Welcome to the inaugural Saturday Down South SEC Mailbag!

With the remaining 13 SEC teams starting their 2018 seasons over the next couple of days, it’s time to discuss some of the most important questions facing the conference this preseason.

Those questions, naturally, involve fan fashion, comparing SEC coaches to “Talladega Nights” characters, doing away with permanent rivalry games and more.

Here we go!

@Ryan_Kamp:

Being a proud UF Gator, I’m confident jorts are the best look for SEC gameday fashion. But my question is, what SEC look is the distant second place? Checkerboard overalls at Tennessee, Ole Miss sorority dresses, Alabama mullets, or something else?

Answer: I’m no fashion expert (just ask my wife), but I know what I like. So, while these might not be perfect rankings in terms of objective style, here’s how I rank the SEC’s various fashion trends:

1. Tennessee checkerboard: I’m not a Tennessee fan or anything, but I love that orange and white checkerboard pattern. From the end zones to the overalls to the times when the Vols do a section-by-section checkerboard in the stands, I love it all.

Credit: Randy Sartin-USA TODAY Sports

How can you not love looking at that picture?

2. Texas A&M military uniforms: The A&M Corps of Cadets always shows out on game day, and it provides a cool aesthetic to the stadium. Not all of those in uniform have military contracts, but it’s still a great sight to see when Kyle Field is packed with more than 100,000 fans.

3. Alabama houndstooth: Any sort of fashion that was popularized by a legend like Bear Bryant is going to be ranked pretty high on this list.

The houndstooth hat is iconic, and seeing the pattern on anything in Tuscaloosa brings back memories of that bygone era of Alabama dominance (which has since been replaced by a new era of dominance under Nick Saban).

4. Ole Miss fashion: Several SEC schools embrace dressing up on game days, but Ole Miss takes it to another level in The Grove.

5. Florida jorts: Gator fans get credit for steadfastly embracing the cutoff jean shorts despite being ridiculed by every other fanbase in the country. Plus, as Charlie Kelly from “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” will tell you, jorts are great for mobility:

6. LSU Mardi Gras gear: It’s always a party in Death Valley, and LSU fans certainly dress the part. However, it’s not as difficult to acquire beads or a little mask as it is some of the other items on this list. Still, keep doing your thing, Tiger fans.

129. Arkansas pig hats: The Razorback is a really cool mascot, and the Hogs have some good-looking gear. However, the pig hats have got to go.

I say this as a Green Bay Packers fan who also hates the cheesehead gear fans willingly wear every Sunday for some reason. Any sort of foam headgear is awful, and should not be worn by any self-respecting adult.

On a different note, though, I fully endorse any sort of hat that helps you hold a beer (or two).

@AlanH196:

“The Office” character podcast was a fun one … curious to see SEC head coaches as the “Talladega Nights” characters in a similar fashion.

Answer: What a great question, and a great way to kick off the first installment of our weekly mailbag! While there probably aren’t enough memorable characters from “Talladega Nights,” there are enough to get half of the current SEC coaches a comparison. The first two are obvious, at least to me:

Nick Saban, Alabama — Ricky Bobby

“If you ain’t first, you’re last.” That’s the motto Ricky builds his entire life upon, and it’s clear Saban feels the same way. Fortunately for him, he finishes first more often than not (six national titles).

Kirby Smart, Georgia — Cal Naughton Jr.

From Shake-and-Bake to Magic Man and El Diablo, Saban and Smart have gone from allies to enemies, especially after facing off in last year’s National Championship Game. However, there’s still a healthy amount of respect between the two rivals, and perhaps they’ll re-enact this iconic speech if they meet in the SEC title game this season:

Joe Moorhead, Mississippi State — Jean Girard

Coming from the Big Ten, Moorhead might as well be joining the SEC from a different country. And, with a roster loaded with talent, Moorhead has a team that could play spoiler to Alabama and Georgia in the SEC, much like Girard disrupted Ricky and Cal’s NASCAR dominance.

Jeremy Pruitt, Tennessee — Carley Bobby

When Ricky loses his mojo, Carley ditches him for his best friend, Cal, driving a wedge between them. Pruitt has worked under both Saban and Smart in the past, and now that he’s on his own, he’ll try to play the disruptor in an SEC that seems set up to be dominated by the Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs in the coming years.

Jimbo Fisher, Texas A&M — Texas Ranger Bobby
Will Muschamp, South Carolina — Walker Bobby

Other than having “Texas” in the name, this is the perfect fit for Fisher, and it’s also great for Muschamp. Both Fisher and Muschamp were coordinators on Saban’s 2003 title team at LSU, so they were basically his children that he’s brought along in the coaching world.

Both also have rambunctious personalities, and are likely to appear to be jacked up on Mountain Dew at any given time.

Gus Malzahn, Auburn — Lucius Washington

Who is the only current SEC coach with a victory over Nick Saban on his resume? Malzahn, and he’s done it twice (2013 and 2017).

Malzahn is a no-nonsense, steadying presence in the SEC, and Washington (mostly) played that same role as Ricky’s crew chief.

