Started By
Message
SEC Riviera Roundup - The Mighty Western Division
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:23 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:23 pm
The SEC Riviera Roundup
The Mighty Western Division
By Chris Warner
July 10, 2014
Entering the 2014 season, Les Miles’ tenth in Tiger Town, LSU is an underdog to win the SEC Western Division, the nation’s most competitive sub-conference. The West greatly improved its stock a year ago with the addition of trendsetter Gus Malzahn, Auburn’s creative head coach aptly named the National Coach of the Year in 2013. Gus’s entrance into the division means the West is tougher than it was two years ago when it added tradition-rich Texas A&M, making it a viper pit for even the most seasoned coaches. Just ask Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema, who was winless in his SEC debut after much success in the Big Ten. As kickoff approaches, a team from the State of Alabama is once again the favorite to win the West.
In this exclusive SEC blog, we’ll take our regular armchair quarterback tour across the SEC Western Division, listing its likely order of finish and lending perspective on its prospect for continued dominance of the nation’s toughest league, and the national championship, entering the playoff era. Further, we will focus heavily on LSU, explaining why its preseason ranking is below its Alabama counterparts, despite having another roster loaded with NFL-ready talent.
A Decade of Ten Wins or More
Les Miles is 95-24 in nine seasons at LSU, an average of 10.5 wins per year. This was accomplished during what can only be called the SEC’s greatest decade, as the league, with impunity, absolutely dominated the BCS era. Miles is honing in on Charles McClendon’s long-standing win record at LSU (137). Based on his current average annual win total, he is four seasons away from tying the mark. Despite his unruly detractors South of I-10, Miles is unequivocally LSU’s greatest modern-day coach, and one of the true standard bearers of the SEC’s continued gridiron dominance.
Heading into the season, LSU is an underdog to Auburn and Alabama because of scheduling and their freshman quarterback situation. However, despite their early third-place ranking in the West, the Tigers still have a decent shot at Atlanta, as they possess a trump card in incoming freshman running back Leonard Fournette, the nation’s best high school player a year ago.
It’s All About the Schedule
Despite what Crimson Tide fans insist, Auburn is the favorite to win the West. Alabama’s defense a year ago gave up over six hundred yards to A&M and faltered down the final stretch, dropping consecutive games against their nemesis in the Iron Bowl and Oklahoma in the Sugar. Saban is the de facto defensive coordinator and is unlikely to make the wholesale changes necessary to defeat the growing onslaught of spread offenses in the league and across the country. One could argue forcefully that Saban brought in much maligned Lane Kiffin to join the offensive fray. Further, one could contend that Malzahn is just getting started, and is looking forward to further exploiting Saban’s previously impenetrable system. Auburn possesses a senior QB, a young, talented defense and despite what its detractors say, will adequately replace departed running back Tre’ Mason. The biggest problem teams will have is scoring with them and handling their torrid offensive pace, as Saban’s off-season attempt to slow the game with rule changes was rightly thwarted. As a result, the Gus Bus rolls on—stronger than ever.
Alabama is ranked ahead of LSU not because they are a better team—but because their friends in the SEC Offices have ensured again that the schedule is the easiest of the 14 league teams. Alabama’s twelve regular season 2014 opponents won .473 of their games a year ago. Their out-of-conference opponents won .271. Also, Alabama has in Jacob Coker an older quarterback who has more experience than LSU’s two newcomers—even though it’s not league experience. Young, inexperienced quarterbacks take time to develop, and inevitably make costly mistakes. Whether or not Coker’s lack of SEC experience will translate into similar setbacks remains to be seen, but for now, give Alabama the nod over LSU for second place in the West. Alabama’s schedulers know that one loss will likely get them in the SEC Championship Game during most years, so there is always room for error.
End pt. 1
The Mighty Western Division
By Chris Warner
July 10, 2014
Entering the 2014 season, Les Miles’ tenth in Tiger Town, LSU is an underdog to win the SEC Western Division, the nation’s most competitive sub-conference. The West greatly improved its stock a year ago with the addition of trendsetter Gus Malzahn, Auburn’s creative head coach aptly named the National Coach of the Year in 2013. Gus’s entrance into the division means the West is tougher than it was two years ago when it added tradition-rich Texas A&M, making it a viper pit for even the most seasoned coaches. Just ask Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema, who was winless in his SEC debut after much success in the Big Ten. As kickoff approaches, a team from the State of Alabama is once again the favorite to win the West.
