The SEC has been under Alabama’s thumb for as long as I can remember, but I will try to convince everyone–mainly myself–that there’s a chance the Tide’s reign of terror will end soon. Georgia gave us a little tiny piece of hope last year, but obviously that might not be something to rely on. So it’s the underdogs that could–but probably won’t–end Alabama’s run, as well as my nightmares.
SEC East
I mean whoever comes out of the East not named Georgia will be a heavy underdog if they play Alabama in Atlanta, but it’s still good go over the candidates. Obviously Georgia is the heavy favorite to repeat as division champs with South Carolina to place, and the “dark horse” that everyone has been talking about so far is Florida. However, Florida is not the SEC East dark horse in my opinion, it is actually Missouri.
I did cover Missouri in Student Union’s college football preview, and I mean what I say about them. They have a majority of their starters returning, including future first round quarterback Drew Lock. Their defense ended the season on a very strong note and they didn’t have an entire staff change this off season which puts them ahead of Florida. As for South Carolina and Georgia, both are not world beaters by any means. South Carolina does have a very solid team but Muschamp and Bentley trying to prove they can take it to the next level is just as questionable as Barry Odom and Drew Lock trying to take it to the next level–maybe not as much but you get the point. Georgia has been gutted and they haven’t earned Alabama’s rep of the “copy and paste” when it comes to the elite talent they produce. So it is very questionable on how the SEC East turns out, but let us not forget that Missouri does have some fire power and if things get weird they could find themselves in Atlanta.
SEC West
Well…I will give it a go, but I think we all know how this is going to go. Yes I seem super negative all the time when it comes to Alabama, but unless you have lived under a rock for the last decade you should understand why. Nevertheless, a SEC West dark horse. There’s obviously Alabama leading the charge and your usually secondary choice which would be Auburn. However, there is Alabama’s other rival, LSU. They are usually pretenders, and people have caught up to that lately. However, with that knowledge it would make them the perfect dark horse. Other teams like Texas A&M and Mississippi State have gone under dramatic changes this off season, particularly with coaching. Ole Miss and Arkansas are just fighting for sixth place. Outside of Auburn, LSU is the only team in the division who can keep up with Alabama defensively. If LSU can beat Alabama–which is at home for LSU–then everything else is just a walk in the park.
SEC Heisman Dark Horse
Jeffery Simmons DT, Mississippi State
Yes I picked a defensive lineman, and there’s not a popsicle’s chance in hell he even comes close to the Heisman, but he should. Everyone talks about Ed Oliver as the best defensive tackle in college football, but Simmons is a close second. In his sophomore season he posted 60 tackles, 12 TFL, and 5.0 sacks with 2 forced fumbles. And for those OG’s who remember my SEC superteam article I had Simmons as my defensive tackle as well as state that “He will be the linchpin of this defensive line and one of the more important members of this defense”. Call it a man crush, I call it observation.