Did Indiana’s Win Over Alabama Signal a Big Ten Power Shift?

There may not be a more enjoyable debate in sports than the Big Ten vs. the SEC. Especially after the two conferences recently poached elite athletic programs from other leagues, the general consensus is the Big Ten and SEC are essentially superconferences that can only be rivaled by one another.

And now, in the midst of the College Football Playoff, perhaps the top pastime in America at this exact moment – particularly for those whose allegiance lies in one of the respective conferences – is arguing about which league reigns supreme.

The SEC, loaded chock-full of historical powerhouses, vs. the recently-revived Big Ten, which has seemingly taken a colossal step forward in the NIL era.

As of January 1, 2026, after decades of punishment at the hands of the SEC, there is officially a new sheriff in town: the Big Ten, led by… Indiana?

Why the Big Ten is now the premier conference in college football

Jan 1, 2026; Pasadena, CA, USA; Indiana Hoosiers head coach Curt Cignetti celebrates with the trophy on the podium after defeating the Alabama Crimson Tide in the 2026 Rose Bowl and quarterfinal game of the College Football Playoff at Rose Bowl Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images | Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

On the heels of the Hoosiers’ shockingly lopsided win over Alabama in the Rose Bowl (beat the Crimson Tide 38-3), there has never been a time that one could more confidently assert that the Big Ten is the premier league.

First, there’s the clear-cut head-to-head results: in four meetings between the two conferences this bowl season, the Big Ten is 3-1 in those matchups, and, mind you, the SEC programs were favored in three of those outings. In 2024, the Big Ten went 5-1 in bowl games against SEC foes.

So, the classic depth argument doesn’t exactly hold up for the SEC anymore. The conference’s backers would almost certainly attempt to persuade critics that the SEC has more depth and overall quality, even if the Big Ten appears to be more top heavy.

In all honesty, that has seemingly been true through regular-season action in the past two seasons. But nothing more accurately paints a picture than head-to-head results. And, for the SEC, the final product is far from a Picasso.

Unfortunately, without the SEC’s claim of depth holding up, the only remaining straw to grasp at is firepower at the top. Heading into the College Football Playoff, that meant the SEC had Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas A&M, Ole Miss and Georgia – quite the healthy dosage of options – left to save the day.

Meanwhile, the Big Ten had just three potential heroes in Oregon, Ohio State and Indiana – all three of which were top five seeds, though, including the top two clubs.

Now, by the end of the quarterfinal round, the SEC will have just one squad remaining: the winner of Georgia-Ole Miss. And in the lone meeting between the two conferences, Indiana dismantled Alabama, a team that appeared in the SEC title game.

Although the Big Ten did lose Ohio State by way of an unexpected upset from Miami, the conference is guaranteed a squad in the national championship, as the winner of Indiana-Oregon will earn that spot.

Indiana is headed to the Peach Bowl to face Oregon 👀 pic.twitter.com/MAKQFcUaf1
— Big Ten Football (@B1Gfootball) January 2, 2026

So, the cream of the crop? The Big Ten – according to the Rose Bowl, by a country mile. Depth? Surprisingly, also the Big Ten. Having won back-to-back national championships, and set for another appearance, the Big Ten, which had one national championship from 2003-2022 (compared to 14 for the SEC in that stretch), hasn’t just become the SEC’s counterpart, but is now, without a doubt, the apex predator in the sport.

What has fueled the shift? Perhaps it is the NIL era or the emphasis Big Ten schools have recently put on their football programs, or maybe it’s a sheer coincidence that the league has seen a handful of its clubs putting everything together at the same time – or some wild combination of it all. In the end, that’s a debate for another day.

For now, we’ll focus solely on the question at hand: Is the Big Ten or the SEC college football’s preeminent league? Here in 2026, we can accurately state with unwavering confidence that it is the Big Ten.