Way too early 2018 SEC predictions

deliveryman35 said:

Some random predictions:

TAMU will be a bigger threat, and the barn will once again be good. Stidham and Tua will both have monster seasons. The iron bowl will once again be for a spot in the seccg, and we will win with the help of home field advantage. We will beat Florida in the seccg.

Jimbo Fisher will get sec coach of the year.

Bryce Love will win the Heisman.

Four playoff teams will be Bama, Ohio State, Oklahoma, and Stanford. ACC will be locked out.


Bama beats Ohio State for #18.

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You're picking Florida to win the East???? I don't think so, not without a QB, a whole new staff, suspect OL and a lot of talent that's left their D. Mullen has a ways to go to catch Kirby and he's going to have Pruitt biting at his ankles every step of the way.

DawgByte said:

Nice write up! I do think you're overly optimistic on Florida's turnaround. Emory Jones is not the answer, leaving the Gator's once again without a proven or serviceable QB. That's a huge problem to overcome. Moreover, they just don't have the offensive line or defense to make a 10 game run. I think South Carolina will be the runner up in the East. Boom is doing a nice job and they have a very good QB in Bentley with a solid defense.

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Just out of curiosity....why are you saying Emory Jones will not be the answer for Florida?

For the record, I'm not sure if he will be or not - but I'm not going to count him out.

I've seen what a freshman QB can do if things fall into place the way they should.

I haven't posted on this thread because I'm pretty much in agreement with how most are seeing things next season.

I'm cautiously optimistic that Coach Mullen will be able to turn things around...and if we have a 10 win season in his first year, I will be ecstatic!

I do agree if we don't get our QB position stabilized we're in for another long frustrating season.

Bazza said:

Just out of curiosity....why are you saying Emory Jones will not be the answer for Florida?

For the record, I'm not sure if he will be or not - but I'm not going to count him out.

I've seen what a freshman QB can do if things fall into place the way they should.

I haven't posted on this thread because I'm pretty much in agreement with how most are seeing things next season.

I'm cautiously optimistic that Coach Mullen will be able to turn things around...and if we have a 10 win season in his first year, I will be ecstatic!

I do agree if we don't get our QB position stabilized we're in for another long frustrating season.

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There's a reason Kirby and Chaney didn't pursue Emory Jones. He's lacking in critical areas and I think he'll have a rough time adjusting to the speed of the SEC in his first year. Even Gator fans that I've talked to think Jones doesn't fit well into Mullen's scheme. The Gator's have some decent pieces, but Mac left that program in a shambles and it will take Florida at least 2-3 recruiting classes to turn things around. I've even heard rumblings from the Gator faithful that they aren't real happy with how Mullen is closing on this 2018 class. I really think Boom has things going with SC and they'll be a strong contender in the East behind Georgia.

DawgByte said:

Nice write up! I do think you're overly optimistic on Florida's turnaround. Emory Jones is not the answer, leaving the Gator's once again without a proven or serviceable QB. That's a huge problem to overcome. Moreover, they just don't have the offensive line or defense to make a 10 game run. I think South Carolina will be the runner up in the East. Boom is doing a nice job and they have a very good QB in Bentley with a solid defense.

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You and I see the same thing on South Carolina

I think that Emory Jones ia going to be very good, but I will be surprised if he is solid enough to get Florida over the hump as a true freshman.

DawgByte said:

There's a reason Kirby and Chaney didn't pursue Emory Jones. He's lacking in critical areas and I think he'll have a rough time adjusting to the speed of the SEC in his first year. Even Gator fans that I've talked to think Jones doesn't fit well into Mullen's scheme. The Gator's have some decent pieces, but Mac left that program in a shambles and it will take Florida at least 2-3 recruiting classes to turn things around. I've even heard rumblings from the Gator faithful that they aren't real happy with how Mullen is closing on this 2018 class. I really think Boom has things going with SC and they'll be a strong contender in the East behind Georgia.

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Yep. Nobody would pursue him when you have Justin Fields. I am not sure if Emory will be a factor out of the gate but he will be a good one before it is all said and done.

I hope Alabama adds a good QB to this class. Whether it be Brock Purdy or James Foster. Mac Jones looks like another Phillip Ely to me.

Regarding Clemson—Agree they will be very good but their road schedule will be challenging.

DawgByte said:

You're picking Florida to win the East???? I don't think so, not without a QB, a whole new staff, suspect OL and a lot of talent that's left their D. Mullen has a ways to go to catch Kirby and he's going to have Pruitt biting at his ankles every step of the way.

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Dan Mullen overachieved at State. With the plethora of talent now at his disposal, and considering the fact that he knows his way around down there, I expect the turnaround in Gainesville to happen very quickly.

deliveryman35 said:

Regarding Clemson—Agree they will be very good but their road schedule will be challenging.

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You are right. I thought Texas A&M visited them, but it's the other way around. They also travel to FSU, but I'm wait and see on them under Taggert.

DawgByte said:

Nice write up! I do think you're overly optimistic on Florida's turnaround. Emory Jones is not the answer, leaving the Gator's once again without a proven or serviceable QB. That's a huge problem to overcome. Moreover, they just don't have the offensive line or defense to make a 10 game run. I think South Carolina will be the runner up in the East. Boom is doing a nice job and they have a very good QB in Bentley with a solid defense.

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I don't think the sec schedule will help our case as far as SOS is concerned.. The coaching has been down for so long and now you have all of these programs in transition it is hard for me to think there will be consistency with a lot of these teams. I think we are looking at bama or bust for playoffs.
Georgia season will depend on leadership in the locker room. They have the talent but they just lost so much veteran presence. Those rbs appeared to be the glue that held that team together. They believed in them and rallied around them. Their loss will be felt beyond the backfield.

This going to be an interesting year. Of course there are the new HC at Arkansas, Miss St, A&M, Tennessee and Florida. But what about Yawh Yawh? LSU is a big wild card in my mind because of Yawh Yawh. Even harder to figure for LSU is the recruiting angle. They have lost so many to transfer and quitting and leaving early. The recruit ranking for LSU have to be way overrated now.