SEC football: Teams starting to catch up to Saban and Alabama

Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide have been in control of SEC football for a decade now. It looks like teams are beginning to narrow the margin.

Brett McMurphy tweeted out Superbooks‘ 2020 SEC Championship odds for all SEC football teams. And to the surprise of few, Alabama once again has the best chance to leave Atlanta with the SEC crown.

But the numbers have a deeper meaning and it looks like the tables are finally beginning to turn in favor of the rest of the conference.

In 2019, Superbooks had a similar prophecy with Alabama leading the way, but the teams behind them had noticeably worse odds than this season.

The most interesting take away happens to be the catchup game that the rest of the SEC is playing. Make no mistake, the Crimson Tide are still the favorites to win the conference, but the margin has slowly, but surely narrowed from last year.

Realistically, no one truly knows who will win the SEC football championship game in 2020. In fact, the odds are a representation of player-program talent disparities amongst the teams. Vegas also uses other factors like- strength of schedule, coaching, and depth of rosters to come up with the numbers.

With that said, it’s still interesting to see Vegas gradually minimize the contrasts in SEC football which has haunted the conference since Alabama’s championship in 2010.

Is the tide turning? Maybe.

First, someone must dethrone Saban and the juggernaut that is Alabama.

And while LSU had a nice spark last season, it doesn’t seem like they will be able to maintain the same level of play after losing once in a lifetime quarterback Joe Burrow. Don’t get me wrong Tiger fans, I still think that Ed Orgeron is a great coach, but there’s a lot to prove before you can be considered the next dynasty.

Coincidentally, my best bet falls on Saban’s former left-hand man Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs. Could it be that the next guy up is the exact person that Saban spent eight years grooming?

According to 247Sports recruiting rankings, the Bulldogs just edged out the Tide for first place in the 2020 class. Smart also took the top spot in 2018 while Saban finished fifth.

But let’s not get it twisted. As long as Nick Saban is coaching at the University of Alabama, they will continue to be one of the top teams in the conference- if not the best, year in and year out.

Fansided’s very own Cody Williams compiled a list ranking every SEC football team in 2020. Cody’s number one team heading into this season is Alabama, with Georgia at the number two spot.

Right now, there’s not too much to stress about for Tide fans, but that doesn’t mean that the days of bullying teams on the recruiting trail and destroying the competition on the field will last forever.

The Crimson Tide’s dominance and margin for error is growing slim in the SEC. Sooner rather than later, the margin will begin to go in the other direction.

It’s just a matter of time ’til the tables begin to turn.