For the first time in over a decade, the SEC has gone two straight seasons without a national title, signaling more than just a fluke. With SEC teams losing their grip, teams like Ohio State, Indiana, and Oregon are making their way up in the playoffs and national relevance. This surge mirrors the success once held by SEC powers like Nick Saban and Kirby Smart, signaling a new era.

“The SEC is still scary to play in. They’re just not scary to the rest of college football anymore,” CBS Sports analyst Adam Breneman said on X. “They’re still deep, still talented, still a physical conference, but none of them feel inevitable. Not like Saban’s Alabama teams did, not even Georgia, just a few years ago.”

He also said, “Meanwhile, the Big Ten has two, maybe three teams that feel inevitable. Plus, Ohio State looks like they’re on the verge of back-to-back titles.”

The Big Ten has been showing its dominance in recent years, and teams like Ohio State and Indiana are emerging as strong as the SEC’s Alabama and Georgia. After Georgia’s championship win in 2022, no SEC team won the season.

“Indiana has been playing incredible football for two consecutive years under Curt Cignetti. Both of them look like the kind of monster programs the SEC used to produce every year. The point is, the SEC does not control college football anymore,” concluded Breneman.

In 2023, Michigan snatched the national title, and last year it was Ohio State. Even this season, Indiana, which is a Big Ten team, remains the only undefeated team in the league, whereas Alabama and Georgia have faced more than one loss. The Texas Longhorns had three losses in the season and appeared to be a shadow of their former selves.

Last season, Notre Dame dominated Georgia, and even Michigan came up strong against Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl. This shows how far the Big 10 teams have come. The rest of the programs caught up at a rapid pace, and the SEC’s starting to lose its charm. Even Fox Sports analyst Urban Meyer doubled down on the Big Ten’s success.

“The question is, is the SEC’s dominance over? It is. It’s over,” Meyer said on The Triple Option podcast. “Now, next year’s another year. But for (at least the last) two years, it’s over.”

There’s no doubt that the SEC still is the most successful conference in college football playoff history since its launch in 2014. Across both the four-team format and the expanded 12-team era, the SEC owns a combined 20-11 record and has captured six national championships. Alabama leads all programs with a 10-5 record.

Whereas the Big Ten ranks second in playoff rankings with a 12-10 record, and has won three national championships. But the dominance they had in Nick Saban’s era, with six national titles at Alabama, and Georgia’s two back-to-back title wins, is something that’s becoming common with the Big 10, too.

However, with the new NIL and transfer portal era, teams are investing heavily in their rosters and boosters, making massive donations to enhance their teams. For instance, Phil Knight’s backing of Nike has enabled Oregon to capitalize on NIL, while Dave Portnoy has supported Michigan in securing high-priced players, such as quarterback Bryce Underwood.

The focus has shifted from playing good football to earning more. Nick Saban already saw it coming. With that, even scandals are intensifying in the Big 10. It’s not always smooth sailing in the SEC, with multiple controversies stealing the limelight.

Big 10 conference’s head-turning scandals

With impressive performances on the field, the Big Ten conference has faced a series of high-profile scandals over the past 15 years, including NCAA violations, sexual abuse, and player mistreatment.

To give some examples, Ohio State’s former head coach Jim Tressel resigned following a “Tattogate” scandal. He allowed players to exchange memorabilia for tattoos without reporting the violation, which is a breach of NCAA rules.

Then, Rutgers also faced multiple scandals in the 2010s. In 2013, basketball coach Mike Rice was fired after a video showed him abusing players, which even led to athletic director Tim Pernetti’s resignation.

Additionally, there are many more instances, such as Connor Stalions’ illegal scouting, which forced Jim Harbaugh to make an NFL move and Stalions to resign due to sign-stealing.

And even this season, Sherrone Moore was fired after having an inappropriate relationship with a staffer. This indicates that even with continuous success and dominant records, scandals persist as a significant problem for the Big Ten Conference.