SEC power rankings, Week 1: Alabama and everybody else
By John Buhler
College football will be here on Labor Day weekend. Heading into the upcoming season, let’s take a few minutes to power rank the SEC teams before Week 1.
The anticipating is too much. Don’t worry guys, SEC football is almost here. Labor Day weekend is only a few days away. As soon as the calendar flips to September, it’ll time for some great football in the Southeastern United States.
While the coaching in this Power 5 conference is suspect at best after Nick Saban of the Alabama Crimson Tide, the talent on these 14 teams is obvious. You can go through and pick a few players from every school in the conference and say he has a shot at being a big time player collegiately and at the next level.
It might be more about the Jimmies and Joes than the x’s and o’s this year down south, but no league in the Power 5 is as passionate about their football teams as the 14 member institutions in the SEC.
Without further ado, here are the first power rankings heading into Labor Day weekend. These rankings will absolutely change throughout the course of the season. At least one team will be a pleasant surprise, while another will be a massive disappointment.
Missouri Tigers (0-0)
Last week: N/A
Last rank: N/A
After winning the SEC East in their second and third seasons in the league, the Missouri Tigers have found themselves in the basement of the Power 5 conference. Replacing legendary head coach Gary Pinkel internally with defensive coordinator Barry Odom may not pan out as well as the university would have liked.
Though the Tigers normally have a defense stocked with NFL talent, it might be a tad also-ran this year. While the Tigers will put up points with third-year starter Drew Lock in the ‘gun, offensive coordinator Josh Heupel seems to have his team playing at a pace that is too frenetic. Sloppy execution due to speed is not acceptable. Missouri will win games, but a bowl game might be a tad out of reach.
Ole Miss Rebels (0-0)
Last week: N/A
Last rank: N/A
The Ole Miss Rebels have been levied heavy sanctions by the NCAA for rampant recruiting violations. Former head coach Hugh Freeze’s exodus was an embarrassment and the Rebels will not be allowed to play in a bowl game or SEC Championship this year. Keep in mind that the Rebels went 5-7 last year and were one of two SEC teams to not go bowling.
Frankly, it will come down to the young men in that locker room in Oxford. Quarterback Shea Patterson could be an NFL superstar one day. Shockingly, nobody has transferred from Ole Miss despite sanctions. Interim head coach Matt Luke was part of the Tommy Tuberville teams that had to deal with sanctions in the mid-1990s. Ole Miss could hover around .500 or crater in 2017.