College football preview: SEC team capsules

Special to AJC

SEC Eastern division

Florida

Last season: 13-1, 8-0 in SEC; lost to Alabama 32-13 in SEC Championship game; defeated Cincinnati 51-24 in Sugar Bowl

Returning starters: 6 on offense, 5 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Redshirt freshman WR Andre Debose has the explosiveness and skills to be the next Percy Harvin if he can bounce back from hamstring surgery.

They’ll win the division if: QB John Brantley can step out of Tim Tebow’s shadow and take ownership of the offense.

They’ll come up short if: The defense can’t recover from the loss of six starters, including LB Brandon Spikes and CB Joe Haden.

Chatter: “We’re going to pretty much be the same offense. We’re not going to run our quarterback as much. We’re looking for great things out of our offense. We have a lot of great skill players that are starting to emerge.” — C Mike Pouncey

Must-see game: at Alabama, Oct. 2, TBD

Top moment: The 1996 season was magical for the Gators, who avenged a regular-season loss to No. 1 Florida State with a 52-20 victory over the Seminoles in the Sugar Bowl for the school’s first national title. QB Danny Wuerffel won the Heisman with 3,625 yards and 39 TDs.

Kentucky

Last season: 7-6, 3-5 in SEC; lost to Clemson 21-13 in Music City Bowl

Returning starters: 5 on offense, 6 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Senior DE DeQuin Evans led the Wildcats in sacks and tackles for loss last year after transferring from a junior college. Expect him to be an even greater force in 2010.

They’ll win the division if: The Wildcats can find steady play at QB and build on the confidence of four consecutive winning seasons and bowl appearances.

They’ll come up short if: They can’t survive three consecutive October home games against Auburn, South Carolina and Georgia.

Chatter: “The best advice I got from [former coach] Rich [Brooks] was, ‘Don’t listen to the noise.’ ‘The noise’ is the media, some of the fans. Just continue to go about your business, make sure you got a sound plan. Stick to your plans.” — first-year coach Joker Phillips

Must-see game: vs. Georgia, Oct. 23, TBD

Top moment: Bear Bryant led Kentucky to the program’s biggest win, a 13-7 win over Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1, 1951. The Wildcats ended the defending national champion’s 31-game winning streak and finished the season 11-1.

South Carolina

Last season: 7-6, 3-5 in SEC; lost to Connecticut 20-7 in Papajohns.com Bowl

Returning starters: 8 on offense, 7 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Expect freshman RB Marcus Lattimore, the top RB recruit in the nation, to provide immediate pop for a running game that was last in the SEC last season.

They’ll win the division if: They can reverse their trend of folding late in the season. The Gamecocks lost three of their final four regular-season games in 2009 and lost to Connecticut in the bowl.

They’ll come up short if: QB Stephen Garcia, who threw for 2,862 yards and 17 TDs in 2009, can’t continue to mature and develop as a leader.

Chatter: “Our offense has hindered our team sometimes the last couple of years. We’re hoping with our new offensive line coach and some new glitches in the offense, that it’ll make the difference in some of those close games that we’ve lost the last few years.” — FB Patrick DiMarco

Must-see game: vs. Georgia, noon, Sept. 11 (ESPN or ESPN2)

Top moment: On Jan. 2, 1995, South Carolina finally knew what it was like to win a bowl game. The Gamecocks defeated West Virginia 24-21 in the Carquest Bowl for the first bowl victory in school history, helping shed the dreaded “Chicken Curse” that folks say has plagued the program. South Carolina was 0-8 in bowls before that victory.

Tennessee

Last season: 7-6, 4-4 in SEC; lost to Virginia Tech 37-14 in Chick-fil-A Bowl

Returning starters: 4 on offense, 6 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Tauren Poole (Stephens County), a junior, has quietly and patiently waited for his chance at TB. With Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown gone, he has his chance.

They’ll win the division if: Coach Derek Dooley can find another year of eligibility for Peyton Manning.

They’ll come up short if: Nothing comes together for the third coaching staff in three years. This is one of Tennessee’s least talented teams in three decades.

Chatter: “This team’s chemistry is very high. We’ve obviously, you know, had a lot of things happen to us in the past three years, and it’s just caused us to jell together as a team and say, ‘You know what? The only people that aren’t going to change are the players in the room.’ So we just try to come closer as a team.” — LB Nick Reveiz

Must-see game: vs. Florida, 3:30 p.m. Sept. 18, CBS

Top moment: Tee Martin threw for 278 yards and two TDs to lead Tennessee to a 23-16 victory over Florida State in the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 4, 1999, and cap a 13-0 season for the program’s second national championship. The Volunteers also won the 1951 national title.

