We are so back.

The most insufferable, interminable offseason in sports is behind us and it’s finally college football season.

The sport has changed so much it can be tough to recognize at times, but once tailgates open and stadiums fill, it’s still football.

No matter how you feel about the transfer portal, the celebrity of players in the social media era or the normalization of giving college students money for being good at football, the game is still wonderful.

From the very first handshake and joke with a family friend on opening week until the final game in January, football season makes everything better. That maxim holds true whether you are in the midst of  halcyon days of championships and a decade of dominance like Georgia or you are facing the grim prospects of a 5th coaching search in a decade like Florida.

Football makes everything better and in the SEC, we believe this across racial, political, religious and economic lines. We also are sold on the supremacy of SEC football over all other comers, including the stuffy heathens from the north, who think winning 1 College Football Playoff every 10 years somehow makes them an equal. No, the SEC is king. We know this from the time we begin to walk, and no fourth consecutive LSU opening week loss to a lesser-conference opponent is going to alter our confidence in our own supremacy.

It’s the SEC’s world, and anyone who disputes this can simply look at the rings and trophy cases. Or they can come mix it up with the SEC on Saturday, if they dare.

Here at SDS we believe deeply in “The List”, too.

We believe in hospitality, of course, so we happily welcome Texas and Oklahoma into “The List.”

What do we do here? Why is “The List” in season 5?

We rank the best 10 players in the SEC weekly and no matter what the bullies and blasphemers say, we get it right.

We get it right because this is the best list about the best conference, and of course it’s easy to rank the 10 best players in the best league. It’s an exact science and any mistakes in our rankings are an aberration, like heat lightning.

We also take these rankings seriously. There are rules, you see,  like “no such thing as moral victories” and “only 2 players can make the honorable mention list from any specific school.”

We also don’t worry about preseason hype. Talking season is for barber shops and women’s boutiques. “The List” is about football. We rank production.  That’s why you won’t find Jalen Milroe in the top 10 list this week even if he probably will by the end of the season. The cream rises to the top. By season’s end, one player will join Alabama’s DeVonta Smith, Georgia’s Nakobe Dean, Alabama’s Bryce Young, and LSU’s Jayden Daniels as a “List Champion.”

Will it be your favorite player?

It will if they are good enough.

Here’s the top 10 players in the SEC after Week 1, honorable mentions first.

Alabama: QB Jalen Milroe; Keon Sabb, DB. Arkansas: Ja’Quinden Jackson, RB; Josh Braun, OL. Auburn: Perry Thompson, WR; Jarquez Hunter, RB. Florida: Montrell Johnson Jr., RB. Georgia: Raylen Wilson, LB; Jalon Walker, LB. Kentucky: JQ Hardaway, DB; D’Eryk Jackson, LB. LSU: Kyren Lacy, WR; Whit Weeks, LB. Mississippi State: Blake Shapen, QB; Isaac Smith, S. Missouri: Connor Tollison, C; Chris McLellan, DT. Oklahoma: Jackson Arnold, QB; Gracen Halton, DT. Ole Miss: Trey Amos, DB; Chris Paul Jr., LB. South Carolina: Raheim Sanders, RB; Kyle Kennard, Edge. Tennessee: Nico Iamaleava, QB; Dont’e Thornton Jr., WR. Texas: Isaiah Bond, ATH; Quinn Ewers, QB. Texas A&M: Nic Scourton, Edge; Shemar Turner, DL. Vanderbilt: Linus Zunk, Edge; Gunnar Hansen, OT.

10. Deion Burks, WR (Oklahoma)

Burks caught 6 passes — 3 of which went for touchdowns — in a career day for the Sooners, who trounced Temple 51-3. All 3 of the Purdue transfer’s touchdown catches came with the game in the balance in the opening half. The feat marked the first time a player has caught 3 touchdown passes in their Sooners debut.

9. Toriano Pride Jr., DB (Missouri)

The Clemson transfer started his Missouri career in style with a pick-6 in a 51-0 win over Murray State.

Pride graded out as the best corner in the SEC in Week 1, per PFF, allowing 0 completions on 5 targets to complement the interception. Missouri’s defense hasn’t allowed an offensive touchdown since the 4th quarter of the Arkansas game in 2023, a span that now covers 8 quarters of football.

