MOVING THE CHAINS: Looking back at preseason SEC football predictions

At the beginning of the season, I made predictions for the 14 teams in the SEC. Time to pay the piper.

I’ll begin with those in which I was a little off base — or maybe I should say out of bounds.

Alabama

I was certain Bryce Young would repeat as the winner of the Heisman. This year, he wasn’t even one of the four players invited to New York for the presentation of the most coveted individual award in college football. Regardless, if I was going to build a team around one player, that player would be Bryce Young. How there were five players ahead of him in the final Heisman voting is beyond me.

Vanderbilt

I didn’t think second-year head coach Clark Lea would move forward in his promise to make the Commodores “the best football program in the country.” While posting a record of 5-7, its best since 2018, the team from Nashville ended its 26-game SEC losing streak by upsetting No. 24 Kentucky in Lexington. Then, the following week they made it two SEC wins in a row by beating the Florida Gators at home. Alas, the streak came to an end in their season finale, a 56-0 loss to Tennessee. Regardless, Lea made progress this season — no small feat at Vandy.

South Carolina

I was certain Gamecock quarterback Spencer Rattler would throw 10 interceptions before he threw 10 touchdown passes. He actually reached 10 touchdown passes first (final tally: 16 TD tosses and 11 interceptions) and led his team to back-to-back wins over top-10 teams in the last two games of the season. Incidentally, those two top-10 teams South Carolina defeated — Tennessee and Clemson — will meet in the Orange Bowl in what has been nicknamed “the Teams that couldn’t beat the Gamecocks Bowl.”

Now for the predictions I did a bit better with.

Tennessee

I mentioned that the Vols hadn’t won 10 or more games in the 14 seasons since Phil Fulmer was run out of Knoxville. Apparently they accepted my challenge, and finished with a record of 10-2, including a win over Alabama that knocked the Crimson Tide out of this year’s College Football Playoff. I was right in saying the Vols’ marching band would play Rocky Top at least one million times over the course of the season, although I probably underestimated that number by a million or two. That’s about what to expect when Tennessee wins 10 games for the first time since 2007.

Auburn

I stated War Eagle fans would call for coach Bryan Harsin’s head after every Tiger loss. Auburn did me one better: they fired Harsin after the team’s fifth loss of the season (and just three wins). That’s how the ball bounces in Auburn. Just ask Tommy Tuberville. Or Gene Chizik. Or Gus Malzahn.

Florida

I was right: for the 10th season in a row, the Gators didn’t have a running back rush for 1,000 yards. Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne both came close, with 827 and 705 yards, respectively. However, had either running back been given a fair shake — Johnson averaged just 12 carries a game, and Etienne only nine — the streak might have ended. One might wonder why a pair of running backs averaging 5.7 and 6.4 yards a carry, respectively, wouldn’t have been given more carries. Then again, that’s a question for first-year coach Billy Napier, not me.

Missouri

As predicted, the Tigers are still the black sheep, ugly duckling, and red-headed stepchild of the SEC — regardless of whatever record they ended the season with. (I didn’t bother to check. I asked a few people: none had any idea.)

LSU

They still have the coolest mascot in football: Mike the Tiger. Surprisingly, head coach Brian Kelly managed to get his team into the SEC Championship Game in his first season at the helm. However, his Cajun accent — like I said — is fake.

Texas A&M

The Aggies needed much more than all the money in the world to win the conference championship. This season — with just about that much money at their disposal — Texas A&M was fortunate to salvage some dignity by upsetting championship game-bound LSU in the season finale. Incidentally, the Aggies and the Vanderbilt Commodores both finished the season with identical 5-7 records, and 2-6 in SEC games.

Kentucky

Once again, the Wildcats started with a roar — they won their first five games of the season — and ended with a whimper (finishing 3-5 the rest of the way). Kentucky head coach Mark Stoops, however, may have tarnished his reputation as a football mastermind. With 10 seasons in Lexington under his belt, his record in Lexington now stands at 66-58 for a winning percentage barely over .500 (.532, actually). By comparison, in 12 seasons at Florida, Steve Spurrier’s winning percentage was .817; in 16 seasons at Alabama, Nick Saban’s is .877.

Arkansas

As predicted, the Razorbacks were the most up-and-down, Jekyll-and-Hyde, hot-and-cold team in the SEC. Just look at the chronology of their season. In order: three wins, three losses, two wins, two losses, one win, one loss — the very definition of up and down.

Mississippi and Mississippi State

Once again, the two teams from the Magnolia State were virtually indistinguishable. Both teams finished with identical 8-4 records. Both teams finished with the same SEC record: 4-4. The two teams were so inseparable and evenly matched that in the Egg Bowl, their traditional season-ending rivalry game, the margin of victory was just two points. Mississippi State came out on top. Or maybe it was Ole Miss. Hard to tell, really.

Finally, one last prediction that is currently on hold.

Georgia

I thought Bulldog Nation was setting themselves up for a huge disappointment if they were expecting a second consecutive National Championship. We’ll find out on January 9.

If not sooner.

Special Photo: Nicole Seitz