As the final seconds ticked away in the 2025 College Football National Championship Game, the only thing Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti could do is marvel at the success of his conference since succeeding Kevin Warren as commissioner.
In the past two years, college football’s most coveted crown has been won by the Big Ten as Michigan and Ohio State, the Big Ten’s most historic programs, put their hands on the championship trophy in 2024 and 2025.
Considering the state of the Big Ten in comparison to the once-dominant SEC, the Big Ten is one more title away from becoming the king of the sport, a title held by the SEC from 2007 to 2023.
Being the king means being the dominant force in recruiting, higher rankings for programs in the polls, and more teams in the playoffs. For UCLA, that means keeping more kids in California and winning recruiting battles against opposition from the South.
There used to be a misconception about the SEC. Due to the top programs having national success, everyone at the conference would benefit. The truth is that in the past ten years, the SEC has not been dominant. Alabama and Georgia have been dominant. LSU, Tennessee and Texas are the only other teams to make the playoffs as members of the SEC.
Times are changing. Georgia is still a massive problem and will forever be while Kirby Smart is at Georgia, especially now that Nick Saban is retired. Saban’s retirement exposed Alabama, and 2025 will be chin-check time for Kalen DeBoer and the Crimson Tide.
LSU will not be successful as long as they employ Brian Kelly, Tennessee just got boat raced by Ohio State, and Texas got exposed every single time they faced legitimate competition.
Let’s look at the rest of the SEC. South Carolina just lost its bowl game to Illinois, Ole Miss was the only team to lose in SEC play to Kentucky, playing into the narrative Lane Kiffin can’t win big games, Texas A&M lost its bowl game to USC and the rest of the conference was not close to making the playoff.
Realistically, the greatest threat to the Big Ten from the SEC outside of Georgia and Alabama is Missouri but they’re about to lose all their star players to the draft.
If the Big Ten can continue to stack wins in the playoffs and over the SEC, that means the benefit of being a part of the SEC will transfer to the Big Ten. If there was a 16-team playoff in 2024, something that has just been proposed, that bias would have saw South Carolina, Alabama and Ole Miss get in alongside Miami.
If that bias transfers to the Big Ten, that’s a ticket punched for Illinois. With Iowa and Michigan expected to bounce back in 2025, those slots changing hands would change the landscape of college football.
The Big Ten has money, and now it can spend it publically. 2025 is about to be a war, and it will be amazing.
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