The college football landscape has changed drastically over the past decade, with the power among conferences drifting into dipoles.
The Pac-12 has descended into a near-moribund state, while the Big 12 and ACC have added some schools to their platters. But the fact remains that the SEC and Big Ten have taken major steps together toward solidifying their reign over the Football Bowl Subdivision, both boasting the best perennial programs in the nation.
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With the two heavyweights reigning supreme over the collegiate gridiron landscape heading into the 2025 campaign, The Athletic’s Scott Dochterman and Seth Emerson presented a tantalizing hypothetical: Who would win a 16-game showdown between the SEC and Big Ten?
Breaking down The Athletic’s SEC-Big Ten Challenge
“In our hypothetical challenge, our Big Ten-based writer (Dochterman) and SEC-based writer (Emerson) pretended to be the conference offices setting matchups. We used a snake draft format, where the SEC picked the first team, the Big Ten picked the team to line up against that team, then the second Big Ten team, and so on.”
For the Florida Gators, who are slotted in Round 5 of the bracket, they are matched up with the Indiana Hoosiers in Charlotte, North Carolina.
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“A fairly equidistant trip where the two fan bases can meet and discuss whether Indiana fans would trade their CFP appearance for Florida’s men’s basketball championship, and vice versa,” they begin. Take a look below at what they had to say, respectively, as well as the full bracket for all 16 teams.
Emerson is bullish on Florida vs Indiana
“What if the Gators played Indiana’s schedule last year? Let this game be a talking point, even if this is not last year’s Hoosier team,” Emerson offers.
“Fernando Mendoza did transfer over from Cal — SEC teams, including Georgia, wanted him — and he could be just as good as DJ Lagway. But the Gators have the talent advantage elsewhere. Florida, 37-20.”
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Dochterman bearish on against Gators vs Hoosiers
“Oh, the Indiana slander just won’t subside south of the Mason-Dixon line,” Dochterman begins.
“Indiana was the only team last year to play both CFP finalists from 2024 (Michigan, Washington) and 2025 (Ohio State, Notre Dame). The Hoosiers led the nation in point differential and run defense. They still have All-Americans at three levels on defense plus Mendoza. Their talent is on par with Florida with better coaching. Indiana, 41-26.“
The Athletic’s SEC vs. Big Ten challenge
|
Round |
SEC |
Big Ten |
|---|---|---|
|
1 |
Texas |
Penn State |
|
2 |
Georgia |
Ohio State |
|
3 |
Alabama |
Oregon |
|
4 |
LSU |
Illinois |
|
5 |
Florida |
Indiana |
|
6 |
South Carolina |
Michigan |
|
7 |
Ole Miss |
USC |
|
8 |
Oklahoma |
Nebraska |
|
9 |
Texas A&M |
Washington |
|
10 |
Auburn |
Iowa |
|
11 |
Tennessee |
UCLA |
|
12 |
Vanderbilt |
Minnesota |
|
13 |
Missouri |
Michigan State |
|
14 |
Arkansas |
Wisconsin |
|
15 |
Kentucky |
Rutgers |
|
16 |
Mississippi State |
Maryland |
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This article originally appeared on Gators Wire: Florida football would face Indiana in SEC vs Big Ten Challenge
