'Game week is finally here. It's officially Football Time in Tennessee! With the Vols kicking off against Utah St. Sunday night, I thought this would be the perfect time to take a look at the SEC East and see what the Volunteers will have to tackle if they want to move back up the division ladder and get back to a bowl game this year.
GEORGIA
(1) Can Georgia put it all together this season and topple one of those goliaths’s from the west to win their first SEC title since 2005?
(2) Can 5th year Sr. QB Hutson Mason step in and fill the shoes of departed 4 year starter and Georgia great Aaron Murray?
(3) Can new Defensive Coordinator Jeremy Pruitt be a real game changer for the Bulldogs as he brings a more get after it, aggressive style of play to Athens with him, fresh off a National Championship at FSU?
Observations :
I think Georgia is the team to beat in the SEC East. The schedule really sets up nice for the Dawgs this year. Short of that early season trip to Columbia to face South Carolina, their next toughest true road game will be going to Missouri on October 11th.. They get Auburn at home and other than that, they see Florida in the cocktail party in Jacksonville. They have a potential Heisman winner in RB Todd Gurley and are as deep as anyone in the country at the running back position. QB Hutson Mason has a lot of weapons at his disposal, besides all of those talented running backs, his receivers are some of the best in the conference. I think Mason has a real easy transition into the starting lineup. On defense they have a lot of depth up front and have one of the best linebacking corps in the SEC. There's a lot of speed all around and new DC Jeremy Pruitt will have them playing a lot more aggressive than we've seen the Dawgs in quite some time. Call me crazy if you want to, but I think Georgia is a real dark horse contender to get into that 4 team playoff for the National Championship. They win 10 games without blinking and a special 11-1 or 12-0 regular season is not out of the question.
SOUTH CAROLINA
(1) After winning 11 games in each of the last 3 seasons can South Carolina finally bring home the bacon and win a SEC Championship?
(2) The Gamecocks defense lost Jadeveon Clowney up front and as many as 6 freshmen will see action in their secondary. Can their defense reload and be good enough to compliment that big offense and get them to Atlanta?
(3) Can QB Dylan Thompson take the reins and fill the shoes of Connor Shaw?
Observations :
The Gamecocks look to be loaded on offense. Mike Davis is one of the top RB's in the country and he should have a banner year playing behind an offensive line that returns 4 starters. QB Dylan Thompson has plenty of experience despite playing behind Connor Shaw for a few years. He's 3-0 as a starter and has thrown 18 TD's in his career. It will be interesting to see if the Gamecocks defense can come together and be as productive as they've been the last few years. SC will battle Georgia for the top spot in the east and the Cocks get the Dawgs in Columbia in early September. South Carolina was the pick of the media at SEC Media Days to win the east. The bottom line here is, I think SC has another great year, but just like the last few years, I see them coming up just short in their quest to get to Georgia Dome on December 6th.
FLORIDA
(1) Can Will Muschamp win enough games to cool the hot seat off and return for a 4th year as the Gators coach in 2015?
(2) Can new Offensive Coordinator Kurt Roper be Muschamp's savior and get the Florida offense (they averaged a league worst 18.8 ppg last season) turned around?
(3) Can Jeff Driskel coming off a season ending injury last year, step up, improve on his game and finally live up to the expectations the Gators had for him when he first arrived on campus?
Observations :
I really don't know what to think of this Florida team. Hell, I can't stand the Gators and it would be very easy for me to just rip em to shreds. It's easy to say they sucked last year . Heck, averaging 18 pts a game is as futile as it gets. The thing is, this isn't last year. I'm not making any excuses for the Gators but they did have 17 players that were lost to season ending injuries last year. That has to be some kind of record. They have a brutal schedule, catching both Alabama and LSU from the west. I don't think they're near as bad as they were last year and I don't think they're near as good as their jorts wearing fans think this year. They'll be exceptional on defense with 9 returning starters, so the story is going to be, can they get their offense on track. This is a hard team for me to read. I think they fall in the 6-8 wins category. Will that be enough for Muschamp to keep his job? We shall see
TENNESSEE
(1) Can the Vols avoid a 3rd straight 5-7 year and get back to bowling?
(2) Can Justin Worley settle in at QB or do the Vols have a potential 3 headed monster on their hands at the position?