In this exclusive SEC blog, we’ll take our regular armchair quarterback tour across the SEC Western Division, listing its likely order of finish and lending perspective on its prospect for continued dominance of the nation’s toughest league, and the national championship, entering the playoff era. Further, we will focus heavily on LSU, explaining why its preseason ranking is below its Alabama counterparts, despite having another roster loaded with NFL-ready talent.
A Decade of Ten Wins or More
Les Miles is 95-24 in nine seasons at LSU, an average of 10.5 wins per year. This was accomplished during what can only be called the SEC’s greatest decade, as the league, with impunity, absolutely dominated the BCS era. Miles is honing in on Charles McClendon’s long-standing win record at LSU (137). Based on his current average annual win total, he is four seasons away from tying the mark. Despite his unruly detractors South of I-10, Miles is unequivocally LSU’s greatest modern-day coach, and one of the true standard bearers of the SEC’s continued gridiron dominance.
Heading into the season, LSU is an underdog to Auburn and Alabama because of scheduling and their freshman quarterback situation. However, despite their early third-place ranking in the West, the Tigers still have a decent shot at Atlanta, as they possess a trump card in incoming freshman running back Leonard Fournette, the nation’s best high school player a year ago.
It’s All About the Schedule
Despite what Crimson Tide fans insist, Auburn is the favorite to win the West. Alabama’s defense a year ago gave up over six hundred yards to A&M and faltered down the final stretch, dropping consecutive games against their nemesis in the Iron Bowl and Oklahoma in the Sugar. Saban is the de facto defensive coordinator and is unlikely to make the wholesale changes necessary to defeat the growing onslaught of spread offenses in the league and across the country. One could argue forcefully that Saban brought in much maligned Lane Kiffin to join the offensive fray. Further, one could contend that Malzahn is just getting started, and is looking forward to further exploiting Saban’s previously impenetrable system. Auburn possesses a senior QB, a young, talented defense and despite what its detractors say, will adequately replace departed running back Tre’ Mason. The biggest problem teams will have is scoring with them and handling their torrid offensive pace, as Saban’s off-season attempt to slow the game with rule changes was rightly thwarted. As a result, the Gus Bus rolls on—stronger than ever.
Alabama is ranked ahead of LSU not because they are a better team—but because their friends in the SEC Offices have ensured again that the schedule is the easiest of the 14 league teams. Alabama’s twelve regular season 2014 opponents won .473 of their games a year ago. Their out-of-conference opponents won .271. Also, Alabama has in Jacob Coker an older quarterback who has more experience than LSU’s two newcomers—even though it’s not league experience. Young, inexperienced quarterbacks take time to develop, and inevitably make costly mistakes. Whether or not Coker’s lack of SEC experience will translate into similar setbacks remains to be seen, but for now, give Alabama the nod over LSU for second place in the West. Alabama’s schedulers know that one loss will likely get them in the SEC Championship Game during most years, so there is always room for error.
End pt. 1
4
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:23 pm to Chris Warner
Buga Nation on the Rise
It is a most unlikely moniker—“Buga”… Being United Generates Attitude … is the meaning of the esoteric acronym devised by the family of LSU freshman phenom running back Leonard Fournette, but it is also now the undeniable rallying cry of LSU Football fans wanting a championship. If LSU is to overcome its quarterback and receiver concerns it will rely heavily on a massive, experienced offensive line and the best recruit to come of out Louisiana since Kevin Faulk signed out of Carencro back in 1995. St. Augustine’s Leonard Fournette is “the real thing.” He is all that and a sack of crawfish—already boiled—with potatoes, corn and sausage. The guy has more physical abilities than his fancy Cajun predecessor with three Super Bowl rings, and has been repeatedly called the “second coming” of Texas’Adrian Peterson.
Fournette will replace the departed Jeremy Hill, who left early for the NFL after two seasons. Hill’s high school highlight reel is one of the best you will ever see. When I saw it three years ago I thought perhaps it was the best I’d seen—along with those of Texas’ Eric Dickerson and Mississippi’s Marcus Dupree. Hill had all the tools needed to dominate at the collegiate level and he did for the most part during an abbreviated LSU career. However, Fournette’s tape is mind-boggling. I have watched it repeatedly and the difficult things he makes routine are mesmerizing. Power, speed, vision, field awareness, balance, the ability to make you miss, great hands and an uncanny fifth gear he can use to accelerate from a closing opponent make him undeniably the greatest running back to ever come out of the Louisiana High School ranks. It’s not whether Fournette will live up to the hype—it’s whether the hype will live up to him. He is that good. And remember, “If you ain’t BUGA—you suspect!”
