Growing up, I was a fan of the University of Miami Hurricanes. However, when I graduated high school, I decided to come to Mississippi State University. Since then, I have engaged in heated debates with die-hard SEC fans, somewhat envious of the undeniable success of the conference. After all, my Hurricanes had fallen on tough times and were no longer the national powerhouse that drew me in as a child.
2012 was the year I finally decided to give in and join the SEC melee.
After living on campus a few years, going to MSU games with friends and enjoying the culture of the SEC, I started to lose my resolve and became the very SEC fan I once was against. 
In 2012, MSU went 8-5 and was on the come up. The conference had never been better, as six SEC teams finished with 10 or more wins. Five SEC teams finished in the final AP top 10 rankings that season. There was no doubt the SEC was the best conference in the nation.
Fast-forward to 2017, and oh, how the mighty have fallen. Last season only one SEC team finished with 10 or more wins, and only one SEC team finished ranked in the top 10. By SEC standards, this was an embarrassment.
Even though I root for the Bulldogs now, I cannot help but relish in the fact the conference is down right now. Nor can I omit the fact the Hurricanes are better than all but two SEC teams at the moment.
All the fans of other SEC schools, who were high and mighty a few years ago, no longer text me back on Saturday nights after games. Outside of Alabama fans, the SEC school faithful have not had much to say on Twitter and Facebook in recent seasons.
Any conference can have a bum year, but last season seemed to be more of a trend of things to come, rather than a blip on the radar.
Let us look at this season. Going back to the preseason AP poll, the SEC only had one team ranked in the top 10. Even worse, of the five major conferences, the SEC was the only conference without at least two teams in the top 10.
Sure, Georgia has now emerged as another dominant team, but overall the conference is still a far cry from what it used to be.
As the AP poll stands today, Alabama and Georgia are the only SEC teams ranked in the top 20 and only four SEC teams are ranked at all.
The SEC went from five teams ranked in the top 10 to less than five ranked in the top 25. That speaks volumes to how far the conference has fallen.
The SEC has been replaced by the top-heavy Big Ten, which is far and away the best conference in college football right now.
They lead the way with three teams ranked in the top 10 of the preseason AP poll and a fourth team, Michigan, just outside at number 11.
Currently, the Big 10 has three schools ranked in the top 10 and five in the top 20.
The Big 10 is very reminiscent of the old SEC—dominating the polls and boasting multiple contenders.
In the past, Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh even managed to get under the skin of some SEC coaches. He sent them crying to the NCAA about satellite camps because Michigan was starting to catch up to them in recruiting.
Maybe those SEC coaches were jealous Harbaugh is a better coach than every SEC coach not named Saban. In his first two seasons, with another coach’s recruits, he produced a better record than every SEC team but Alabama.
Overall, SEC fans can no longer boast about being head and shoulders above the rest of the conferences. Currently, the SEC is definitively not better than any of the other power five conferences.
The Pac-12, Big-12, ACC and SEC all have four ranked teams headed into this weekend. I will give the SEC the edge over the Pac-12, which at the moment appears to be the only power five conference without a playoff contender.
Ultimately, however, the SEC is no longer notable among the conferences. It has been dethroned by the Big-10.