The SEC turned in another dominant year during the 2006 college football season with nine teams earning bowl appearances. The SEC took home six bowl victories with Florida destroying the undefeated Ohio State Buckeyes in the BCS National Championship game. Here’s what’s shaping up for 2007.
SEC EAST
Florida
Florida will be well prepared this year to take another shot at the title with the emergence of Tim Tebow and Percy Harvin. They are going to have to replace 14 starters with most of them being on the defensive side of the ball. Florida’s only loss last season was a 27-17 defeat at the hands of the Auburn Tigers who won the Pontiac Game changing performance play of the year for a blocked punt in that game. Florida’s main concern is on defense where they finished sixth in the SEC last year giving up 183 yards a game through the air. That was with first round NFL draft pick Reggie Nelson and sixth round pick Ryan Smith. Their run defense was first in the SEC giving up only 73 yards on the ground a game. Their defensive line will be led by defensive end Derrick Harvey who recorded 11 sacks last season. Florida starts the year off with three home games against Western Kentucky, Troy and Tennessee. They also have home games against Auburn, Vanderbilt and South Carolina.
Georgia
After a 9-4 season in which the Georgia Bulldogs suffered losses to Vanderbilt and Kentucky in a year that they only returned 10 starters should be looking to be back up at the top this year. They now have a solidified quarterback in Matthew Stafford. They also return explosive senior running back Kregg Lumpkin along with red shirt freshman Knowshon Moreno who looked great in the spring game. The Bulldogs hope to have a more powerful offense this year after finishing in the bottom half of the SEC in both passing and rushing last season. Their defense kept them in games last year, but that might not be the case this season after losing seven starters mainly including star defensive lineman Quinton Moses. The young defense will have to improve quickly as they start off the season with home games against offensive heavy Oklahoma State and then Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks. They also play Ole Miss, Auburn and Kentucky at home while they will have to travel to Alabama, Tennessee, Vanderbilt and instate rival Georgia Tech to end the season.
Kentucky
Kentucky was by far the most surprising team in the SEC last season with a record of 8-5 that included their first bowl victory since 1999 in a 28-20 victory over Clemson in the Music City Bowl. The main reason for their success last season was because of the emergence of quarterback Andre’ Woodson. He threw for 3515 yards with 31 touchdowns and seven interceptions. His top four receivers are back including senior Keenan Burton who grabbed 12 touchdown passes and had 1036 yards receiving. They will have to retool on the offensive line after losing two starters. Their rushing attack should be a bit of concern after finishing 11th in the SEC, but was first in passing. They return virtually everybody on defense, but this is a squad that finished last in both passing and rushing in the SEC last season. They start off the season with two easy home games against Eastern Kentucky and Kent St. before facing Louisville at home in week three.
South Carolina
Steve Spurrier keeps finding ways to win in his rebuilding of South Carolina and he will have another huge task this season in replacing wide receiver Calvin Johnson who was the second pick in the NFL draft. They do return senior quarterback Blake Mitchell who was anything but consistent last year throwing six picks and only 10 touchdowns.“Blake is a fifth year senior quarterback. Started two years off and on. Hopefully his experience and his mental toughness is much, much better. I think he’s ready to have a big year,” said Spurrier. They will have to rely more on the running game this season as the Gamecocks return senior Cory Boyd, 823 rushing yards and eight touchdowns, and junior Mike Davis, 474 yards rushing with six touchdowns. Junior Kenny McKinley will have to be the new go to go guy at reviver this year. They will also have to replace three guys on the offensive line this year. USC hopes to improve on a defense that finished eighth in passing and ninth against the rush last year in the SEC. They return virtually everyone on defense and will have more depth with the new recruits Spurrier has reeled in. They will be lead by senior Jasper Brinkley at the middle linebacker position. The defensive line will be stout with the return of sophomore Eric Norwood, seven sacks last season, and Jordin Lindsey who was the defensive MVP of the Liberty Bowl. The season starts fast for them with Georgia on the road in week two and LSU on the road in week four. Later in the year they will travel to Tennessee and Arkansas before finishing off the season with home games against Florida and rival Clemson.
