Breaking Down the SEC West's Three-Team Race in Football

We'll start with the defending SEC West Champs, the Alabama Crimson Tide.

Bama was dominant for the majority of the 2008 season, going 12-0 in the regular season and holding the No. 1 ranking for five weeks, longer than any other team in the nation.

On Dec. 6, The Tide walked into Atlanta's Georgia Dome for a much-hyped battle with Florida in the SEC Championship Game. A hard-fought battle ended with the Gators on top, 31-20. Then, on January 2, Alabama was defeated handily by Utah in the Sugar Bowl, 31-17.

Now, the Tide are without QB John Parker Wilson and OT Andre Smith. However, Nick Saban has turned in the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation, along with the return of star WR Julio Jones (pictured above).

Alabama will have to play Ole Miss and Auburn on the road, but don't underestimate the Tide. They want a rematch with Florida, and they could very well get it.

The LSU Tigers started the 2008 season with a bang, going 4-0 and rising to as high as No. 3 in the polls. Then came a trip to the Swamp on October 11.

The Tigers were thrashed by Florida 51-21. They seemed to have shaken it off with a victory over South Carolina the next week. It was not to be. Georgia came to Baton Rouge the next week and ran all over LSU en route to a 52-38 victory.

LSU was not quite the same for the rest of the regular season, going just 2-3.

However, they bounced back in the Chick-fil-A Bowl on December 31, destroying Georgia Tech 38-3.

After a disappointing 8-5 2008 season, it looks as if LSU is ready to get back into title contention. The Tigers return four offensive starters for 2009, including Charles Scott (pictured above), as well as five defensive starters. Les Miles turned in the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation for this year, which doesn't hurt.

LSU must play Georgia, Ole Miss, and Alabama on the road, as well as a home date with Florida. If the Bayou Bengals can somehow get through those games, you will see them in Atlanta come Dec. 5.

What a difference one year makes. In 2007, Ole Miss was 3-9 and without a single SEC victory. In 2008, the Rebels completely turned around under the guidance of Houston Nutt, going 9-4 and defeating both Florida and LSU in two of the nation's toughest stadiums.

Nutt also installed the "Wild Rebel" formation, which worked to perfection many times over the 2008 season.

Yet, even after going 8-4 in the regular season along with the upsets of Florida and LSU, Ole Miss still didn't get any respect when they were chosen to face 11-1 Texas Tech in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 2.

Texas Tech was disappointed to have not been chosen into the BCS, allowing the Rebels to sneak up on them and win handily, 47-34.

Now that the respect is there, will the Rebels get too cocky in '09? That remains to be seen, but it is true that Ole Miss will be very good this season. They return nine offensive starters, including star QB Jevan Snead (pictured above), as well as 8 defensive starters.

Ole Miss gets Alabama, LSU, and Tennessee all at home while avoiding Florida and Georgia, which could give the Rebels the easiest path to Atlanta.

Will it be one of the "Big Three," or will it be a team that wasn't even mentioned? State your answer below.