SEC
From Where I’m Sitting
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
I pretty much think about football year-round these days.
Yes, it is early in the 2023 baseball season, and basketball playoffs are starting our greatest game in this country is football, and in this part of the world it is SEC Football in the greatest conference ever created.
I have been to many SEC football stadiums over the years and here are my rankings from 14 to1 in the most intimidating scale.
14.Vanderbilt: FirstBank Stadium is the only stadium in the SEC where the visiting team is the home team on Saturdays in the fall.
It is formerly known as Dudley Field. Vandy has struggled in football for so long that I don’t know when the trend will change. Vandy fans just don’t turn out for home games.
13.Kroger Field/Kentucky: My saying is that in college football if you have a stadium named after a corporation then you don’t have much of a home field advantage. The Wildcats home field is named after a grocery store. Go figure.
12.Faurot Field/Missouri: Can someone explain to me again why Missouri is in the SEC?
Can have some juice at times for night games but not a hard place to win at.
11.Davis-Wade Stadium/Mississippi State: Without the cowbells this place is just above Vanderbilt.
MSU is a historic bottom-feeder in the conference with a stadium that seats around 60k.
10.Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium/Arkansas: I can only remember the place being loud only once and that is when Texas played there in 2021. Other than that, it always looks half full on the TV most of the time.
9.Vaught-Hemingway Stadium/Ole Miss: Ole Miss is a tough place to visit these days with Lane Kiffin running the show.
It is one of the smaller stadiums in the conference capacity wise, but holds its own on big game days.
8.Williams-Brice Stadium/South Carolina: When the Chickens are good this place rocks, just ask Tennessee last fall when their playoff hopes were crushed at South Carolina.
They have a loyal loud fanbase, but when things go bad at home, they will find their car keys and get gone as quick as anyone.
7.Kyle Field/Texas A&M: Bigger is not always better. Yes, Kyle Field holds over 100K, and it has its moments. It is the least intimidating big stadium in the country.
6.Neyland Stadium/Tennessee: Neyland has its moments… like Alabama in 2022, but over the past decade it just hasn’t had much bite at all. Another historic 100K venue that was built in 1921. Could start rising again on this list soon.
5.Sanford Stadium/Georgia: I had season tickets in the 1990’s.
Sanford has its moments like Auburn 2007, LSU 2013, and Tennessee in 2022. It has become more intimidating during the Kirby tenure but still has too many wine and cheese fans that attend for the social aspects of posting a social media picture, etc. rather than being hard core college football fans.
4.Ben Hill Griffin Stadium/Florida: When the Gators are good The Swamp is a hostile environment that is very intimidating.
All of you Georgia fans that say move the game UGA/UF out of Jacksonville to home and home better be careful on what you wish for. You have been warned.
3.Bryant-Denny Stadium/Alabama: Alabama is always going to be a tough place to play. Always has been and always will be. History, national titles, and a 100K seat stadium make it so.
2.Tiger Stadium/LSU: You do not want to roll in here at night. Period end of story. Well documented on how tough this environment is.
1.Jordan-Hare Stadium/Auburn: Ask Nick Saban if he likes playing at Auburn?
Ask any coach in the SEC if they like playing at Jordan-Hare, even if Auburn is bad?
When Auburn is rolling this is the most intimidating place in the SEC to play. Jordan-Hare is loud and the fans are loyal and show up to yell rather than sip wine and take photos.
Hugh Freeze is about to remind us on how intimidating Jordan-Hare is over the next decade.
SEC Stocks
Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The 2022 College Football season is in the books. Kirby Smart and UGA have won back-to-back National Titles. My annual SEC Football stock report is upon us again.
Stock Keys:
Buy
Sell
Hold
Georgia: The best college football stock on the planet. CEO Kirby Smart has developed a winning organizational culture.
401K plan is the best in the business, and the best employees are recruited year in and year out.
The executive management team is the best in the business and well compensated.
This organization is built for any market and will flourish even during down economic times. Blue blood stock that will make you tons of money. The long-term future of this stock is through the roof. Advice: Buy it all.
