This point was made at many points throughout the 2023 season.

“The SEC isn't that strong this year.”
“Georgia and everyone else.”
“The SEC schedule does not represent a normal schedule for this year.”
etc

If you didn't hear this, you probably weren't listening carefully enough. But with all the teams from the SEC eliminated and a non-conference national champion crowned this Monday for the first time since 2018, we can now look back on a season in which there was no national championship team at all for the first time since 2015. became. Are the arguments valid?

The answer is complicated. It would be foolish to argue that Georgia wasn't one of the “best four” teams in the country, but looking at the intensity of things this season, there was simply no place for them. The Dawgs' loss to Alabama by three points and being eliminated from the playoffs said less about the SEC and more about the state of college football as a whole this season and how many teams deserved it.

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Despite their shortcomings, Alabama has won 11 straight games, including an upset over Georgia that earned them a spot in the CFP. But the Tide's offensive flaws were fully exposed when they played against one of the nation's best teams in the Big Ten.

LSU, considered by many to be the favorite heading into this year, was a huge disappointment due to a horrible defense. A 9-3 season is nothing to scoff at, but expectations were higher for a team that won the SEC West title and entered its second year with a new coach.

Similarly, Tennessee, which was trying to ride the magic of last season into the Joe Milton era, had a largely disappointing 8-4 season. The University of Tennessee and LSU both won bowl games, but it wasn't where each team wanted to be.

But for every LSU and Tennessee, there's an Ole Miss and Missouri as well. Missouri had one of the best seasons in program history, with just six preseason wins, but Eli Drinkwitz led the Tigers to double-digit wins and a win over Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl. Needless to say, Georgia experienced one of the toughest tests of the year in the match in Athens, but no one gave them any offense.

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Oxford also had a great season, with its only losses coming on trips to Alabama and Georgia, and Lane Kiffin and the Rebels won the Peach Bowl over Penn State to finish the regular season 10-2.

That momentum carried over into the offseason, with Kiffin bringing in an outstanding portal class that will have the team competing for an SEC title in 2024.

But when you think about whether this was a “down” year for the SEC, the answer seems to be that it was a down year. different Year. The teams that were expected to be major players (with the exception of Georgia and Alabama) weren't, and two teams that many didn't see coming had big seasons that ended in New Year's Six wins. .

It will be interesting to see how many teams will participate in the conference as the conference will move to a 12-team playoff format next season.

But for now, the championship game will be played without the SEC on Monday night.