Going back to Nick Saban's renewal of Alabama Football in the 2009 season, the SEC has had 16 undefeated conference seasons. During that 16-season period, only seven programs made the SEC Championship Game, plus new arrival Texas in 2024. The 16 SEC Championships were gained by only four teams. The Alabama Crimson Tide won nine of them. Georgia won three, followed by LSU and Auburn with two each. The point being there was nothing close to parity in the SEC.
Going into the 2025 season, the situation has changed. The bottom tier of the league, Mississippi State, Kentucky, Arkansas, and probably Vanderbilt, are unlikely to pull off many upsets in what, combined, will be few conference wins. Above that group of teams are 12 others who can win on many Saturdays. Relative parity at the top will mean the teams in Atlanta on Dec. 6 are unlikely to be undefeated.
No Atlanta Guarantee for Alabama Football and others
There are two main reasons why the SEC will not see a 17th undefeated conference season since 2009. One is that the SEC is a gauntlet of teams, many of which have talent-laden rosters. Another reason is that, despite the abundance of talent, every team has weaknesses. There is no guarantee that any of the top contenders, Alabama, Texas, Georgia, and LSU, will make it to Atlanta.
Alabama football fans know too well that the Crimson Tide has no proven quarterback and that the Tide's offensive line must be much improved from last season. Steve Sarkisian has built a powerhouse in Austin, but the Horns have many holes to fill on both sides of the trenches. Plus, Arch Manning is no superstar yet. LSU must be better defensively, while also having unproven defensive and offensive linemen. Georgia is the least experienced of the four teams. The Dawgs should be a national title contender in the end, but getting to that level in September will be difficult. If Phil Steele is correct, Georgia has a scheduling advantage, with Alabama and Texas going to Athens.
Going into the last Saturday in November, four or more SEC teams will likely be in tie-breaker range of making the SEC Championship Game. The situation will not match NFL-level parity, but it will be parity that is unaccustomed in the SEC.
Note: Conference records provided by Sports Reference