Missouri will take the stage at SEC Media Days on Wednesday afternoon in Atlanta. The whole thing actually gets going on Monday. It will be the the unofficial kickoff to college football season and like the biggest thing to ever happen at least since last year's SEC Media Days if you listen to those of us who are there because, well, it's the only thing having to do with actual football that we've had to talk about for three or four months so we're going to convince you how big it is by telling you over and over how big it is. Truth be told, it really isn't very big. But there are a some storylines to watch. Here are five Mizzou-related topics and five non-Tiger topics that are worthy of discussion this week.
MIZZOU QUESTIONS
1. So what's the bar for success this season?
Barry Odom took at step forward last year. The Tigers made a bowl game, but they didn't really beat anyone. Even Director of Athletics Jim Sterk said last week that he would like to see a number of wins "preferably not all in the last half of the season like last year." Odom has a big-time senior leader returning on each side of the ball and most of the offense that was among the nation's best last year coming back. So it's fair to raise the bar for this program. And if the Tigers don't clear that raised bar, it's fair to ask if Odom's the guy that can do so in the future.
2. Is Drew Lock a viable Heisman candidate?
Yeah, Missouri is pushing him for consideration. And really, you have to do that in July. It's rare for a guy with NO pre-season buzz to get any real consideration. So it makes sense that the Tigers are putting that out there. But is it realistic? The easy answer for a program that's never had a Heisman winner is probably not...especially in a day and age where the award most often simply goes to the most productive offensive player on one of the top four or five teams in the country. You don't have to win a national title to win the Heisman, but you've usually got to be in the discussion. For Lock to have any chance at the award, Missouri's going to have to win ten games...and one of them is probably going to have to come against Georgia or Alabama. Because the sheer numbers probably won't be what they were last year and nobody was talking about him for it then. If he wins eight or nine, sure, it's a nice year, but it's not going to turn the heads of any voters. To even be invited to New York, Lock almost certainly has to be the quarterback of a team that wins double-digit games.
3. So how about the new guy telling Lock what to do?
That would be Derek Dooley, named the offensive coordinator in the offseason to replace Josh Heupel. We can argue about how far down the list Odom went to find Dooley, but all that matters now is that he's the guy on whom Odom settled. Ish Witter and J'Mon Moore are the only significant contributors not back from last year's offense. Yes, both are significant, but Larry Rountree III is in his second season and Damarea Crockett is healthy, so the running game should be better than a year ago. Albert Okwuegbunam is going to get a lot of all-SEC buzz in the preseason, Emanuel Hall was one of the country's best deep threats and, while he produced a ton, Moore also left a lot on the field the last couple of years. In other words, it would seem to be fairly difficult not to look good calling plays for this offense (though last year's Texas Bowl would offer plenty of evidence to the contrary). This is a rehab assignment for Dooley's college football career. If it goes well, he could use Lock and Missouri as a springboard to a better job soon. If it doesn't, there won't be much interest in the guy that couldn't get this offense out of first gear.
4. Are the defensive tackles in consideration for the best in the SEC?
Behind the scenes, Missouri's coaches certainly think they are. Terry Beckner Jr. is the definitive leader. He's been very good when healthy throughout his career, but last year was the first year he was healthy all year and, truth be told, he seemed to be invisible in a good number of games in the first half of the season. The staff loves Texas transfer Jordan Elliott, who seems likely to start beside Beckner, but obviously he's never really done it on the field so far. Add to that pair a stable that includes Markell Utsey, Walter Palmore, Akial Byers, Rashad Brandon and Kobie Whiteside as well as Caleb Sampson coming off a redshirt season and 23-year-old Antar Thompson in the recruiting class and there is no shortage of bodies. They won't all see meaningful time, but there are enough options the position should be very good. And it may command enough attention to make the unproven defensive ends more of a factor than people think in July.
5. Can they stop the pass?
Part of this is going to have to do with that line we talked about in No. 4. If the defensive line can apply some pressure, it makes the secondary look a lot better than some fear it is. At cornerback, Adam Sparks is likely to start on one side. DeMarkus Acy could go on the other, but could also move back to safety. Christian Holmes is coming off an injury that forced him to miss all of last season and should be in the mix. Keep an eye on redshirt freshman Terry Petry, who should push for serious playing time. Freshman Tyrone Collins was an early enrollee and is a guy that could force his way into the mix at corner.
