- Sep 8, 2014
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Something to talk about (it's the off-season....):
Which SEC teams have the best chance of knocking off Alabama and Georgia in 2018?
https://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/s...est-chance-knocking-off-alabama-georgia-2018/
Media Days are six months away, but it’s pretty safe to assume Alabama and Georgia will be popular picks to meet for the 2018 SEC Championship.
Funny thing about those preseason picks: They’re frequently wrong. In fact, the last time the media correctly picked both division champions was 2009, when it forecast another Alabama vs. Florida SEC title game.
Every year since, there’s been at least one surprise, sometimes two.
So, which team has the greatest chance of disrupting a likely Alabama-Georgia title game prediction in 2018? That’s something we’ve been discussing all week.
Connor O’Gara, senior national columnist: Mississippi State. I’ve been banging the drum for Joe Moorhead for the last month so why stop now? Mississippi State’s new coach might be an even better offensive mind than Dan Mullen.
I know that sounds crazy, but after what he did with a very mediocre Penn State offense, I’m all in on his ability to maximize the wealth of returning weapons in Starkville. Even if Nick Fitzgerald can’t stay healthy, Keytaon Thompson looks like the real deal (albeit in a limited sample size). Either way, the Bulldogs won’t be nearly as Fitzgerald-dependent as they were with Mullen.
What has me believing in MSU as a top-15 team is actually on the defensive side of the ball. Bob Shoop will have as much talent — if not more — than he did at Penn State in 2015, when he coached three NFL defensive linemen. The returning combination of Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat is as good as there is in the SEC, and is up there with the best in the country.
MSU has to go to Alabama and LSU, but keep in mind that the Bulldogs blew out the Tigers in 2017, and they nearly took down the Tide. And if 2017 was any indication, a home game against Auburn won’t be like what MSU faced at Jordan-Hare this past season.
Am I saying that I expect the Bulldogs to best Alabama and win the division? No, but it wouldn’t stun me if they took the Auburn-like path to reach Atlanta.
Adam Spencer, SEC East reporter: The Florida Gators had an awful 2017 season, and the emergence of the now-infamous shark photo was probably the start of all that. From there, Jim McElwain’s crew dealt with credit card fraud, phony death threats and more turmoil at the quarterback position.
Now, McElwain is gone and the Gators have hired Urban Meyer’s former offensive coordinator, Dan Mullen, who inherits a pretty good situation. The defense is only losing DL Taven Bryan and CB Duke Dawson — big losses, for sure, but not insurmountable. The offense returns some key players as well, from WR Tyrie Cleveland to RBs Malik Davis and Lamical Perine to an experienced offensive line. Jordan Scarlett has been cleared to return as well.
Mullen’s reputation as a quarterback guru will be put to the test, as he’ll have to turn Feleipe Franks into a productive player or get highly touted 2018 signee Emory Jones ready to go from Day 1. However, we’ve seen freshman quarterbacks find success recently (just look at Alabama’s Jalen Hurts in 2016 and Georgia’s Jake Fromm in 2017).
The Gators reached the SEC Championship Game in 2015 and 2016, so it’s possible that 2017 was just an anomaly. Florida has a long way to go to reach Georgia’s level, but it’s not unreasonable to think that Mullen could have the Gators competing for an SEC East title by the time “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” rolls around on Oct. 27.
Chris Wright, executive editor: South Carolina. I very nearly put the Gamecocks at the top of our division rankings. I’m leaning toward picking them at Media Days for several reasons.
Some are based on South Carolina, some are based on Georgia and some are based on intangibles, such as cross-over games and handling expectations.
Jake Bentley and Deebo Samuel are the best pass catching combo in the SEC. The Gamecocks more than contained Georgia this past season, and that game was in Athens on a day Nick Chubb and Sony Michel combined for 183 rushing yards.
The 2018 game is in Columbia, and it’s in Week 2. That benefits South Carolina, which isn’t replacing nearly as many key parts as Georgia. The cross-over schedule also favors South Carolina: The Gamecocks play Texas A&M and Ole Miss, while the Dawgs must tangle with Auburn and LSU. (This annual imbalance is why I don’t think cross-over games should count in division standings, but that’s a debate for another day.)
It’s easy to get caught up in recruiting rankings and just expect Georgia to keep rolling in Year 3 under Kirby Smart. But nothing is automatic. Alabama lost three SEC games in Year 4 with Nick Saban.
Georgia leaned so heavily on the seniors in 2017, a slight regression is reasonable in 2018. It certainly will be South Carolina’s best chance to take advantage of it.
