Chris Low and Alex Scarborough Jul 17, 2023 07:00 ET7 minutes read
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The SEC enters Media Days with talk of a realignment and new schedules that are already in the past. Oklahoma and Texas will attend the conference next season to a great deal of fanfare, ushering in a new era in college football.
What will coaches and players talk about during the media days? The action on the field, of course.
Alabama’s revamped offense under former Notre Dame offensive coordinator Tommy Rees, Brian Kelly’s sophomore year at LSU and the staggering number of transfer quarterbacks in the conference will be the talk of the week in Nashville, Tenn.
Before all the podium predictions, bold predictions, and quotes, our writers tackle the five biggest questions and themes of the SEC media days.
1. How does Georgia answer questions off the field?
Alex Scarborough: On the field, the questions are obvious: who will replace Stetson Bennett as quarterback? How will the offense change without Todd Monken as coordinator? And how about a defense now without strong players Jalen Carter and Kelee Ringo?
Georgia’s schedule may be easy, but the road to becoming national champions for the third straight year is not easy. However, coach Kirby Smart will be spending most of his time in Nashville dealing with events off the field as his players’ speeding spikes. Earlier this month, freshman outside linebacker Samuel M’Pemba was being driven at 88mph in a 55-mph zone — about an hour before Georgia receiver Marcus Rosemy-Jacksaint appeared in an Athens courtroom and pleaded guilty known to have been driving at 90 mph in a 45 mph zone on May 23. ESPN reported in June that Georgia football players and their cars have been killed since Jan. 15, when Georgia offense player Devin Willock and football staff were involved in at least 10 reports of traffic violations in Athens-Clarke County Member Chandler LeCroy was killed in a reckless driving accident, in which police claimed former defenseman Jalen Carter faced them hours after a national championship celebration.
2. How will Alabama handle the changes on offense?
Scarborough: Over the course of the last season, it became clear that something had to change on offense at Alabama. The plan employed by coordinator Bill O’Brien relied too heavily on quarterback Bryce Young; the running game lacked presence inside; and the receivers who watched DeVonta Smith and Jameson Williams rise to stardom didn’t develop into reliable playmakers. After Young and O’Brien moved to the NFL, Nick Saban was left with a clean slate. He brought in a more professional coordinator in former Notre Dame OC Tommy Rees and opened quarterback competition by welcoming former Fighting Irish QB Tyler Buchner alongside returning players Jalen Milroe and Ty Simpson. With a good group of young running backs, don’t be surprised to see Alabama run harder this season, relying less on an untested receiver corps and taking some of the pressure off the starting QB.
3. How will LSU fare as a sophomore under Brian Kelly?
Brian Kelly took LSU to the SEC championship game in his first season with the program. What’s next for the Tigers? Stephen Lew – USA TODAY Sports
Chris Low: When aren’t expectations high for LSU, especially when you’re hiring a coach of the caliber of Brian Kelly and four years early from a national championship?
The Tigers surprised many people a year ago when they won the SEC’s Western Division and defeated Alabama in Kelly’s first season at Baton Rouge. That next step will prove even more difficult, but LSU has set the stage for renewed success in the West and a return to the SEC championship game. It starts with quarterback Jayden Daniels, who thrived on offense at LSU last season. A versatile quarterback with experience helps solve a lot of problems, especially when your entire offensive line is back. Tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones started last season as freshmen and Kelly believes this unit has a chance to be special. And on defense, linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. is returning after establishing himself as one of the SEC’s top defensemen as a freshman, and defensive tackle Maason Smith’s return from injury is another reason to like LSU’s defense . This isn’t Kelly’s first rodeo. He understands the expectations and understands that LSU will be on many teams’ schedules this season. But it’s also an LSU team that improved over the season a year ago, and there’s no reason to think Kelly won’t get even more out of that team given his lineage in 2023.
4. Can Bobby Petrino save Jimbo Fisher from the hot seat?
Low: The Petrino-Fisher pairing caused quite a stir in the college football world when Fisher hired Petrino as Texas A&M’s offensive coordinator in January. Fisher and Petrino are both known for their volatility, and it’s fair to wonder how they’ll hold up in what’s clearly an important season for the entire Texas A&M program. Fisher knew he needed to make a splash on offense, that he needed to stop being the primary player and instead bring in someone who had made it at a high level. Petrino has been polarizing — and has been since his release from Arkansas — but there’s no denying that he’s been one of the best players in football for a long time. Fisher will always be involved on offense, and he’ll be with Petrino each week as he works out the plan. But Petrino wouldn’t have taken the job at Texas A&M if it wasn’t for his show.
Ultimately, that will be the test of how the Aggies’ offense fares after they finished 101st nationally in points standings (22.8 points per game) last season. Petrino has some promising talent to work with, including receivers Ainias Smith and Evan Stewart, as well as a more experienced offensive line that’s keen to match their level of talent. Center Bryce Foster is the enforcer in the middle of this line and has the potential to be a star. One of the things Petrino has done best in his career is developing quarterbacks, and sophomore Conner Weigman has the arm strength and skills to be one of the breakout quarterbacks this season under Petrino’s tutelage of the country to become. The Aggies clearly need to be able to throw better after finishing second to bottom in the SEC for passing efficiency last season. No doubt questions will linger between Fisher and Petrino until we get into the season, but expect the Aggies to wake up on offense.
5. Which transfer QBs will have the most impact?
Scarborough: SEC coaches haven’t been afraid to turn to the transfer portal for help for the quarterback this offseason. There could be as many as five starting QBs in the league this season who played in a different conference last year. We’ve already covered Alabama and added Buchner. But shortly thereafter, Auburn first-year coach Hugh Freeze snapped up former Michigan State University starter Payton Thorne to compete with last-year starter Robby Ashford. And at Ole Miss, coach Lane Kiffin surprised many by starting a fire under Jaxson Dart – who threw for 2,900 yards after moving from USC last season – by adding via the portal not one, but two QBs: the former starter of Oklahoma State and All- The Big 12 pick Spencer Sanders and former LSU five-star contender Will Howard. On the East, Kentucky quickly replaced its former transfer QB Will Levis with another transfer of former NC State starter Devin Leary. And Missouri brought Jake Garcia from Miami rather than wait out Brady Cook with an injury that caused him to miss all of spring training.