Aaron Murray breaks down the SEC's rise in popularity

If you hadn’t heard, things mean more in the SEC than any other conference in college athletics. Some other leagues might have something to say about that but, in Aaron Murray’s eyes, that point is nearly indisputable.

Murray shared his thoughts on the dominance from the Southeastern Conference in an interview on the ‘3 and Out’ Podcast with John Middlekauff. He said that, while academics have improved at their schools, what the conference puts into their programs from a monetary and resources standpoint is what blows everyone else out of the water.

“I would say, for a lot of the universities, academics have improved. I’m not going to say the academics are the same as some of the schools out on the west coast. But that has improved,” said Murray. “I think, more than anything, to me, the difference is the money and what they’re putting into the resources. And the coaches too.”

Murray added that you don’t need to look any further than the evolution of SEC basketball over the past few seasons. Historically, it has been Kentucky and then everyone else on the hardwood. However, since Greg Sankey shifted his focus on improvement in that area, several teams in the league have put their own names on the map in the conference as well as nationally.

“You brought up basketball for the SEC. What’s been the big change for basketball in the last five years in the SEC? It starts with Sankey,” Murray said. “Obviously, you have, probably, the most powerful voice in all of college sports in Greg Sankey. And he said I want to be better in basketball. We’ve got players in the southeast to be a better basketball conference. We don’t need these guys going to North Carolina, Duke, or out to the west coast. We need to keep them here in the SEC.”

“So, what do we do? Spend money on facilities, spend money on coaches. All of a sudden now you’ve got elite coaches, elite facilities. And now these kids want to stay home and come to these schools,” noted Murray. “And, all of a sudden, now you’re seeing there were a handful of teams in the (NCAA) Tournament. Alabama was the No. 1 team in the country for awhile, last year Auburn was one of the No. 1 teams in the country for awhile. Obviously Kentucky is one of the blue bloods out there. So, from top to bottom, basketball has improved.”

It doesn’t stop there, though. Generating wealth and interest in football and men’s basketball is great and creates national headlines for the SEC. With that said, Murray said it’s their success in several athletic arenas that also makes the conference pop.

“Baseball is always going to be great, the women’s sports are phenomenal. Basketball? You’ve had South Carolina and LSU as the top two teams in the country this year,” said Murray. “Gymnastics has always been elite. Softball has always had some of the top schools and now you add Oklahoma next year into the mix who’s been the predominant team?”

“Like, there isn’t a sport now that the SEC can’t say we’re not one of the top one or two conferences in that sport in America,” Murray stated.

The SEC’s slogan has become a bit of a running joke. Even so, when you win more games and more titles and win monetarily as well, it’s much easier to win more in recruiting. At that point, Murray then says everyone eats as the schools come out victorious and the players come out prepared to succeed as professionals and in life.

“They’ve got more money to spend. And these kids want to go to places with big, fancy facilities that they know is going to put me in the best situations to excel in college and then, possibly, to go pro afterwards,” said Murray.