I have no idea whether college football fans on the Pacific Coast chant "Pac-10! Pac-12!" or fans in the Lone Star State chant "Big 12! Big 12 [sic]!" or fans in the Midwest chant "Big Ten! Big Ten [sic]!" I know, however, that fans in the South are famous infamous for chanting "SEC!" This leads me to believe we are unique in our level of conference pride.
That is why this week has caused me to re-examine the notion of league loyalty, and not just because several SB Nation weblogs are "re-drafting" the college conferences. Last year, I jokingly suggested Georgia might be bound for the Pac-10 in the midst of the conference realignment excitement, but, since the start of 2011, I have rooted for Oregon to beat Auburn in the BCS Championship Game, I have rooted for Arizona State to beat Florida in the Women’s College World Series finals, and, in the wake of the Diamond Dogs’ loss to the Beavers in the Corvallis Regional, I am preparing to root for Oregon State against Vanderbilt in the NCAA baseball super regional.
As a general proposition, I believe the so-called "East Coast bias" is overblown, but my tendency nevertheless is to root for the SEC by default unless I have a reason to do otherwise. Based upon experience, I know that valid reasons to do otherwise include being jerks about calling rainouts in the midst of historic flooding and wearing orange and blue.
Where should we draw the line on conference pride, Bulldog Nation? Let me know by voting in the poll and by commenting below.
Go ‘Dawgs!
Poll
Under what circumstances is it acceptable for a Georgia fan to root against an SEC team in a non-conference game?
If that SEC team is not Georgia. (43 votes)
If that SEC team is a major Georgia rival. (61 votes)
If that SEC team is playing for a national championship. (1 vote)
If a loss by that SEC team would benefit Georgia directly. (68 votes)
That question must be answered on a case-by-case basis. (68 votes)
It is never acceptable to root against an SEC team in a non-conference game. (26 votes)
None of the above. (Explain in comments.) (5 votes)
272 total votes
There are 36 Comments. Load Now.
Shortcuts to mastering the comment thread. Use wisely.
C - Next Comment
X - Mark as Read
R - Reply
Z - Mark Read & Next
Shift + C - Previous
Shift + A - Mark All Read
Comment Settings
Live comment alert: Hide it!
Comments for this post are closed.