2008 SEC Football Preview

SEC football preview from Maddux Sports. Below you can find our official southeastern conference football preview as well as individual team previews for all 12 sec football teams and our sec predictions. We also offer a free odds comparison service of lines and totals on the NCAA football odds page.

SEC EAST OVERVIEW

In the SEC East, three of the six teams have Top-25 potential. In fact one of two schools could end up number one on the nation. Look for a battle between Georgia and Florida for first in the East, the SEC and the country. Tennessee is looking mighty good too.

Is this year Georgia’s turn to be the best club in the SEC East and, perhaps the entire conference? The Bulldogs have the fine makings of a QB in Matt Stafford. Stafford has got the arm and smarts to make the offense purr. The tough to tackle Knowshon Moreno is the best running back in the SEC. The Georgia receiving unit is good. On defense, the front and middle look solid, while the secondary is okay but the weakest part of this team. Standing in the Dogs way is a rough schedule.

Florida appears to be good too. One reason is certainly Heisman QB Tim Tebow—the best player in the nation. Accurate, athletic and aggressive, he’ll be throwing long to the exceptional Percy Harvin. The Gators’ defense needs help upfront, but the rest is solid. They will compete for the top spot.

The Volunteers of Tennessee seem to always be in the mix and they will be once again this season. The secondary and special teams are top notch, but there’s a lot of inexperience on the offensive front. The team has a great ground game and one of the best receiving cores in the conference.

South Carolina heads the second-half of the SEC East. They’re improved in many areas. Wide out Kenny McKinley is their go to guy. The Gamecocks front defensive and offensive units are both questionable. Despite this, South Carolina looks to be a solid contender, lacking just a few elements to win the conference.

Star QB Andre Woodson is gone and that’s very bad news for Kentucky. Additionally, the Wildcats had the worst scoring defense in the SEC. Although last season they played well against some of the SEC’s best clubs without Woodson that won’t be possible.

Vanderbilt is destined to post its 26th straight losing season. Six defensive starters return. In 2007, The Commodores “D” was ranked fourth in the SEC. But the offense was ranked 11th in total yards.

SEC WEST OVERVIEW

LSU, Auburn and Alabama are no only the three best teams in the SEC West, they are also some of the finest in the nation. LSU could take it all in the conference, but first they have to win the division, and that won’t be easy.

Not the LSU Tigers but it’s the Auburn Tigers that are poised to be the best in the West. The Auburn spread offense is potent and can breakdown team defenses quickly. Another plus is the Tigers’ defense, which returns seven starters. One dilemma is simply ensuring that one of the Auburn’s QBs, either Kodi Burns or Chris Todd, can run the offense. With two new coordinators getting up to speed may take some time.

The other Tigers, those guys from LSU, will certainly be in the hunt for first-place. The great news for LSU is that many of their seniors stayed instead of going pro. That fact alone certainly gives last year’s national champs a shot at taking it all again. But the defense is without a half-dozen fine players and the secondary is especially thin. QB is a huge question for this club.

Alabama has two big things going for it. First, the Tide returns 15 starters. Second, coach Nick Saban has recruited what is perhaps the best frosh class in the nation. The defensive frontline is fairly weak. Inconsistent play at the end of 2007 led to the Crimson Tide losing it four final games.

New coach Houston Nutt brings a lot of past and recent success to Ole Miss. The Rebels, who return 16 starters, captured the best newcomer to the conference- transfer QB Jevan Snead. The offense needs more players with refined technique.

Mississippi State fields the best secondary in the conference and their ground game looks solid. Still, MSU’s offense does not appear to be very potent. They were last in the SEC in 2007 and have not improved much during the off-season. Like Alabama, the Bulldogs have retained 15 starters. The team won four of five at the end of the 2007 season.

Arkansas has a new coach—Bobby Petrino. Petrino loves to pass and that’s caused excitement amongst Razorback fans. But although there may be plenty of passes slung, the loss of three top offensive players will hurt the team’s chances of improving much this season, but just wait until next year!

SEC Predictions

SEC EAST

1) Florida
2) Georgia
3) Tennessee
4) South Carolina
5) Kentucky
6) Vanderbilt

SEC WEST

1) Auburn
2) LSU
3) Alabama
4) Mississippi
5) Mississippi State
6) Arkansas

For more info on the 2008 South Eastern Conference, view their official website or read up on all the SEC football team previews below.