Alrighty folks..."it's the most wonderful time...of the year"! Yep, we might not agree on who is going to win the East or the West or the Conference for that matter but one thing we can all agree on is the fact that all of us have been looking forward to this season since the Auburn Tigers raised that crystal football at the end of last season. There are the side bets on how much grass the Mad Hatter is gonna eat this year, how many times will the 'Ol Ball Coach throw that visor, how many times will Saban spank his starting QB and how many fines will Mississippi State pay for the so called "new" cowbell ban? It's all part of what makes our conference great and all reasons (along with our streak of National Championships) that makes everyone else in the country love to hate us. Don't know about you but I'm loving it!
I actually started writing this post about two weeks ago and have come back and revised....and then re-revised...and then re-revised. I will start out by saying that I think that this year is much easier for me to pick the strongest teams in the league as opposed to when you look at next year. I personally think that next year (based on looking at what all the different teams SHOULD return and what everyone is losing) is going to be a bloodbath in the SEC and predict that we will see more parody next year in the conference that we have seen in at least the past five years. I will say right now, that I don't see how we will be able to put a team in the National Championship next year barring some very young players really stepping up and needing some of the best coaching that we have all needed in recent memory. I don't think that we will have an undefeated team winning the conference next year. With that said, I feel that we have probably four teams this year in the conference that with a little luck (no injuries or suspensions) and some great players performing as they are expected to, that could go undefeated. We all know though that there will only be one (if that) make it through the crucible with an undefeated season and find themselves once again playing for the right to lift that crystal football for the SEC once again.
Before I get to my predictions this year, I'd like to once again congratulate the Auburn Tigers on a magical season and finally bringing that National Championship back to the plains. To some of my fellow Bama fans that care to point out allegations of wrongdoing and all that crap, I say, "Get over it!". As a Bama fan, I don't ever want to be able to look at a victory, especially over Auburn, and have to say that we beat their second best because for some reason they couldn't put their best on the field. If you are a Bama fan and you think that Auburn fans have been talking too much crap, I ask you, "Why shouldn't they be?". As a Bama fan, we like to point at our National Championships, Conference Championships and our overall record against our cross state rivals. As a college football fan, everyone should be able to realize that college football is all about what you have done for me lately. So let's take a look at it Bama fans. If you look at the last 20 years, Auburn holds an edge in the head-to-head matchup with 11 wins and 9 losses. In the last 10 years, 7 wins and 3 losses and the last 5 years, 3 wins and 2 losses. Give 'em their props, they've took it to us. These last few years have brought some pretty memorable battles between the two and I don't think this year is going to be any different.
So, here we go. First, we'll look at the SEC East. With the recent decline of the power in Gainesville, the SEC East has somewhat opened up in the last couple of years. Newsflash to the rest of the SEC East...you better get it this year cause the Gators are on their way back! Mark Richt is on the hot seat in Athens and the 'Ol Ball Coach has himself one heck of a team at South Carolina. Richt is banking on the strength and smarts of his sophomore QB Aaron Murphy and what some might argue is the best special teams unit in the nation to buy him at least another year as the head Dawg. Meantime, Coach Spurrier is just trying to control his delinquent QB in the form of Garcia. If he can keep him out of trouble and keep his head in the game, it could be another big year for the Gamecocks. Here is how I see it shaking out. I see South Carolina finshing the regular season with one loss, to Arkansas. This would be enough to win the SEC East. In second, I see Florida taking second by pulling off a minor upset over Georgia and finishing the regular season with a 8-4 season. I see the Dawgs also finshing with a 8-4 overall record but with all four of their losses coming in conference with one of Florida's losses being to cross state rival Florida State. Rounding it out I see the Vols coming in fourth, then Kentucky followed by Vandy.
