College Football Recruiting 2013: The Top Remaining Target for Each SEC School

Recruiting in the SEC is about as tough as it gets around the country. With the additions of both Missouri and Texas A&M, that now leaves us with 14 schools in the SEC all vying for the same talent around the South.

For this read, I'm going to give you the top remaining recruiting targets for each program in the SEC. Classes are still being assembled, but each program has one prospect who is really the apple of their eye.

Let's see who they are.

Vanderbilt

Top Target: Leon McQuay, S

McQuay is a 6'1", 185-pound safety prospect from Florida who plays with good awareness, smarts and ball skills. He can be a bit straight-linish, but once he gets out of transition he can jump a passing lane and pick a ball off on the back end.

The Commodores have some staunch competition for McQuay, but trust that James Franklin will pull out all the stops.

Texas A&M

Top Target: Maurice Smith, CB 

A big corner from Texas, Smith can be a physical jammer at the line and relishes press coverage. His upper-body strength is impressive, and he can come out of his backpedal very easily. 

Smith shows a solid feel for covering routes and has the speed to carry his man deep. Safety may also be an option in college.

Tennessee

Top Target: Vonn Bell, DB

Bell is a 6'1", 190-pound back-end defender who has great versatility. He's pretty scheme-friendly, as he can fit in as a SS, FS and some boundary corner for a secondary.

Bell plays with great speed and range on the field, and he can hit with the best of them. The Vols are in the race, along with several other SEC schools.

South Carolina

Top Target: Jason Hatcher, DE

Hatcher is a 6'2", 235-pound DE from Kentucky, and the Gamecocks have positioned themselves in the race for him. He plays with solid strength on the edges and flashes flat-back ability to gain leverage.

Hatcher's snap quickness is solid, and he has a good burst to finish. He's a great competitor who will hawk a ball-carrier from the backside in pursuit.

Missouri

Top Target: Elijah Daniel, DE

Hailing from the Hoosier State, Daniel is an up-and-coming DE prospect who is 6'2" and more than 250 pounds on the hoof. He shows great athleticism and just a wealth of potential.

According to Scout.com, Mizzou is one of Daniel's top 15 schools. He is the highest-rated prospect the Tigers have a solid shot of landing at this point. 

Mississippi State

Top Target: Kailo Moore, RB

Moore hails from the Magnolia State and is a great RB prospect. He's about 5'10" and between 180 and 190 pounds.

His biggest asset is his speed, as Moore is one of the fastest players in the nation. He can hit the turbo button, juice up, fly through a hole and split the safeties to land in the end zone.

Ole Miss

Top Target: Antonio Conner, S

Yes, I know Ole Miss is in the hunt for Robert Nkemdiche, but frankly several SEC schools are, and this piece needs some variety.

So, just for that sake, I'm putting Conner here, as he's no slouch by any means. At 6'1" and 200 pounds, Conner is a great safety prospect who can attack the line to stop the run and has the speed and range to factor against the pass.

I think Conner will be a star at Ole Miss.

LSU

Top Target: Kendall Beckwith, ATH

Again, Nkemdiche could easily be here, too. As could Tim Williams. 

Beckwith is a 6'3", 225-pounder who plays QB now, but likely will be either an OLB or DE. He also can play RB and is athletic enough to play WR, S and TE.

Beckwith is a fantastic athlete who just needs to be coached up at one spot in college.

Kentucky

Top Target: Jacob Hyde, DT/OG

The Wildcats likely are not going to land either James Quick or Jason Hatcher, the two top in-state Kentucky prospects this year.

Yet, I think Hyde is a good get, as he stands 6'3" and 315 pounds. He can play DT and eat up space, and he can develop into an interior OG.

Georgia

Top Target: Laremy Tunsil, OT

The nation's best OT goes 6'6", 295 pounds and has shown vast improvement this spring.

Tunsil is a very good athlete who can move easily for a big man. He flashes quick feet to adjust, and his strength is getting there.

UGA has some great competition here, but I think they sit in a very good spot.

Florida

Top Target: Vernon Hargreaves III, CB

Another school that could be in the Nkemdiche sweepstakes, Florida really digs Hargreaves.

Regarded as perhaps the nation's top CB prospect, Hargreaves is a 5'11", 180-pounder who has excellent technique, instincts and agility. He's at his best in off-man and zone coverages.

His father coaches at South Florida, so watch out for the Bulls.

Auburn

Top Target: Montravius Adams, DT

Adams is an elite DT prospect from Georgia, and Auburn is in the hunt. He goes 6'3" and between 285-290 pounds on the hoof, and he can be explosive.

Adams has great snap quickness, can one-gap well and flashes excellent hand quickness. He's raw in his technique, but once he gets seasoned up, Adams could be dominant.

Arkansas

Top Target: Hunter Henry, TE

The Hogs have obviously been through a ton this offseason, but recruiting is like time—it stops for no one.

Hunter Henry is the best uncommitted prospect in the state, and the 6'6", 240-pound TE is trying to give the Razorbacks a chance. He's a big TE prospect who has excellent hands and a large strike zone.

Alabama

Top Target: Robert Nekmdiche, DE

Fine, I'll go with Nkemdiche here.

The Crimson Tide are my pick to land him, as Nkemdiche could be a superstar in Tuscaloosa. A 6'5", 270-pound beast, Nkemdiche shows more than enough strength, power, speed, quickness, balance and change-of-direction skills.

He plays extremely hard every snap and could be a great OLB in 'Bama's 3-4 base defense.

Edwin Weathersby has worked in scouting/player personnel departments for three professional football teams, including the New York Giants, Cleveland Browns and the Las Vegas Gladiators of the Arena League. He spent a year evaluating prep prospects and writing specific recruiting and scouting content articles for Student Sports Football (now ESPN Rise-HS). A syndicated scout and writer, Weathersby has also contributed to WeAreSC.com, GatorBait.net and Diamonds in the Rough Inc., a college football and NFL draft magazine.