SEC West Season Forecast

  SEC WEST

1. LSU Tigers: Lets start on offense. Matt Flynn, contrary to popular belief, will lead this team as far as it can go. He has all the experience possible. At RB, Keiland Williams is in for a monster season. He showed flashes of what he can do against Virginia Tech. At WR, Early Doucet will be an All-SEC candidate while, on the other side, Brandon LaFell had more catches against VT than he did all last season. Thus far, The O-Line has given Flynn and Williams enough time to operate in the backfield. On Defense, the D-Line is easily the best in the country with the hoss, Glenn Dorsey, anchoring the middle. All three starters return at LB, lead by Ali Highsmith. They have 2 starting CBs, Chevis Jackson and Jonathan Zenon, returning. At Safety, they have 2 new starters, but SS Craig Steltz played a lot last year in LSU's nickel and dime formations.

  Tigers go 12-0 in the regular season.

2. Arkansas: The QB position is obviously a big question for the Razorbacks. After Mitch Mustain transferred, Casey Dick will be the starter. Arkansas has 2 studly RBs in Heisman candidate Darren McFadden and vastly underrated Felix Jones. Marcus Monk has incredible 6'6 size for a reciever. They lost C Zac Tubs on the O-Line, but they return Jonathan Luigs and Robert Felton to anchor the offensive line. Ernest Mitchell and Antwain Robinson will have to step up to replace top 10 pick Jamaal Anderson on the D-Line. MLB Weston Dacus is the only recognizable name on the linebacking core that seems rather week. Cornerback Michael Grant is going to need to pick up the pace for the rest of the secondary.

   Razorbacks go 9-3

3. Alabama: The obvious headline here is that Nick Saban is making his return to the SEC this year. He doesn't have much talent to work with, but he has enough. At QB, the Tide return John Parker Wilson, who is nothing exceptional, but is good enough. Terry Grant, the 'Bama RB, tore it up against Vanderbilt with 173 yards and 2 TDs. The Tide have a pretty good group of recievers. D.J. Parker and Keith Brown are both over 6 feet tall and have above average speed. RG Marlon Davis will headline a sub-par offensive line. I'm not sure what to say about the D-Line, but they seem to be solid as a group. Prince Hall is the best of a decent group of LBs. Simeon Castille is a stud and will pick up for any slack created by the rest of the secondary.

  The Tide go 8-4 this year.

4. Auburn: QB Brandon Coxe was expected to be good but looks like he still has to answer some major questions after the USF loss. Brad Lester has looked decent, but nothing more. Robert Dunn and Montez Billings are the 2 starting recievers. Dunn looks to be decent while slot man Prechae Rodriguez may make an impact. Auburn has no ream playmaker on the O-Line. Except maybe 321 pound King Dunlap. Quentin Groves will be an absolute stud at DE. The line should be solid. Merrill Johnson and the AUB linebacking core did not look impressive vs. South Florida. Jonathan Wilhite and Eric Brock will head an average secondary. If Auburn has a good season, it will be because of the offense.

  Auburn dissapoints and goes 7-5.

5. Miss St.: To be honest with you, QB Michael Henig looked god awful against the LSU secondary. 6 INTs is not an acceptible number by any standards. One of the few bright spots was Tailback Anthony Dixon. Dixon is a hard-nosed runner with decent breakaway speed. The recieving core has no big threats. Lance Long and Jamayel Smith start but do not show any promise. Craig Jenkins and J.D. Hamilton anchor look to anchor a decent a slightly better than average O-Line. Titus Brown is a beast at DE, but there are no other threats on the D-Line. Once again, no standout names at linebacker, but they good be good as a group. FS Derek Peagues is a speedy coverage guy that can make up for a blown coverage.

  Miss St. goes 4-8.

6. Ole Miss: QB Seth Adams looks like hes going to beat out Brent Schaeffer. Schaeffer is more mobile while Adams is more of a dropback passer. BenJarvus Green-Ellis is the 3rd or 4th best back in the SEC West. I know that doesnt sound good, but he's behind Darren McFadden, Felix Jones, and possibly Keiland Williams. The recieving core is not going to help out Adams very much this year. TE Robert Lane may be the unsung hero of the offense. 360 pounds Corey Actis may be the only lineman with potential on the O-Line. Peria Jerry is going to have to play well for this Defensive Line to step up. Jamie Phillips could make a name for himself at Weakside Linebacker. SS Jamarca Stanford has really shown me some nice potential and speed with good coverage abilities.

  Ole Miss has talent, but won't put it together. 3-9.