Now the West. This is the one that kept me coming back to the drawing board. The Dee Hart injury at Bama, the drama with LSU and their QB, the Knile Davis injury at Arkansas....it all was messing with my mind. Finally, I just went back to square one. Just looking at what the teams are putting on the field. When we look at pure talent, the SEC West should be a three team show. I think that those three are LSU, Arkansas and Bama. At first, I thought that it was going to be a two horse race between Bama and Arkansas but the injury of Knile Davis is huge. That would be the equivilant of Bama losing Trent Richardson. With that said I like Bama and here is why, I know Bama lost Mark Ingram. Got it, and they replaced him with a guy that in my opinion is even better. They lost Greg McElroy. Yep, while not a stellar passer his leadership qualities will be missed and Bama will feel that some, especially early on but AJ McCarron does have playing time and if he can get over himself and get a little humble, which I'm sure Saban has worked on this off season, I'm sure that the QB spot will be fine. If Bama had a younger or less experienced offensive line, I would completely change my prediction on the SEC West. This one point about Alabama is the one that swung me in the direction of picking Bama in the West. That line is rated by most as the best offensive line in the country and having a back like Richardson sure helps to put a new QB at ease a bit. The loss of Julio Jones also will hurt immensely but with the current crop of "possession" receivers, Bama has enough to keep the offense balanced and develop some of the younger wide outs at the same time. You can't talk about Bama without talking about defense and this year should be interesting to watch. This could rate as one of the best defenses Bama has seen in years and that's saying something. More than anything, I am looking forward to watching Courtney Upshaw and his development. That dude is a beast and some of the hits he was bringing in the bowl game, after he got healthy, should be illegal. Barring any injuries at running back or at offensive line, I see Bama going undefeated in the regular season and going to Atlanta to strap it up against the Gamecocks. Before the injury to Knile Davis, I had the Hogs coming in second with their only loss coming to Bama. I've had to change that. I see LSU coming in second in the West for the sole fact that they have a little easier schedule in conference. I see LSU finishing with a 9-3 record with one of those losses coming at the hands of Oregon with conference losses against Bama and Arkansas. With Arkansas, I see them also coming in with a 9-3 record but with all three losses in conference, to Bama, South Carolina and Mississippi State. That's right, I said Mississippi State. I believe that they will beat either LSU or Arkansas and quite possibly might even spoil the title hopes of Bama. I swayed toward them beating Arkansas strictly off the timing of the game in the schedule. State plays Arkansas the week before the Hogs play LSU and the week after they play Bama. I think that the Dawgs will come close to beating the Tide and will get just enough taste that they will take down Arkansas. So Bama #1, LSU #2, Arkansas #3 and Mississippi State coming in at #4 with a 8-4 record with all four losses coming at the hands of SEC teams, UGA, USC, Bama and LSU. Behind them I see Auburn. I looked at the Tigers hard and even talked to my closest childhood bud who is an Auburn fan and got his take. We agreed that we see Auburn looking at about a 6-6 record. Having that been said, Auburn has one heck of a coaching staff and if anyone can get the most of their team, it'll be those guys. I'm gonna give Auburn a 7-5 record because of that coaching staff with losses to Miss. State, South Carolina, Arkansas, LSU and Bama. The games with Clemson, Florida and UGA are going to be close also and if the ball don't bounce for the Tigers the way it did in a couple of games for them last year, it could get REALLY ugly on the plains. Behind them, I see Ole Miss competing with Vandy for the worst record in the league.
I'm sure I'm going to get a rise out of some of you (especially Auburn fans) and I hope to. I want to see what you have to say! Just a couple of reminders, sign up for our college football pick 'em (details in upper right corner of the front page). I'll be highlighting each week's winner in the blog every week and don't forget to visit my buddy Shane's blog for some awesome tailgating recipes at http://www.alabamatailgate.com/ and heck, if you like what you see, buy his book! Looking forward to you comments and hope everyone's team has a healthy year and we see the best we have to offer on the field all year and hopefully, with a little luck, they'll be another SEC team hoisting the crystal football in January! Later. RTR!
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