The SEC Forum at College Football Fan Site, CFB51!!!

Looks good to me.

Does it really matter who is first or third or second?  We could probably group them as "elite" and "very good" etc, instead of bothering with 1,2,3, IMHO, but I view all these lists as irrelevant click bait anyway.

Yeah, I like to enjoy the elite performers without arguing about who is #2 or #4, whatever.  Tennessee gave up zero points in the regular season in 1938, I think, and the year before they gave up like 6 or something.  UGA went 11-0 in 1946 and ended up ranked third behind two teams that had ties.  I claim it.

Ha.

Helmet programs back then did what helmet programs do now - get the best players and have depth with some more 'best' players.  But back then, they could have 8 instead of 4.  5 instead of 2.  And so on.

After those top 3, it opens up a bit.
Spurrier is interesting.  He gets a lot of credit for opening up the conference to modern offensive football.  Lauded as a great game day HC.  His 33 wins in a 3-year stretch at USCe might be his most impressive feat.  
His detractors were mostly jealous.  But just talking results, I've even heard people citing he ONLY won 1 NC.  If that's a mark against a guy, I'll take it.
In his 12 years, Florida mattered (aka was in the NC hunt in late November) in 10 of those years.


Personally, I think his trump card isn't the winning at Duke or Carolina, but he came into Florida - who had zero official SEC championships - and IMMEDIATELY started winning.  
First SEC game:  W at Alabama
First SEC season:  best conference record (probation)
No SEC titles?  How about 6 in 7 years? (including the "1st in the SEC" - 1990)
300 pass attempts usually leads the league?  And always by bad teams playing catch-up?  
No longer - let's throw it 400 times...and WIN!  
A 1:1 TD to INT ratio is decent?  Let's go 2:1.  Let's go 3:1.
20 TD passes will lead the league?  How about 25?  30?  35!


He began an renaissance.
Now, as a Gator myself, I know a few things that went in his favor.  He lucked into a salty defense when he came to Florida.  Legit DTs, LBs, and Ss.  Also, his disdain for recruiting wouldn't have worked elsewhere.  Sure, he could out X-and-O you, but once he was facing a more daunting schedule in the SEC, he was fortunate to be in the most fertile state for recruits.  It was only later in his career that he reluctantly made recruiting any kind of priority.  Things wouldn't have been so immediate or smooth without that defense that was already in place or the talent he couldn't help but acquire.

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/47680-the-10-greatest-sec-coaches-of-all-time-part-one

This is an "interesting" list, and includes Frank Broyles as honorable mention, and has Saban at tenth, but it's from 2008.

8. Frank Thomas, Alabama (1931-1946): 115-24-7 (.812 pct), four SEC titles

Thomas was the coach who brought Alabama into the SEC when it formed in 1933.  In 1931 he accepted the job at Alabama, where he established himself as one of the top coaches in the nation.  He brought the Crimson Tide to prominence with bowl wins in the Rose, Orange, and Sugar.  He became the coach and mentor for Paul "Bear" Bryant.