SEC fans, and thus by affiliation, fans of Auburn football, have been talking about teams that seemed like jealous outsiders just a few days ago but are now set to join the premier college football conference.
Texas and Oklahoma have set off a chain reaction that has reports surfacing about the likes of Ohio State, Michigan, Clemson, and Florida State abandoning their respective ships and joining the sport’s most storied programs in the southeast.
It is causing the way we think about the sport to turn on the side of its head. Depending on where you are in the country, that could either be a good thing or flat-out disastrous.
Down here on the Plains, this could be the beginning of a major growth period for the entire area, especially after NIL laws gave players and business entities the ability to market products together.
Growth is inevitable at this point. With the imagination already running wild about trips to the Midwest for regularly scheduled conference matchups, we here at Fly War Eagle decided to get even more creative and think about who else the SEC could steal from other conferences.
So, in the spirit of Booker T, we’re looking for *in loudest Booker T voice*, “five schools, five schools, five schools, five schools, five schools” from Group of Five conferences the SEC should poach to join the likes of Alabama, LSU, and Auburn football in the winningest conference of this millenium:
Team #1 we’d like to see join Auburn football in the SEC: UCF
I mean, come on. The story writes itself.
Former Auburn football coach Gus Mazlahn is now in Orlando with the Knights, joining the team that beat him three and a half years ago to cap the 2017 season.
With Malzahn’s arrival having players hungry for a National Championship and the fanbase wanting to qualify for the CFP year in and year out as the top team in the Sunshine State, a jump to the SEC would put them on the fast-track to their goals.
A rivalry with Auburn football seems like a natural trickle down effect from UCF joining the SEC given their interwoven history.
Team #2 we’d like to see join Auburn football in the SEC: Coastal Carolina
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina would be quite the destination for an away game every so often, and Coastal Carolina is quickly gaining momentum as one of the most must-see offenses in the sport.
Grayson McCall’s strong play under center–which includes one of the game’s most lethal spread options–had pundits calling Coastal one of the most must-see offenses in the game in 2020, and the Chanticleers are expected to once again be a regular in the AP Top 25.
Sooner or later, their dominance and exciting playstyle could lead to bigger things.
Team #3 we’d like to see join Auburn football in the SEC: UL-Lafayette
The Ragin’ Cajuns finished the 2020 season ranked just two spots behind Coastal Carolina in the AP Top 25 and were robbed of a chance to rematch the Chanticleers in the Sun Belt Championship game due to COVID-19 positive tests after a razor-thin one score matchup in Lafayette last October.
UL-Lafayette has put together two double-digit win seasons in a row, and with sustained momentum, could one day be the state of Louisiana’s second entry into the SEC.
Team #4 we’d like to see join Auburn football in the SEC: Memphis
Memphis has won double digit games three times since the 2014 season and could have done it last year under normal circumstances. They have produced diamonds in the rough in basketball–most notably Derrick Rose in 2008–but have had six players get drafted the past three seasons to the NFL as well.
Given their market, Memphis could join Tennessee and Vanderbilt as Volunteer State reprentatives in the SEC. If Ryan Silverfield can continue the progress Mike Norvell made with the program, Memphis could be a serious flight-risk down the line.
Team #5 we’d like to see join Auburn football in the SEC: UAB
Alabama’s official state nickname should be “the football state” considering how much both the Alabama and Auburn football programs mean to the state’s economy.
Birmingham–by way of being the biggest city in the Yellowhammer State–should be in the thick of it all, especially considering the importance of UAB’s healthcare system.
The Blazers have a great fanbase and have overcome the cancellation of their program to earn a berth to a bowl game three of the last four seasons. Admission to the SEC could be the event that catapults them to being a perenially ranked football school. The passion and fanfare is there in Birmingham, and Power 5 backing could help this cinderella story reach a greater audience moving forward.