At some point on Saturday at AT&T Stadium, Alabama fans will undoubtedly break out into chant: “S-E-C, S-E-C, S-E-C.”
Somewhere inside, at least one USC fan, unschooled in the ways of football down south, will sarcastically congratulate them for knowing their school’s conference affiliation. The idea to respond in kind -- possibly with a long, drawn out “Paaaaaaac-12, Paaaaaaac-12” – won’t come to mind.
Conference pride is taken seriously in the SEC. In the Pac-12, it’s much harder to find.
In a world without a playoff, the Pac-12’s way of doing things was fine.