Alabama: Over a 10-year period this stock has been the most consistent producer of wealth.
CEO Nick Saban is still the king of CEO’s.
Maybe the stock dipped slightly in 2022, but the long-term future is bright.
Top rated employer with the most talented work force make this stock very attractive.
The CEO training program is the best I the country. The executive management team has become a little complacent over the past 12 months and that has been addressed by the CEO.
This stock will always make you a ton of money. Advice: Buy as much as you can.
Tennessee: This historically producing stock crashed over the past 15 years.
However, in 2022 this stock hit a 20-year high. CEO Josh Huepel has been a breath of fresh air after a string of poor CEO’s dating back to 2008.
If you held on to this stock during the bleak years, then you are a wise investor. This stock will continue to rise to get back to the glory years of the Clinton Presidency.
When the Big Orange stock is producing the SEC portfolio is second to none. Advice: Buy
LSU: After reaching an all-time high in 2019 this blue blood stock crashed over the past two years prompting the board of directors to hire a new CEO in Brian Kelly for 2022.
The early returns have been great. Stock has performed much better than expected.
Changes were made in the human resources department resulting in an influx of topflight employees for 2023 and beyond.
This corporation has invested properly for long-term growth once again. Advice: Buy
Mississippi State: This stock made a huge turnaround over the past 24 months. The tragic loss of beloved CEO Mike Leach has made things difficult over the past month.
Leach leaves behind a great foundation that is positioned for continued growth, and his legacy will live on. Rest easy Pirate. Advice: Buy
South Carolina: This stock made a remarkable turnaround late in calendar year 2022 and recovered from some tough early losses by performing well against superior brands Tennessee and Clemson.
Energetic CEO in Shane Beamer has the stockholders optimistic but not totally convinced to invest great sums of money.
This corporation has excited its stockholders before, and returns have not matched investment. Watch this stock closely in 2023. Advice: Hold for now.
Ole Miss: Aggressive CEO Kiffin takes too many chances and this has become a roller-coaster stock. Exciting to watch but for investors nerve-wracking. This is a high anxiety stock. Advice: Hold and never become emotionally invested in stock.
Florida: This stock should be a solid producer. New CEO Billy Napier inherited a horrible organizational culture.
Mass firings have taken place. Lazy employees have bailed for the transfer portal employment agency.
It will take some time to fix this mess. 401K plan is depleted and new hires are backing out causing this once proud organization to take massive public relations hits.
Advice: Sell it all until the board of directors allows CEO Napier to completely blow up this rotten culture.
Auburn, Texas A&M, Missouri, Arkansas, Kentucky and Vanderbilt: These poorly run or non-productive organizations are not worth the ink to write about.
Advice: Sell them off quickly. Watch Auburn and Texas A&M for future reinvestment.
It Just Means More
By: Steve Norris
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
If there’s one thing that truly confuses fans of college football teams from other conferences, it’s why many fans of SEC teams pull for other SEC teams against non-conference rivals.
The chant of “SEC!! SEC!!” can be heard in stadiums all over the country almost every week and especially during the bowl weeks.
In fact, the SEC Network uses that chant to promote itself pretty regularly. But why? Why do fans of other conferences not feel that way about their conference members?
For me, when I’m watching another SEC team play a team outside the conference, it comes down to this…when in doubt, pull for the SEC neighborhood, and it started when I was little.
I grew up in a Georgia household. Both of my parents graduated from the University of Georgia in 1969 and married right after graduation. I came along about a year later.
My mother is definitely a Bulldog fan but it was my dad who truly burned red and black in my formative years.
My dad hated Florida, Tennessee, and Auburn as much as anybody. But one thing he truly hated more was what he referred to as “The Midwest media bias against the SEC.”
In the 60’s and 70’s, sports journalism was dominated by the writers from the Midwest. When it came to the polls, the Heisman, and naming the national champion, teams like Notre Dame, Penn State, Ohio State, and the Big Ten, in general, always seemed to receive the benefit of the doubt.
