March Madness and the SEC

If you're a sports fan, you've likely been following the NCAA Division 1 men's basketball tournament which, along with the women's Division 1 bracket, has been designated as "March Madness".

If you're like me and my fellow Tennesseans, the madness ended early. Schools from the state of Tennessee did not fare well in the early going. Lipscomb, Vanderbilt, and Memphis were all "one and done" in the 2025 version of March Madness.

However, if you are a fan of the Southeastern Conference, a/k/a the SEC, a/k/a #ItJustMeansMore (other than Vandy, of course), then you are indeed happy.

The SEC had fourteen bids to March Madness this year. The automatic bid went to the Florida Gators, who won the conference tournament here in Nashville. Except for South Carolina and LSU, every team in the SEC headed for The Big Dance. 

Speculation from Gentry Estes of The Tennessean in Nashville and others was that this conference was overconfident. Indeed - it had a huge chunk of bids to the big bracket of 68. The ultimate question, however, was how many of those fourteen would survive to Sweet Sixteen weekend.

The answer: Fifty percent. Seven of the Sweet Sixteen are from the SEC: Tennessee, Florida, Auburn, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Kentucky, and Alabama.

In a prominent matchup, the Vols and Wildcats will face off on Friday night in Indianapolis in the Midwest Region semifinals. The game tips off on TBS/truTV at about 6:30 Central Time.

In my view: Not bad. Not bad at all - especially for a conference known for football. We all know that the transfer portal and NIL have changed college sports forever. But change is a constant, and we must be prepared to get through it.

Let me know how YOUR conference is faring in March Madness this year. Talk to y'all soon.

James A. Rose, Publisher