| Ole Miss Rebels |
 Last year: 4-8 overall, 2-6 SECWHY THEY'LL WIN: Let's give Coach "O", now in his third year as head coach at Ole Miss, a chance to work with his recruits, which now make up the majority of the team. Let's also give Brent Schaeffer a chance to become the SEC's most improved quarterback. With a year of SEC starts under his belt, Schaeffer's performance in '07 might be a complete 180 from his last outing. Of course, since Ole Miss ranked 110th nationally in passing efficiency last season, it'd be disturbing if they didn't improve significantly in this department. Schaeffer will have the advantage of four returning starters on the offensive line and a good running back in BenJarvus Green-Ellis, who should make the pre-season All-SEC "Best Name" team. WHY THEY WON'T: Mississippi suffers from one of the poorest athletic budgets in the SEC as well as a yearly conference slate which includes Alabama, LSU, Auburn, and Arkansas. In '07 they also pick up a road game in Athens against Georgia and have defending national champion Florida visiting the Rebs in Oxford. Out of eight conference opponents, six will be ranked in the Top 20, and two start the season in the Top 5. Ole Miss won't win any of those games, but could still win five games this year if they take care of their OOC line-up, plus beat Vanderbilt and Mississippi State. PROGNOSIS: Some are calling for Ed Orgeron's Rebels to make a bowl game in 2007. I'm not sharing their optimism. This is a team which should hope to become more competitive against top-flight competition, and grit out some close wins against lower-tier SEC teams. Winning six games seems extremely unlikely but it should be set as a goal for the Rebs. Look for 3-5 wins in 2007. |
| Vanderbilt Commodores |
 Last year: 4-8 overall, 1-7 SECWHY THEY'LL WIN: Chris Nickson's first year as an SEC QB went pretty well as football things go in Nashville. He threw for 250+ yards in three of his four final games in '06 and has a stud WR, Earl Bennett, ready to catch his passes and make big plays. He's also a legitimate dual-threat option. In an amazing stroke of luck (or maybe it's careful planning by head coach Bobby Johnson), Vandy will start five seniors on the O-Line in 2007. That's not to say that Nickson will have a great line to protect him, but chances are it will be better than what Vandy has fielded in recent years. WHY THEY WON'T: Vandy is a team which is snakebitten by fortune. They haven't enjoyed a winning season since 1982. The SEC East is more brutal than ever, with three national championship coaches (Urban Meyer, Phil Fulmer, Steve Spurrier) smashing their heads against one another. One can't overlook Georgia's Mark Richt, who never seems to get much publicity but is winning an SEC title every time you turn your head. On top of that, In '07 Kentucky appears to be making a serious bid for breaking into the East's "Big 3" club. Left at the bottom of the pile you have lowly Vanderbilt. Vandy steadily improves under Bobby Johnson, who I think is one of the best coaches in the SEC if not the nation despite his W-L record. But they're just too far behind the Floridas, Tennessees, LSUs and Auburns to catch up... especially in 2007, which is the most competitive conference field in memory. Sorry, 'Dores. PROGNOSIS: Richmond. Eastern Michigan. Miami (OH). These are the games that Vandy must win to even have a chance to compete for a bowl bid. Their most winnable conference games are against Ole Miss, who'll come to play in Nashville, Kentucky, and vs. last year's ACC champion, Wake Forest. I think they have a chance to go 2-1 in that series but will likely only win one. That will add to Vandy's lore of perennial loser, which stinks because I think this team is far better than their record shows. Their schedule is positively ridiculous and a 5 win season with competitive losses to balance out the sheet is reason to hold your head high if you're a Vandy fan. |
| Mississippi State Bulldogs |
 Last year: 3-9 overall, 1-7 SECWHY THEY'LL WIN: It pains me to say it, but they probably won't. QB Michael Henig will need to stay healthy, which is no small order, just for Mississippi State to be able to put up a fight. They start the season in depressing fashion, taking on #2 LSU, although at least the game will be played in Starkville rather than Baton Rouge (where last year the Dogs lost 48-17.) Winnable games are Tulane (whom the Dogs lost to last year), Gardner-Webb, UAB, and Mississippi. For Croom's kids to bat .500 they'd have to beat, at minimum, South Carolina and Kentucky, which is doubtful. Then they'd have to be the beneficiary of a miracle by beating Arkansas, Tennessee, West Virginia, or Alabama. WHY THEY WON'T: Must we really count the ways? The one thing the Dogs had going for them, as it were, was a decent SEC-quality defense in '06, headed up by LB Quinton Culberson. Most of the defensive line and LB starters are gone, and it's unlikely the Henig-led offense will improve enough to make up the difference. In case you can't tell, I'm trying to be kind, here. PROGNOSIS: Three wins would be nominal, four very good, and five extraordinary. Anything beyond that will require a massive suspension of disbelief, because it just ain't happenin'. Sylvester Croom is a fine human being, doing things right and running a clean program at Mississippi State. He's on the hot seat, and it will only get hotter after the '07 season, but I expect we'll see Croom the Crooner at least through 2008. MSU fans can't expect Croom to work miracles with what he's got to work with. |
| This Conference Is Nuts, Man |
 The "Dregs" of the SEC comprise precisely three teams. Three. Out of twelve. Once upon a time, you had three "good" teams in the SEC East: Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee. Now there are five: add in Kentucky and South Carolina. And once upon a time out in the SEC West, you had Alabama... and no one else. Although LSU is now a national power, it wasn't so as recently as the nineties, and Auburn's rise under Tuberville is also relatively recent. In the modern SEC West, LSU and Auburn via for domination, Alabama is trying to make a comeback with their megapaid coach, and Arkansas is bringing their Heisman candidate back to defend their division tite. Life is rough for the teams on the bottom. Life is also rough for the teams on top. Literally any one of the nine teams outside of the "Dregs" category has a legitimate shot at winning an SEC title. Sure, some more than others; Kentucky and South Carolina, for example, are definitely facing longer odds than the conference superpowers. But it wouldn't shock me one bit to see any of those teams come out on top. It makes for great football every Saturday, but it also makes the pursuit of another SEC team playing in a national championship game ever so much harder. Never let it be said that this conference isn't deep, because from top to bottom there's no question that there are more top teams in the SEC than any league in the country. Enjoy the SEC season, folks! |
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
8-17-2007 @ 10:03AM
jhjeffery said...
"LSU and Auburn vie for domination"
Lets see, which team won more games and more titles in the last few years? Oh, the one you forgot to even mention in the piece--Arkansas.
What drivel.
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