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SMU coach Rhett Lashlee criticized the Southeastern Conference during the ACC media days, saying it is not as deep or competitive as people think.
“The SEC has had the same six schools win the championship since 1964. Not a single one has been different since 1964. That’s top-heavy to me. That’s not depth," Lashlee said.
The comment was likely targeted at the core of SEC dominance. Since 1964, only Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU and Tennessee have claimed national titles as the conference members. Programs like Arkansas, Oklahoma and Texas have won championships too, but not as SEC schools at the time.
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The comment did not sit well with many people, including sportscaster Chris Russo, who appeared on Wednesday’s segment of “First Take.”
Russo recalled when SMU was defeated by Penn State in last year’s college football playoff, losing 50-3. He said that the game put “America to sleep” after halftime.
“To sit there and compare the ACC to Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, LSU, Ole Miss, Georgia, South Carolina,” Russo said. “I mean, you must, Auburn … Texas A&M, the SEC is 50 times, always will be, always has been a football conference, better than the ACC.”
In Russo’s view, Laslee’s assertion about SEC depth simply doesn’t hold water. He challenged ACC to prove its worth on the field.
“Here’s what I want the ACC to do, okay? Russo said. “Here’s what I want you to do, go to an SEC, go to a playoff game this year if you’re SMU, and be competitive in the game. Okay? … Show me in a big spot that an ACC team can be, outside of Clemson, that can be competitive in a big spot."
"SMU didn’t show that last year. For him to go to the ACC Media Day and basically kill the SEC is absolutely, mind bogglingly, stupid.”
Paul Finebaum on Rhett Lashlee’s comments about SEC
Rhett Lashlee’s comments about the SEC upset many other people, including SEC Network host Paul Finebaum. On ESPN’s “Get Up” on Wednesday, Finebaum said:
“Do you know what happened at SMU? They shut the program down. While he’s making fun of the SEC for winning national championships all over the place. SMU is the most corrupt program in the history of college football. Rhett Lashlee has the nerve to get up there and throw stones? By the way, he played at Arkansas. That should have nothing to do with it."
“That was one of the most comically embarrassing rants I have heard and I am glad the audio wasn’t clear because I would have come right through that screen.”
He also noted that Rhett Lashlee played at Arkansas, an SEC school, and said that made his comments even more surprising.
