Two teams last season went to BCS bowls, one of them winning the BCS title game.
Three more not only went to bowl games, they went to January bowls.
Sounds like a pretty strong conference, right? What if it's not a conference, but merely half of one?
The SEC West was simply fantastic in 2010. They dominated their conference, the polls, the headlines (sometimes good, sometimes bad) and everything else in between. From Jeremiah Masoli's admittance to Ole Miss to Gene Chizik hoisting the crystal ball in Glendale, through hype, hope, and controversy, no collection of schools dominated the season like they did.
And, as we head into the 2011 season, the question that has to be lingering in the minds of college football experts is simply how do you predict how the six teams will finish this season?
Do you take LSU? Take the Bayou Bengals, fresh off a Cotton Bowl dismantling of Texas A&M, loaded in the trenches with the possibility of a new quarterback in Zack Mettenberger? Do you take the Mad Hatter, who's won a national title, yet feels the heat each year to get back to the BCS? One thing's for sure, if LSU escapes their schedule with just one loss, they deserve at least some consideration for the national title game. Talk all you want about SEC schedules being soft ... I doubt many teams are willing to tackle Oregon and a road trip to West Virginia while handling the SEC.
What about Alabama? Sure, you lose the school's only Heisman Trophy winner in Mark Ingram. Sure, you lose one of the smartest game managers in college football in Greg McIlroy. But can you underestimate Alabama's defense? Everyone knows Trent Richardson is still around to keep the ground game punishing and no doubt Marquis Maze is still a lethal passing threat. The question mark looms with the struggle to find a new quarterback, but Nick Saban simply reloads, and to count out the Crimson Tide would simply be foolish.
What about Arkansas? Fresh off of a 10-3 year and a trip to the Sugar Bowl, Arkansas returns with some of the top back and receivers in the nation. Knile Davis returns to lead a powerful running game mixed with the arsenal of pain in the receiving core. Quick, someone name me a team who has a better assortment of passing options than Greg Childs, Joe Adams, Jarius Wright, and Cobi Hamilton? And Chris Gragg's not that bad, either. Losing Ryan Mallett hurt, but anyone who saw Tyler Wilson step in during the Auburn game knows Arkansas isn't exactly starting over from scratch. The key? If a new offensive line gels, and the secondary tightens up, you might want to pencil in the Razorbacks.
Let's not forget Mississippi State, either. Dan Mullen's miraculous revival of the Bulldog program is hard to ignore, and what's also hard to ignore is that a vastly improved Chris Relf is back to lead the Bulldog attack. Mississippi State is big, physical, and confident, especially on defense. No Pernell McPhee? Seems to be no problem in Starkville. The key to State will be adding dynamics to Relf's passing game. Vic Ballard will be a force at running back, especially with a strong offensive line, but for State to reach the next level, the passing attack will have to come to fruition.
Then there's the situation with the defending champions. Auburn loses Cam Newton. They lose Nick Fairley. While both are huge losses, the real question lies in the Auburn offensive line, who loses four starters from last year. There is no doubt that talent is still plentiful on the Plains, and no doubt that Gus Malzahn can develop a dangerous ground attack (see McFadden, Darren and Jones, Felix). It will definitely be up to the offensive line to provide time for Michael Dyer, as well as time for the new quarterback to keep defenses from stacking the line. Not mentioned much though is Auburn losing reliable PK Wes Byrum. In close games, the Tigers might seriously miss having such reliability on the sidelines.
So, throw five legit contenders into the mix for SEC West supremacy, as well as five legit contenders for BCS level bowl games. The only team not mentioned is Ole Miss, who comes off a season they'd rather soon forget. No doubt, with Houston Nutt, it's going to be a serious focus on the running game and a desperate revamping of the defense, especially defending the pass. Granted, Nutt seems to do his best work with his back against the wall and no high expectations, but the Rebels seem to be a few steps away from being a serious SEC West contender at the moment.
It's going to be a serious question this fall. And, as spring practices wrap up and two-a-days begin in the late summer, pieces of this mystery will finally start to take some shape.
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