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RMFT.

You will probably have more fun pounding the likes of UK and Vandy as you get going anyway.

And the Vols are always easy to hate.

Roll Tide.

Alabama/Tennessee is Michigan/Ohio State to Alabama/Auburn's Michigan/Michigan State.

Alabama is the SEC's wealthiest & winningest program. It also has the most salable name for TV. If the SEC wants to piss it off they do so at their peril. They've already been crapping on the Capstone for the last decade w/ the ridiculous BYE-week scheduling. It's not like Alabama's not got beef with the SEC as things are right now. From a voting perspective Alabama is equal to everyone else. From an impact perspective, Alabama is MUCH more important than all but LSU & Florida. If you think Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Auburn, Missouri, South Carolina, Kentucky, Vanderbilt, etc. have the same economic or visibility impact on the SEC then you are kidding yourself.

Alabama could have everything it wants in the ACC if it brings the Vols along as well. Tons of recruiting in Georgia, Florida, Virginia, & the Carolina's, maintained rivalries (Tennessee/Auburn), rekindled historic rivalry with GT, a much better academic reputation, and (w/ the ACC's new footprint) more money than the SEC could put together without Alabama in its schedule. All that the ACC's missing from overtaking the SEC economically is another big-time football program or two. Alabama/Tennessee would give them 2 of those. Swap games w/ Arkansas, A&M, & LSU for games against Miami, FSU, & Clemson. Games against MSU & Ole Miss for games against UNC & NCSt.. The schedule would actually get better most years.

Ark 5.5 hours
Vandy 7.4 hours
Ole Miss 7.4 hours
UK 7.6 hours
Miss St 9.4 hours
UT 10.1 hours
Bama 10.4 hours
LSU 12.2 hours
UGA 12.4 hours
Auburn 12.5 hours
TexA&M 13.3 hours
USC 14.4 hours
FLA 17.2 hours

Seems that its a long way from everybody no matter what. If you put Missouri in the East with Arkansas as its cross rival, then 3 of the 4 shortest roadtrips road trips are on the schedule every year.

I think schools that have won "recent memory" national championships (Alabama Florida LSU Auburn Tennessee Georgia) are the six traditional powers that should be split in conference alignment. TexasA&M Ark USC Missouri are a step below. I think any split that disproportianately separates those top six schools alters the balance of power significantly.

Gig'Em!

If I were Silve, I would call a meeting with 'Bama's president and AD. In this meeting I would point out that the thing that distinguishes the SEC from every other conference is it is like a family. That's why the league has no exit fees. That is also why the league treats the least of its members from an athletic standpoint the same as its most important members. And it is also why it is the best football conference in America and the most successful conference in America. Then I would say something to the Alabama contingent approximating the following: "You Alabama guys have it made. You have all this success. You have all these hotly contested rivalries. Heck, whenever any SEC school plays you, it is a major event. So look, here we have a new member. We need that new member to thrive. If this new member, Mizzou, thrives it will make our conference stronger and we will all be better for it. Now look, it does not any good for Mizzou to come into the conference and die on the vine as a competitor. To insure the school gets its best shot at being successful in the SEC, two things must happen. First, Mizzou has to play A&M ever year. It has to do that to keep its Texas connection going because it has a preexisting recruiting pipeline into that state that is essential to the program. Second, Mizzou needs a big natural rival, where tens of thousands of Mizzou fans can travel just a few hours and make the game. The only school that fits that bill is Arkansas. So it is absolutely imperative that Mizzou play those two schools every year. Alabama, I ask that you see how important this is. Mizzou's situation is so drastically different from your's as you have five SEC schools within just hours of your doorstep, Now to give Mizzou its best shot at being successful and a happy member of our great conference, I am going to ask you to make a little sacrifice. Give up the game against UT as your permanent cross division rival. Other schools have done this for the betterment of the conference, and I ask you to do the same. And really Alabama, what a way to welcome a new family member: that you would give up one of your biggest rivalries just to insure that your new family member was put into a situation where it would have its best chance for success and for feeling fully integrated into our league. Its the right thing to do. Surely Mizzou realizes that you are one of the big fishes of the SEC and what an indication that we are 180 degrees different from the Big 12 if we approached this this way. No way you would see Texas make that kind of sacrifice for the betterment of the whole."

I believed if Silve pitched it that way, 'Bama would give up the annual game against UT so AU could move to the East. If not, he could put "Bama on the bubble and say, "okay 'Bama, if you insist on the annual game with UT, we will have two permanent cross-division rivals. But that is a very selfish move because it will mean that some cross division teams will only see each other once every six years … just so you can play the Vols annually." I do not see 'Bama being so selfish, and I see them agreeing to keep Mizzou in the same division as Arkansas and A&M (that is, the West). Plus Silve could throw in a carrot. Tell them that A&M's permanent rival will be SC. So let AU have greater access to GA and FL. It will have less access to the Lone Star State in the East, and access that that State trumps all. Plus, Texas recruits will be less interest in SC because it is so much further away than other Eastern schools. This will give 'Bama a greater advantage in its recruiting efforts in Texas.

Some SEC fans have posted on our sites asking about our preferences as to cross division rival and such. I have seen some posts blasting some fans of non-SEC schools for lack of passion in their comments.

I'm sorry for expressing my passion in an arrogant manner.

Thanks for your patience.

Gig'Em!

The Arkansas/LSU game would still be played, but you can move it to a midseason game. The Arky/LSU game is big, but not really seen as THE rivalry game by both fan bases.

As a Bama fan I wouldn't mind being in the East either because we could renew our game with UGA. We could keep playing either LSU or MSU with a cross division game so it would be a net gain for us as well.

It will never happen and I don't really want it to happen either, but if you are going to get screwy then it makes the most sense of any other screwy alignment out there.

I'm hoping Mizzou to the East, with Arkansas as their C-Div. Makes perfect sense for everyone, and it will quickly develop into a great natural rivalry – Battle of the Ozarks. Ags would be happy to take FL if LSU wants to let go of that, or SC.

Fwiw, remember that A&M doesn't have a long history with Mizzou, we didn't play every year in B12, and have only played them 9 times in the past 50 years, 11 total in our history… as compared with LSU 50 times, Ark 68 times. So while I think Mizzou is a good SEC add in general, don't over inflate the Big 12 connections or wishes to tap Texas recruits as a reason to Mizzou-A&M's C-Div. We're all trying to just forget about the Big 12 anyway.

Ark. & Mo.really do need to play each other every year. There is potential there to develop a great rivalry. Missouri's "need" to play A & M annually so that they can potentially recruit better in Texas just isn't compelling enough. Remember, they're asking to join. They say they will be happy in either division. Things will go a lot more smoothly with Mo. in the East. Fewer existing rivalries will be disrupted; they are a better "cultural fit" with Vandy, UT, & UK [a large portion of Missouri was settled by Tennesseans & Kentuckians]; & except for Florida & USC, travel won't be that much different.

Welcome aboard

SEC West: Texas A&M, Arkansas, Mizzou, LSU, Ole Miss
SEC Central: Miss State, Alabama, Tenn, Vandy Kentucky
SEC South: Auburn, Florida, Georgia, South Carolina and NCSU or VT.

Then you can either have two SEC owned bowls leading into the championship game in rotating cities, or a championship game and runner-up game with the possibility of the the two winners in the same BCS bowl, possibly (though unlikely) for the National Championship. In either case, the 3 division champions play with one wild card to compensate for unbalanced divisions.