The Red and Black

Issue date: 3/6/09 Section: Sports

Fletcher Page

Where are all the SEC diehards clamoring for national recognition in the sporting world now?

After football season these fans go into hiding, ignoring the prime winter months of NCAA basketball, dispelling attacks of inferiority with, "Wait 'til we see you in September."

And for good reason.

Florida's conference banner back-to-back championships in 2006-07, along with LSU's Final Four run in 2006, gave credence to the, "Look, we can be successful at non-football sports outcry." These success stories are quickly losing relevance in the what-have-you-done-lately sports spectrum.

The SEC has only one team locked into the Big Dance, LSU, which has made conference opposition its whipping post with a 13-2 SEC record.

Despite the Tigers' success, ESPN bracketology analyst Joe Lunardi tabbed LSU as a 6-seed, indicting the weakness of the SEC. Imagine, the winner of a major conference with 25 teams seeded ahead of it - an embarrassing sign of the times.

Perennial SEC studs Tennessee, Florida and South Carolina are bubble teams at best, with some scenarios offering the NIT as the only postseason route. When Florida needed to win the most, Wednesday night against Mississippi State, it choked. Florida's strength of schedule is more laughable than the University's weather assessment team.

Even nationally recognized Kentucky has slipped to the bottom of the bubble watch with a 19-11 record. The Wildcats' loss at home to Georgia Wednesday places them in jeopardy of missing the Big Dance for the first time since 1991. Lunardi has all these teams in the tournament, but none higher than a 6-seed.

Willing to wager on any of these teams surviving the first weekend?

It's a joke to see any team other than LSU in the field of 64, unless another improbable run in the SEC Tournament is made.

In conference rankings provided by Jeff Saragrin, the SEC is tabbed at sixth, trailing all other major conferences. This is embarrassing when taking note of the SEC pacing just ahead of the Mountain West, which boasts Utah, Brigham Young, San Diego State and UNLV, all with a chance to get in the tournament ahead of SEC schools.

The problem with the SEC?

Where is the star power? Take Kentucky guard Jodie Meeks out of the equation and name one player who is recognized nationally. Still thinking?

It would be a stretch to add Florida's Nick Calathes and South Carolina's Devan Downey. I'll concede that Tennessee forward Tyler Smith, LSU's Tasmin Mitchell and Kentucky's Patrick Patterson are solid players.

But compared to the long SEC football celebrity list, the basketball notables look like second rate guests at a Dennis Felton dinner party.

Only six of the conference's top 35 scorers are seniors. The numbers are the same in the rebounding column.

No SEC team can boast a sure-fire four-year leader who can command respect and attention come tournament time. And if you don't have leadership, what do you have?

A lot of free time in March.

Also missing-in-action is any sort of an impact freshman.

Ole Miss guard Terrico White as well as Arkansas' Courtney Fortson and Georgia's Trey Thompkins are good players. But they are stuck between the margins, as in not jumping off the page. I'm not dispelling their contributions, but the potential and realization is on a separate plain when grading out SEC freshmen thus far.

Selection Sunday is going to be a tense day for SEC faithful holding out for validation. But after all, I guess spring football practice is only weeks away, and all will soon be forgotten. I'm sure I'll hear all about the SEC in the fall.

- Fletcher Page is a sportswriter for the Red & Black

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