Media picks ‘Bama to win the SEC in 2017.
Georgia is narrowly favored to win the East over Florida.
Four Dawgs are named first team All-SEC: Chubb, Nauta, Thompson and Smith.
I have to admit I’m sort of curious to know how two people picked South Carolina and Vanderbilt to win the conference without first winning the division.
Get The Picture 
Must be the new math.
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I’m not sold on Jalen Hurts as a 1st team QB especially with a new offensive coordinator. Would anyone really trade Jacob Eason for Hurts straight up right now? I wouldn’t because the Bama offensive line doesn’t come with him.
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If you look at last year and project it ahead it makes total sense for Hurts to be First Team All-SEC. After this year we’ll know what Eason (and Brantley, for that matter) will be like.
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I understand that, but I don’t think he’ll be the 1st team QB at the end of the season. I still wouldn’t trade him for Eason.
If Eason had played behind an offensive line (or for Junior) like Hurts did, he would have thrown for 3,000+.
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trade Eason for him
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Of course Eason would look better at Bama. That’s not in doubt. And while I’m hopeful Eason will be viewed as one of the best SEC QBs come December, I suspect the smarter bet would be to have Hurts above him.
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Question, or maybe something to watch: Jalen Hurts is was a talented freshman with a different skill set than Jacob Eason. I think Hurt’s lack of experience contributed to the Bama loss against Clemson, and JE’s struggles last year are well documented. Clemson now has the highly touted Trevor Lawrence, whom I assume will take the starting position early in the season if not right out of the gate. All three QB’s are/were highly ranked out of high school. My point is, if Bama made the Championship last year with a freshman QB, and Clemson repeats or gets close with one this year, What is that telling us? I think if you have the horses up front and a solid back,The freshman jitters can be largely eliminated. I don’t think TL or JH are more talented than JE. But I think the true leaders are in front of them with their hands in the dirt.
I will watch a little Clemson this year if for no other reason than to see what happens there.
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I understand your overall point, but just a heads up…. Trevor Lawrence will not be at Clemson this year. He’s in the class of ’18 so he won’t be a freshman there until next year.
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Thanks for the catch. I had it in my head he was already there. Anyhow, you get my point. I did not see Hurts running for his life much last year.
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Unless I’m missing something, it looks like Vandy got one first place vote in the East and South Carolina got five.
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Correct – I’m guessing the Senator read it too fast.
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No, I di’int.
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Interesting that the media are more bullish on SC than on KY.
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UF was not picked to win the east in 2015 or 2016 and won both years. Go for three?
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I think UF wins the East again, which would probably lead to yet another Florida-Alabama bore-fest that ends with bama playing their 3rd stringers up 20 in the 4th.
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Yep.
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What’s sad is the last team from the East that I thought could actually compete with Bama was the 2014 UGA squad. That was a legitimately awesome team that had 8 games above the 90th percentile that season per S&P ratings. If it weren’t for the next season’s game against them, that Florida game would remain the most mind-boggling outcome of the Mark Richt era.
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Yep, I don’t remember the source, but I thought I read somewhere that Jordan Jenkins said they went to Jacksonville pretty much thinking all they had to do was the roll the ball out there to win. It was looking that way until Boss Andrews got hurt and we got caught with our pants down by that fake FG.
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That 2014 team would just absolutely destroy people. Their fatal flaw was overlooking lesser opponents like Florida and South Carolina but that team brought their A game against some pretty good opponents, just ask every team named the tigers that year.
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Competent offense (let alone downright lethal offense) is something that seems so far in the past.
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And when Evel Knievel and Towel Boy were on the opposite sideline
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Same. When ’14 UGA was motivated, they could detonate good teams (Clemson, Mizzou, Arkansas, Auburn, ‘Ville).
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Uh-uh. The SEC championship this year will be UGA-Auburn in a rematch from the season. Auburn will suffer another beat down, albeit closer than the 37-3 drubbing in the regular season in which Georgia will go over 500 yards of total offense. Call it 37-14. Then UGA beats Ohio State in the Natty 34-24 after Kirby has the team storm the field after the first score in homage to Evil Richt who wins the ACC championship over FSU, after run ruling tech in the 3rd quarter.
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That’s a very specific prediction, so I feel very comfortable in responding: you’re wrong.
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What does this mean about the SEC? If Bama were to win the SEC again in a yawner, then go to the playoffs and get beaten again by an ACC team, then I would have to agree with others who say the ACC has surpassed the SEC. My bet is that this won’t happen; I am ready for UGA, Auburn, or anyone else (except Florida) to upset Bama and show that the SEC has depth.
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You’re in some serious denial if you don’t believe the overall quality of the ACC is better than the overall quality of the SEC. It doesn’t take an upset of Bama to prove that the ACC is just better right now. They hired better coaches during the last cycle than the SEC, simple as that. The SEC right now is Bama and a bunch of mediocrity.
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Yup. ACC and B10 are better in the coaching department right now. Now, Kirby and Boom (Orgeron) could each become consistent winners where they are, but as of RIGHT NOW all three (plus Mizzou, plus Tenn, plus ARK, plus A&M) all have question marks as coaches.
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Exactly. Take a snapshot of the coaches in the two leagues RIGHT NOW (not potential) and it’s impossible to argue with a straight face that the current crop of SEC coaches outside Saban (possibly McElwain, Freeze, or Mullen?) are more accomplished than Dabo, Jimbo, Fuente, Richt, Fedora, or Mendenhall. There’s a lot of potential in the SEC for sure, but there’s also a lot of uncertainty comparatively.
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Agree, UGA85 just looking at the headliners (one team), that isn’t how you define a conference. Any top team from a Power 5 conference can win a single game against someone else’s champion. SEC is the best because you face the best athletes every week in conference games and play on the biggest stages.
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I’m not ready to give a basketball conference that much credit in football just yet. Sure, they won it all last year and they have made big strides on the gridiron, but I won’t say they are better than the SEC top to bottom.
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Well…remind me again exactly who won the natty last season in football? And didn’t the ACC post a winning record against the SEC in non-conference games last year? And didn’t the ACC win the most bowl games last year? Just sayin.’
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The ACC has ascended because of coaching.There is no mystery here. The coaches in the ACC are mostly veteran coaches with years of experience behind them as head coaches, while the SEC, because of Saban and stupid AD’s, has got a bunch of coaches who were good coordinators that are learning on the job. Georgia 2016 is proof positive of this.
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GT went 3-0 vs the SEC east last year. “nuff said??
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Once again the Dawg bloggers and site set too high of expectations on another Georgia team.
Frankly I am amazed at this. I just do not see it with such a young team…QB, offensive line. and the road schedule.
You have to go thru UF / Jacksonville to get to the SECCG. But the old dogs, wine & cheese crowd, and B-M crowd have yet to understand we are in 2017 and not 1980.
Can not have a continuous road game with UF in the state of Florida.
Poor thinking, just like putting the Dawgs out there as SECE champs. I would put UF and UT out there. Let the pressure ride on them again.
But you folks keep it up.
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Will, that was the media vote. Take it up with them, not me.
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