Vanderbilt

Last season: 2-10, 0-8 in SEC

Returning starters: 7 on offense, 5 on defense, 1 on special teams

Rising star: Sophomore TB Warren Norman (Chamblee) was the SEC freshman of the year after breaking Herschel Walker’s freshman all-purpose yards mark with 161.8 per game. He finished with 783 yards rushing and three TDs on kickoff returns.

They’ll win the division if: They rally around new coach Robbie Caldwell, who replaced former coach Bobby Johnson after he abruptly retired in July.

They’ll come up short if: It’s a typical season at Vanderbilt, which has played in one bowl since 1982.

Chatter: “Some people are critical of [former] coach [Bobby] Johnson of leaving when he did, but I’m thankful he did it when he did it. He decided he couldn’t coach this season 100 percent like he has in the past, and if he couldn’t do it 100 percent, then it wasn’t worth doing.” — LB Chris Marve

Must-see game: vs. Tennessee, Nov. 20, TBD

Top moment: There haven’t been many for the Commodores in the past 80 years, but on Oct. 20, 2007, they stunned No. 6 South Carolina 17-6 at Williams-Brice Stadium. It was Vanderbilt’s first victory over a top-10 team in 33 years and the highest-ranked team the Commodores had beaten since knocking off No. 6 LSU in 1937.

SEC Western division

Alabama

Last season: 14-0, 8-0 in SEC; defeated Florida 32-13 in SEC Championship game; defeated Texas 37-21 in BCS National Championship game

Returning starters: 8 on offense, 2 on defense, 0 on special teams

Rising star: Trent Richardson made the most of his opportunities backing up Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram. Richardson rushed for 751 yards and eight TDs as a freshman in 2009.

They’ll win the division if: Defensive coordinator Kirby Smart can piece together another outstanding defense despite the fact that only two starters return from last year’s outstanding unit.

They’ll come up short if: QB Greg McElroy somehow can’t provide the exemplary leadership and ball security that he did in 2009. He threw just four interceptions last year.

Chatter: “I just hope that our fans are always realistic in what we can accomplish with the teams that we have, and that they keep a positive attitude about how we go about developing a first-class program.” — coach Nick Saban

Must-see game: vs. Penn State, 7 p.m. Sept. 11 (ESPN)

Top moment: There’s so many to choose from, but long before Bear Bryant arrived, Alabama wasn’t given a chance to defeat Washington in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, 1926. But Johnny Mack Brown led the Crimson Tide to a 20-19 victory over the Huskies in what has been called the most important game ever played by a Southern team.

Arkansas

Last season: 8-5, 3-5 in SEC; defeated East Carolina 20-17 in Liberty Bowl

Returning starters: 8 on offense, 6 on defense, 0 on special teams

Rising star: Junior WR Joe Adams missed three games last season while recovering from a ministroke, but still managed to catch 29 passes for 568 yards and seven TDs.

They’ll win the division if: QB Ryan Mallett produces even better numbers than in 2009 and the Razorbacks can surprise Alabama in Fayetteville and knock off LSU in Little Rock in November.

They’ll come up short if: Opponents can continue to run and throw against them at ease, as in 2009, when the Razorbacks were last in the SEC in total defense.

Chatter: “You know, obviously I don’t think you can name a best quarterback in the SEC until the season’s over. I had an OK year last year. The expectations of me are high.” — Mallett

Must-see game: vs. Alabama, Sept. 25, TBD

Top moment: In 1964, Arkansas was declared the national champion by the Football Writers Association of America and the Helms Athletic Foundation after knocking off Nebraska 10-7 in the Cotton Bowl to finish 11-0, the only undefeated team in the country.

Auburn

Last season: 8-5, 3-5 in SEC; defeated Northwestern 38-35 in Outback Bowl

Returning starters: 7 on offense, 8 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Michael Dyer was the second-ranked high school running back in the nation last year, and all indications point to him getting plenty of playing time as a freshman.

They’ll win the division if: Junior college transfer Cameron Newton (Westlake) can take over the starting QB job and grasp Gus Malzahn’s prolific offense well enough to match or improve on the numbers that Chris Todd produced last season.

