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Home > ajcsportstalk > Archives > 2008 > April > 28 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USBarnhart projects the SEC
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Tony Barnhart recapped spring football practice in the SEC (see story) and pointed out some interesting story lines that will continue through the summer and into the fall.
Barnhart projects the SEC for 2008 in order of finish in each division - with last season’s record in parentheses followed by a comment on each program.
SEC EAST
• Georgia (11-2) - Great team but brutal road schedule will make it tough to win SEC.
• Florida (9-4) - Tebow needs help in running game; defense must improve significantly.
• Tennessee (10-4) - Offense will be good; lots of questions on defensive front seven.
• South Carolina (6-6) - Defense will carry team early; Spurrier must find QB who can produce.
• Kentucky (8-5) - Cats lost too many great skill players; can still go bowling.
• Vanderbilt (5-7) - Commodores lost most of their offense; must learn to win close games.
SEC WEST
• LSU (12-2) - Will still have league’s best defense; QB Perrilloux remains question mark.
• Auburn (9-4) - If QBs come through in spread offense Tigers could win the division.
• Alabama (7-6)- Talent upgrade coming from No. 1 recruiting class; still a year away from contending.
• Miss. State (8-5)- Best overall talent and depth Sylvester Croom has had in Starkville.
• Ole Miss (3-9)- Rebels finally have QB in Javan Snead; will surprise under Houston Nutt.
• Arkansas (8-5)- Hogs lost too much talent on offense; Bobby Petrino struggles in first season.
What do you think about the projections? If you disagree, let us know why and give us your projections for the order of finish in each division.
Permalink | Comments (29) | Post your comment | Categories: UGA
Comments
By Tiger Dan
April 28, 2008 12:11 PM | Link to this
Go ahead and pencil it in!!! LSU will win the West again in ‘08. Oh and while your at, call PETA because on Oct. 25th…LSU will make Michael Vick proud, with the way they are going to handle those dawgs!!! Payback is a mother!!!
By Vols98
April 28, 2008 12:18 PM | Link to this
Looks about right to me. It is hard to pick between GA and Fla though. I hate to say it, but I think Bama wins the west.
By slicknick
April 28, 2008 12:24 PM | Link to this
NO..Bama will not win the West… LSU vs UF for the SEC Championship…!!
By shane #1
April 28, 2008 1:05 PM | Link to this
UGA-UF in the east, LSU-AU in the west. If Auburn’s offense can score points from the spread They will be the “sleeper” in the SEC. Their defense is always tough. Burns will have to throw quickly and on target and They need to have some healthy rbs. Tubbs has a way of sneaking up on people when They are not looking!
By seriously?
April 28, 2008 1:45 PM | Link to this
i swear this is at least the 5th time this exact article has been up on ajc.
By PTC DAWG
April 28, 2008 1:47 PM | Link to this
I see at least 3 teams capable of playing for the National Title…with that said, how tough will it be for anyone to actually get through the schedule with less than 1 loss?
Winning the SEC has to be the goal, anything else is gravy.
I feel strongly that the East Title runs through Jax, but UT cannot be overlooked.
By JJ
April 28, 2008 2:06 PM | Link to this
Seriously…You have not figured out yet that the AJC knows they have an advertising cash cow by catering to the DAWGS? The irony is DAWGS are not all that good at reading!
By tjs
April 28, 2008 2:38 PM | Link to this
Dawgs are over-rated, 9-3 would be a good outcome….LSU is the class of the league….which UGA will find out the hard way….
tjs
By Erk
April 28, 2008 2:48 PM | Link to this
Georgia’s schedule is just too tough to go through without losing one. Let’s first shoot for winning the East, then winning the SEC and hope to have a shot for the NC with one loss. It would take some luck even for some of the best past college national championship teams to go through that schedule undefeated.
By dawgsrule
April 28, 2008 2:57 PM | Link to this
The picks look good to me. I agree PTC Dawg. Winning the SEC will be tough enough. - especially for UGA. While I think UGA has the best team they have had in a while, it will be brutal getting through that schedule. As good as the SEC is this year I wouldn’t be surprised if the winner had 2 or more losses.
Tjs… dawgs could be 9-3 going into the bowls but that doesn’t mean that they have no class. The game in Baton rouge will be a good one. The good thing is that as long as we beat SC,Tenn, UF, AU & Bama(sounds easy huh) then we could lose to LSU by 50 points and still have a chance to revenge the loss in ATLANTA.
The sad thing is that the SEC has probably 3 of the top 6 teams in the country and none will get to play for the NC due to all having at least 1 loss.
GO DAWGS!
By rerservoirDAWG
April 28, 2008 2:59 PM | Link to this
LSU would not even had an opportunity if Kansas and Mizzou hadn’t crapped their pants on championship saturday.
I like the way you think Erk.
By NCdawg
April 28, 2008 3:01 PM | Link to this
Somebody has to win the National Title. Why not UGA? They certainly have the talent. I know the schedule is tough, but that’s what makes a champion.