At safety, almost nothing is known. Kaleb Prewett isn't on the roster right now and is officially still indefinitely suspended (as he has been for months). Cam Hilton and Ronnell Perkins have both started in the past and will likely be listed as the starters on the depth chart Missouri hands out this week. But expect Oregon grad transfer Khalil Oliver to push for some of that playing time. Tyree Gillespie could be in the starting lineup early on in the season and the coaches loved Jordan Ulmer before he struggled in last year's season opener and never really found his way back into the rotation.
The pass defense is likely the most glaring question mark on this team. Odom won't be able to provide any real answers about it this week, but he'll certainly face some questions on the topic.
QUESTIONS AROUND THE SEC
1. Did Nick Saban find a quarterback in the national title game?
Saban's Alabama program has been the dominant program in college football for the last number of years. The Tide has suffocated opponents and rolled to ten wins or more for ten consecutive seasons. But it's most often been led by a dominant defense and a punishing running game with a quarterback who has done enough to win. No disrespect to the signal callers, but it's hardly a who's who of stardom at the position under Saban. Jalen Hurts looked like he might be a star two years ago, but as he struggled to throw the ball in the national title game against Georgia last season, Tua Tagovailoa came off the bench and carried Bama to a comeback win on the strength of his left arm, throwing for 166 yards and three touchdowns including a title-winning 40-yarder. He'll get plenty of all-SEC votes and even some pre-season Heisman buzz even though he hasn't officially been named the starter. If Saban has a legit first-round talent at quarterback, how long can the dynasty roll on?
2. Speaking of which, can anybody in the West challenge the Tide this year?
The short answer is probably not. The schedule is kind to the Tide. The road games are Ole Miss, Arkansas, Tennessee (three teams that will be projected toward the bottom of their divisions) and then LSU. The trip to Baton Rouge is never easy, but nobody's sure what the Tigers are right now, other than not quite what they were ten years ago. Four of Bama's five toughest league games (Mississippi State, Auburn, Texas A&M, Missouri) may be at home this season. The Crimson Tide will certainly be a favorite in all 12 games and maybe by double figures in every one. Auburn will be the most popular pick to knock them off, but even if they do, the Tigers would still have to navigate the rest of the league schedule with only one loss to win the division. In other words, sure, it's possible someone other than Bama returns to Atlanta in December...but it sure doesn't seem likely.
3. Is Georgia the Bama of the East?
It's a trendy thing to say and maybe it's not out of the question, but Saban's done this for more than a decade. Let's make Kirby Smart do it for at least two years before we anoint his team as a prohibitive favorite every single season. Coming into last year, even those in Athens weren't sure they had the right guy after an 8-5 debut season. Of course, Smart got UGA to the SEC title game, destroyed Auburn and took them to the doorstep of the crystal football. He was hired to take the step Mark Richt couldn't and he did. Now can he take the next one? Certainly, Georgia will be picked to win the East this season. But if you could only bet on one, you'd still take Bama to win the West as more of a sure thing until the Bulldogs back up last year with another one like it...especially after losing plenty of talent to the NFL Draft.
4. Who bounces back first: Tennessee or Florida?
The biggest reason the East has been looked down upon for the last few seasons is that the Vols and Gators haven't been any good. Most college football fans simply aren't going to accept that a division that comes down to Mizzou vs South Carolina is anything other than garbage. It's like the Big 12 North once Nebraska and Colorado stumbled. You won that? Congratulations. Somebody had to win it. So, Tennessee and Florida are down right now. But it's hard to see them both staying that way. Tradition and geography make it very, very difficult. It's possible they both bounce back to their prior selves. But which one does it first? Florida replaced Jim McElwain with Mississippi State's Dan Mullen. The Vols went after (well, eventually, after their fans approved it on Twitter) Saban's defensive coordinator, Jeremy Pruitt. Mullen has more experience and probably a little more talent to work with. Look for the Gators to be picked in the top half of the East this week. The Vols may come back, but they seem more than a single season away.
5. Who's here for the last time?
In college football these days, you're always on the hot seat. Nowhere is that more true than the SEC. Five coaches enter their first seasons at their current school (Mullen, Pruitt, Mississippi State's Joe Moorhead, Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher, Arkansas' Chad Morris). Matt Luke is in his first season as Ole Miss' full-time head coach after earning the job as an interim boss last year. So none of those guys is getting fired. Neither is Saban or Smart or Auburn's Gus Malzahn or Will Muschamp at South Carolina. That leaves us with four coaches: Barry Odom, Mark Stoops, Derek Mason and Ed Orgeron. Here's betting that two of them aren't at SEC Media Days next July.
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