Which SEC teams have the best chance of knocking off Alabama and Georgia in 2018?
https://www.saturdaydownsouth.com/s...est-chance-knocking-off-alabama-georgia-2018/
Media Days are six months away, but it’s pretty safe to assume Alabama and Georgia will be popular picks to meet for the 2018 SEC Championship.
Funny thing about those preseason picks: They’re frequently wrong. In fact, the last time the media correctly picked both division champions was 2009, when it forecast another Alabama vs. Florida SEC title game.
Every year since, there’s been at least one surprise, sometimes two.
So, which team has the greatest chance of disrupting a likely Alabama-Georgia title game prediction in 2018? That’s something we’ve been discussing all week.
Connor O’Gara, senior national columnist: Mississippi State. I’ve been banging the drum for Joe Moorhead for the last month so why stop now? Mississippi State’s new coach might be an even better offensive mind than Dan Mullen.
I know that sounds crazy, but after what he did with a very mediocre Penn State offense, I’m all in on his ability to maximize the wealth of returning weapons in Starkville. Even if Nick Fitzgerald can’t stay healthy, Keytaon Thompson looks like the real deal (albeit in a limited sample size). Either way, the Bulldogs won’t be nearly as Fitzgerald-dependent as they were with Mullen.
What has me believing in MSU as a top-15 team is actually on the defensive side of the ball. Bob Shoop will have as much talent — if not more — than he did at Penn State in 2015, when he coached three NFL defensive linemen. The returning combination of Jeffery Simmons and Montez Sweat is as good as there is in the SEC, and is up there with the best in the country.
MSU has to go to Alabama and LSU, but keep in mind that the Bulldogs blew out the Tigers in 2017, and they nearly took down the Tide. And if 2017 was any indication, a home game against Auburn won’t be like what MSU faced at Jordan-Hare this past season.
Am I saying that I expect the Bulldogs to best Alabama and win the division? No, but it wouldn’t stun me if they took the Auburn-like path to reach Atlanta.
Adam Spencer, SEC East reporter: The Florida Gators had an awful 2017 season, and the emergence of the now-infamous shark photo was probably the start of all that. From there, Jim McElwain’s crew dealt with credit card fraud, phony death threats and more turmoil at the quarterback position.
Now, McElwain is gone and the Gators have hired Urban Meyer’s former offensive coordinator, Dan Mullen, who inherits a pretty good situation. The defense is only losing DL Taven Bryan and CB Duke Dawson — big losses, for sure, but not insurmountable. The offense returns some key players as well, from WR Tyrie Cleveland to RBs Malik Davis and Lamical Perine to an experienced offensive line. Jordan Scarlett has been cleared to return as well.
Mullen’s reputation as a quarterback guru will be put to the test, as he’ll have to turn Feleipe Franks into a productive player or get highly touted 2018 signee Emory Jones ready to go from Day 1. However, we’ve seen freshman quarterbacks find success recently (just look at Alabama’s Jalen Hurts in 2016 and Georgia’s Jake Fromm in 2017).
The Gators reached the SEC Championship Game in 2015 and 2016, so it’s possible that 2017 was just an anomaly. Florida has a long way to go to reach Georgia’s level, but it’s not unreasonable to think that Mullen could have the Gators competing for an SEC East title by the time “The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party” rolls around on Oct. 27.
Chris Wright, executive editor: South Carolina. I very nearly put the Gamecocks at the top of our division rankings. I’m leaning toward picking them at Media Days for several reasons.
Some are based on South Carolina, some are based on Georgia and some are based on intangibles, such as cross-over games and handling expectations.
Jake Bentley and Deebo Samuel are the best pass catching combo in the SEC. The Gamecocks more than contained Georgia this past season, and that game was in Athens on a day Nick Chubb and Sony Michel combined for 183 rushing yards.
The 2018 game is in Columbia, and it’s in Week 2. That benefits South Carolina, which isn’t replacing nearly as many key parts as Georgia. The cross-over schedule also favors South Carolina: The Gamecocks play Texas A&M and Ole Miss, while the Dawgs must tangle with Auburn and LSU. (This annual imbalance is why I don’t think cross-over games should count in division standings, but that’s a debate for another day.)
It’s easy to get caught up in recruiting rankings and just expect Georgia to keep rolling in Year 3 under Kirby Smart. But nothing is automatic. Alabama lost three SEC games in Year 4 with Nick Saban.
Georgia leaned so heavily on the seniors in 2017, a slight regression is reasonable in 2018. It certainly will be South Carolina’s best chance to take advantage of it.