It all began to change in 1984, when the University of Georgia, along with the University of Oklahoma, sued the NCAA in the Supreme Court over TV rights and won.
The victory meant that conferences and schools could immediately begin negotiating their own television deals.
Once the SEC was able to get their product in front of many millions of more viewers every year, the building of the SEC dynasty began.
Fast forward to present day. In the last fifteen years, the SEC has had a team in the national championship game every year but one. Five different SEC teams have won the national championship game.
The SEC arguably has the best teams, the best coaches, the best recruiting, the best stadiums, the best tailgating, and most of all, the best and most rabid fans, which is why ESPN begged the SEC to take their money.
All of this adds up to bring me to my point: The SEC is a pretty nice neighborhood to live in. It’s so nice that blue blood programs Oklahoma and Texas told the Big 12 to pound sand last year and abruptly announced that they were leaving as soon as possible.
The reason, of course, is money (it usually is). The SEC TV rights net each school some serious bank every year and it continues to go up.
In 2021, each SEC school got approximately a $55 million payout. In 2024, it’s expected to be around $70 million.
Currently, the Big 12 is expected to pay out around $28 million per school. And that, Ladies and Gentlemen, is why Oklahoma and Texas can’t wait to be a part of the neighborhood.
Now, just because you live in a nice neighborhood, it doesn’t mean you have to like all of your neighbors. But it’s still important for your neighbors to keep their part of the neighborhood looking good.
It’s important to pull for that. This is why I always say, “When in doubt, pull for the SEC.” For some of you SEC fans, there is never any doubt. You pull for your team and everybody else can burn.
I have a Georgia buddy that always says, “I wouldn’t pull for Florida if I was on the team plane and both engines went out.” I certainly understand that and as a Georgia fan I could never pull for Florida, either.
However, I always want the neighborhood to look good and the best way to do that is with money. You only get a lot of money from the likes of ESPN if the product is really good from top to bottom. So, when in doubt, pull for your neighbor. All the other neighborhoods can burn.
Bowl Grades
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
This has been an interesting college football season to say the least in the SEC.
Below are my bowl grades for each team. Auburn, Texas A&M, and Vanderbilt did not qualify for a bowl game in 2022. Auburn fired their head coach, and A&M is the biggest disappointment in college football currently.
Current Record: 6-5 (East: 2-4, West: 4-1)
Las Vegas Bowl: Florida got blown out by Oregon State 30-3. Florida holds the longest streak in college football of consecutive games of not being shut out that dates back to 1988.
When it mattered the most the Gators drove the field with little time remaining and kicked a 40+ yard field goal to keep that streak intact.
Florida was a pathetic team in 2022, finishing the season with a 6-7 record for the second consecutive year. Bowl Grade: F-
Gasparilla Bowl: Missouri went to Tampa and got beat 27-17 by Wake Forest. Did anyone watch? Not many did.
A bowl loss to the ACC gives the Tigers a low grade. Bowl Grade: D
Liberty Bowl: One of the most exciting games of the bowl season.
Arkansas with their horrendous defense, blew a huge second half lead against Kansas and then pulled it out 55-53 in triple OT.
This game film will not be shown at coaching clinics that focus on defense. Arkansas finishes 7-6 on the season. Exciting finish. Bowl Grade: B
Texas Bowl: Ole Miss lost to Texas Tech 42-25 in this contest.
Lane Kiffin and his ‘going for it on 4th down’ antics from anywhere on the field perhaps cost Ole Miss this football game.
The Rebels should have beaten Texas Tech but, instead, continued the late season nose dive for Ole Miss. Ole Miss sat at 7-1 on the season going into the Alabama game on November 12th. Ole Miss finished the season at 8-5. Bowl Grade: D
Gator Bowl: South Carolina lost to Notre Dame in an exciting game 45-38.
Both teams acted like they wanted to be there. Carolina finished at 8-5
Bowl Grade: B+.
Orange Bowl: Tennessee finished the season with 11 wins for the first time since 2001 by beating an overrated Clemson team 31-14.
