SEC Football Unfiltered

Dabo Swinney named names. The Clemson coach is blowing the whistle with allegations of tampering by an SEC school. 

Swinney says he's decided to sic the feeble NCAA on Mississippi coach Pete Golding, after Swinney accused the Rebels coach of tampering to plunder a player off Clemson's roster.

Oh, boy.

On the one hand, kudos to Swinney for actually naming names. Many coaches bellyache of tampering, but few come with any evidenc...

When Indiana won its first national championship in program history, the Hoosiers shattered college football's permission structure. Fans could always hope. Now, Indiana gave fans of lovable losers permission to believe.

Who cares about history? That matters less than ever.

That should be good news for a few programs inside the SEC.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams debate whether the "next Indiana" could be ...

The mighty SEC has fallen off its perch. It no longer rules college football. For the third straight season, the SEC has been shut out of the national championship game. If Indiana beats Miami, that will mark three straight national titles for the Big Ten.

How does the SEC get the crown back?

Start in Texas. The Longhorns failed to live up to the hype in Arch Manning's first season as starter, but they finished the year in strong f...

The SEC's hopes rest on the shoulders of Trinidad Chambliss and Ole Miss. While most of the SEC flopped in the postseason, the Rebels have become the toast of college football, as they continue to win even after Lane Kiffin's exit.

Can the Rebels reach the finish line? If so, can the Heisman Trophy redirect its way into Chambliss' hands? The latter won't happen. The former? Maybe.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John ...

The Big Ten is thriving so far this postseason. With a couple of exceptions, the SEC is wilting.

And what of the coaching carousel? Did the Big Ten club the SEC there, too? You could make that case.

LSU scored the big fish by securing Lane Kiffin. Mostly, though, SEC schools hired promising but largely unproven up and comers, while Big Ten schools like Michigan and Penn State landed veteran winners with solid resumes.

On today's ep...

The College Football Playoff’s first round served two competitive games and two blowouts. The reaction to that: Many fans and media types are demanding a change to the CFP bracket format.

Is that an overreaction to two lopsided games, or a worthy response? Let’s remember, last year’s playoff served up four first-round duds. So, at least this year provided an upgrade. That doesn’t mean this system is perfect.

Diego Pavia reacted to his second-place Heisman Trophy finish as only he would.

"F all the voters," Vanderbilt's quarterback wrote on social media.

Hey, he's talking about us! We're the voters.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams reveal their Heisman Trophy ballots and sound off on Pavia's response to not winning. 

We take no significant offense to Pavia criticizing sportswriters and their votes. After all...

Did the CFP committee get the playoff bracket right? Well, that depends on your perspective and your rooting interests. The bubble became awfully crowded, so not everyone was going to come away happy.

Overall, Alabama and Miami seem like fair choices, but the course the committee charted to reach that destination became an exercise of the absurd.

On today’s episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams offer their biggest gri...

If you’d formed a list of candidates LSU should pursue after it fired Brian Kelly, it might have looked like this:

1. Lane Kiffin

2. Revert to option 1 and get it done.

LSU got it done. Lane has landed in Baton Rouge. Now, what does it all mean?

For Kiffin, leaving Ole Miss on the doorstep of the playoff marks a sharp pivot in his redemption story and revives his renegade past. At LSU, he'll enjoy every advantage to win ...

Two SEC schools will lose the Lane Kiffin sweepstakes. To the victor goes Kiffin, and all that accompanies this mercurial renegade. To the losers go ... a coaching search.

In the meantime, Kiffin's current team pursues a playoff bid. Ole Miss must win the Egg Bowl to solidify its playoff footing. Never mind the Kiffin drama, says Rebels quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, because the team remains "locked in" on winning the Egg Bowl and...

Greg Sankey once mused about the SEC staging its own College Football Playoff. He didn’t follow through, but his conference has an outside shot of claiming half the spots in a 12-team playoff.

Not bad, eh?

The bubble’s getting awfully crowded, so what’s the most realistic outcome for the SEC?

On today’s episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams consider the playoff fortunes of the SEC’s seven teams...

The buyout gods rested. The money cannon ran out of gunpowder. The firing squad took a weekend off.

Folks, we just got through a Sunday with no college football coaches fired. Do you believe in miracles?

Are the firings finished for this season? Well, about that ...

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams discuss a few SEC coaches who might not be out of the woods yet. Kentucky's ...

The firings will continue until morale improves.

Auburn became the latest SEC school to succumb to misery, firing Hugh Freeze on Sunday to put an end to his awful tenure. This becomes Auburn’s third firing in six seasons at a program that once punched at the highest level.

As the Tigers limp toward what would be a fifth consecutive losing season, it begs the question: Is this still a good job?

On today’s episode, hosts ...

Brian Kelly came to LSU talking like Nic Cage from "Con Air" and promising national championships. He left a fired coach, with no national titles but plenty of buyout money on the way.

LSU is hiring, adding an injection of rocket fuel into the coaching carousel. Of course Lane Kiffin will be attached to this search, but he's not the only brand name worthy of consideration.

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams de...

All Florida Gators fans want is the second coming of Steve Spurrier. Is that too much to ask? Not if Lane Kiffin wants the job.

Kiffin is a slam dunk choice for Florida, but it's not a slam dunk he'll say yes. He's found success and stability at Ole Miss, where his Rebels are a playoff contender.

What if Kiffin says no?

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams consider nine candidates for the Florida job with a roun...

James Franklin is on the market, kicked to the curb by Penn State. He's a proven program builder, and, within the SEC, there are programs that need rebuilt. He's shown he can win in the SEC, too, having succeeded at Vanderbilt.

True, he's got a history of flopping in big games, but he's a steady performer. Would any SEC programs be up for such steadiness?

On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams consider a few SEC j...

College football’s 2025 season has become a fraud fest, and Texas auditioned for a starring role during a loss to Florida at The Swamp.
Was that enough to get Billy Napier off the hot seat? (No.)
But, the result pushed Texas closer to the brink of elimination from College Football Playoff contention, and it raised more questions about Arch Manning.
On today’s episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams debate...

Hello darkness, my old friend. Let the 'Grumors' begin again. Where will they end? Very likely, in the same place they always do: With Jon Gruden not coaching college football.

Arkansas does need a coach, though, after firing Sam Pittman, so who if not Gruden? Bobby Petrino? No thanks. That’s another bad idea.

On today’s episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams consider potential candidates for the Arkansas job wit...

The SEC’s rivalries are set, at least for the next four years. 
The nine-game conference schedule will preserve most premier rivalries, but there are some notable omissions. Alabama-LSU will not be kept annually. Neither will Florida-Tennessee.
On today's episode, hosts Blake Toppmeyer and John Adams sound off on the SEC’s assignment of annual opponents. They highlight the teams that received the stiffest riv...