They’ll come up short if: The Tigers can’t plug the holes on defense that plagued them throughout 2009 and were particularly obvious in losses to Arkansas, LSU, Georgia and Alabama.

Chatter: “We’ve got to finish. That’s what our coaches are preaching. Last year, we started 5-0 and we [lost three of the final five], and that’s not going to get us anywhere. We lost key games, and we’ve got to finish on top now instead of finishing on the bottom of those.” — LB Josh Bynes

Must-see game: at Alabama, 2:30 p.m. Nov. 26 (CBS)

Top moment: Bo Jackson won the 1985 Heisman Trophy, but on Nov. 27, 1982, his 1-yard leap into the end zone with two minutes left capped a 66-yard drive and gave the Tigers a 23-22 victory over Alabama in Bear Bryant’s last Iron Bowl. It also snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Crimson Tide.

LSU

Last season: 9-4, 5-3 in SEC; lost to Penn State 19-17 in Capital One Bowl

Returning starters: 6 on offense, 4 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: Junior CB Patrick Peterson was nicknamed “Baby Deion” in high school and is on several preseason All-America teams after finishing fourth in the SEC with 15 passes defensed in 2009.

They’ll win the division if: QB Jordan Jefferson, who is a junior, finally can put together a career year. He made strides last season with 2,166 yards, 17 TDs and only seven interceptions.

They’ll come up short if: The Tigers can’t find a way to defeat Alabama, Florida and Ole Miss. They are 0-6 against those schools the past two years.

Chatter: “We’re focused on being the old LSU, being victorious week after week. We’ve been focused on summer workouts and taking on the young players, making sure they know the playbook, just lots of little things that we lagged in over recent years that we want to correct this year.” — Jefferson

Must-see game: at Florida, Oct. 9, TBD

Top moment: LSU’s top-ranked defense dominated Heisman Trophy winner Jason White and held Oklahoma to 154 yards to help the Tigers defeat the Sooners 21-14 in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 4, 2004, to win the BCS national championship. It was the second of three national titles for the Tigers.

Mississippi

Last season: 9-4, 4-4 in SEC; defeated Oklahoma State 21-7 in Cotton Bowl

Returning starters: 6 on offense, 8 defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: With Dexter McCluster gone, junior RB Brandon Bolden will be counted on to carry the running game. He has rushed for 1,156 yards and 10 TDs in his career, averaging 5.1 yards per carry.

They’ll win the division if: Experienced and talented Oregon transfer Jeremiah Masoli wins the QB job and carries the Rebels to wins over Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn and LSU.

They’ll come up short if: The Rebels can’t overcome a three-game October stretch in which they play at Alabama, at Arkansas and host Auburn in consecutive weeks.

Chatter: “People are going to say we’re not going to be as good because we don’t have the Dexter McClusters and the John Jerrys. I mean, everyone recruits, and we got a recruiting class, too. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be as good as we were last year. Just because we’re young doesn’t mean anything.” — DE Kentrell Lockett

Must-see game: at Alabama, Oct. 16, TBD

Top moment: You’ll get plenty of arguments, but it’s tough to go wrong with either the 1960 or ‘62 seasons. In 1960, the Rebels went 10-0-1, won the SEC title and a share of the national championship. More of the same continued in ‘62, with a 10-0 mark, another SEC title and the national crown in two polls.

Mississippi State

Last season: 5-7, 3-5 in SEC

Returning starters: 6 on offense, 8 on defense, 2 on special teams

Rising star: DB Johnthan Banks didn’t start until halfway through his freshman season in 2009, but he finished with four interceptions, including twice picking off Florida’s Tim Tebow, both of which he returned for TDs.

They’ll win the division if: Everything comes together for the offense in coach Dan Mullen’s second season. The Bulldogs were 113th nationally in passing offense in 2009.

They’ll come up short if: The defense, with eight returning starters, can’t improve in new co-defensive coordinator Manny Diaz’s blitzing scheme.

Chatter: “Obviously in Year 2, we know our players a lot better. Our players know us, our coaches, our system, our routine a lot better. You are way further ahead.” — Mullen

Must-see game: vs. Auburn, 7:30 p.m. Sept. 9 (ESPN)

Top moment: Nothing equals the Bulldogs’ 6-3 victory over Alabama in Jackson, Miss., on Nov. 1, 1980. It ended the Tide’s school record 28-game winning streak and 27-game SEC winning streak. It also was Mississippi State’s first victory over Alabama since 1957.

* at Georgia Dome

-- Andy Johnston