Breaking Down the West
Auburn – Alabama fans laughed at the hiring of Gus Malzahn, just as they had at the hiring of his predecessor Gene Chizik—who went on to win a national championship with Cam Newton. Tide fans are no longer laughing. They know well that Malzahn is an offensive maestro and a much better coach than Chizik. In the Iron Bowl Gus handed Saban possibly his worse emotional defeat. “Give me a minute, Nick—I wanna run something by you” is the rallying cry of the War Eagle Nation, and they’ve got the tee shirts to prove it. Gus is all in Saban’s head, evidenced by the fact Saban refused to congratulate him in his post-Iron Bowl presser; and this year they get LSU at home.
Alabama – The Tide has recruited as well as anyone the last five years. Their roster is a who’s who of brutish blue chippers. The problem is that the league is more competitive, Saban’s defense has trouble with the modern spread and their quarterback situation is as unsettled as it has been during the same span. Like Fournette, Coker better live up to his hype, as the Tide lost considerable beef and experience along its offensive line. Alabama will need a balanced offensive attack to keep teams guessing. The Tide’s running backs are talented, but they can’t do it alone. Their toughest game is in Baton Rouge, as they get Auburn in T-Town for a revenge-minded Iron Bowl Game.
LSU – Five years ago Les Miles went 9-4 following an 8-5 season. His detractors were many and the drumbeats were heard. Many Tiger fans wanted him gone. It seemed after his unlikely 2007 National Championship with two losses, that Les had gone complacent. Derided by his enemies for surrounding himself with less talented assistants and for his inability to develop NFL talent, Miles was on the hot seat. But, in typical Miles fashion, he reacted to the criticism. He brought in John Chavis, then later Cam Cameron, and now—just five short years later—is recognized as the best producer of NFL talent in the country. Miles may be quirky, but his players love him and always play hard for him (except at Ole Miss last year). The Tigers get the Rebels in Death Valley this year.
Mississippi State – Dan Mullen has done a great job at State. Recruiting to Starkville is like dating in high school driving a lemon—it ain’t easy—but it’s still possible. Mullen has continued the trend of his predecessors of bringing in quality athletes and coaching them up to speed. However, quality depth, as always, is a concern. Another problem has been the quarterback position…but that has changed. Dak Prescott is the reason State gets the nod over Ole Miss for fourth place in the West. The dual threat QB is a great athlete and throws well enough that it may allow Mullen to work his play calling magic and finally make a run at beating one of the big three, earning his program the respect and confidence it dearly needs to turn the corner in the nation’s toughest subdivision.
Ole Miss – Bo Wallace is a poor man’s Steve Taneyhill…a man on a mission with a mullet to prove it. Wallace has over 6,000 total yards in Hugh Freeze’s spread offense and is by far the most accomplished returning quarterback in the league. However, Wallace’s career has been plagued by turnovers as much as it has by a lack of a pure runner at tailback. The Rebels desperately need a more balanced offensive attack if it hopes to challenge the Big Three and its in-state nemesis in the Egg Bowl—a game it lost a year ago in overtime on a Bo Wallace fumble. Nevertheless, this is not your father’s Rebel squad, and they possess just enough talent and pizzazz to keep things interesting against the league’s best. On paper this looks like an eight win regular season for the Rebels, which has to be mighty fine by their fans.
Texas A&M – The SEC’s most prolific player is now rolling bills in Cleveland. The whirlwind that was Johnny Manziel has left the pasture in College Station, leaving a huge void in his absence. Kevin Sumlin, 20-6 after two seasons, has done an admirable job. A huge win over Alabama in Tuscaloosa two seasons ago still means something. However, Sumlin will prove his worth this year with a new quarterback and a new team mindset. Losing a player like Manziel means it is rebuilding time for the Aggies. The fact that they are ranked sixth in the West heading into the season proves just how competitive the division is. A&M hosts LSU on Thanksgiving night.
