Cam Ward Blasts SEC Football, Says Pac-12 Crowds Are Louder

Cam Ward might be the star of Week One in College Football, leading the Miami Hurricanes to a resounding 41-17 win over the Florida Gators at The Swamp. Ward was outstanding, completing 26 of 35 passes for 385 yards with three touchdowns, while adding 33 yards on three rushing attempts. It was an impressive performance, especially considering Ward transferred to Miami from Washington State and was playing his first ever road game against an SEC team.

You'd think, anyway.

After the game, Ward went in on the SEC and Florida fans, saying he thought the crowd wasn't impressive and that the quality of football in the Pac-12 was better. His first criticism of the Gators' fans was that they mis-timed their noise; they only got loud after it was too late to matter.

"Advice to the fans: If you’re going to be loud, you have to be loud when we’re huddling," Ward told reporters after the win at Florida Field. "You can’t just be loud once we break the huddle. By that time, it’s no point. We hear the play and we’ve communicated already."

Then he really went off, saying a number of Pac-12 schools had louder crowds and played "real football."

"I played at USC. USC wasn’t packed, but it was louder than this," Ward said. "I played at Oregon and it was louder than this. The Pac-12 gets misspoken for. The Pac-12, that’s where I believe real football is played. ... Washington was one of the loudest environments I’ve played (in)."

Cam Ward Roasts SEC Football, Crowd Noise

It's a widespread assumption that the SEC has the best crowds and atmospheres in college football, and for good reason. Alabama, LSU, Tennessee and Texas A&M are notorious for being difficult road environments. But that doesn't mean great atmospheres don't exist elsewhere, an inconvenient truth can be difficult for SEC supremacists to hear.

Oregon, Washington and Utah don't have the same size stadiums as SEC powerhouses, but at their best are still among the loudest venues in the sport. In the Big Ten, Penn State, Michigan and Ohio State are always tough places to play for visiting teams. USC rarely fills up the Coliseum these days, thanks to extremely high ticket prices and middling recent success, but it gets plenty loud when the Trojans are good and playing a marquee opponent.

Aug 31, 2024; Gainesville, Florida, USA; Miami Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward (1) throws the ball under pressure from Florida Gators defensive back Jordan Castell (14) during the first half at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Pendleton-USA TODAY Sports

Ward was likely trolling Florida fans a bit, rubbing it in after a dominant victory. But there's some truth in what he says, loud crowds are loud when a high percentage of people are invested in making noise. If 54,000 fans at Autzen all make noise at once, it's going to sound louder than 35,000 making noise out of 100,000. 

Beyond the noise, Ward also has a point about perceptions of football quality between conferences. Yes, the SEC is the best conference, and has been for most of the past decade. The Pac-12 in Ward's two seasons had surprising depth though, despite having 12 teams as opposed to the SEC's 14. But many conference games on the west coast are played after the Eastern Time Zone has mostly gone to bed. For example, even with realignment, USC's game on Saturday against Utah State starts at 11pm Eastern. Fans in the southeast simply don't watch as many Pac-12 games, especially with the struggles of the Pac-12 Network, while SEC schools are frequently featured prominently in prime time.

It's also easy to assume that big-name schools like Auburn are better than equivalent schools in the Pac-12 that don't have the same reputation. Because Auburn has achieved higher highs than say, Washington State, name recognition leads to assumptions regarding talent. Even if in a given season, Washington State might be better.

Regardless, Ward won't have to play another SEC team until a potential postseason appearance. If he does though, he's sure to hear it from opposing fans. And maybe even hear a few "SEC" chants in the process.