SecFootballPreview Posts -- FanHouse

SEC Football Preview '07: Florida

Like Brian Cook and his Wolverines, my Gators are the team that makes my heart pound wildly, my mouth fill with cottonballs and my legs tremble like a 'cisco aftershock. Keep a close eye on me, here; I'm an SEC first guy here at FanHouse and today, the Gators are just another team in the conference.

Just. Another. Team. Repeat. Just. Another. Team. *Cough* Okay, let's light this candle.

The FanHouse SEC blogger contingent believes that Florida is one of our four "contenders" in 2007. The other vaunted teams in that list include LSU, Tennessee, and Auburn. Speaking for Mr. Ferguson only, I think the Gators are either #2 or #3 in terms of "rank" in that list.

WHY THEY'LL WIN

Wide receiver: I'm not exaggerating when I say that the Gators might have the sickest wide receiver corps ever to suit up in Gainesville. It's no stretch to imagine that at least three of the Gators' WRs might be first round NFL draft picks: Percy Harvin, who now wears the #1 jersey, Cornelius Ingram, a TE/WR who became a possession receiver for Chris Leak in 2006, and Andre Caldwell, who runs a blistering 4.3 and can catch anything thrown near him. He's also great running out of the backfield on the reverse.

On top of that you have Louis Murphy, who had an outstanding spring game as Tim Tebow's favorite target, sophomore Jarred Fayson, who according to practice reports has made a huge forward leap and is as good a receiver as anyone else on the roster, Riley Cooper, who stood out on special teams last year, and hyped freshman recruit Deonte Thompson, who will probably see playing time in '07.

They all catch, they all run, they all block. Fayson even took snaps at QB in '06. Yeah, Urban Meyer likes to mix it up.

Prediction: every one of those guys will be playing in the NFL someday. Sure, Percy Harvin is a star among stars, but with such a deep and talented group of wide receivers, it'd be criminal if the ball didn't get distributed to all of them. And I expect it will.

SEC Football Preview '07: The Mediocre

As you can probably tell, we here at FanHouse are following a prescribed format for our "Preview" series across all of the BCS conferences. However, "The Mediocre," a fine category for most purposes, isn't a fat one for the SEC in '07. Why? Simply because there are only two teams which kinda-sorta-maybe qualify for the label. One features a 1st-team All-SEC quarterback and the other features a kid coached by the Evil Genius himself. Are these teams really mediocre? By SEC standards, perhaps... or perhaps not. I'd prefer to call them "promising," but since we have to pick someone, we'll go with...

Kentucky Wildcats

They've got Andre Woodson, Keenan Burton, and Rafael Little. Woodson is our aforementioned preseason first-team All-SEC quarterback, and is also FanHouse's #1 SEC Quarterback. Burton is a fine SEC WR and Rafael Little was great on the ground in '06. Many feel Kentucky might field one of the SEC's best offenses in 2007, and for good reason; Woodson put up 31 TDs to just 7 INTs in 2006. He also led Kentucky to an 8-5 season and an ultra-rare bowl appearance... and on top of that, they won the damn thing.

So just what about Kentucky is mediocre?

Nothing. Kentucky brings a great offense... and a defense which couldn't stop a group of elementary school kids trying to score with a medicine ball. Yin and Yang. Light and ark. Good and bad. There is no mediocre.

On the plus side, Kentucky was extremely young on D in '06, starting five freshmen. They can only be better in '07. Linebacker Wesley Woodyard is probably the Cats' best player on D. Although he led the team in tackles in '06, he is a second team All-SEC selection this year. He'll need to keep opposing offenses honest by stopping both the run and the removing the short crossing route option.

Is Kentucky truly mediocre? Only in the sense that among six outstanding teams in the conference, Kentucky is noticably less talented, particularly on the defensive side of the ball. Woodson, Burton and Little will need to ring up pinball style scores to beat the SEC superpowers they'll face in their '07 campaign. Nonetheless, Kentucky is a legitimate, if not dark-horse SEC title contender, which on its own is a real accomplishment by Rich Brooks.

South Carolina Gamecocks

Steve Spurrier's goal in his first year as South Carolina's head coach was to win more games than he lost. In year two, it was to reach and win a bowl game. In year three, Spurrier has stated that the 'Cocks will try to win a conference championship.

The Visored One achieved his first two goals, and along the way notched wins against Florida and Tennessee. Does anyone doubt him when he says the 'Cocks are contenders in '07?

Not this Gator fan, who knows all too well that when Spurrier sets his sights on an objective, he will usually accomplish it.

It's tough calling Spurrier's squad mediocre. But South Carolina is probably tied with Kentucky for fourth place in the SEC East in terms of talent and overall potential. In the West, LSU and Auburn are still unquestionably notched above the 'Cocks.

USCe will live and die by the arm of Blake Mitchell. At times Mitchell has looked the part of a Spurrier-coached quarterback: perfect mechanics, precision passes, and perfect reads. At others, he's looked dazed, confused, and even lost. If Mitchell can put together a steady string of top-caliber performance, South Carolina can scare the wits out of any SEC foe they face in 2007.

What About Alabama?

Never doubt Alabama alumnus Pete Holiday's ability to wear a dispassionate SEC hat and avoid homering in on his beloved Crimson Tide. I had not planned to include Alabama in the 'mediocre' category; they return too much talent, have a great quarterback, and of course they now have a strong coaching staff.

"Might want to consider Alabama for a 'mediocre' rating," wrote Pete in an email. "With Saban tempering expectations the way he is, we could be in for a 7 or 8 win season."

"No freaking way is Alabama mediocre," I replied. "I have Kentucky and South Carolina. That's it."

Pete thought it over. "We'll see. I don't see them finishing in the top 1/3 of the conference this year... but I'd be happy to be wrong about that."

Viewing 2007 through those deceitful pre-season glasses, the conference's Top 4 will probably be Florida, LSU, Auburn, and Tennessee. Knocking on the door will be Alabama and Georgia. Then, and only then, do you hit the mediocre category: Kentucky and South Carolina are the dark horses.

So there you have it, Pete: I'm saying Alabama will finish in the SEC's Top 5.