Tennessee
The Tennessee Volunteers return to form last year finishing with a record of 9-4 and 5-3 in SEC play. Eric Ainge returns for his senior campaign but will be without his top three receivers including Robert Meachem who led the team with 71 catches for 1298 yards and 11 touchdowns. “Erik through for 67 percent last year, which was a record at Tennessee. Was an outstanding year for us,” said head coach Phillip Fulmer. They do return an ore of talented running backs starting with their returning rushing leader sophomore LaMarcus Coker, 696 yards rushing and five scores. He will be competing for playing time with talented sophomore Montario Hadesty and junior Arian Foster. Their best returning receiver is tight end Chris Brown, 31 receptions 239 yards and one touchdown, will be a key role to the passing game until the young receivers get comfortable. The Volunteers defense was down last year after being known for having one of the most dominate defenses in the nation. They ranked fifth in the SEC in pass defense and a stunning eighth in run defense. They return a great duo of linebackers in senior Ryan Karl and junior Jerod Mayo (combined 149 tackles last season). Senior Jonathan Hefney, 96 tackles, will lead a secondary that lost three starters. They start the season out with a touch road test in offensive powerhouse California.
Vanderbilt
This could possibly be the year that Vanderbilt has a winning season and goes to a bowl game since 1982. They return 18 starters including outstanding wide receiver Earl Bennett. Last season he hauled in 82 catches for 1146 yards and six touchdowns. They also return their versatile quarterback in junior Chris Nickson. Not only was he the leader passer for the Commodores last year, but he also led the team in rushing with 694 yards and four touchdowns. His consistency through the air, 15 touchdowns and 13 interceptions, could cost him playing time if he does not improve quickly. The ground game will be the strength as along with Nickson they also return their second leading rusher in senior running back Cassen Jackson-Garrison. The defense is going to have to improve if they are going to have any hope of that winning season as they ranked tenth in both passing and rushing defense in the SEC last year. They return eight starters led by last year’s team-leading tackler, 93 tackles, senior MLB Jonathan Goff. Vandy’s home schedule includes Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky and defending ACC champions Wake Forest.
SEC WEST
Alabama
The Alabama Crimson Tide will be led by their junior quarterback John Parker Wilson. He has all his weapons back at receiver including a duo of two great receivers in seniors D.J. Hall and Keith Brown. They combined for 106 catches 1646 yards and eight scores. They also return a solid offensive line headed by Andre Smith, 348 pound 6-foot 4-inch offensive tackle. The main area of concern this season will be at running back. Jimmy Johns was set to be them man but had some off field issues and missed some time in the spring. They have an ore of backs that could step in but none of them have much experience. The defensive side of the ball will be led by the front seven. Senior defensive end Wallace Gilberry and junior Bobby Greenwood will lead the attack on the defensive line. Sophomore MLB Prince Hall is expected to be a disaster up the middle after recording 10 ½ tackles for a loss last season. The secondary will be a little inexperienced, but will still have senior Simeon Castille who had five interceptions last season. “Simeon Castille has been an outstanding player at the University of Alabama, certainly had a great spring for us. I think the biggest difference in what I see in him, he’s accepted the role of leader and trying to affect other people. I see him constantly trying to give instruction, set example for, helping other guys do their job. We certainly appreciate that,” said Saben. “That’s something that we need.” Alabama also has a new head coach roaming the side line in former LSU head coach Nick Saban. The Crimson Tide open their season against Western Carolina.
Arkansas
Arkansas had a surprising season last year finishing 10-4 and playing for the SEC championship. They are lead by the two-headed monster in the backfield in junior running back Darren McFadden and junior Felix Jones. McFadden ran for a school-record 1747 yards and also scored 14 touchdowns. Jones rushed for 1168 yards and six touchdowns while getting 130 fewer carries than McFadden. They also return their top receiver in Marcus Monk, 962 yards 11 touchdowns last season. The only question is who is going to get him the ball. They are hoping junior Casey Dick will be more accurate this season after completing only 49 percent of his passes last year throwing six picks and only nine touchdowns. Only another problem area could be the offensive line who only returns two starters. The defense took a big loss in losing defensive end Jamaal Anderson and cornerback Chris Houston to the NFL. Senior middle linebacker Weston Dacus is expected to be the leader of this inexperienced defense. Their road games consist of Alabama, Ole Miss, Tennessee and LSU.
Auburn
Auburn has gone 33-5 in the last three seasons, which is the best in the SEC over the last three years. With the return of junior quarterback Brandon Cox and a talented group of running backs, Auburn hopes for continued success. The running game will be split between the speedy Brad Lester and powerful Ben Tate, combined 902 yards rushing and 12 touchdowns. Cox loses his go-to target in Courtney Taylor. The most experienced guy coming back is junior Rodgeriqus Smith. There are high hopes for freshman receivers Tim Hawthorne and Montez Billings. The offensive line will lose four starters from last season. The defensive line has a chance to be one of the best in the nation with senior Quentin Groves returning to lead the way after a season were he racked up 9.5 sacks and 23 tackles for loss. Sophomore Sen’Derrick Marks will stuff the middle after making the All-SEC freshman team last season. The line backing corps will be inexperienced unless gifted Tray Blackmon gets his act together. The secondary should be solid with the return of three starters after a year in which they finished third in the SEC in passing defense last season. The kicking game could be a bit of concern with the losses of John Vaughn and Kody Bliss. Auburn may have the toughest road schedule in the SEC, but they face rival Alabama at home this season as they go for their sixth consecutive Iron Bowl victory.