Clemson, under Dabo Swinney, is starting the decline from elite status to coming back to the pack. Tennessee dominated the ACC champs. Bowl grade: B
Sugar Bowl: Alabama missed the college football playoffs, landed in New Orleans, and beat Kansas State 45-20.
Bryce Young did not win a Natty at Alabama is the huge story here. Bowl grade: C
Music City Bowl: Kentucky got shut out in Nashville 21-0 by Iowa and for their crappy showing the Wildcats receive an F as a Bowl grade.
Reliaquest Bowl: The Mississippi State Bulldogs, in memory of Mike Leach receive an A+ from this writer for beating Illinois 19-10. Rest easy Pirate.
Citrus Bowl: LSU curb stomped Purdue 63-7. For doing their job LSU receives an A for their bowl game grade. Florida, Ole Miss, and Missouri take notes on how to take care of business.
Peach Bowl (College Football Playoff Semifinal):
Georgia took down Ohio State 42-41 in an instant classic.
Dawgs trailed 38-24 in the 4th quarter and Stetson Bennett led UGA on the largest comeback in CFP history.
OSU hooked a 50-yard game winner and 2023 rang in. 1000 yards of total offense. Jacked up crowd and the finish you want in a playoff game makes this one a classic.
Bowl grade: A+++
Sharing Is Caring
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The SEC is the premier college football brand in the United States.
It has been this way for quite a while now. The SEC has crowned three straight national champions in football.
As the premier brand in football, I believe the time has come to start rotating the SEC Championship game to different locations throughout the conference region.
The time is now to begin the rotation. Personally, I think Atlanta is a good place to host the game, but other locations have a lot to offer as well.
I’m thinking now that the SEC is expanding with the addition of Oklahoma and Texas it is time to start a six-city rotation that give more fans the opportunity to experience the SEC brand.
Listed below is the suggested rotation from my perspective with comments promoting each city:
Atlanta: Atlanta is pretty much the geographical center of the south. Atlanta has hosted the SEC Championship game since 1994.
The geographical blueprint of the SEC is now expanding outside of the traditional south.
Why not rotate the game to various points to the expanded blueprint?
If the decision is ultimately made to keep game in a central location like Atlanta, then so be it. Atlanta is a great host city, and the city has great facilities, hotels, airport, and overall infrastructure for continued success. Atlanta is the 8th largest metro area in the United States with around 6 million people.
New Orleans: SEC championship in New Orleans would be an amazing experience.
Food, culture, French Quarter, that party type atmosphere in New Orleans is second to none.
The NFL has hosted numerous Super Bowls in the city. Plenty of hotel rooms. If New Orleans is good enough for the NFL, then it is more than good enough for the SEC.
Smaller metro area, but things listed above make this a must stop on the rotation. NO would be the most fun stop on the rotation.
Arlington: the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, officially designated Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Texas encompassing 11 counties and anchored by the major cities of Dallas and Fort Worth.
It is the economic and cultural hub of North Texas. The area has a population of around 8 million people making it the 4th largest metro area in the US and largest in the SEC.
AT&T Stadium or Jerry’s World would be a perfect venue.
Miami: SEC Championship in South Beach. Sign me up.
9th largest metro area in US. Weather is always great and Hard Rock Stadium is awesome.
ACC would fight to keep SEC out of Miami through.
Can you see the SEC coming into Miami and selling out everything when the ACC cannot even sell out their own conference championship game?
Nashville: SEC Title game in the Music City.
Nashville just approved a new domed stadium in downtown Nashville, just a few blocks away from Broadway Street.
Two million people in Nashville metro area. Perfect city and new venue make Nashville a perfect host.
Nashville is a fun city that would quickly be one of the favorite stops in the rotation.
Imagine your favorite team winning the SEC and running into Kid Rock playing an unannounced set at his restaurant on Broadway during your postgame drunk fest.
Houston: Fifth largest metro area in US. Home of the Texans, Astros, and Rockets.
Houston is a world class city that has hosted multiple Super Bowls.