Arkansas – Bret Bielema’s wife was the highlight of his first season in Fayetteville, seemingly the only bright spot in an otherwise dreary blight. The Hogs have a great running game with Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams, but their defense was extremely suspect a year ago, meaning that if they don’t improve their ability to stop people, they won’t improve on their dismal league record a year ago. Second-year Quarterback Brandon Allen showed promise late in the year against LSU when his shoulder looked much healthier following an early season injury. Bielema, despite his credentials and prior record, is already drawing criticism from impatient Hog fans.
*Chris Warner is a double graduate of LSU and of the University of New Orleans. He is the author of over 20 books, including “A Tailgater’s Guide to SEC Football Vol. IV,” “Bushwhacked at the Flora-Bama” with Joe Gilchrist, and the forthcoming (August) “Saved at the Alabama-Florida Line,” a novel set in Perdido Key, Florida in 2010. Contact Chris: cewarner@mindspring.com
It is a most unlikely moniker—“Buga”… Being United Generates Attitude … is the meaning of the esoteric acronym devised by the family of LSU freshman phenom running back Leonard Fournette, but it is also now the undeniable rallying cry of LSU Football fans wanting a championship. If LSU is to overcome its quarterback and receiver concerns it will rely heavily on a massive, experienced offensive line and the best recruit to come of out Louisiana since Kevin Faulk signed out of Carencro back in 1995. St. Augustine’s Leonard Fournette is “the real thing.” He is all that and a sack of crawfish—already boiled—with potatoes, corn and sausage. The guy has more physical abilities than his fancy Cajun predecessor with three Super Bowl rings, and has been repeatedly called the “second coming” of Texas’Adrian Peterson.
Fournette will replace the departed Jeremy Hill, who left early for the NFL after two seasons. Hill’s high school highlight reel is one of the best you will ever see. When I saw it three years ago I thought perhaps it was the best I’d seen—along with those of Texas’ Eric Dickerson and Mississippi’s Marcus Dupree. Hill had all the tools needed to dominate at the collegiate level and he did for the most part during an abbreviated LSU career. However, Fournette’s tape is mind-boggling. I have watched it repeatedly and the difficult things he makes routine are mesmerizing. Power, speed, vision, field awareness, balance, the ability to make you miss, great hands and an uncanny fifth gear he can use to accelerate from a closing opponent make him undeniably the greatest running back to ever come out of the Louisiana High School ranks. It’s not whether Fournette will live up to the hype—it’s whether the hype will live up to him. He is that good. And remember, “If you ain’t BUGA—you suspect!”
Breaking Down the West
Auburn – Alabama fans laughed at the hiring of Gus Malzahn, just as they had at the hiring of his predecessor Gene Chizik—who went on to win a national championship with Cam Newton. Tide fans are no longer laughing. They know well that Malzahn is an offensive maestro and a much better coach than Chizik. In the Iron Bowl Gus handed Saban possibly his worse emotional defeat. “Give me a minute, Nick—I wanna run something by you” is the rallying cry of the War Eagle Nation, and they’ve got the tee shirts to prove it. Gus is all in Saban’s head, evidenced by the fact Saban refused to congratulate him in his post-Iron Bowl presser; and this year they get LSU at home.
Alabama – The Tide has recruited as well as anyone the last five years. Their roster is a who’s who of brutish blue chippers. The problem is that the league is more competitive, Saban’s defense has trouble with the modern spread and their quarterback situation is as unsettled as it has been during the same span. Like Fournette, Coker better live up to his hype, as the Tide lost considerable beef and experience along its offensive line. Alabama will need a balanced offensive attack to keep teams guessing. The Tide’s running backs are talented, but they can’t do it alone. Their toughest game is in Baton Rouge, as they get Auburn in T-Town for a revenge-minded Iron Bowl Game.
LSU – Five years ago Les Miles went 9-4 following an 8-5 season. His detractors were many and the drumbeats were heard. Many Tiger fans wanted him gone. It seemed after his unlikely 2007 National Championship with two losses, that Les had gone complacent. Derided by his enemies for surrounding himself with less talented assistants and for his inability to develop NFL talent, Miles was on the hot seat. But, in typical Miles fashion, he reacted to the criticism. He brought in John Chavis, then later Cam Cameron, and now—just five short years later—is recognized as the best producer of NFL talent in the country. Miles may be quirky, but his players love him and always play hard for him (except at Ole Miss last year). The Tigers get the Rebels in Death Valley this year.
