A lot depends on:
1. Your kids grades. Where can they get in? Given the HOPE scholarship in Georgia and similar in Florida, both UGA and UF have become very difficult to get into. HIGH SAT and good HS grades are minimum reuqirements.

2. This had knock on effect with Auburn because a lot of the Georgia and Florida kids who just missed getting into UGA or UF, applied at Auburn and raised the academic requirement there as well.

3. What can you afford? Our daughter goes to Georgia because she got the HOPE scholarship and other academic merit awards. We would have preferred that she go to Auburn, but the cost difference is big.

4. What do they want to major in? If you want to be a doctor, dont go to Auburn (unless a vet.) LSU and Florida and some others have a med school. If you want to be an engineer then Auburn or one of the other schools with an engineering or architecture department would be on the cards. Georgia and especially Missouri are well known for their journalism schools. Auburns vet school, and Georgias are both nationally renound.

5. Does the kid want to be in a fraternity etc? Some schools have very strong greek organizations, and while thats not a critical factor, it weighs in.

6. Party schools...some are to be avoided and some are destinations... Ole Miss as example. Georgia is also pretty well known for its partying. Florida is legendary on this level.

7. School size. Some SEC schools are about 50K in student body size. A lot of kids dont want that or do not thrive in that. Florida has some classes that are so big that you can watch the course from home on cable. I know a colleague who left Florida to attend U of North Florida because she didnt like the class size issues at UF at the undergrad level.

8. If your kid is a redneck gomer, then theres only one place to go and thats Bama.