The Win Column: Who needs a conference championship?

Hey y’all. Lots to discuss today.

Go ahead and submit your vote for this week’s Win Column College Football Upset of the Week … then buckle up.

TITLE GAME, SHMITLE GAME

ESPN and power-conference leaders have successfully (and non-consensually) given us a 24-team College Football Playoff.

Losing conference championship games is the worst part — and as the faithful Win Column reader “Bobnoxious” recently pointed out, the SEC title game in particular is “a fan favorite and the best experience in all of college football.”

That’s true. It’s glorious.

But it’s also a pretty exclusive event.

🏆 Since its inception in 1992, only six teams have ever won an SEC Championship Game: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Auburn and Tennessee.

🏆 The first three listed have won 71% of the time (24 of 34 games) — and Florida hasn’t won it since 2008. Either Alabama or Georgia has taken 11 of the past 12 titles, and there’s a pretty strong chance it becomes 12 of 13 in a few weeks.

🏆 Anyone else even making the game is rare. The six teams who have won a title also account for 88% of overall appearances.

The other conferences aren’t much better.

Although the ACC championship attracts dozens of people to Charlotte every December, the Big Ten title tilt historically amounts to “the winner of Ohio State-Michigan embarrasses someone” (though the rise of Indiana and the addition of Oregon have added some variety in recent years). The rebuilt Big 12 is kinda spunky, but there’s no great tradition there.

So what’s my point?

Like everything else in college football these days, conference championship games are pretty incredible if you’re in the club. And if you’re not, maybe their extinction isn’t the worst thing in the world?

Even longtime title game advocate Kirby Smart — whose top-ranked Bulldogs could soon clinch a spot in the final championship clash — is willing to roll with it.

• “It’s a great historic game,” the head Bulldog said this week. “It’s great for the players, the programs, the fans. The location has been awesome for us. The venue is incredible. All those things are awesome, but times they are a-changing. As they change, you’ve gotta adapt with it.”

This is normally where I’d point out that Bob Dylan’s discography also offers other types of advice — “I was just too stubborn, to ever be governed, by enforced insanity,” for instance.

But we’re trying to be positive about this, OK?

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LET’S PLAY A GEORGIA TECH DRINKING GAME

Shot: Brent Key warns more staff changes could be coming.

Chaser: Michael Cunningham has no faith in Key picking the right replacements.

🚨 A PRETTY IMPORTANT BRAVES QUOTE 🚨

Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos spoke to reporters Tuesday. Someone asked him about possibly trading Ronald Acuña Jr., and he said this:

• “There have been zero conversations. Like zero. None. No phone calls incoming, outgoing, zero. He’s a huge part of the club.”

Seems pretty significant! More in today’s gift link (you know what the sirens mean by now, right?).

OTHER BRAVES NEWS, IN BRIEF

Anthopoulos also offered updates on Spencers Schwellenbach and Strider; Walt Weiss finished second to Milwaukee’s Pat Murphy in the National League Manager of the Year race; Chris Sale is a finalist for NL Cy Young, which gets announced tonight; and former Braves execs Dana Brown and Perry Minasian are back on the payroll.

FALCONS STARTERS FLY THE COOP

About 68% of Win Column readers who responded to Monday’s poll said the Falcons should go ahead and wave the white flag on 2026.

Which is good.

Because “trading your second starter in two days” is pretty surrender-y activity.

• After sending safety Jessie Bates III to Jacksonville on Monday, the Falcons front office shipped center Ryan Neuzil off to the Ravens.
• They got offensive guard Andrew Voorhees and a 2028 sixth-round pick in return.
• Corey Levin, a Dacula kid with 97 NFL games (but just seven starts) under his belt, figures to assume Neuzil’s role in Atlanta.

The trades seem sensible enough; they essentially turn two expiring contracts into three drafts picks, including a second-rounder.

But if you’re one of the holdouts hoping for a 2026 turnaround, please reference the poet Ken Sugiura’s X account: “After trading two key starters, if the Falcons aren’t punting on the season, let’s hope they’re not kicking a field goal, either.”

AND HERE’S THE KICKER

I know what you’re thinking: That joke only sort of works. And you’re right. But it’s a pretty good segue to Nick Folk getting cut.

Even amid Tuesday’s trade deadline chaos, the Falcons found time to cut the 41-year-old kicker. Folk (13-for-18 on field goals this season) will be replaced by Jake Moody, a pickup from the Ravens practice squad.

The Michigan product makes five Atlanta kickers since the start of last season … and what an incredibly annoying ride it’s been!

Suppose this isn’t a surprise, but the Falcons’ various kickers — Younghoe Koo, John Parker Romo, Zane Gonzalez and Folk — have only made 78.9% of their field goals since the start of the 2025 season.

That’s well below average and tied for fourth-worst in the NFL.

But the Saints are last, so that’s nice.

OTHER GOOD THINGS TO KNOW

🗓️ The Raiders finally traded quarterback Kirk Cousins to the Vikings … which means we’ll get him vs. Michael Penix Jr. on Nov. 29 in Minneapolis. Assuming they’re both healthy.

😬 Lakers star Luka Doncic got into it with a Hawks fan Monday, saying things like, “Y’all wish you could have me, huh?” Video here.