Houston is a must on any SEC rotation even if nearby Texas A&M is a dumpster fire currently in football.
It is time to share the wealth SEC and expand the SEC experience to outside of Atlanta.
SEC Pulse
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The SEC football season is now a month old. Those who follow football have come to consensus about every single team in the best football conference in the country which is the SEC. Here are my thoughts a month into the season on every team.
SEC East:
- Georgia: The defending national champions looked like a beast for the first three weeks of the season. Stetson Bennett looked like a Heisman front runner. UGA was lighting up scoreboards. Over the past two weeks UGA has looked very beatable with struggles against Kent St. and Missouri. Wide receivers need to get healthy, and the defense needs to stop the run better. November is looking brutal now with the recent struggles with Florida, Tennessee, Mississippi State, and Kentucky in consecutive weeks down the stretch.
- Tennessee: The Vols look like a scoring machine with Hendon Hooker at QB. LSU this week and Alabama next week will tell us what we need to know about Tennessee. Will the Vols be able to stop any offense with a pulse moving forward? Right now, Tennessee looks like a contender for the SEC title.
- Kentucky: The Cats gave one away in Oxford last weekend. But isn’t that what Kentucky does when the pressure is on? Still in contention in the east. Probably will need to beat both Tennessee and Georgia later in the season. That is not going to happen. They might get one of those big games, but they will not win both. Odds are they lose both.
- Florida: The Gators are in a rebuild. Billy Napier will get 6-7 wins out of this team and make a bowl. Florida will be back soon.
- Missouri: The Tigers played UGA down to the wire last week. Can they take that same intensity to Gainesville this week? The answer is no.
- South Carolina: This is a bad football team folks. End of story here.
- Vanderbilt: This team plays hard, and I respect that. Not a particularly good football team.
SEC West:
- Alabama: How hurt is Bryce Young? The running game looked impressive at Arkansas last week. Defense is solid. Wide receivers are down from previous years. This is still the team to beat right now in the SEC if Bryce does not miss considerable time. The TSIO (Third Saturday in October) next week in Knoxville with Tennessee could be the game of the year in the conference.
- Ole Miss: Running game and defense. That is the recipe in Oxford in 2022. 5-0 sounds good. Alabama comes to Oxford soon.
- LSU: Will the real LSU Tigers stand up? Jekyll and Hyde Tigers right now. Alabama comes to Tiger Stadium in November….
- Mississippi State: MSU is one of the surprise teams this fall. This is a dangerous team to play right now. Are you listening UGA? The November 12th trip to Starkville looks like a beast on the schedule right now.
- Arkansas: The Razorbacks are horrible on defense. They cannot stop a dripping faucet right now.
- Texas A&M: I called this before the season. This team is a fraud. No QB, no imagination on offense, and are about to get run out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama this weekend. The real loser is CBS who used a primetime 8PM slot for this game against Alabama.
- Auburn: If the Tigers lose on Saturday to UGA will Bryan Harsin have a job on Sunday? Auburn has QB issues and have not won in Athens since 2005. It is safe to say that Auburn has hit rock bottom. Recruiting is down and the boosters at Auburn are running and ruining the athletic department.
I Have The Power
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
1)Georgia (1-0): Did everyone enjoy the Duck hunt in Atlanta? The Georgia faithful sure did. UGA dismantled Oregon 49-3. Could have been a lot worse. After week 1 Georgia is the best team in the country.
The defending national champions looked as if they could repeat. I am not going to say it but #13 looked like the best QB in the country last weekend. Yeah, I did say it.
2) Alabama (1-0): Alabama beat Utah State 55-0. Good solid opening day win for Alabama. Alabama and Georgia are the class of the country now.
The Tide is preparing to issue a beatdown to the Texas Longhorns on Saturday in Austin, Texas.
3) Florida (1-0): Yes, Florida goes right here after week one. The Gators playing in front of a raucous Swamp crowd on Saturday night beat the team everyone said would blow them out in Utah.
Utah was never coming into Gainesville and getting a win. BTW, I called this outcome.