(3) Can the offensive and defensive lines come together and be solid units or will line play be this team's achilles heel?
Observations :
I think we're a year away from making a significant jump in the east. I do however think this team is capable of getting us back to a bowl game this season. We have a lot more weapons on offense this year and the WR's are some of the best I've seen around here in a long time. Hopefully Justin Worley can take the bull by the horns and keep the job from pillar to post and solidify the QB spot. There's a lot more team speed and we're starting to build some quality depth at some key positions. Obviously, the O-Line and the D-Line are the biggest points of concern on this football team. I really believe the offensive line can come together and be okay. In this type of offense that we run, you don't have to dig in and hold your man as long. Having a better stable of running backs will also help to take some pressure off of the line and QB as well. It's amazing what a good running back can do to make an O-Line look a little bit better than they actually are. The defensive line is the most concerning unit on the team in my opinion. The defensive tackles will really need to step it up. We were near the bottom in the league last year at stopping the run. Reggie McKenzie Jr "Kahlil" and Shy Tuttle can't get here soon enough. Hopefully the Sawyers kid will come around and give us some help and you can rotate some guys inside and out like Derek Barnett and Dewayne Hendrix. Corey Vereen and Curt Maggitt can be a force off of the edge if they can stay healthy. The schedule is again brutal and there's simply no margin for error if this team wants to go bowling. There's a razor thin line between going 5-7 or 7-5 for this football team. We need to play mistake free football week in and week out and we must protect our home field. We get Florida and Missouri in Neyland and those two teams represent wins 6 and 7 in my opinion. Take care of business in the games we should win and clip Fla. or Mizzou and there are your 6 wins. Clip em both and we get to 7. The bottom line here, I think we get back to postseason play. It's 6 or 7 wins for the Volunteers this year.
MISSOURI
(1) Mizzou ruled the east last year going 7-1 in conference. Can Mizzou get back up this year and prove they can play with the big boys?
(2) Maty Mauk went 3-1 as a redshirt freshman starter last year. Will he be a top tier QB or a flash in the pan?
(3) Can Mizzou replace basically their whole receiving corps from last season?
Observations :
It will be hard for Missouri to duplicate last year's success. They had a special season as they came out of nowhere to win the east. They have a ton of holes to replace all over the field. They lost the QB Franklin, basically their whole WR corps, a starting RB and there's a ton to replace on the defense, especially at linebacker. With Missouri's schedule I'd expect them somewhere in the 7-8 win range.
VANDERBILT
(1) Can Derek Mason fill James Franklin's shoes?
(2) Can Patton Robinette take the QB job and run with it or will there be a QB controversy in Nashville with Stephen Rivers and Johnny McCrary?
(3) Can Vandy make it to a bowl game for the 4th consecutive year?
Observations :
I don't think Vanderbilt can sustain the forward progress they had going under James Franklin. They lost a ton to graduation and whether you liked him or not, Franklin was a helluva coach. Derek Mason will face a real uphill battle on the recruiting trails. He didn't inherit the same fortune as James Franklin and have Derek Dooley as the sitting head coach at Tennessee. Butch Jones has locked down the state, so pickings will be slim for Mason and the new staff. I think Vanderbilt comes back to earth this season and looks more like the Vanderbilt we all recognize from countless seasons taking beatings from our beloved Volunteers. No bowl for the Commodores. Welcome Back Vandy!
KENTUCKY
(1) Can the Wildcats find an offense after only scoring 14 offensive TD's in league play last year?
(2) Can The Wildcats win 4 games this season?
(3) When does basketball season start?
Observations :
Stoops has recruited well by Kentucky standards but I don't think it's enough to show up on the field. Kentucky is a football program stuck in no man’s land in the SEC. Let's just cut to the chase. Kentucky is a bad, bad football team. They're going to flounder at the bottom. The biggest happening in Lexington this fall will once again be Midnight Madness for the basketball team this October.
That's the way I see the SEC East going this year. It's going to be a fun season seeing our Volunteers start to grow up before our eyes and get us back to a bowl game. I hope you enjoyed my little East preview and we'll be talking to you soon.
Have a Great Week and Go Big Orange!
Your Vol Colonel'