The SEC was already the best conference in college football before realignment, but some would argue it's gotten even better this offseason.
No. 3 Texas and No. 16 Oklahoma officially joined the conference earlier this month, adding No. 1 Georgia and No. 5 Alabama to the roster.
Nine SEC teams are nationally ranked, including four in the top six, and with the addition of two former Big 12 schools, conference veteran Jalen Milroe is excited about the new competition.
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SEC logo sign in front of the NCAA Women's Final Four. (Kirby Lee/USA Today Sports)
“It's great. It makes the league more competitive,” the Alabama quarterback told Fox News Digital. “It's awesome to be even more important to the conference. Just to have that experience is awesome.”
Added No. 13 LSU gunslinger Garrett Nussmeyer: “I think adding these schools just adds to the competitiveness and aura of our conference, which was already the best conference in college football. Adding these two schools makes it even stronger and more competitive.”
Quinn Ewers is a freshman in the SEC, and he recently praised the 12-team playoff and said it was tough to see last year's defending SEC champions left out. Georgia went 42-1 in 43 games and lost to Alabama in the conference title game, putting the Crimson Tide in the mix and the Bulldogs out.
Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers throws a pass downfield against the Oklahoma State Cowboys during the first half of the Big 12 Championship at AT&T Stadium on Dec. 2, 2023 in Arlington, Texas. (Ron Jenkins/Getty Images)
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If all goes according to plan, a number of teams from the SEC will be in the playoffs, and Coach Ewers is excited about the new competition.
“I'm excited. I've always wanted to play in the SEC, just to get that feeling of being out there. They have a saying: 'It means more,'” the Texas quarterback said. “They really care about football, so it's going to be a lot of fun to be a part of a conference like that.”
“They're a top competitor, so it's great to be a part of a conference where there's top-level competition every week. If you want to be the best, you've got to play against the best, so I'm looking forward to this year.”
The SEC logo appears on the field at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the campus of the University of Florida on September 1, 2022 in Gainesville, Florida. (Brad McClenny/Gainesville Sun/USA Today Network)
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Ole Miss (6th), Missouri (11th), Tennessee (15th) and Texas A&M (20th) are also ranked in the conference.
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