The Gates land here. Billy got snubbed by LSU in the hiring process after building the best program in Louisiana. They called him Sunbelt Billy in LSU circles. Bet the power brokers in Red Stick are kicking themselves now after the Brian Kelly debacle against FSU.
Anthony Richardson looks like a Heisman front-runner.
4) Tennessee (1-0): The Vol offense looked world class, but can they stop anyone with a pulse. But today they land in the four spot. Look at the SEC East rising to the top of the current power rankings…
5) Arkansas (1-0): The Hogs beat a College Football Playoff contestant from a year ago at home last weekend in Cincinnati. That is enough to land in the top five of my initial SEC power rankings for 2022.
6) Mississippi State (1-0): The Air Raid is in full effect in year 3 of the Mike Leach era in Starkville. This could be a dangerous team in 2022. Alabama and Georgia are you listening?
7) Kentucky (1-0): The Cats looked ok in week one. Business picks up this weekend in Gainesville. I mean business really picks up. The Cats will not be ready to handle Anthony Richardson and the Gators.
8) Ole Miss (1-0): The Ole Miss defense looks solid. The offense will come around soon. Lane Kiffin will see to that.
9) Texas A&M (1-0): I am not a believer. Do not get upset by Appy State at home this weekend Aggies.
10) Missouri (1-0): The Tigers looked like you would expect Mizzou to look and that is the look of an SEC bottom feeder.
11) South Carolina (1-0): The Gamecocks had to block two punts for TDs against Georgia State to pull away.
Spencer Rattler looked rusty. Carolina better get better quick with Arkansas and Georgia coming up during the next two weeks.
12) Auburn (1-0): Auburn should never be in this position which is a formal accusation on everything associated with Auburn at this moment in time. This is unacceptable.
13) Vanderbilt (2-0): This may be the high-water mark for Vandy in 2022. Vandy looks good on offense currently. Enjoy it while it lasts.
14) LSU (0-1): What in the blue hell LSU?
You looked like hot garbage against Florida State. Offense was horrible. Players were unmotivated, coaches lacked emotion.
The culture in Baton Rouge right now is rotten. For week one you land right here where you deserve.
Florida looked impressive with Billy Napier in his first game. LSU looked awful under Brian Kelly in his first game.
Absolutely no reason for LSU to look this bad with the talent on that roster.
The East Beasts
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
We are going to take a look and preview the SEC East for the upcoming 2022 season.
#1 Georgia: The Bulldogs finally beat Alabama in the National Championship to win their first national championship since 1980.
They only return 10 starters but they are expected to reload. The defense was historically good but they lost players like linemen Jordan Davis and Travon Walker, linebacker Nakobe Dean and safety Lewis Cine.
Stetson Bennett returns under center and they return three starting offensive linemen. They have two very talented tight ends, Brock Bowers and Arik Gilbert.
#2 Tennessee: Head coach Josh Heupel is entering his second season in Knoxville and he has the program going in the right direction. The Volunteers averaged 39.3 points a game. They also led the SEC in plays of 40-plus yards (23) after only having three in 2020.
Quarterback Hendon Hooker is entering his senior year after having a breakout year in 2021. He passed for 2,945 yards, 31 touchdowns and 3 interceptions. He also rushed for 620 yards and 5 scores.
They also return four starting O-linemen. The defense allowed over 200 rushing yards and 33.6 points a game in SEC play last season.
#3 Kentucky: It’s a toss-up between the Wildcats and Tennessee for the No. 2 spot. Offensive coordinator Liam Coen helped them average 32.3 ppg last year. Coen left to take a job on the LA Rams staff. Mark Stoops hired Rich Scangarello from the 49ers to replace him.
QB Will Levis is back and they have a good running back stable led by Chris Rodriguez Jr.
Kentucky ranked fourth in the SEC in scoring defense, 21.7 ppg allowed. They have holes to fill up front and in the secondary. The linebacker unit is talented.
