Mighty SEC holds down top spot prior to bowl season

LSU proved its worthiness by winning the toughest conference in all the land. Doug Benc/Getty Images

MAILBAG Have questions or feedback? E-mail Bill Trocchi. Your name: Your e-mail address: Your home town: Enter your question:

One of the arguments for LSU to play for the national championship game has been that they won the Southeastern Conference championship. Since the SEC is the toughest conference, the argument goes, the Tigers deserved to face Ohio State when the No. 2 slot opened up courtesy of Pitt's shocking upset of West Virginia.

That's a sound argument, as long as the SEC truly is the top conference among the six BCS leagues. After thorough examination, the SEC does hold up as the best conference in 2007, but it is not nearly as dominating as some may think.

Observe the numbers for yourself and you'll see that not only is parity prevalent among the teams, it goes for the conferences as well. Here are the latest rankings, along with some interesting notes as we pass the interminable wait until the national championship. Undoubtedly, there will be a shakeup in these rankings after the bowl season, and we'll revisit the final list in January.

Note: In order to have a "quality" non-conference win, the losing team must be a BCS team and had to finish .500 or better in its conference. Notable non-conference losses are losses to non-BCS teams. Notre Dame is considered a BCS team.

1. SEC

Number of teams in final BCS Top 10: 2
Number of teams in final BCS Top 25: 5
Bowl teams: 9
Non-conference record: 40-8
Non-conference record vs. BCS foes: 7-7
Quality non-conference wins (4): Georgia over Oklahoma St., LSU over Virginia Tech, Georgia over Georgia Tech, Florida over Florida State
Notable non-conference losses (1): Louisiana-Monroe over Alabama

Skinny: The only thing that distinguishes the SEC from other conferences is the amount of teams in the final Top 25, as well as the fact that one of those teams is playing for the national championship. LSU's 48-7 whipping of Virginia Tech turned out to be the signature non-conference win of the year nationally, at least until the bowls play out. The SEC has the fewest embarrassing losses and the most bowl teams of any league.

2. Big 12

Number of teams in final BCS Top 10: 3
Number of teams in final BCS Top 25: 4
Bowl teams: 8
Non-conference record: 36-12
Non-conference record vs. BCS foes: 5-6
Quality non-conference wins (3): Missouri over Illinois, Iowa State over Iowa, Nebraska over Wake Forest
Notable non-conference losses (6): Fresno State over Kansas St., Northern Iowa over Iowa State, Toledo over Iowa State, Kent State over Iowa State, Troy over Oklahoma St., TCU over Baylor

Skinny: Finding a No. 2 conference was tough. They all have their flaws. The Big 12 has way too many bad losses, but two quality wins, three Top 10 teams and eight bowl teams push the league behind the SEC. Which begs the question, why didn't Big 12 champion Oklahoma get any run as a possible opponent for Ohio State?

1 of 2