The SEC Championship race is razor-thin as Week 13 of the college football season continues.
Texas and Texas A&M currently lead the standings with 5-1 conference records, but Georgia, at 6-2, and Tennessee, at 5-2, remain hot on their heels.
Alabama and Ole Miss also sit within striking distance, each boasting 4-2 conference records.
With such tight competition, the battle for a spot in the SEC Championship Game promises to go down to the wire.
However, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin has sparked debate by suggesting that some SEC coaches may prefer to avoid the title game altogether due to concerns about its impact on the College Football Playoff.
Earlier this week, Kiffin raised eyebrows with his brutally honest comments regarding the dangers of playing in the SEC title game.
“I’ve talked to other coaches, so I’ll just kind of give you the feeling from some other coaches that. They don’t want to be in it,” Kiffin admitted.
“You know, the reward to get a bye versus the risk to get knocked out completely. I mean, that’s a that’s a pretty big, that’s a really big risk.”
Former Florida Gators and Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Urban Meyer, a three-time national champion, was taken aback by Kiffin’s comments.
“I’m shutting you out because I can’t even think like that,” Meyer bluntly said on The Triple Option podcast.
“What do you (mean), you hope you don’t go to the championship game? Like, I don’t, what do you like, you go and then you eat dinner afterward? You get up in the morning, as you’re driving to work, do you say, ‘Boy, I hope we don’t win the SEC Championship.’ I mean, that doesn’t compute,” Meyer added.
Meyer’s reaction underscores the high stakes and differing philosophies surrounding the SEC Championship Game.
For programs like Ole Miss, the calculus is particularly intriguing. Despite being outside the top tier of contenders, Kiffin’s Rebels still have a shot at the CFP.
If Ole Miss can secure a spot in the SEC Championship Game and win it, they would assumingly be a lock for the playoff field.
Even without a title game appearance, winning out against Florida and rival Mississippi State might keep them in the conversation for one of the final spots in the expanded 12-team playoff.
We all know the point that Kiffin was trying to make. However, it’s a point that the vast majority of coaches wouldn’t actually acknowledge publicly.
But hey, that’s why we love Lane, right?
What are your thoughts on Kiffin’s revelation – and Meyer’s response to it???
