College Football Predictions: 5 Reasons Alabama Crimson Tide Win SEC in 2011

The Alabama Crimson Tide beat down Kent State, 48-7, in Week 1 and the Penn State Nittany Lions, 27-11, in Week 2. These wins are just the beginning of a season that should see Alabama winning the SEC.

The Tide were unable to defend their 2009 national title last year but did finish the season with a very respectable 10-3 record after winning the Capital One Bowl.

This year, the Tide are returning 17 starters despite losing some stars (DL Marcell Dareus, QB Greg McElroy and RB Mark Ingram).

Here are five reasons the Tide will roll to an SEC title in 2011.

1. The Schedule

The Alabama schedule is perfect for a run at the SEC title.

First, it does not play South Carolina, who is ranked No. 12 right now.

The toughest road games are against the No. 18 Florida Gators and No. 25 Mississippi State Bulldogs.

Mississippi State is going to have a tough time winning the battle in the trenches this year against Alabama, as it lost its starting left tackle and right guard.

Unfortunately for the Bulldogs, Alabama features, arguably, the best linebacker group in the nation led by Dont'a Hightower and Courtney Upshaw. These two are absolutely killer playing behind the defensive line.

Upshaw had 14.5 tackles for a loss and seven sacks last year as he became a premier pass rusher. Hightower is a beast, with 149 tackles in an injury-plagued college career.

Not too mention the fact Alabama has depth on the defensive line with Damion Square, Jesse Williams (a top junior college transfer) and Josh Chapman.

Florida is going through a rough transition this year. It lost head coach Urban Meyer to health concerns and only has 10 starters back this season.

The Gators offensive line, like Mississippi State's, is their weakness, and that is not the place to have a weakness if they want to beat Alabama. The Gators are looking to replace four starters on the offensive front.

The Tide's toughest game is against the LSU Tigers.

Really, these two teams stack up so close it is impossible to make an argument as to why either team will win.

Ultimately, what the Tigers have working against them is that the game is in Tuscaloosa, where it is almost impossible to win over the years.

2. Trent Richardson

The loss of QB Greg McElroy and RB Mark Ingram is going to hurt this Alabama offense. There is no doubt about that.

However, RB Trent Richardson is a stud and looks to have a Heisman-caliber year.

Richardson averaged an impressive 6.2 yards per carry last season behind Ingram. He gets most of his yards between the tackles and is so powerful. He is 5'11" of muscle, strength, quickness and pure athleticism that greatly aids his versatility, as he averaged more than 11 yards per catch last season.

Additionally, he also has an amazing offensive line blocking for him.

Richardson may have to carry this Alabama offense and he has all the talent to do it.

3. The Offensive Line

The Alabama offensive line looks to be amongst the best in the SEC, and it unfortunately gets very little credit (as with every other offensive line).

It cleared the way for 196 rushing yards against a pretty solid Penn State squad.

Senior Barrett Jones has shown good versatility playing LT, LG and C in games this season and he has played very well.

That versatility is great to add flexibility and depth to multiple positions on the line.

He helped keep QB A.J. McCarron on his feet and play mistake-free football, as he had no picks against Penn State. 

Center William Vlachos is very experienced and has played well. He has a great skill set and is a well-respected college football veteran.

Chance Warmack is a big man who has shown he is able to set up good blocks and really shown his talent.

4. Defensive Front 7

Yes, I realize they lost Marcell Dareus, but this line has plenty of talent to replace his production.

DT Josh Chapman is so strong at 6'1" and 310 pounds of pure athlete. Add that strength to his quickness—he runs a sub-five second 40 meters, he is a scary matchup.

The Tide also add talented JUCO transfer Jesse Williams, who is is 6'4", 319 pounds and athletic for a man his size, which adds more depth to the line.

The defensive line for Alabama is very good, and the linebacker group is better. It returns all four starters, and Dont'a Hightower and Courtney Upshaw lead the strong unit.

Upshaw is a feared pass rusher as he led the Tide in sacks last season with seven. He has very good size and strength, and his talents will land him a job on Sundays in the future.

Hightower has shown he can play with the best of them in his career. He has 149 tackles heading into the season.

Alabama has the goal of winning the battle of the trenches and is set up quite nicely to do just that.

5. Nick Saban

Nick Saban is no stranger to winning the SEC and national titles.

He did it at LSU and now he is doing it in Tuscaloosa.

Saban just knows how to win.

He commands respect from his players and instills a culture of championship-caliber play and expectations while knowing how to get the absolute maximum potential from all of his players.

He uses his experiences over the years to his advantage and he just flat-out out-coaches the opponents week in and week out.

There are many coaches out there you just cannot ever bet against, and Saban is one of those coaches.