quote:
Because outside of the 3 teams being mentioned we have been the most consistently successful program over the last 20 years.

National championships:
Alabama - 5
LSU - 3
Clemson - 2
Ohio st - 2

This gets to the real problem for LSU, though. Here are the number of CFP appearances for those teams plus Oklahoma:
Alabama - 5
Clemson - 5
Oklahoma - 4
Ohio State - 3
LSU - 1

So how much does playing in the SECw with Florida as a permanent east opponent impact us?

Here’s how many top 10 opponents each of these teams have played in the regular season, since the start of the CFP:
LSU - 18
Alabama - 11
Ohio State - 11
Oklahoma - 7
Clemson - 5

Here’s how many top 25 opponents each of these teams have played in the regular season since the start of the CFP:
Alabama - 31
LSU - 28
Oklahoma - 24
Ohio State - 21
Clemson - 20

So the question to ask is - if LSU were to swap schedules with Clemson, Ohio State, or Oklahoma over the past 6 years, what do you think the landscape would look like? How many CFP appearances would Ohio State, Oklahoma, or Clemson have if they were in the SECw with Alabama and played Florida every year? How many CFP appearances would LSU have if they played in the ACC minus Clemson, the Big 10 minus Ohio State, or the Big 12 minus Oklahoma?

Now think about how that would impact recruiting, and the snowball effect that happens when you dominate a conference and therefore get to compete for championships every year.

That’s the thing that people miss when comparing LSU to those other programs - we have the toughest path to greatness of any of those schools. Ryan Day hasn’t won a bowl or playoff game yet as a head coach. Lincoln Riley is 0-3 in bowls/playoff games. Despite our built in disadvantage, we have the same number of CFP titles as Ohio State (and more recent), more than Oklahoma (zero) and one less than Clemson.