From the pen of Mike Sheerin;

Greetings college football fans we’re almost there. As you all know opening day is just around the corner so let’s start where they say “it just means more” down in the Southeastern Conference.

Standings prediction

1. Georgia
2. Texas
3. Alabama
4. Ole Miss
5. LSU
6. Tennessee
7. Mizzou
8. Texas A&M
9. Oklahoma
10. Florida
11. Kentucky
12. South Carolina
13. Auburn
14. Arkansas
15. Mississippi State
16. Vanderbilt

3 Teams to watch

Tennessee

I am enamored by the Volunteers this season. Tennessee is highlighted by 2 stars. Defensive end James Pearce Jr. was a menace last season racking up 9.5 sacks. He’s got elite quickness off the edge and finishing ability that make him a potential number 1 pick. The country got to meet quarterback Nico Iameleava this past bowl season in the Citrus Bowl as the Vols took it to the Iowa Hawkeyes. He accounted for 4 touchdowns and showed off the physical traits that made him a 5-star recruit. They face Bama at home and go to Georgia if Josh Heupel can lead his squad to a split of those games it could be a fun season in Knoxville.

LSU

The bayou bengals lost a ton of production on offense. Former Heisman winner Jayden Daniels and star wideouts Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. yet the Tigers are still one of the favorites to win the SEC. The offensive line combined has 111 career starts and is highlighted by tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones Jr. Garrett Nussmeier will have big shoes to fill at QB but the big name to know at receiver is Kyren Lacy. Yes, LSU has another star receiver coming down the production line. The defense should be the real attraction. After an incredible Harold Perkins was criticized a lot last season. Sure he had 2 less sacks but he had more tackles and the same number of TFLs. If the secondary led by Texas A&M transfer Jardin Gilbert can stay healthy this season Brian Kelly could potentially have a playoff team down in Baton Rouge.

Texas A&M

I think we all can admit the Jimbo Fisher firing was a few years in the making. Mike Elko takes over an A&M team with a massively talented defense that features a loaded d-line. They open at home against Notre Dame in a game the Irish better be ready for or else they will get pushed around.

The Hot Seat

Sam Pittman, Arkansas: The coaching situation in Fayetteville feels like an if not when with Pittman. He was a nice story a few years ago but Arkansas has regressed quite significantly.

Billy Napier, Florida: Napier’s situation is an interesting one. He heads into year 3 yet to register a winning season. Despite this he’s scored some good wins on the recruiting trail. He faces an uphill battle with arguably the toughest strength of schedule in the country but if the Gators reach a bowl game look for Napier to keep his job.

Clark Lea, Vanderbilt: Clark Lea was hired in 2021 the coach has passion for the program as he himself was a former walk on. But we’re entering year 4 and Vandy has yet to sniff a bowl game. I know expectations aren’t high in Nashville but that seat has to be heating up.

One Question for Each Team

Georgia – Will Carson Beck separate himself from the pack? Beck is getting hype for the number 1 pick next spring. If he can play up to that billing with the defense Kirby Smart has built, Georgia could be looking at another championship.

Texas – Can they replace Byron Murphy and T’Vondre Sweat? Texas’ d-line last year was anchored by two big defensive tackles. They lost both of those guys to the draft. Coach Sarkisian made moves to counter this in the transfer portal but this group could be the difference between Texas returning to the playoff or not.

Alabama – Life after Saban? Any question revolving around Alabama football right now starts and stops with the departure of legendary coach Nick Saban. Kalen DeBoer was a knockout hire in my opinion, but can he match Saban’s consistency? We shall see.

Ole Miss – Can the transfers come together? This is fairly simple Ole Miss hit the transfer portal jackpot landing names like Walter Nolen, Juice Wells, Logan Diggs just to name a few. Can they come together to deliver on their potential? We’ll see.

LSU – Can Garrett Nussmeier step up for the Tigers? It’s not easy being the new Quarterback in town, especially when you step in for a Heisman Winner and first round pick. The former 4-star recruit has the arm talent as displayed in a bowl game victory over Wisconsin but taking over for a whole season is a different ask.