Mississippi State – Dan Mullen has done a great job at State. Recruiting to Starkville is like dating in high school driving a lemon—it ain’t easy—but it’s still possible. Mullen has continued the trend of his predecessors of bringing in quality athletes and coaching them up to speed. However, quality depth, as always, is a concern. Another problem has been the quarterback position…but that has changed. Dak Prescott is the reason State gets the nod over Ole Miss for fourth place in the West. The dual threat QB is a great athlete and throws well enough that it may allow Mullen to work his play calling magic and finally make a run at beating one of the big three, earning his program the respect and confidence it dearly needs to turn the corner in the nation’s toughest subdivision.
Ole Miss – Bo Wallace is a poor man’s Steve Taneyhill…a man on a mission with a mullet to prove it. Wallace has over 6,000 total yards in Hugh Freeze’s spread offense and is by far the most accomplished returning quarterback in the league. However, Wallace’s career has been plagued by turnovers as much as it has by a lack of a pure runner at tailback. The Rebels desperately need a more balanced offensive attack if it hopes to challenge the Big Three and its in-state nemesis in the Egg Bowl—a game it lost a year ago in overtime on a Bo Wallace fumble. Nevertheless, this is not your father’s Rebel squad, and they possess just enough talent and pizzazz to keep things interesting against the league’s best. On paper this looks like an eight win regular season for the Rebels, which has to be mighty fine by their fans.
Texas A&M – The SEC’s most prolific player is now rolling bills in Cleveland. The whirlwind that was Johnny Manziel has left the pasture in College Station, leaving a huge void in his absence. Kevin Sumlin, 20-6 after two seasons, has done an admirable job. A huge win over Alabama in Tuscaloosa two seasons ago still means something. However, Sumlin will prove his worth this year with a new quarterback and a new team mindset. Losing a player like Manziel means it is rebuilding time for the Aggies. The fact that they are ranked sixth in the West heading into the season proves just how competitive the division is. A&M hosts LSU on Thanksgiving night.
Arkansas – Bret Bielema’s wife was the highlight of his first season in Fayetteville, seemingly the only bright spot in an otherwise dreary blight. The Hogs have a great running game with Alex Collins and Jonathan Williams, but their defense was extremely suspect a year ago, meaning that if they don’t improve their ability to stop people, they won’t improve on their dismal league record a year ago. Second-year Quarterback Brandon Allen showed promise late in the year against LSU when his shoulder looked much healthier following an early season injury. Bielema, despite his credentials and prior record, is already drawing criticism from impatient Hog fans.
*Chris Warner is a double graduate of LSU and of the University of New Orleans. He is the author of over 20 books, including “A Tailgater’s Guide to SEC Football Vol. IV,” “Bushwhacked at the Flora-Bama” with Joe Gilchrist, and the forthcoming (August) “Saved at the Alabama-Florida Line,” a novel set in Perdido Key, Florida in 2010. Contact Chris: cewarner@mindspring.com
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:25 pm to Chris Warner
I am not reading all that shite
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:27 pm to dawgfan24348
Holy shite, theres like too many words and shite.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:36 pm to Chris Warner
quote:
Dak Prescott is the reason State gets the nod over Ole Miss for fourth place in the West.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:36 pm to Chris Warner
List is shite! 
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:39 pm to Wardamnbulldog
quote:
List is shite!
I agree, Auburn's not winning the west.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 12:57 pm to Chris Warner
I'm not big on SEC schedule complaining anyway, but this is an especially bad year to do it. We get Florida and Kentucky from the East, Bama gets Florida and Tennessee.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 1:03 pm to Chris Warner
quote:
“Give me a minute, Nick—I wanna run something by you”
Im sure your editor checked this, right?
Posted on 7/10/14 at 1:35 pm to Chris Warner
quote:
Bielema, despite his credentials and prior record, is already drawing criticism from impatient Hog fans.
Must be some dickhead from the Cult of Floyd over on Hogville, haven't seen it anywhere I hang out or heard any personally. Oh, except for Aubbies who like to say 'Bert's fat.'
This post was edited on 7/10/14 at 1:36 pm
Posted on 7/10/14 at 1:37 pm to Chris Warner
quote:
“Give me a minute, Nick—I wanna run something by you” is the rallying cry of the War Eagle Nation, and they’ve got the tee shirts to prove it.
So much fail.
Posted on 7/10/14 at 1:48 pm to Chris Warner
Posted on 7/10/14 at 1:51 pm to Chris Warner
I haven't read it yet but...1st page 
Page 1 of 1
Popular
Back to top
Follow SECRant for SEC Football News