#4 Florida: The Gators are led by first year head coach Billy Napier. They finished 6-7 in 2021 and they should improve this season. Quarterback Anthony Richardson played in eight games last year and averaged 8.1 yards per play, ran for 401 yards and 9 total scores.
Florida should have a solid running back core that includes Louisiana transfer Montrell Johnson and former top recruit Demarkcus Bowman. The Gators finished 10th in the SEC against the run and only had 20 sacks in conference play.
#5 South Carolina: The Gamecocks could be one of the most exciting teams to watch. They have several transfer players including quarterback Spencer Rattler (Oklahoma) and receivers Corey Rucker (Arkansas State) and Antwane Wells (James Madison) to add to a receiving corps already featuring Josh Vann (15.8 yards per catch) and Dakereon Joyner.
They return all five starting O-linemen but that’s still an area of concern. They only averaged 3.8 yards per carry in 2021. The defense allowed 175 rushing yards a game.
#6 Missouri: The Tigers have a bad defense and inconsistent quarterback play. The defense allowed 6.7 yards per play, 36 points a game and more than 200 rushing yards a contest in SEC action last fall.
Offensively, the Tigers averaged only 22.6 points and 5.2 yards per play in SEC games last season.
Ends Isaiah McGuire and Trajan Jeffcoat lead the way up front, while cornerback Kris Abrams-Draine and safety Martez Manuel are two building blocks for new coordinator Blake Baker.
#7 Vanderbilt: Are we surprised to see the Commodores here?
Mike Wright and Ken Seals are competing for the QB 1 job.
Vanderbilt ranked 13th in the SEC against the run, last in pass efficiency defense, and surrendered an unpleasant combination of 6.8 yards per play and 35.6 points per game.
Wild West
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Let’s take a look at the SEC West and preview how each team’s season will go.
#1 Alabama: The Crimson Tide are loaded with talent like they are every year. They return Heisman Trophy winning quarterback Bryce Young and add Georgia Tech transfer running back Jahmyr Gibbs.
There are also a pair of transfer wide receivers, Tyler Harrell (Louisville) and Jermaine Burton (Georgia).
Left tackle Evan Neal departed for the NFL. The offensive line gave up 41 sacks last year and they were very inconsistent. The defense held teams to 20.1 points per game last season and they should be better this year.
#2 Texas A&M: The Aggies had the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation in 2022.
The question is can they convert that into winning the West, getting to the SEC Championship and the CFB Playoff? No, but I think they can win double-digit games.
Quarterback Haynes King was injured in the second game of 2021. He returns in 2022 along with LSU transfer Max Johnson and true freshman Conner Weigman.
They need more big plays from the passing game and true freshman Evan Stewart could provide that. Devon Achane rushed for 910 yards, 9 touchdowns and averaged 7 yards per carry in ’21. He should have a breakout year and the offensive line returns three starters.
#3 Arkansas: All-SEC candidate KJ Jefferson returns at QB, four starters on the o line and a solid backfield led by Rocket Sanders.
It’s going to be tough to replace receiver Treylon Burks (66 catches) and the big-plays he used to make. Transfer receiver Jadon Haselwood (Oklahoma) and Matt Landers (Toledo) will compete with Warren Thompson for the top target.
The defense gave up 29.6 ppg in SEC Play last year but they thrived at getting third down stops and limiting teams in the red zone.
They only return four starters but they added several players from the transfer portal. That includes ends Jordan Domineck (Georgia Tech) and Landon Jackson (LSU), linebacker Drew Sanders (Alabama), and defensive backs Dwight McGlothern (LSU) and Latavious Brini (Georgia).
#4 LSU: Bryan Kelly left Notre Dame to take over this program.
The Tigers are 11-12 over the last two seasons so they have a lot to improve. Only six starters return but they typically have talented players in Baton Rouge.
The secondary finished 12th in the SEC in pass efficiency defense last fall. They have several transfer players that should be able to contribute.
Garrett Nussmeier, Jayden Daniels and Myles Brennan are battling for the starting quarterback job.
