SEC preview 2022: Alabama, Georgia still stand above the rest. Can A&M crash the party?

The Alabama Crimson Tide and Georgia Bulldogs are in a class of their own in the Southeastern Conference, but the Texas A&M Aggies have the talent to join them in their elite tier.

At the same time, the Florida Gators and LSU Tigers hope their new coaches will elevate them back to the same heights they hit not so long ago.

East Division

1. Georgia Bulldogs

Coach: Kirby Smart.

Players to watch: RB Kendall Milton, TE Brock Bowers, DE Nolan Smith, DT Jalen Carter, CB Kelee Ringo.

Key games: at South Carolina, Sept. 17; at Missouri, Oct. 1; vs. Florida, Oct. 29 (in Jacksonville); vs. Tennessee, Nov. 5; at Kentucky, Nov. 19.

Inevitably, Georgia will regress a bit after it lost so much on defense, but Smart has the Bulldogs at the point where they should be able to reload, rather than rebuild, because they recruit at such a high level. Georgia is still one of the most talented teams in the country and a national title contender.

2. Florida Gators

Coach: Billy Napier.

Players to watch: QB Anthony Richardson, OL O’Cyrus Torrence, DE/LB Brenton Cox, CB Jason Marshall, S Rashad Torrence II.

Key games: at Tennessee, Sept. 24; vs. LSU, Oct. 15; vs. Georgia, Oct. 29 (in Jacksonville); at Texas A&M, Nov. 5; vs. South Carolina, Nov. 12.

The ugly ending to former coach Dan Mullen’s tenure obscures the fact the Florida Gators still have quite a bit of talent on their roster, including potentially one of the best quarterbacks in the country. Beyond the Bulldogs, the East Division is wide open, and Napier can get Florida near the top.

3. South Carolina Gamecocks

Coach: Shane Beamer.

Players to watch: WR Josh Vann, DT Zacch Pickens, CB David Spaulding, DB Cam Smith, S R.J. Roderick.

Key games: vs. Georgia, Sept. 17; vs. Texas A&M, Oct. 22; at Florida, Nov. 12; vs. Tennessee, Nov. 19; at Clemson, Nov. 26.

Beamer’s first year with the South Carolina Gamecocks was a big success, elevating the program from two wins to seven. It’s a major building block to work from, especially with a bunch of talent back on defense. The X-factor is quarterback Spencer Rattler, who once looked like a future star for the Oklahoma Sooners and will get a fresh start in South Carolina.

4. Tennessee Volunteers

Coach: Josh Heupel.

Players to watch: QB Hendon Hooker, WR Cedric Tillman, OL Darnell Wright, DL Byron Young, LB Jeremy Banks.

Key games: vs. Florida, Sept. 24; at LSU, Oct. 8; vs. Alabama, Oct. 15; at Georgia, Nov. 5; at South Carolina, Nov. 19.

Like Beamer, Heupel put together a massively successful debut program with his new team, elevating the Tennessee Volunteers from three wins to seven. Hooker is a perfect fit for the coach’s uptempo offense and should keep them competitive with everyone in the East, other than the Bulldogs.

5. Missouri Tigers

Coach: Eliah Drinkwitz.

Players to watch: OL Javon Foster, OL Hyrin White, DL Isaiah McGuire, S Martez Manuel, K Harrison Mevis.

Key games: vs. Georgia, Oct. 1; at Florida, Oct. 8; at South Carolina, Oct. 29; vs. Kentucky, Nov. 5; at Tennessee, Nov. 12.

Drinkwitz is recruiting at a level the Missouri Tigers have never hit, but it could take a few years for his successes on the trail to manifest. At the same time, Drinkwitz has kept Missouri competitive throughout his tenure in Missouri and Mevis, an All-American last year, could help steal a close game or two.

6. Kentucky Wildcats

Coach: Mark Stoops.

Players to watch: QB Will Levis, RB Chris Rodriguez Jr., OL Eli Cox, OL Kenneth Horsey, LB JJ Weaver.

Key games: at Florida, Sept. 10; at Ole Miss, Oct. 1; vs. South Carolina, Oct. 8; at Tennessee, Oct. 29; vs. Georgia, Nov. 19.

Levis is drawing hype as a potential first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft, which puts the Kentucky Wildcats in some unusual waters. Stoops’ teams are usually driven by defense and ball control, and losing four of its top six offensive linemen from last year could present a challenge for Kentucky.

7. Vanderbilt Commodores

Coach: Clark Lea.

Players to watch: OL Bradley Ashmore, LB Anfernee Orji.

Key games: at Alabama, Sept. 24; vs. Ole Miss, Oct. 8; at Georgia, Oct. 15; vs. Florida, Nov. 19; vs. Tennessee, Nov. 26.