@Sean_Patrick621:

Which RB not named Damien Harris, D’Andre Swift or Benny Snell has the biggest year?

Answer: The SEC lost some big-name guys to the NFL this offseason — Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, Derrius Guice, Kerryon Johnson and Bo Scarbrough, to name a few. But those guys mentioned in the question should pick up the slack and have huge seasons. In fact, Snell and Harris can become only the sixth and seventh running backs in SEC history to have three 1,000-yard seasons in their careers.

But that’s not the question. The question is about which non-elite back will put up numbers that rival the conference’s leaders. And I have two guys in mind.

The first is Auburn’s Kam Martin. The reasoning is simple — Auburn has had a 1,000-yard rusher every year since 2008 (when Ben Tate led the team with only 664 yards). Martin seems to be in line for the starting job this fall, so if he stays healthy, he’ll put up big numbers, simply by virtue of coach Gus Malzahn’s system.

Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports

The other is Mizzou’s Damarea Crockett. As a true freshman in 2016, Crockett put up 1,062 yards on only 153 carries (good for a 6.9 yards-per-carry average). He was banged up for much of 2017, but still managed to average six yards per touch. He should be the featured back in Mizzou’s offense again this fall, and because he does so much when the ball is in his hands, he’s a good bet to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark again.

Mississippi State’s Aeris Williams also deserves a mention, but QB Nick Fitzgerald puts the “star” in Starkville, and he’ll amass most of the stats — both on the ground and through the air. Through the first nine games of 2017, Williams only had two rushing touchdowns, finishing with six total. He’ll have a solid year, but he’ll be overshadowed by Fitzgerald once again.

@CVTiger_94

Everyone keeps talking about the floor for this LSU team, no one is optimistic. If the defense plays to what it should and the QB situation actually works out, what’s the ceiling for this LSU squad? There is talent at receiver, line depth, and a nasty defense …

Answer: You’re definitely right about the Tigers having a nasty defense and some talent at receiver. How does LSU always get so many elite receivers?

However, guys like Jonathan Giles, who could legitimately turn into the best receiver in the SEC, Justin Jefferson, Ja’Marr Chase and Terrace Marshall need a quarterback to get them the ball to be effective. And therein lies the issue with LSU — will Joe Burrow be good enough for this team to be elite?

Looking at their schedule, it won’t be an easy year for Ed Orgeron and the Tigers. However, if Burrow becomes the best LSU quarterback of the past decade, this is a team that could reach 10 wins. Their toughest games come in a brutal four-week stretch in late-October and early-November, but they’re all at home — vs. Georgia in Week 7, vs. Mississippi State in Week 8 and vs. Alabama in Week 10 coming off a Week 9 bye.

For the Tigers to reach 10 wins, they’re going to have to beat Mississippi State, beat Auburn at Jordan-Hare and upset Miami in Week 1. Either that, or they’re going to have to defend Death Valley against at least one of the two teams that played for the national championship last season.

So, 10 wins won’t be easy, but that’s what I see as the ceiling for this unit. If they get there or fall flat depends largely on the play of the Ohio State graduate transfer quarterback.

@Oleg_Zeltser

Is it time for the SEC to eliminate cross-division permanent rivals? As a Vol fan and a VFL, I would be just fine playing Bama once every 4-5 years. I’m sure Auburn fans would love to play Vandy this year instead of Georgia.

Answer: This is a tricky question, but since the Big Ten and ACC also do permanent crossover rivalries and the Pac-12 makes sure all the California schools play each other, the SEC probably isn’t going to do away with the rivalries any time soon, either.

While you’re right that Auburn fans would probably love a game against Vanderbilt every year, I think you’d run into some issues if you tried to end “The Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry” against Georgia.

Is it a perfect system? No. But games like Mississippi State-Kentucky and Ole Miss-Vanderbilt are going to have to continue so the Alabama-Tennessee, Georgia-Auburn, LSU-Florida and other more-intense rivalries can persist.

@jforbis:

What would you say a successful season under new head coach Chad Morris at Arkansas looks like? 

Answer: OK, let’s see here. First of all, I think a successful season for Morris involves going to a bowl game with a 6-6 record. There’s no reason the Hogs shouldn’t win all four of their non-conference games (vs. Eastern Illinois, at Colorado State, vs. North Texas, vs. Tulsa), so from there, they only need to win two SEC games to become bowl-eligible. They get a favorable SEC East crossover matchup in Vanderbilt, so they should win that game, too. In fact, those are the five games our own Connor O’Gara had them winning in his Crystal Ball projections.

So that means they’ll need to pull off one upset, and two candidates come to mind — Week 7 vs. Ole Miss at War Memorial Stadium and Week 13 at Missouri. I tend to lean toward the Ole Miss game being the more likely upset, since the Rebels and Hogs always seem to play some wild, unpredictable games. Get to six wins, and I think you can consider Morris’s first season an overwhelming success.

Have any questions for next week’s Mailbag? Tweet at us using #SDSMailbag or email ASpencer@SaturdayDownSouth.com. Best question every week receives an SDS sticker of your choosing!