#5 Ole Miss: The Rebels are coming off of 10 wins and a Sugar Bowl appearance. They lost several key contributors like QB Matt Corrall, running backs Jerrion Ealy and Snoop Conner and receiver Dontario Drummond.
USC transfer QB Jaxson Dart is expected to win the starting job. They also have several transfers on both sides of the ball.
#6 Mississippi State: The Bulldogs won seven games last year and return 17 starters. QB Will Rogers returns to lead an offense that averaged 378.3 passing yards per game and 29.1 ppg.
They allowed 34 sacks in 2021 and lose both starting tackles.
Having playmakers step up to keep the Air Raid going will be the storyline.
#7 Auburn: The Tigers lost five games to end the season, several players transferred and coach Bryan Harsin is already on the hot seat.
Running backs Tank Bigsby and Jarquez Hunter should be the focal point of the offense.
They ranked 11th in the SEC in scoring last season.
Winning
By: Kipp Branch
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It is June and SEC football is less than one hundred days away.
My random thoughts relate to SEC Football. When Nick Saban arrived at Alabama in 2007 the entire landscape changed in the SEC.
Alabama became a dynasty. Beginning in 2008 Alabama has run things in the college football world. Here is a snapshot of the current SEC membership since the beginning of this great Alabama run.
Ten-win seasons since 2008:
Alabama – 14: Alabama has won 10 or more games for 14 straight seasons.
The worst record during that time was a 10-3 mark in 2010.
I do not know if college football has ever seen a more dominant run than the current one the Crimson Tide is on.
In the same window Alabama has won six national championships. Many have Alabama as the favorite to win number seven this fall under the Nick Saban watch. Saban is the greatest coach in the history of college football.
Georgia – 9: Georgia has been a consistent winner since 2008 and finally broke a long championship drought in 2021 by winning the national championship.
Losses to Alabama in the SEC title game in 2012, and a loss in the national title game in 2017 have kept UGA from having three national titles in the past decade.
Kirby Smart has Georgia built for the long haul. UGA seems to be here to stay. Kirby is getting ready to sign a long-term contract that could make him the highest paid head coach in college football.
Florida, LSU – 6: Florida won a national title in 2008, then lost the SEC title game to Alabama in 2009. Florida went off the grid for a few years then bounced back with a nice 2020 season then Dan Mullen made the famous recruiting comments after the UGA loss in 2021 then was run out of Gainesville.
LSU went 15-0 in 2019 and won the national title. That team was the first SEC team ever to go 15-0 in a single season.
LSU lost to Alabama in the BCS National Title game in 2011. LSU has had two straight losing seasons in 2020 and 2021. That is unacceptable in Baton Rouge.
Missouri – 4: Mizzou joined the SEC in 2012 and had 10-win seasons in 2013 and 2014 and won the SEC East in the process.
Mizzou also had a couple of other ten-win seasons since 2008. Never in a million years did would I have believed that Missouri would have more 10-win seasons than Auburn since 2008.
Auburn, South Carolina – 3: Auburn is either great or mediocre as evidenced by the 2010 national title with Cam Newton and the 2013 season in which they lost to FSU in the title game.
All of South Carolina’s success came when Steve Spurrier roamed the sidelines in Columbia. The Ball Coach retired in 2015.
Arkansas, Kentucky, Ole Miss – 2: Kentucky has played football since 1892, and in that time has four ten-win seasons.
Mark Stoops has two of those in the past four years. Arkansas and Ole Miss are proud football programs that are on the rebound with good head coaches.
Mississippi State, Texas A&M – 1: MSU is a historical doormat in the SEC, and Texas A&M went 11-2 in 2012, which is their only 10-win season this century.
Jimbo Fisher is getting paid big bucks by The Aggies to be an 8-4 type football program. Now he calls out Saban recently on NIL comments the GOAT made.
Tennessee, Vanderbilt – 0: Vandy is Vandy we know they are not going to compete consistently in football, but Tennessee being a dumpster fire for the last 14 years blows your mind. No ten-win seasons, no championships, 15 year losing streak to Alabama. How the proud have fallen.
2022 should be another banner year for SEC football.
