For the first time in 17 years, Alabama’s iconic coach won’t be prowling the sidelines in the Southeastern Conference. With one longtime juggernaut headed to an ESPN gig and semi-retirement, two others enter the fray.
The Sooners and Longhorns join the powerhouse league three years after announcing their departure from the Big 12 and they will not have to face Saban, who won six of his major college record seven national championships with the Crimson Tide.
“I think it’s a partnership of elite with elite,” Oklahoma coach Brent Venables said. “And, again, two programs that in the history of college football take a back seat to nobody. The SEC doesn’t take a back seat to anybody.”
For all that, some things haven’t changed: Kirby Smart and top-ranked Georgia are loaded with talent and regarded as the team to beat. Steve Sarkisian and the Longhorns bring another current force into the mix with quarterback Quinn Ewers back after leading them to the College Football Playoff.
Carson Beck, QB, Georgia: Widely regarded as the Heisman Trophy front-runner going into the season, Beck led the SEC and ranked third nationally with 3,941 passing yards while completing 72.4% of his passes. Some of his top targets are gone, but the Bulldogs are loaded.
Will Campbell, OL, LSU: The Tigers’ tackle has started 26 games in his first two seasons and allowed only three sacks in 1,687 snaps — all in his freshman year. The 6-foot-6, 320-pounder anchors a line that was among three finalists for the Joe Moore Award.
New coordinators abound across the league, but none more intriguing than Bobby Petrino. He takes over Sam Pittman’s offense at Arkansas, where he once reigned as head coach before getting fired in 2012 amid an off-field scandal.
Florida coach Billy Napier also may need to make significant strides after going 11-14 in his first two seasons. He faces a closing stretch against Georgia, Texas, LSU, Ole Miss and Florida State but did sign five-star quarterback DJ Lagway.…Read more by JOHN ZENORAssociated Press
