In most conferences there is a vicious battle for the conference title. Florida, Kentucky and Tennessee all expect to be involved when it comes time to name a conference champion in the SEC. The conversation for the SEC team doesn't seem to revolve around the good teams, it revolves around the teams with massive holes to fill and those that are either rebuilding or still trying to build. In the bottom half of the conference, the battle will be themed as the battle to be the best of the worst. For the typical SEC fan, this will be a season of ups and downs throughout the conference. While this may sound like a doomsday prophecy, it could result in an exciting season. One of the mid-level teams is likely to hit their stride and push itself into the upper echelon of the conference.
Alabama Crimson Tide
Anthony Grant has his work cut out for him in Tuscaloosa this year. The Tide return one double-digit scorer this year in junior forward JaMychal Green. Sophomore forward Tony Mitchell will also be called upon to help during what appears to be a rebuilding season after averaging 9.2 points and almost six rebounds per game. Grant brings in a recruiting class that features two four-star guards that will need to step in and help immediately in point guard Trevor Releford and shooting guard Charles Hankerson.
Arkansas Razorbacks
Arkansas had and up and down season and will join the rebuilding part in the SEC. Junior shooting guard Rotnei Clarke, who had a breakout season as a sophomore, brings his hot shooting back to John Pelphrey's club. Clarke will need help to keep the Razorbacks out of the SEC cellar this season. Pelphrey bring in a four-star recruit in shooting guard Marcus Wade and two three-star players in Rickey Scott and Marvell Waithe.
Auburn Tigers
There is one word to describe Auburn this season: young. Junior guard Frankie Sullivan was set to return with 12.7 point per game but will have to put his junior season on hold as he tore his ACL in the offseason. The 2010-11 Tigers outlook suggests there isn't much to rejoice about. All healthy returning players averaged less than three points per game last season. The Tigers only have one senior, Tony Neysmith, who averaged 4.4 minutes per game as a junior. First year coach Tony Barbee will be forced to rely on the youth and inexperience on his roster, but it is a tossup as to who will step up. Four-star prospect Luke Cothron and three-star center Shawn Kemp did not qualify to play this season as well as. For the Tigers, it is going to be a long season with many more downs than ups, unless someone surprisingly steps up.
Florida Gators
It seems like decades ago when Joakim Noah and company were all passing up the NBA to come back to Florida to repeat as champs. Florida returns a solid squad that should be a force in the rebuilding SEC. The Gators return their top five scorers from last years campaign. Kenny Boynton, Jr. (14.0 ppg), Erving Walker (12.6), Chandler Parsons (12.4), Alex Tyus (11.8) and Vernon Macklin all suit back for in Gainesville this season. Veteran leadership can never be undervalued and that may be enough to give Florida the slight edge when it comes to picking a winner in the SEC. When the season ends, those flashbacks of Noah and company may feel more like recent history as Florida not only has a shot at the SEC crown, but has the pieces challenge for the national title.
Georgia Bulldogs
Howard Thompkins and Travis Leslie provide arguably the best one-two punch in the SEC. Both are looking to improve their numbers while enjoying a longer post season. Mark Fox also returns junior point guard Dustin Ware. Fox brings a pair of power forwards to Atlanta this season to add to his frontcourt depth. Marcus Thornton is expected to come in and challenge incumbent forward Chris Barnes for playing time. The Bulldogs are on their way back up the ladder in the SEC and will probably find themselves dancing in March.
Kentucky Wildcats
The Wildcats looked like the favorites to win the NCAA Tournament last year but ran into a feisty West Virginia team that derailed them in the elite eight. For most teams, given the extreme youth movement that was present in Lexington last year, it would have been considered a learning experience with everyone coming back to make a run for a title in their sophomore years. Not at Kentucky. The Wildcats lost all of their freshman, including top pick John Wall. They also lost freshman Daniel Orton, Eric Bledsoe, DeMarcus Cousins. Junior Patrick Patterson also elected to declare for the Association, which leaves John Calapari in a peculiar, but not unfamiliar spot. They old saying says "Great programs don't rebuild, they reload" and Calapari has achieved that once again. The Wildcats bring in a stellar recruiting class once again, boasting three five-star recruits in center Enes Kanter, power forward Terrence Jones and point guard Brandon Knight. Four-star recruits Doron Lamb and and Stacey Poole round out the class, making it arguably the best in the nation once again. News has surfaced the Kanter may be ruled ineligible by the NCAA after claims from a Turkish team that the forward allegedly accepted cash to play for them. It's always difficult to predict how 18 and 19-year olds will react to the college game. What is not difficult to predict is the caliber of coach John Calapari is. The Wildcats may not win the SEC, but you can count on an upper tier conference finish.