By Vol4ever
April 28, 2008 3:17 PM | Link to this
The SEC is by far the greatest conference. TN, FL, and GA will battle for the East while LSU and Auburn will battle in the west.
No one is a lock at this point.
Go Vols!!!
By FLA DAWG
April 28, 2008 3:42 PM | Link to this
Tony’s SEC East looks like a pretty good call but in the West I doubt Auburn will lose 4 games and I also doubt Alabama will lose 6.
By dawgsrule
April 28, 2008 3:42 PM | Link to this
Hey Vol… Vandy is the closest thing to a lock in the SEC. A lock for last place in the east. LOL
I would rather have solid competition year in and year out than to be like OSU or USC and be a lock every year to win your conference and possibly the NC. I mean how much fun can you possibly have when you never have a close game or get nervous. It’s like lets just skip the season (& conf. champ game) and go straight for playing for all the marbles eventhough we haven’t proven ourselves worthy.
By dawgsrule
April 28, 2008 3:47 PM | Link to this
FLA dawg… those were last years records. I agree with you though they won’t lose that many again
By Cuz
April 28, 2008 3:54 PM | Link to this
Well at least he gets the gamhens right. I wonder how many moral victories are included in the six losses.
By Cuz
April 28, 2008 3:57 PM | Link to this
yeah I know also dawgsrule, just trying to ruffle a few feathers in the chicken coop.
By Noodle_Arm_Stafford
April 28, 2008 4:07 PM | Link to this
My god it’s the same old sh*t again.
By MVP
April 28, 2008 4:25 PM | Link to this
27 years for the mutts and still counting. start playing that same broken record you mutts play every year….”Wait till next season”
By Cuz
April 28, 2008 4:45 PM | Link to this
Hey MVP, can you download it to an I-pod, I don’t have a record player anymore.
By Seth Abromowitz
April 28, 2008 5:05 PM | Link to this
Tony, you must print a copy of this same article, then resubmit it for print about once a week. This paper is horrific. As the largest city in the SE, can we please get a real paper. Your like the comedian that uses the same ole material over and over.
By MVP
April 28, 2008 5:22 PM | Link to this
Cuz you know the lyrics pal,keep barking it!lousy voice, just like your leg humpers!
By FLA DAWG
April 28, 2008 5:59 PM | Link to this
dawgsrule,
I didn’t read the fine print -thanks.(I thought those records looked a little familiar!)
By SOS
April 28, 2008 5:59 PM | Link to this
Sounds like Barnhart is saying that the SC defense will be the class of the division this year…If so, I like our chances….
And nobody asked me but there is no way Tennessee finishes higher than 4th this year. The team that wins both of these games will be the East winner this year: GA-SC, GA-FLA, and FLA-SC.
And, in honor of “Cuz,” the last moral victory for SC was:
South Carolina 16, Georgia 12
By SOS
April 28, 2008 6:11 PM | Link to this
To “SECCoachinDallas(GA)” and “Altamaha Dawg”:
Fire up the dial-up modems from your backwater Georgia posts!!!! Crack open a can of Milwaukee’s Best and pull up a stool to the pay-by-the-minute computer next to the poker machine at your local bait shops…
We are thirsty for more diatribes from you non-Georgia grads about your infatuations for Farmers Markets and your rationalizations for inexplicable losses at home to inferior opponents…
Regale us again with tales of national championship games that would have been if not for….
South Carolina 16, Georgia 12
By Zeb McKluskey
April 28, 2008 6:40 PM | Link to this
Good lord SOS and JJ, how in the world can you compare SC’s record to Ga’s, even though you got us last year??? A SC fan calling a UGA fan backwoods is very compelling. My gosh men, where the hell have you been? SOS the fact that you know what diatribes mean is just freaking amaza-zing. Dude, you better come at us vets with something better than that, or you will get an educational whipping on here little boy. Please just go away boys, or we’ll have to revoke your computer time.
By Former Subscriber
April 28, 2008 7:59 PM | Link to this
Circulation must really be suffering at the ol’ Urinal and Constipation, given the way you “journalists” keep pandering to Michael Adams and dawg fans with the barrage of “National Championship” teasers. No doubt they are going to be a talented team to watch but, come on guys - give the championship blather a rest.
By Zeb McKluskey
April 28, 2008 8:44 PM | Link to this
Former, as a dawg fan, I actually agree with you. We’re getting way too much hype way, way too early. It may just be a curse. The way the top ten went last year was just crazy with all of the turnovers. You never knew who was gonna be #1 and 2 week to week. I don’t like this media hype. One loss early and you’re back in the media hype as a bust, even though LSU got to the dance with 2 losses last year. I want to keep the faith, but this year is going to be one of the hardest to get through unscathed. I’ll be a DAWG fan until I die, but I’m also a realist, and this upcoming schedule has this fan worried as hell. I’ll rely on you other guys to give me the boost I need to stay on board. Let’s hope we have some things ‘break’ our way like LSU did last year. We’re gonna need it.