The Rise Of The Sec: How A League Known For The Gridiron Became Became Kings Of College Basketball

Porter Moser spent three seasons in the Big 12 before shepherding Oklahoma to the Southeastern Conference, making the longtime coach uniquely suited to compare the erstwhile best conference in America to the current king of college hoops.

"The things is, there is no bottom," Moser explained. "That's what we felt in the Big 12 the last couple years. But the athleticism with the ages is the difference. The athleticism, in my opinion, I've never seen in any league in any era. The length, age, shooters, skill levels of the teams in the SEC this year - it's unbelievable. "

Unbelievable is a good way to describe Selection Sunday.

The expanded SEC landed a record 14 teams in the 68-team bracket, populating it with the overall No. 1 seed Auburn, another No. 1 seed Florida and four more among the top four seeds in their respective regions. The total was a full three more than the previous record, held by the Big East, back when it was considered the dominant league in the country.

Buzz Williams was a part of that league, back when he was with Marquette. Then he moved to the ACC at Virginia Tech, which never seemed a whole lot easier. But these days? Every night, Williams knows his boys at Texas AM are in for a fight.