Win, Lose, or Draw: Conference Realignment Analysis

The circus of conference realignment, though not as major as some prognosticators were predicting, was the talk of the summer. With BYU the last wild card (for now), I thought I'd do a conference realignment special, with analysis for each affected conference.

*BYU announced that they would become independent for the 2011 season.

The easiest way to do this is to say, "what if last year's team was in its new conference?" Of course, this does not imply future success (looking at you, Nebraska) or continued futility (can the Buffaloes rise again?). But it is a fun way of looking at how this offseason's changes affect college football.

Winners: Big Ten, PAC-10
Losers: WAC, Mountain West (w/o BYU)
Draw: Big 12

2009 Conferences in Review: #1 SEC

And the conference ranked #1 in my 2009 Conference Rankings is... the SEC.

2009 Conference Champion: Alabama Crimson Tide 14-0 (8-0 SEC)
2009 Conference Runner-up: Florida Gators 13-1 (8-0 SEC)

2009 Bowl Record: 6-4

Bold Prediction for 2010: LSU disappoints (again) and goes 8-5. Les Miles leaves for Michigan.

2009 Conferences in Review: #2 Big 12

The Big 12 Conference occupies #2 in my 2009 Conference Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: Texas Longhorns 13-1 (8-0)
2009 Conference Runner-up: Nebraska Cornhuskers 10-4 (6-2)

2009 Bowl Record: 4-4

Bold Prediction for 2010: Baylor goes to a bowl game.

2009 Conferences in Review: #3 Big Ten

The Big Ten Conference occupies #3 in my 2009 Conference Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: Ohio State Buckeyes 11-2 (7-1 Big Ten)

2009 Bowl Record: 4-3

Bold Prediction for 2010: Michigan goes bowl-less again, finishing 5-7 (again).

2009 Conferences in Review: #4 ACC

The Atlantic Coast Conference ranks #4 in my 2009 Conference Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets 11-3 (7-1 ACC)
2009 Conference Runner-Up: Clemson Tigers 9-5 (6-2 ACC)

2009 Bowl Record: 3-4

Bold Prediction for 2010: Duke goes to a bowl game.

2009 Conferences in Review: #5 Big East

The Big East Conference occupies #5 on my 2009 Conferences Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: Cincinnati Bearcats 12-1 (7-0 Big East)

2009 Bowl Record: 4-2

Bold Prediction for 2010: Connecticut wins the Big East. (!!!)

2009 Conferences in Review: #6 PAC-10

The PAC-10 sits at #6 in my 2009 Conference Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: Oregon Ducks 10-3 (8-1 PAC-10)

2009 Bowl Record: 2-5

Bold Prediction for 2010: Oregon State wins the 'Civil War' against Oregon, claiming the (last?) PAC-10 title.

2009 Conferences in Review: #7 Mountain West

The Mountain West Conference occupies #7 in my 2009 Conference Rankings.

2009 Conference Champion: TCU Horned Frogs 12-1 (8-0 MWC)

2009 Bowl Record: 4-1

Bold Prediction for 2010: There is a three-way tie for first place in the MWC. TCU beats BYU; BYU beats Utah; Utah beats TCU.