LSU Tigers
Trent Johnson continues at the helm of an LSU team that had two conference wins last season as well as two key losses in the off season. Last season the Tigers were able to grab victories over Arkansas and Georgia late in conference play. In the off-season LSU lost their top two scorers. Tasmin Mitchell left via graduation and Bo Spencer is academically ineligible. That leaves junior forward Storm Warren as the teams leading scorer and the only real leadership on the team. Warren was impressive early last season but his production waned in SEC play. For the Tigers to have any success this season Warren must find scoring consistency and must also attack the glass. A trio of freshman is the brightest spot in the bayou. Small forward Matt Derenbecker is the head of the class after being the Louisiana player of the year. Guards Ralston Turner and Andre Stringer will also have to contribute from the perimeter for the Tigers to finish in the middle of the SEC pack.
Mississippi Rebels
Chris Warren is among the most tenured and talented players in the SEC. The senior guard returns to campus with several different faces and a lot of lost production. Terrico White is gone. Warren's backcourt-mate declared for the NBA draft in surprising move in the spring. Eneil Polynice left for Seton Hall. Murphy Holloway is sitting out a year at South Carolina. That trio combined for over 33 points per contest and 15 rebounds. These leaves Andy Kennedy relying heavily on Warren and Indiana transfer Nick Williams. Williams averaged almost nine points and four rebounds as a freshman prior to transferring. Senior Zach Graham and freshman Dundrecous Nelson looks like the likely choice to join Warren in the back court. The front court is where the Rebels have the biggest holes to fill. Junior Terrance Henry will need to up his production at the forward spot from six points and three rebounds per contest and find some other front court help to help the Rebels stay out of the cellar.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
Mississippi State was in a position to finish in the upper tier of the SEC, until Dee Bost "forgot" to withdraw his name from the NBA draft and then re-enrolled at Mississippi State and appealed his ineligibility. The Bost decision will be a landmark decision for the NCAA. Without Bost, the Bulldogs don't look nearly as tough, but the eligibility of Renardo Sidney, who will be eligible to play midway through this season. If Bost gets clearance to play, he and Sidney make a tough combo and, with a strong support cast, could find themselves in the NCAA tournament.
South Carolina Gamecocks
The Gamecocks lose their top three scorers to graduation, putting them squarely on the rebuilding train. Darin Horn brings in six freshmen to attempt to fill the void, but will rely heavily on big man Sam Muldrow to improve on his ten points and six rebounds from last year. Four-star recruits Bruce Ellington (PG), Damontre Harris (C) and R.J. Slawson (PF) anchor a massive recruiting class that will begin the building process for Horn's Gamecocks. South Carolina will find themselves with other teams in the bottom of the SEC, looking to be the best of the worst.
Tennessee Volunteers
After a turbulent mid-season that ended with arrests and the Volunteers' most complete player, Tyler Smith, dismissed, Tennessee made a surprising run to the sweet sixteen last March. Bruce Pearl and his Volunteer-orange jacket will try to ride the wave of momentum into this year's campaign. All eyes on campus will be focused on junior Scotty Hopson. The former McDonald's All-American has become a proven scorer but he must develop into a more rounded player to be the All-American Pearl needs him to be. Five-star freshman Tobias Harris will provide a fresh face and fresh production, and seniors Brian Williams and Melvin Goins will be expected to up their production to keep the Vols in the SEC hunt.
Vanderbilt Commodores
A.J. Ogilvy and Jermaine Beal are gone. Vanderbilt will seek leadership as they re-tool their team and search for holes to plug the voids left by the tandem. Former four-star shooting guard John Jenkins will be asked to take on the primary scoring and leadership role this season. After showing flashes of greatness in his freshman season, the sophomore has shown he is up to the task. An unimpressive recruiting class will likely not deter the Commodores from winning their fair share of games on the most strangely designed court in America. Vanderbilt can always be counted on to play the spoiler role if the role of favorite is unavailable to them.