Dec 1, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; Dec 1, 2012; Atlanta, GA, USA; Alabama Crimson Tide wide receiver DeAndrew White (2) holds the SEC sign after winning the 2012 SEC Championship game against the Georgia Bulldogs at the Georgia Dome. Alabama won 32-28. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports

You have to go back to 2005 to find a BCS Championship game that was not won by a team in the SEC conference.

Since that BCS win by Texas over USC 41-38, Florida won two games, LSU and Auburn have each won one, and Alabama has captured three wins in the last four championships.

I’m only 18 years old, but I can barely remember a time when the Big Ten, Pac-12, and Big 12 were even relevant when it came to winning a national championship.

So why has the SEC become such a powerhouse in college football?

It starts with the very beginning of the SEC winning streak seven years ago, and possibly even a bit before. In 2006, The Florida Gators powered their way to a 41-14 destruction of the No. 1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes.

From then on, the SEC was in complete control. Or was it really?

You see, from 2005 through 2010, there were never more than two SEC teams ranked in the top 10 teams nationally. We saw plenty of space in those other spots taken up by teams in conferences such as the Big Ten. The difference is that in each of those years, an SEC team was ranked either No. 1 or No. 2.

It’s a matter of a small group of schools carrying over success to represent a conference for an extended period of time. Really, it isn’t the whole SEC that deserves the ton of hype that it receives. Or it wasn’t always like that. It was two or three teams that had repeated success.

Dec 3, 2011; Atlanta, GA, USA; A general view of the SEC logo at mid-field after the 2011 SEC championship game between the LSU Tigers and Georgia Bulldogs at the Georgia Dome. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

The Bengals have an ongoing trend that may be unnoticed most fans. This trend is one Mike Brown hopes will translate to success on the professional level as it has proved to do so on the collegiate platform. Currently the Cincinnati Bengals have 20 former SEC players on the team roster. Whether this is coincidence or design is unknown, but one can’t help but notice such a high number especially when players from the Southeastern Conference are being picked so high in the draft.
It is impossible to think that with so many players from different schools in the same conference that there isn’t some sort of inner locker room rivalry. Most of the Bengals’ SEC players came from the University of Georgia. Six to be exact. There are 3 former Florida Gators, two Kentucky Wildcats and Alabama Crimson Tide players each and one player from South Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, LSU and Auburn.