!"
This post was edited on 10/3/25 at 1:42 pm
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:44 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
I'm guessing the PA announcer won't follow up the celebration with "Vanderbilt is terrible and this 1925 Alabama team is proof!"
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:45 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
I'm guessing the PA announcer won't follow up the celebration with "Vanderbilt is terrible and this 1925 Alabama team is proof!"
He'd better or I'm calling Pawwwl!
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:46 pm to Nasty_Canasta
quote:
m
If your team currently isn’t winning shite and another team is seeing success for the first time in awhile, how bout not posting “sick burns” like 40 years ago matters as much as the last few years or the Present year
Well it is an LSU centric site, we can't just kick them off of here
Posted on 10/3/25 at 1:48 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
I've noticed something interesting in conversations with some SEC fans and it's been reinforced on this forum.
I find it very much the opposite. Some jokes about bluebloods and streaks, but very much a living in the present mentality for lop-sided series, 10-year streaks, etc, even on the back end of a one possession win to break that streak.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 2:14 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
Is it just more satisfying to claim superiority based on the past when the present isn't living up to those standards?
Your attempt to psychoanalyze a straightforward concept may be overcomplicating the matter — sometimes a cigar is just a cigar.
The New York Yankees, for instance, could falter in a wild-card series yet it wouldn't change their status as a cultural institution.
Notre Dame remains one of America’s premier college football programs, despite not achieving any significant success over the past four decades.
Halls of Fame exist precisely to honor past achievements, enshrining figures like Joe Montana, whose legacy with San Francisco remains untarnished despite his later tenure with the Chiefs.
Historical success is deeply woven into the fabric of sports. It's driven by statistics and celebrated through trophies, and the teams and individuals who amass the greatest achievements continue to be revered beyond any fleeting setbacks.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 3:27 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
What makes historical success feel like a valid claim to current superiority?
To be fair, Alabama fans (and Georgia and a few others maybe) are superior to the midlings and below fans.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 5:35 pm to Craw_Dad
Memories and shared experiences create an institutional culture.
It gives us something to remember and celebrate even when we go 3-9.
It is nostalgia. It’s kind of fun to share stories about the “good old days.”
It might not help win games, but building a deep culture can lead to financial support, season tickets, licensed products, and so forth.
Support is wider when you are winning, but you find out the depth of support when you have some bad seasons.
South Carolina probably has the deepest fan support in this league.
All the schools seem to have a rich history and shared stories so I’d say the league is healthier because people still talk about “punt Bama punt”, “hobnail boot”, Lyndsey Scott!,Lyndsey Scott!!!!, Lyndsey Scott”, “Billy Cannon’s punt return, “kick 6” , “fifth down”, “bluegrass miracle”, and on and on and on.
It gives us something to remember and celebrate even when we go 3-9.
It is nostalgia. It’s kind of fun to share stories about the “good old days.”
It might not help win games, but building a deep culture can lead to financial support, season tickets, licensed products, and so forth.
Support is wider when you are winning, but you find out the depth of support when you have some bad seasons.
South Carolina probably has the deepest fan support in this league.
All the schools seem to have a rich history and shared stories so I’d say the league is healthier because people still talk about “punt Bama punt”, “hobnail boot”, Lyndsey Scott!,Lyndsey Scott!!!!, Lyndsey Scott”, “Billy Cannon’s punt return, “kick 6” , “fifth down”, “bluegrass miracle”, and on and on and on.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 5:38 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
I've noticed something interesting in conversations with some SEC fans and it's been reinforced on this forum. I'm genuinely curious about the perspective here. Why do so many fans put such heavy emphasis on their program's historical success—national championships from decades ago, Heisman trophies from 30+ years ago, all-time win records—and use that history as evidence that their program is currently superior to teams that are actually winning more games right now?
Dont know but Arkansas basketball and Bama baseball love doing this shite
Posted on 10/3/25 at 5:40 pm to makersmark1
quote:
Memories and shared experiences create an institutional culture. It gives us something to remember and celebrate even when we go 3-9. It is nostalgia. It’s kind of fun to share stories about the “good old days.”
You are ate up with sentimental heart tugging bs. It's a wonder we are still best friends
This post was edited on 10/3/25 at 5:40 pm
Posted on 10/3/25 at 5:42 pm to jangalang
Liberal pos Bruce Springsteen addressed the issue in 85 glory days
Posted on 10/3/25 at 5:50 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
The bloom has come off Alabama's rose a bit during the transition to DeBoer, and instead of acknowledging it, Bama fans act as if Vandy doesn't belong on the same field. A few years ago, yes. You're a fool if you think that today.
The bloom has come off the rose? Well duh, it was the greatest run college football has ever seen, it won’t be replicated. It’s also only been one season.
Who the frick is bringing up an all time comparison of Alabama v Vandy ahead of tomorrow’s game? I haven’t seen that
We all know they could win the game because Kane Wommack has no clue how to stop that type of offense
Fist yourself and post less
Posted on 10/3/25 at 6:01 pm to Frac the world
I agree it’s a crap shoot
Posted on 10/3/25 at 6:10 pm to Craw_Dad
I think anything past the 60's is pretty relevant...but winning is winning. Former is fun to look plus the pay for play and transfer portal makes CFB alot less interesting now.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 7:53 pm to Gatorbait2008
Nothing irrelevant ever even 1892
Posted on 10/3/25 at 8:10 pm to Gatorbait2008
I would put it anything after 1990, 35 years. Assuming average person begins actively following sports at 10 or 15, folks younger than 50 have little recollection of wins before 1990. You would have to be 75-80 to recall any experiences from a 1960 season.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 8:40 pm to Craw_Dad
quote:
Why do so many fans put such heavy emphasis on their program's historical success—national championships from decades ago, Heisman trophies from 30+ years ago, all-time win records
Why 1998 feels just like yesterday!
Posted on 10/3/25 at 8:46 pm to dstone12
quote:
Teams that won championships have a pedigree.
This pedigree can be pointed to when runts brag about a 2-2 record or a 3-2 record against a school. Often other subpar programs will point to some odd year when they wanted the rivalry to begin. And they will usually point to a 500 record since then.
You should quickly, and correctly point them to the fact that their program has been garbage and will most likely return back to it.
That team cannot point back to how its program one SEC titles. They can only point to individual gains that were their Super Bowls.
This generation is now the correct setup because the playing field has balanced out to make more teams that never had success to get that nowadays.
Posted on 10/3/25 at 9:05 pm to TrueLefty
The other thing I would say is that some programs prefer to look back rather than forward based on current trajectory. Nebraska is a great example. Great history but folks under 40 have no recollection of those days.
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