Which SEC schools had the best and worst years in the two major sports – football and men’s basketball? Which fan bases got the glory, and which ones didn’t have any fun?
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On the field and court – whose fans had the most fun?
Of course every school has sports outside of the big two that matter and generate revenue, but when it comes to what athletic departments need, it’s really all about college football and men’s basketball.
Which SEC schools had the best and worst seasons?
Here’s how these rankings work.
1) The top-ranked schools with teams that went to a bowl game and would’ve played in the NCAA Tournament.
2) The next group had stronger football seasons and were okay in basketball. The superstar basketball schools get credit, but football is football, especially in the SEC. Football is the bigger revenue generator.
3) One or the other. Usually there’s a disparity with one good season in one sport an a clunker in the other. It’s sort of a catch-all before …
4) The disasters. No bowl game, there wouldn’t have been a trip to the NCAA Tournament, no fun.
The worst-to-best SEC schools in 2019-2020 in college football and college basketball …
SEC Hoops and Helmets: Losers In Both Sports
These schools suffered the indignity of failing to come up with a winning season in either of the two major sports. The fans didn’t get to have any fun.
14. Vanderbilt
Football: 3-9 overall, 1-7 in conference, 7th in SEC East
Basketball: 11-21 overall, 3-15 in conference, 14th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The football team never got anything going. There was a close win over a sleepy Missouri team, and that was about it with no offense and blowout loss after blowout loss.
Football was bad, but basketball was worse. At least the Commodores didn’t finish dead last in the conference in football. The hoops side finally won two SEC game in the final three, but overall it lost 17 of its last 20 games.
13. Ole Miss
Football: 4-8 overall, 2-6 in conference, 6th in SEC West
Basketball: 15-17 overall, 6-12 in conference, 12th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The basketball team started out well and crashed badly. Just when there was a chance to pivot – at 13-11 on a three-game winning streak – it all went wrong with six losses in the final eight games.
While the bad football season led to landing Lane Kiffin, getting there was rough. Losing five games in the last six was rough enough, but the way it dropped the Egg Bowl at Mississippi State – the peeing dog antics and missed extra point – made it uglier.
NEXT: SEC Hoops and Helmets: Okay In One Sport, Not The Other
12. Arkansas
Football: 2-10 overall, 0-8 in conference, 7th in SEC West
Basketball: 20-12 overall, 7-11 in conference, 10th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The basketball team went on a nice late run to to make a possible push or the NCAA Tournament. It would’ve needed to win at least two games in the SEC Tournament, and it obviously didn’t get the chance.
The football team lost at home to San Jose State, lost its last nine games, and dumped head coach Chad Morris with a few games to go. There were several close games and battles, but 2-10 is 2-10.
11. Missouri
Football: 6-6 overall, 3-5 in conference, T4th in SEC East
Basketball: 15-16 overall, 7-11 in conference, T10th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? This isn’t quite fair. Missouri would’ve gone bowling at 6-6, but that’s sort of the point – the fans and team didn’t get to enjoy the season with nothing coming at the end of the rainbow. Losing five of the last six games didn’t help.
The basketball team was 10-10 in late January, but it lost six of its last 11 games to finish with a losing record.
10. South Carolina
Football: 4-8 overall, 3-5 in conference, T4th in SEC East
Basketball: 18-13 overall, 10-8 in conference, T6th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The Gamecocks had a shot a being considered for the NCAA Tournament if they went on a roll in the SEC Tournament, but it would’ve been a long shot. At the very least, they came up with a winning season.
A brutal schedule was part of the excuse for a 4-8 football campaign, but losing to North Carolina and Appalachian State wasn’t part of the plan. Neither was losing five of the last six games.
NEXT: SEC Hoops and Helmets: Good Overall, But Not Great In One
9. Mississippi State
Football: 6-7 overall, 6-7 in conference, 5th in SEC West
Basketball: 20-11 overall, 11-7 in conference, T4th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? Beating Ole Miss was good. Getting to a bowl game was good. Losing to Louisville was bad, finishing 6-7 was bad, and firing Joe Moorhead before he got a chance to make the program all his was … interesting. In comes Mike Leach.
The Bulldogs managed to win 20 games in hoops and went 5-2 to close the regular season. It was a firm bubble team to get into the NCAAs – few teams nationally needed the conference tournaments to be played more than MSU.
