What better time than spring practice to fix last year’s issues and work on solutions for 2016.
With that in mind, a checklist of what’s been accomplished, what still needs work for each SEC West team:
Alabama
Checked off
Keep Lane Kiffin: Nick Saban lost some key assistants, most notably Kirby Smart, but he retained the most important one in Kiffin, whose name surfaced in several college and NFL openings. He reportedly turned down the UCLA job. Alabama’s defense is the best in college football and what it doesn’t return, it replaces; it will be better than fine. The offense, however, will play this season with an extremely inexperienced backfield, which made keeping Kiffin and the continuity in the scheme paramount.
Still need
Pick a quarterback: Alabama’s quarterback is almost never its best offensive player, but he can’t be a drive-killer, either. All we know at this point is there are two presumably talented options in Cooper Bateman and Blake Barnett. Nick Saban doesn’t rush into these decisions, but just like last season, the Tide get Ole Miss in Week 3. Saban was still experimenting in Week 3 last season, and actually started Bateman against the Rebels instead of Jacob Coker.You know Kiffin wants it settled before then. The Tide open the season against the team that fired him on the tarmac: USC.
Arkansas
Checked off
Keep the OC: Dan Enos walked into a pretty good situation last year, with an experienced quarterback, explosive running backs and veteran offensive line. Credit him for turning Brandon Allen into a play-maker and overcoming the preseason loss to Jonathan Williams. Kirby Smart certainly noticed. He wanted to bring Enos to Georgia.
Still need
Pick a quarterback: Allen gave the Razorbacks a surprisingly devastating big-play passing game last season. That element will be missing this season. Arkansas has four QBs vying for the job. Enos’ track record suggests the Razorbacks will be fine — if not as dynamic — with whomever wins the job.
Pick a running back: Replacing Alex Collins won’t be any easier. There wasn’t a lot of depth behind him last season after Rawleigh Williams’ neck injury. Freshman running backs have a better chance of playing well than freshman quarterbacks, so maybe Devwah Whaley can be an effective every down back.
Figure out what went wrong on defense: As much as Arkansas improved from 2013 to 2014, the Razorbacks regressed in 2015. Pick a stat and start at the bottom of the SEC and it’ll be quicker to find Arkansas’ numbers. The most glaring was points per game. The Hogs allowed 27.4, next-to-worst in the league and eight more than 2014.
Auburn
Checked off
Hire defensive coordinator: New year, new approach. This is Gus Malzahn’s third defensive coordinator in three years, and he’s actually brought in two to improve a unit that allowed 26 points per game last season — 11th in the SEC. Kevin Steele and Wesley McGriff no doubt were happy that Carl Lawson returned to school.
Still need
Pick a quarterback: The QB competition began this week with Jeremy Johnson taking first-team reps. Then the hype machine kicked in when JUCO transfer John Franklin turned the corner a few times in practice.
“He’s fast,” H-Back Chandler Cox told AL.com. “I was watching tape in the film room and it’s ‘Wow, he’s quick.’ That’s something definitely every team needs back there, really. That’s something we also need — some speed. He has it. I know Sean (White) and Jeremy are pretty fast, too, but he’s fast.”
Settle other position battles: Auburn lost 11 combined starters on offense and defense. The quarterback race will generate headlines, but the Tigers need their two new starting offensive tackles to play well to generate first downs.
LSU
Checked off
Les Miles knows offense needs tweaks: Miles very nearly lost his job after a three-game collapse in which the predictable offense produced its three lowest-scoring totals. Miles doesn’t call plays, but he hires the guy who does, so that’s just semantics at work. Miles talked about tweaking — not reinventing — the offense during bowl preparation. That’s a step in the right direction, if not a go route toward a more versatile attack. AD Joe Alleva told reporters that he believes people can change. We’ll find out just how much.
Still need
To implement and trust said tweaks: LSU returned its key pieces and enters 2016 with its most realistic championship hopes since 2011. The Tigers have the nation’s most reliable chain-mover in Leonard Fournette, but resist the urge to turn him into 35-game rusher like Derrick Henry.
LSU ran it 506 times and threw just 277 passes last season. The goal this season should be a much more balanced 450-350.
Figure out what Brandon Harris does best: Related to the tweaks and restoring balance, figure out which passes he’s capable of completing consistently. Accuracy has been his Achilles. Cam Cameron has done this long enough to solve that. The Tigers aren’t going to beat Alabama by running the ball 45 times.
Mississippi State
Checked off
Hire defensive coordinator: Peter Sirmon replaced Manny Diaz, who joined Mark Richt in Miami. Diaz was only there one season, so Sirmon is the Bulldogs’ third DC in three years. Mississippi State has stayed amazingly consistent, though allowing 21 to 23.5 points each of the past four seasons. Eight starters return, which will help, and the Bulldogs’ three highest-rated 2016 signees were defensive linemen.
Still need
Find a quarterback: Ten SEC teams have some type of a QB race, but the Bulldogs are the only one tasked with replacing a legend. Keep in mind Dak Prescott needed time, too. He began starting in 2013 as a redshirt sophomore and threw for 1,940 yards, 10 TDs and 7 interceptions. That’s an acceptable target for Nick Fitzgerald or Damian Williams.
Help the quarterback: Mississippi State relied more on Prescott than LSU on Fournette or Alabama on Derrick Henry. Prescott led the Bulldogs in rushing last season. More than 4,300 yards of total offense just walked out the door.
Fix the offensive line: Mississippi State struggled to protect Prescott. Part of that was volume — he led the SEC with 477 attempts — but not all of it. And in 2016 they’ll line up with two new starters on the line, including at left tackle.
Ole Miss
Checked off
Keep Chad Kelly: Three other standout junior left early, which made Kelly’s return all the more vital. Not only for this season, but it likely will allow heir apparent Shea Patterson to redshirt.
Still need
To protect Kelly: Losing Laremy Tunsil was huge, and the only position more difficult for a true freshman to play than quarterback might be left tackle. Gregory Little is expected to get there eventually, but starting there on Day 1 might be a bit much. But that wasn’t the only loss. Ole Miss must replace four starters on the line.
Tinker with lineup: There are other offensive holes to fill, new and newer receivers, etc., but rebuilding the offensive line clearly is the spring priority.
Don’t forget about defense: Most of the focus has been on the offensive losses, but the Rebels also must replace six defensive starters, including safeties Trae Elston and Mike Hilton. Ole Miss has recruited suitable replacements for the front seven, but the secondary will be a concern until proven otherwise.
Texas A&M
Checked off
Clear the air: Who says you can never have too many quarterbacks? The Aggies did, and it was an issue. Now the two former five-stars are off to other destinations, and the two replacement candidates — Trevor Knight and Jake Hubenak — have demonstrated a willingness to put team before self. That’s an upgrade already.
Still need
To pick one of them: Both have started. Both have proven they can throw the ball. Both have served as backups. Both are capable of running new coordinator Noel Mazzone’s offense. But their skill-sets aren’t so dramatically different that one offers a changeup from the other. So pick one this spring and go.
There are a lot of things to like about the Aggies in 2016 — from Myles Garrett leading a disruptive defensive front to three game-breaking receivers. Getting Tennessee, Ole Miss and LSU at home certainly is better than the alternative.
Quarterback play, particularly from a leadership standpoint, was an obvious issue in 2015. That’s been fixed, which already puts the Aggies in a better spot this spring than last.
Managing Editor
A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.
