Paul Finebaum Breaks Silence as Texas’ Cotton Bowl Blunder Sparks Fresh Concerns Over SEC’s Waning Dominance

There’s no sugarcoating it. The SEC is faltering. This has never been the case. This is an elite powerhouse conference that’s known for housing the best teams, players, and staff. Since the introduction of the College Football Playoffs in 2014, the SEC has never missed a CFP semifinal game until last season. So now we know what Steve Sarkisian’s fall in the Cotton Bowl loss means for the SEC, right? 

On January 12, ESPN College Football posted a video of Paul Finebaum addressing this awful turn of events on The Matt Barrie Show. “This is significant,” the CFB analyst said of the SEC falling short of the National Championship game for two straight seasons. “I know everybody always thinks that those of us who live in SEC country try to hide things like that.”

But he’s breaking the silence, saying, “That is a dramatic moment. A seminal moment in time that I really didn’t expect, especially with a 12-team playoff.” Paul Finebaum voiced everybody’s thoughts in that last bit. 

After Ohio State’s dominant 28-14 win over Texas in the CFP semifinals, the SEC’s national championship hope was extinguished. One of the most expensive blunders in the Cotton Bowl happened in the final couple of minutes when the Longhorns trailed by seven points. At the Buckeyes’ 1-yard line, they had a chance to make a first-and-goal. Instead, they lost seven yards in three plays, ending in another Quinn Ewers sack on fourth-and-goal as OSU DE Jack Sawyer scored the winning touchdown.

Now, it’ll be Notre Dame against the Buckeyes in the final showdown on January 20. For the SEC, this means two back-to-back years sitting out of the National Championship game. And the Irish—they’re independent, so they’ll be taking all the glory for themselves. 

Last season was another close one for the SEC when Nick Saban’s Alabama fell to Michigan in the Rose Bowl CFP semifinals. The B1G Wolverines and the then Pac-12 Washington Huskies (now B1G) advanced to the national championship game, where Michigan ultimately won. This season hasn’t been kind to them, though. Both teams didn’t make it to the 12-team playoffs. So who’s the winner of the season? 

SEC vs. Big Ten: Who dominated the 2024 season?

Only three SEC teams made it to the playoffs—Georgia, Texas, and Tennessee. And the SEC powerhouse? The 3-loss Alabama under new HC Kalen DeBoer was kicked out of the playoff in favor of a one-loss SMU. Consider this. The Crimson Tide has the most national championships in the SEC. But like Paul Finebaum said, this is a 12-team playoff, and they couldn’t clinch a spot despite dominating the previous seasons’ playoffs. Texas’ double-point defeat in the Cotton Bowl only fueled this concern. 

As of now, the Big Ten seems to be in dominance. Four of the B1G teams made it to the playoffs—Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, and Indiana. The Ducks remained undefeated throughout the season, only to lose their first KO game against their conference opponent OSU in the Rose Bowl.

The Buckeyes also delivered the Hoosiers’ lone regular season loss before their playoff fallout against Notre Dame in the first round. Both OSU and Penn State reached the CFP semifinals, although the Nittany Lions went out after the Irish’s strong comeback victory in the Orange Bowl. 

We can see the clear winner of the season. It only remains to be seen if the SEC can take the form of a phoenix next season!