http://www.espn.com/college-football/st ... equal-ever
ATLANTA -- Georgia coach Kirby Smart rejected the notion that the SEC was a top-heavy league this season.
"I honestly feel that the league is more equal than ever," Smart said. "That's mainly because maybe Alabama's not as unbeatable as they've been."
On Monday, Georgia plays Alabama in an all-SEC CFP National Championship presented by AT&T.
"The rigors of the entire conference prepared these teams to compete on this stage," SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said. "I think you're going to have people make those comments, and yeah there were lopsided scores, but there were close games too.
"The conversation at SEC media days [in July] was that we were a one-team league. Well, we have two teams in the national championship."
Smart, who served as Nick Saban's defensive coordinator at Alabama from 2008-15 prior to taking over at Georgia, pointed to the Crimson Tide's close games this season.
Alabama lost to Auburn on the final game of the regular season and made the playoff despite not winning the conference.