It hasn’t happened since 1996, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible.

No team has won the SEC East three times in a row since the 1996 Florida Gators. Missouri has a chance to do the same in 2015, but the Tigers have their doubters.

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While it may seem unlikely that the Tigers pull off the three-peat, Missouri fans should have hope. Here are 10 reasons Mizzou can return to Atlanta:

1. The Tigers play a favorable schedule

Other than trips to Athens and Fayetteville, Missouri’s toughest conference games are all at home. South Carolina, Florida and Tennessee all have to come to Columbia. The Tigers also have a relatively easy cross-division schedule with Arkansas and a Thursday night contest with Mississippi State.

2. Russell Hansbrough is one of the best backs in the SEC

While the departed Marcus Murphy was the more exciting player, Russell Hansbrough was quietly Missouri’s best running back last year with 1,084 yards and 10 touchdowns. One of the team’s four captains, Hansbrough is looking to finish his Missouri career with a bang.

3. The roster is finally built for the SEC

Entering its fourth season in the SEC, Missouri is starting to look like its conference brethren. The Tigers are big on the lines, fast at linebacker and carry a nice stable of running backs. Missouri’s recruiting efforts in Georgia and Florida are paying off as well. 

4. It’s too big a jump for Tennessee

A lot of people are high on Tennessee, and rightfully so. The Volunteers have the most talented roster in the division, if not the conference. But Tennessee just made its first bowl game in five years while going a pedestrian 7-6. It may be asking too much, too soon for the Vols to win the division this year.

5. The offensive line is in a good place

Evan Boehm is one of the best centers in the country. SEC fans will know Connor McGovern’s name by the end of the season. And there is enough depth at offensive line to eliminate the injury fears from 2012.

6. The coaching replacements have the potential to be upgrades

Losing your defensive coordinator is always a big deal. The Tigers lost theirs when Dave Steckel took the head coaching job Missouri State. But in Barry Odom, Missouri has a former Tiger who played under Gary Pinkel, crafted a creative defense at Memphis and is willing to make adjustments. Ryan Walters, the new safeties coach, is also well respected in coaching circles.

7. Maty Mauk has unrivaled experience among division quarterbacks

It isn’t always pretty, but Missouri’s quarterback knows how to win. Mauk is 14-4 in games he’s started in the last two seasons. No other division quarterback can compare to that.

8. This is Pinkel’s best defensive back seven

For the first time in a while, Missouri’s defensive line will be overshadowed by the seven players who play behind it. Linebackers Michael Scherer and Kentrell Brothers are one of the smartest tandems in the SEC, while defensive backs Kenya Dennis, Aarion Penton and John Gibson are athletic enough to fill Braylon Webb’s void.

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9. Georgia’s gonna Georgia

You don’t know when or how it will happen, but the Bulldogs always seem to implode in conference play. Last season it was against Florida in the World’s Largest Cocktail Party, which nullified their rout of the Tigers in Columbia two games earlier. Georgia may not have a true trap game in 2015, but does have the toughest cross-division schedule in the East with games against Alabama and Auburn.

10. They keep proving us wrong

The Tigers were picked to finish sixth in the division in 2013. They were picked fourth in 2014. Missouri travelled to Atlanta in both seasons. SEC reporters picked the Tigers third in the division at SEC Media Days. When are we going to learn?