8. Dylan Sampson, RB (Tennessee)

The Volunteers opened the year in style with a nice 69-3 victory over Chattanooga. Sampson rushed for 124 yards on just 12 carries, scoring 3 touchdowns. He also flashed his newly improved skill as a route runner, catching 3 passes for 29 yards to finish with 153 total yards on 15 touches. A season removed from scoring 17 times, Sampson’s fast start was a welcome sight for a Vols offense looking to finish in the top 10 nationally in rushing offense and rushing success rate for the 2nd consecutive season. 

7. Deone Walker, DT (Kentucky)

Walker commanded double teams on a staggering 75% of his snaps in Kentucky’s 31-0 opening win over Southern Miss, per Stats Solutions. No matter, the big man still helped Kentucky limit the Golden Eagles to just 5 yards rushing and 131 total yards in the shutout. For his efforts, Walker graded out as the SEC’s 2nd-best defensive linemen in Week 1, per PFF. He’ll get a chance to feast on a South Carolina offensive line full of question marks in Week 2 in front of a national television audience in Lexington.

6. Tre Harris, WR (Ole Miss)

Harris caught 8 passes for 179 yards and 2 touchdowns in Ole Miss’ 76-0 rout of overmatched Furman.

Harris returned for a 5th season to improve his draft stock from a late-round projection via feedback to a first- or second-day pick. The challenging days are yet to come, but you couldn’t ask for a better start for one of Jaxson Dart’s premier weapons.

5. Ryan Williams, WR (Alabama)

Williams graded out at the top of PFF’s receiver list in Week 1, looking every bit the part of a freshman superstar in Alabama’s 63-0 win over Western Kentucky. The hype machine was already intense, but after a 2-touchdown debut where he averaged 69.5 yards per touchdown reception, the noise will only grow louder. Williams will need to navigate that, which could be tough as a 17-year-old, but when you can make plays like this …

https://twitter.com/SportsCenter/status/1830047327685378393

Well, you get the idea. Watching Williams do this all year is going to be fun.

4. Jaxson Dart, QB (Ole Miss)

Dart put on a show, accounting for 6 touchdowns in the first half of Ole Miss’ 76-0 win over Furman. Dart finished with 418 yards passing and 5 touchdowns, adding 27 yards and a touchdown with his legs — all in the first half. While the Rebels at least play a FBS opponent this week in MTSU, there’s not much in the way of a challenge until Kentucky visits Oxford on Sept. 28. By that time, Dart should be in the thick of Heisman conversations and a likely fixture on “The List.”

3. Dylan Stewart, Edge (South Carolina)

Ryan Williams wasn’t the most dominant freshman in the SEC in Week 1. That honor goes to Dylan Stewart, who forced 2 fumbles, collected 2.5 tackles for loss and registered 1.5 sacks in his debut. The 5-star wasn’t just good — he was historically good. So good that he’s already drawing comparisons to Jadeveon Clowney.

Shane Beamer’s pass rush needed help desperately a year removed from ranking 13th in the SEC in pressures. Stewart adds that component with the ability to tackle on the edge and hold up in run support as well, making him the most menacing edge player at South Carolina since Clowney.

2. Diego Pavia, QB (Vanderbilt)

Pavia earns the highest “List” ranking ever for a Commodore after a masterful performance in Vanderbilt’s thrilling 34-27 overtime win over ACC dark-horse Virginia Tech. Pavia accounted for 296 total yards (190 passing, 106 yards rushing) and 3 touchdowns in his Vanderbilt debut, handing Clark Lea his biggest win at his alma mater in the process.

An electric playmaker, Pavia showed the same poise that helped him guide New Mexico State to a win over Auburn at Jordan-Hare Stadium a season ago. This time, it came against an even better team in Virginia Tech, whose head coach predicted would make the Playoff.

1. Carson Beck, QB (Georgia)

The best football player on the best team in the country, Beck guided the Dawgs to 4 second-half touchdowns after weathering a rough first half where his offensive line was bullied by Clemson’s brilliant front. Beck finished the afternoon with 278 yards at an 8.4 yard per attempt clip against one of the nation’s most formidable defenses, adding 2 touchdown passes in the process.

https://twitter.com/cedwardsNFL/status/1829948684814938534

Beck’s ability to consistently make tight throws into small windows was the difference between a close game and what actually transpired– a decisive 31-point Georgia rout for Kirby Smart’s death star over talented Clemson.