8. Texas A&M
Football: 8-5 overall, 4-4 in conference, 4th in SEC West
Basketball: 16-14 overall, 10-8 in conference, T6th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? Okay, so this might be a wee bit high – Mississippi State has a beef to swap spots. However, the 8-5 football season – a winning campaign, compared to what MSU did – with a bowl victory was enough to get the nod.
The basketball team struggled for most of the year, but it won five of its last seven games to finish with a winning season.
7. Tennessee
Football: 8-5 overall, 5-3 in conference, 3rd in SEC
Basketball: 17-14 overall, 9-9 in conference, 8th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? Both seasons were just mediocre enough to be okay. The basketball team underwhelmed in the middle of the season and couldn’t get anything consistently going – it lost eight of its last 13 games.
However, the football team pulled off a big turnaround in a fun second half of the year. It all started out ugly with losses to Georgia State and BYU on the way to a 2-5 start, but winning the last six games including a thrilling Gator Bowl over Indiana changed that.
6. Georgia
Football: 11-2 overall, 7-1 in conference, 1st in SEC East
Basketball: 16-16 overall, 5-13 in conference, 13th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The basketball team drags everything down.
The football side was terrific. It got to the SEC Championship, finished fifth in the four-team race for the College Football Playoff for the second year in a row, and rolled past Baylor to win the Sugar Bowl. However …
Basketball.
A brutal midseason run of ten losses in 12 games – all in SEC play – was too much to overcome. A win over Ole Miss ended the regular season at .500, but it still finished second-to-last in the conference.
5. Alabama
Football: 11-2 overall, 6-2 in conference, 2nd in SEC West
Basketball: 16-15 overall, 8-10 in conference, 9th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The football season was better than it seemed. Of course, anything other than winning the national championship is a clunker for Bama, but despite the loss of Tua Tagovailoa late in the year, it was still able to win 11 games and take down Michigan in the Citrus Bowl.
But it lost to Auburn, and the basketball team sputtered in the second half. The hoops side went 4-8 in the last 12 games.
NEXT: SEC Bowl Teams and (would’ve been) NCAA Tournament
4. Auburn
Football: 9-4 overall, 5-3 in conference, 3rd in SEC West
Basketball: 25-6 overall, 12-6 in conference, T2nd in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The basketball team followed up a run to the 2019 Final Four with a nice season – even with four losses in the last seven games. Before things started to slip, though, it was 22-2 after a fourth overtime win in five games. It would’ve been somewhere between a 4 and 6 seed in the NCAAs.
The football team beat Alabama. Mic drop.
There might have been a loss to Minnesota in the Outback Bowl, but it beat Oregon, hung around with Florida and Georgia in tight losses, and … it beat Bama.
3. Kentucky
Football: 8-5 overall, 3-5 in conference, T4th in SEC East
Basketball: 25-6 overall, 15-3 in conference, 1st in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? Even with an SEC regular season title, the Cats would’ve been no stronger than a third-seed at best in the NCAA Tournament. Even so, it managed to fight though a few hiccups to finish strong. With no tournament, it’ll forever be the 2020 SEC Champion.
The football team overcame a rough start and the loss of starting QB Terry Wilson to finish with four straight wins, a blowout over Louisville, and a fantastic finish to take the Belk Bowl over Virginia Tech.
2. Florida
Football: 11-2 overall, 6-2 in conference, 2nd in SEC East
Basketball: 19-12 overall, 11-7 in conference, T4th in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? Florida wouldn’t have been a high seed in the NCAAs, but it would’ve been in with relative ease despite losing three of its last five games. It might have been a wee bit rocky if it lost to a bad Georgia team in the SEC Tournament, but even then it likely would’ve been fine.
The football team had a breakthrough/turnaround season in Year Two under Dan Mullen. 11-2 with losses to LSU and Georgia – that’s more than fine. Throw in the Orange Bowl win over Virginia, the blowout win over Florida State, and wins over Tennessee and Kentucky, and it was a strong run.
1. LSU
Football: 15-0 overall, 8-0in conference, 1st in SEC West
Basketball: 21-10 overall, 12-6 in conference, T2nd in SEC
How Were The Football/Basketball Seasons? The basketball team struggled a bit over the second half of the season, losing six games in nine before beating Georgia to finish second in the SEC and …
The football team won the national championship with possibly the greatest season in the history of the sport.
The solid season in hoops was nice, but going 15-0 with a win at Alabama, an SEC Championship, a blowout College Football Playoff semifinal win over Oklahoma, and a national title victory over Clemson in New Orleans – all with a Heisman Trophy for Joe Burrow – was beyond the wildest of any LSU fan’s dreams.
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