LSU
After finishing the last two seasons with a record of 11-2 Les Miles thinks he has his team ready to compete for a BCS national title. They will have to replace quarterback JaMarcus Russell who was the first pick in the NFL draft. They also lost two of their top three receivers. Senior quarterback Matt Flynn has been patient and will now get his chance to display his talent.
“Any time you have a quarterback that starts in really his first season as a starter, there will be some period of adjustment,” Miles said. “I think it will be minimal with Matt Flynn. Matt Flynn is a guy who is really deserving, really has competed for the opportunity to play against a quality quarterback in JaMarcus Russell, and now it’s his turn. He has done great job in leadership. In my opinion, we’re all looking forward to seeing him to play. Again, this is his first year. He may not play just perfect, but we’ll like how he plays and see if we can’t if he can’t help engineer a tremendous season.”
His main target will be senior receiver Early Doucet. They are very deep at running back with sophomores Keiland Williams and Charles Scott expected to lead the way while senior Alley Broussard tries to recover from injuries. The defense seems to be ready to dominating again with eight starters coming back on unit that finished first in passing defense and second in rushing defense in the SEC last season. The defensive line will be charged by tackle Glenn Dorsey and end Tyson Jackson. They return all three linebackers and two great cover corners in Jonathan Zenon and Chevis Jackson. They will have a huge test early in facing Virginia Tech at home in week two. They will be traveling to Kentucky, Alabama and Ole Miss. They have a good home schedule with South Carolina, Florida, Auburn and Arkansas.
Mississippi
The ever rebuilding Ole Miss Rebels hope to go bowling for the first time since 2003. There will be a struggle for quarterback after transfer Brent Schaeffer had an inconsistent junior season throwing 10 picks and only nine touchdowns. Their strength will have to come from talented senior running back BenJarvus Green-Ellis. He rushed for 999 yards and turned in seven of Ole Miss’s 11 rushing touchdowns last season. The defense suffered a tremendous blow with the loss of All-American linebacker Patrick Willis. Even with him this defense was at the bottom of the SEC in nearly every category. They hope a group of talented players can step in for immediate support. They start off with tough out of conference tests against Memphis and Missouri before facing Vanderbilt, Florida and Georgia. They get Alabama, Arkansas and LSU at home, but travel to Auburn and in-state rival Mississippi State.
Mississippi State
Sylvester Croom will be trying to get past his mark of winning three games a season after putting up a record of 9-25 in his three seasons at Mississippi State. Croom is hoping junior quarterback Michael Henig can be more consistent after completing 44 percent of his passes and throwing nine interceptions versus only seven touchdowns last season.
He also has all of his weapons back at receiver along with sophomore running back Anthony Dixon who led the team in rushing last year.
The defense must replace three starters on a line that ranked fifth in the SEC in stopping the run last season.
An area of concern will be the secondary that finished 11th in the SEC last season, giving up more than 200 yards passing a game. They start the year off on a Thursday at home against LSU.
August 23, 2007 - 3:56pm
The author of this article
The author of this article is clearly an idiot. What kind of "assistant sports editor" thinks Calvin Johnson played for South Carolina. It's bad enough that it is poorly written; anyone who makes mistakes as big as saying that Sen'Derrick Marks "will stuff the middle", when he was transferred to Defensive End back in spring, deserves to be verbally castrated. Also, Alley Broussard (tailback for LSU) quit football during the spring, making his injury recovery time immaterial. While he is not completely out of the woods, anyone who follows Auburn football knows that Tray Blackmon is not only back, he's all smiles at press conferences and talking to Brother Chette as much as anyone on the team. Anyone who saw the print copy also knows that the captions' author (the same?) looked at this years roster instead of last years. The funny part is the three mistakes in the captions were players who were playing high school ball or on the scout team. The picture involving the Florida game calls Marquies Gunn, a talented senior defensive end, Bailey Woods, a tight end who was playing high school ball in Georgia. The same caption calls Chris Leak, the quarterback of the national title-winning Gators, Joe Haden, a true freshman corner. Also, looking to the right, Auburn's starting linebacker Karibi Dede was called Alex Rose, a wide receiver. Other than numerous grammatical and syntactical errors, I have no further complaint. I'm sorry to have objected so vehemently, but I believe that anyone who is looked up to as a sports reporter should at least know his own team, if not others in the same conference.