The incredible shrinking rosters of the SEC East

What is going on here?  We’ve already heard how short-handed Tennessee is expected to be this season.  Now it turns out that Florida will be in a similar boat.

… Florida will have only 73 scholarship players on its roster when preseason camp opens in August — 12 below the NCAA allotment of 85. And that’s if there is no further attrition between now and then.

College football coaches like to talk about what an inexact science recruiting is — that even with great scouting, a 25-man recruiting class is considered a success if 15 to 17 of the signees go on to become starters or see significant playing time.

That’s about where the Gators will be in 2011. What’s knocked down UF’s overall scholarship number is what could be considered severe attrition in the senior class.

Florida will have only eight scholarship seniors this fall — John Brantley, Jeff Demps, William Green, Jaye Howard, Moses Jenkins, Chris Rainey, Deonte Thompson and James Wilson.

And the Gators only have 15 juniors on the roster, to boot.

Now this is a more talented team than Tennessee, no question, but you have to wonder what a few key injuries would do to their chances to compete for the East title.

30 Comments

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30 responses to “The incredible shrinking rosters of the SEC East

  1. Sneaky Short

    I wish them nothing but the worst.

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  2. Sneaky Short

    John Brantley going down will probably be addition by subtraction for the Gates.

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  3. Lrgk9

    Meyer left town as the ocean receded right before the Tusnami of lack of discipline.

    The team was held together by Tebow. Had Timmy gone to Alabama – doubtless Shula would still be at Bama.

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  4. BCDawg97

    Are there any excuses left for us not to win this year?

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    • zdub

      Yeah there is one actually: it;s a game against Florida. They could go 0-fer until they played us then they would show out and beat us again just because that is what happens down there in Jax. I don’t like it any more than you do, but that’s the way it is right now.

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  5. Hogbody Spradlin

    Florida doesn’t oversign, so give ’em a little credit. HOWEVER, it couldn’t have happened to a nicer bunch of people.

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  6. Mike

    This is the downside to not over signing.

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    • Mayor of Dawgtown

      +1. The shoe could be on the other foot for the Dawgs just as easily.

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      • Comin' Down The Track

        The shoe has been on the other foot for the Dawgs. It’d be nice to catch a few breaks while we’re regressing to the mean and all.

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    • Bad M

      Florida signed 17 players last class. Sometimes you are good because you have no choice. They could have solved their own problem under the rules, but kids were also seeing the writing on the wall and the green in the baggies. But they don’t normally over sign so I do credit them for that.

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  7. Not that it is a big factor for the East but Vandy’s scholarship roster #’s are down too.

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  8. TennesseeDawg

    We squandered our chances last year while the Gators were down. We can’t do it again this year.

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  9. JaxDawg

    Couldn’t happen to a more arrogant bunch of sonsofbitches and assholes. And Richt should be run out of town if he doesn’t beat them this year.

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  10. Marmot

    Low scholarship numbers is the most misinterpreted stat in college football. The players who are missing are the players those coaching staffs want to replace in the next signing class. They are the same players who Saban will force out a year from now after he has already signed a 5 star recruit to take their place.

    But since the Saban way of doing things may become illegal, all schools that want to over-enroll will have to clear their rosters early this way. And all those team’s fans will be continually talking about how they are at a competitive disadvantage thanks to their shrunken rosters. But I doubt a player who is always in the dog house or else not a threat to see the field is any more valuable sitting on your team’s bench as opposed to playing for Georgia State.

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  11. Wow. Can you have repeated top 5 classes and still leave the cupboard bare? Apparently so.

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  12. Nostradawgus

    Don’t gloat, or count your Gators before they hatch.

    Georgia currentlys sits at 79, with the summer to go.

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  13. W Cobb Dawg

    A lot of their signees during the past 4 years were January enrollees, who got a jump start on coursework, the spring game, training, acclimation to college, etc. While they may claim to be angels on the recruiting limit, they are definitely at the head of the class when it comes to clearing unneeded players from their roster for the next batch of recruits.

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  14. HamDawg11

    “but you have to wonder what a few key injuries would do to their chances to compete for the East title.”

    ….injuries or threats to girliefriends…

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    • Nate Dawg

      No worries HamDawg, common policy is to forgive all threats the week before playing in Jacksonville. Thus leaving pleanty of time to still “compete”.

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