Don’t we all just love hearing about the SEC? Well, probably not to be perfectly honest. With the recent second coming of Jesus (Tim Tebow), the media has actually turned away from the Trojans of the Pac-10 and spent all of its time talking about the Gator season. Well, although I do believe that the SEC is a strong conference and Florida is the team to beat, the Big-12 and Pac-10 are probably top to bottom a bit stronger than the SEC this year. Either way, winning this conference with one loss guarantees a trip to the BCS Championship game because the voters love the SEC.
WEST
- Ole Miss 11-1 (7-1)
- Alabama 10-2 (6-2)
- LSU 9-3 (5-3)
- Auburn 6-6 (2-6)
- Arkansas 5-7 (2-6)
- Mississippi State 5-7 (2-6)
EAST
- Florida 11-1 (7-1)
- South Carolina 9-3 (5-3)
- Georgia 8-4 (6-2)
- Tennessee 8-4 (5-3)
- Vanderbilt 4-8 (1-7)
- Kentucky 4-7 (1-7)
The conference championship game will be one for the ages. The Rebels where the only team to beat the Gators last season and will look to make it two in a row. Florida, at this point, is still too good to pick against. The Gators take another SEC championship.
The Gators return all 11 defensive starters on a team that is the defending National Champion. If defense wins championships, and this defense already won one, how can I pick any other team? Tim Tebow, a Heisman winner, is back for his final year and is the perfect quarterback for this Gator system. To be perfectly honest, Florida plays a very poor schedule this year. Their out-of-conference games are Charleston Southern, Troy, Florida International and Florida State. They get a lucky draw and don’t play Ole Miss or Alabama this season. In fact, their only “tough” game of the year is at LSU, which I believe to be their only loss of the regular season. Until beaten, this team is the best in the Nation.
Ole Miss is not under the radar this season. Jevan Snead is the best pro prospect in all of college football. Yes, he is currently ranked higher by some scouts than Tebow, McCoy and Bradford. Snead has the talent to single handedly carry this team through the season. The reason I have Ole Miss losing only one game (an upset to South Carolina on the road) is because of the Rebel schedule. Alabama and LSU, their two toughest games, are at home in Oxford. If this team gets clicking early, they may take the SEC.
Alabama has something to prove this season. After getting crushed by Utah in the Sugar Bowl last season, the “maybe this team isn’t as good as we thought” conversations started coming out. Saban was paid a lot of money to turn this school around, and he has done just that in only one year. Imagine what he can do this year. Nine starters return on defense. That’s a good start, but it won’t be enough to finish.
LSU is highly ranked this season in many polls. I ask why? Last year, they were highly ranked going into the season only to play to an 8-5, 3-5 conference, record. That seems pretty adequate at best. What has changed about this team to have them ranked in the top 10 after that season? Nothing! The only weapon on this team is runningback Charles Scott (probably the best in the conference), and with how the SEC plays defense, this won’t matter because the Tigers have no one to throw the ball. At home, this team will be near untouchable. On the road, it might be a different story. Either way, this is not a top ten team.
South Carolina is going to be up and down this season. I can easily see them challenging Florida for the top of the division or Kentucky for the bottom. It all depends on new quarterback Stephen Garcia. This team is notorious for starting out strong and fading as the season progresses. If the Gamecocks can get early wins while Garcia settles into the system and college level, this team might just come together when it matters. Steve Spurrier must do well this season or he is done coaching in the SEC.
Georgia made the mistake of scheduling both Oklahoma State and Georgia Tech in nonconference play, both of which they will drop. With Stafford gone to the pros, a new general to lead this offense must emerge. The defense, stacked with returning defensive tackle Geno Atkins and linebacker Rennie Curran, will have to carry this team through many big games this season. To have a shot at the conference, the Bulldogs are going to have to beat Florida.
Tennessee is the last team that I want to talk about. The Volunteers are once again on the National radar thanks to the antics of first year head coach Lane Kiffin. Even with their recent blue chip recruits, this team just isn’t going to be able to compete week in and week out in the SEC. The Volunteers are going to win games they shouldn’t be in, and they are going to lose games they should dominate. Tennessee is counting on freshman Bryce Brown to lead this team. Anytime this is the case, the offense is going to be in trouble. One thing is for sure, Kiffin will have a defense.
The rest of the SEC is far behind the rest. After recent success by Vanderbilt, Kentucky and Arkansas, these three teams are going to be back in the cellar where they belong this season. A lot of people are not counting Auburn out of contention, but I am. The Tigers will struggle to win two conference games.
Check back tomorrow, Sept. 2, for my final conference prediction: the Pac-10. The following morning, I will have my bowl predictions up for the season opener. Only two more days until the madness begins!
Peterson's Prognostics 