Nick Saban may be retired from coaching, but he has not retired from defending the SEC. That became obvious again on Friday when Saban appeared on The Pat McAfee Show and detailed his argument with Miami head coach Mario Cristobal over the ACC.
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“He calls me up with this ACC bulls–t,” Saban said. “He’s always trying to convince me that the ACC is better than the SEC. I know that the Big Ten is a really good conference and getting better when it comes to depth. It’s really great at the top with Ohio State and Oregon. But, anyway, it is what it is. He’s never gonna convince me that the ACC is better than the SEC.”
That was enough to set off college football fans. CBS’s Danny Kanell was one of the loudest voices pushing back. He pointed at Miami’s recent record against SEC opponents, arguing that Saban was the one “slinging that SEC BS.” He did not have to look far for evidence. On3’s Brett McMurphy pointed to Miami’s recent run against the SEC on X.
“Cristobal & Miami are 5-0, last 5 games vs. SEC,” he wrote.
That stretch includes wins over Texas A&M at Kyle Field, Florida, and Ole Miss during the 2025 season. The Texas A&M win probably stands out most. Miami walked into College Station, where the Aggies rarely make life easy for visiting teams, and left with the win. And Miami wasn’t finished there.
“I mean, 2 out of the last 3 years the ACC has finished with a winning record vs the SEC,” a Clemson supporter wrote on X. “The SEC’s only playoff wins last year were vs other SEC teams. This isn’t Nick Saban’s SEC anymore.”
The SEC still had the better numbers. Its teams went 125-83 in 2025, while the ACC finished 120-100. The SEC also had a 9.40 average SRS of 9.40, compared with 4.68 for the ACC. So, if you look at the whole season, the SEC had the stronger résumé. That is the part Saban can point to. So, saying the ACC is clearly better than the SEC would be difficult to defend based on the entire season. But the postseason made the SEC look much less imposing. And at the end of the day, on-field results define seasons.
“Someone let him know the ACC record vs the SEC last season and ask him which conference between the ACC and SEC has made the national title game the last 3 football seasons,” a Big 10 supporter wrote on X.
SEC teams went just 4-10 in bowl games, including 0-4 against ACC opponents. The ACC went 9-5 overall and 4-0 against the SEC in the postseason last year. The SEC also had seven teams finish in the final AP Top 25, compared with two from the ACC. So the depth argument Saban made still has plenty behind it. Then again, on the field, the ACC, represented by Miami, looked more dominant.