Tennessee – Can the secondary hold up? Tennessee returns multiple linemen on both sides have an incredibly talented quarterback good receivers and experienced running backs. The secondary is thin, and coach Josh Heupel attempted to address this by bringing in corner Jermod McCoy from Oregon State and safety Jakobe Thomas from Middle Tennessee State. If the secondary can be average, I really believe this Tennessee team has 10-win potential.

Mizzou – Can they take advantage of a favorable schedule? There hasn’t been buzz around Mizzou like this in nearly a decade. They have star power in Brady Cook and Luther Burden and the schedule just so happens to break in their favor. They face Oklahoma at home and have trips to Tuscaloosa and College Station, but they avoid Texas, Georgia, LSU.

Texas A&M – Who is Connor Weigman? Hard to believe we still haven’t gotten a full season of Weigman yet but we have not. He showed great flashes last year for the Aggies and the 12th man have high expectations. I think the A&M defense will be extremely legit if Weigman can deliver it changes everything for new coach Mike Elko.

Oklahoma – Can the offensive line come together? The Sooners have zero returning starters on their o-line and a doozy of a schedule. This group will have to get it together quick for when Tennessee comes to town in late September.

Florida – Can they withstand the schedule? The schedule makers did UF no favors this season. A schedule featuring Miami, Texas A&M, a competitive UCF team, Kentucky, LSU and Ole Miss. They also go on the road to Tennessee, Texas, Florida State and have a neutral site game against Georgia. Florida’s depth will be tested this season. If the depth can’t hold up it could be a long fall in Gainesville.

Kentucky- Brock Vandagriff (not a stage name)? After sitting behind Stetson Bennett and then Carson Beck Vandagriff transferred to UK. He was a highly recruited QB out of high school but has yet to see significant action. He’ll be thrown into the fire with 2 of his first 3 games being SEC games. On paper the Kentucky defense looks fantastic (NFL fans learn the name Deone Walker) if the offense can hold up it’s end of the bargain the cats should be back in a bowl game.

South Carolina – Can the o-line improve and stay healthy? Of all the SEC teams the one I watch most frequently is the South Carolina Gamecocks (for better or worse). This question could easily have been about LaNorris Sellers or who will fill the shoes of Xavier Leggette but instead I’ll talk about the line play for the Gamecocks which at times last season was putrid. On the offensive line the injuries were completely debilitating it forced the Cocks to use different line combos in each of the first nine games. This year they return 4 starters and add some highly regarded recruits. Look for Josiah Thompson or Kam Pringle to step in as freshman and fill one of the tackle spots.

Auburn – What does year 2 of Hugh Freeze look like? Auburn finished 6-7 last year which is disappointing by their standards but a look under the hood suggests this team was more competitive then people realize. They played Bama and Georgia very tough and lost a close one to Ole Miss. While I’m not the biggest Payton Thorne fan he has a much improved supporting cast this year. Jarquez Hunter is a beast at running back and Freeze brought in some high end receiving talent in the off season. Look for freshmen Cam Coleman and Perry Thompson to play an important role this season.

Arkansas – What’s the goal? Back-to-back seasons of regression, losing two big offensive stars to the transfer portal (KJ Jefferson, Raheim Sanders) has to leave Razorback nation what’s the Pittman plan? I think that seat is on fire at the moment and a rough year could lead to a change.

Mississippi State – Is Jeff Lebby the answer? Listen Hail State was in an impossible spot last season. The passing of then Head Coach Mike Leach thrust the bulldogs into chaos which culminated in a 5-7 season. Lebby doesn’t have an easy road ahead. Road trips to Texas and Georgia sandwich the bye week and they finish with Missouri and the Egg Bowl. One way or another we will learn a lot about the boys from Starkville.

Vanderbilt – Can Vandy do anything but make up the numbers? More often than not Vandy has been the doormat of this conference, but Head Coach Clark Lea made some interesting moves this off-season. The most interesting to me is bringing in former New Mexico State QB Diego Pavia to play quarterback. You may remember Pavia from upsetting Auburn on the plains last season. They return a bunch of talent, but their team win total on FanDuel currently is 2.5. Just not much upside for the Commodores.

PREDICTION

Georgia beats Texas in Atlanta. Dawgs defense proves to be too much to handle this season and win the SEC and head to the playoff. I do think the Longhorns and Crimson Tide join Georgia in the twelve team playoff!

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