Coaching the Vanderbilt Commodores continues to be the most thankless job in the Power 5 Conferences, but Lea at least recruited pretty well in the last year. It’s just going to take some time for those highly touted freshmen to really help out too much at the next level.

West Division

1. Alabama Crimson Tide

Coach: Nick Saban.

Players to watch: QB Bryce Young, RB Jahmyr Gibbs, DE/LB Will Anderson, CB Eli Ricks, DB Malachi Moore.

Key games: at Arkansas, Oct. 1; vs. Texas A&M, Oct. 8; at Tennessee, Oct. 15; at LSU, Nov. 5; at Ole Miss, Nov. 12.

Alabama viewed last season as something of a rebuilding year, and the Crimson Tide was still probably the second-best team in the country. With Young and Anderson back, Alabama has maybe the best quarterback and overall player in the country, respectively. The Crimson Tide is once again the team to beat.

2. Texas A&M Aggies

Coach: Jimbo Fisher.

Players to watch: QB Max Johnson, RB Devon Achane, DE Tunmise Adeleye, CB Antonio Johnson, P Nik Constantinou.

Key games: vs. Miami, Sept. 17; at Alabama, Oct. 8; at South Carolina, Oct. 22; vs. Florida, Nov. 5; vs. LSU, Nov. 26.

Texas A&M’s upset of Alabama last year positioned the Aggies as the clear challenger to the Crimson Tide in the West Division, and they’re recruiting at a high enough level to at some point maybe even topple Alabama atop the division, it just probably won’t be this year.

3. Ole Miss Rebels

Coach: Lane Kiffin.

Players to watch: RB Zach Evans, WR Jonathan Mingo, T/G Nick Broeker, OL Jeremy James, DE/LB Khari Coleman.

Key games: vs. Kentucky, Oct. 1; at LSU, Oct. 22; at Texas A&M, Oct. 29; vs. Alabama, Nov. 12; at Arkansas, Nov. 19.

The Ole Miss Rebels will need to retool a little bit on offense after star quarterback Matt Corral left for the NFL, but Kiffin, at this point, has earned the benefit of the doubt on building offenses, especially after he added Evans and quarterback Jaxson Dart through the transfer portal.

4. LSU Tigers

Coach: Brian Kelly.

Players to watch: WR Kayshon Boutte, DE Ali Gaye, DE/LB B.J. Ojulari, S Sage Ryan, S Jay Ward.

Key games: vs. Tennessee, Oct. 8; at Florida, Oct. 15; vs. Ole Miss, Oct. 22; vs. Alabama, Nov. 5; at Texas A&M, Nov. 26.

Ever since they won the national title in 2019, the LSU Tigers have sort of been a mess, winning just 11 games in the past two years and agreeing to part ways with championship-winning coach Ed Orgeron. Still, LSU boasts one of the most talented rosters in the country — because it always does — and has one of the country’s most accomplished coaches to lead it.

5. Arkansas Razorbacks

Coach: Sam Pittman.

Players to watch: QB K.J. Jefferson, OL Brady Latham, C Ricky Stromberg, LB Bumper Pool, DB Jalen Catalon.

Key games: vs. South Carolina, Sept. 10; vs. Texas A&M, Sept. 24 (in Arlington, Texas); vs. Alabama, Oct. 1; vs. LSU, Nov. 12; vs. Ole Miss, Nov. 19.

The Arkansas Razorbacks were one of the best surprises in college football last year, winning nine games for the first time since 2011. Now in Year 3, Pittman has one of the best quarterbacks in the country to buoy the offense, but keeping the defense at a high level will be trickier after Arkansas lost more than half of its major contributors.

6. Mississippi State Bulldogs

Coach: Mike Leach.

Players to watch: RB Jo’quavious Marks, WR Lideatrick Griffin, WR Jaden Walley, C LaQuinston Sharp, CB Emmanuel Forbes.

Key games: at LSU, Sept. 17; vs. Texas A&M, Oct. 1; at Alabama, Oct. 22; vs. Georgia, Nov. 12; at Ole Miss, Nov. 24.

The Mississippi State Bulldogs return more than anyone else in the SEC and it has hopes high in Starkville, Mississippi. At the same time, Leach has still yet to prove his air raid offense can create a consistent winner in the country’s toughest conference. Year 3 will be something of a prove-it year for the coach.

7. Auburn Tigers

Coach: Bryan Harsin.

Players to watch: RB Tank Bigsby, DL Derick Hall, DL Colby Wooten, K Anders Carlson, P Oscar Chapman.

Key games: vs. LSU, Oct. 1; at Georgia, Oct. 8; at Ole Miss, Oct. 15; vs. Texas A&M, Nov. 12; at Alabama, Nov. 26.

The Auburn Tigers nearly fired Harsin after his debut season last year, and it creates an uneasy situation going into Year 2. There’s more than enough talent for Harsin to work with, but losing five assistant coaches in his first offseason puts the coach in a dangerous spot.