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College Football

The top 25 SEC events we can’t wait to see in 2019

Connor O'Gara

By Connor O'Gara

Published:

As tough as it is to swallow the reality pill that college football games are over for 8 months, the good news is that there’s still plenty to look forward to.

The SEC calendar stops for no one.

In my book, I like games more than anything else. National Signing Day and practices don’t fire me up in the same way that a top-10 matchup does, and neither does the athletic directors meeting in Destin. That’s why games are ranked higher on this list.

And the thing about this list is that these are the things that we know will happen. We can also get out-of-nowhere stories like Hugh Freeze calling escort services or a draft night video of Laremy Tunsil hitting a bong in a gas mask.

OK, that no more being mean to Ole Miss.

Here are the 25 events that SEC fans should be excited for in 2019:

25. Spring football begins

In a couple of short months, spring practice will be underway and we’ll really have moved on from 2018. Why is it worth looking forward to? Because it always comes during that post-Super Bowl, pre-March Madness window that we’ll get excited for basically anything. Seeing football coaches and players talk about the upcoming season satisfies that craving.

24. Offseason Finebaum

Yes, offseason Finebaum is an event. “The Paul Finebaum Show” is arguably more entertaining in the offseason, and not just because you wonder how long Finebaum callers have been roasting in the sun. It’s a great time for some wild takes from guests, too. It’s prediction season, it’s hype season and it’s talking season.

It’s when I thrive.

23. National Signing Day (the February one)

It’s true that the February National Signing Day has lost a lot of its juice with the Early Signing Period taking so much of the attention. The vast majority of elite recruits sign in December now, and it’s no longer an all-day event in the first Wednesday in February. But it still produces plenty of great moments because of how hotly-contested these late signees are. That makes for some great hat-switching drama that’ll be worth your time.

22. The NFL Draft Combine

This isn’t one of my favorite offseason things, but again, it really does help pass the time during a brutal sports period. That late-February window is just begging for some quality sports entertainment. With all the high-end draft talent the SEC has this year — and every year really — the Combine is still capable of producing some fun moments. Whether it’s Reuben Foster getting booted from the event after getting into a heated exchange or watching John Ross break the 40-yard dash record, we’ve had some fun storylines in recent memory. That’ll probably be the case this year, as well.

21. Kelly Bryant’s Mizzou debut

This would be much higher if Bryant were playing against a big-time opponent to restart his career. Instead, Mizzou is somehow traveling to Wyoming. I’m excited to see what the Clemson transfer will do in Derek Dooley’s offense. I’m also excited for the coaching staff to pretend like anyone other than Bryant will replace Lock.

20. The Egg Bowl

I’m not sure if there’s a better rivalry of non-top 10 teams than this one. There might not be one involving more hate than the Egg Bowl. The Thanksgiving night contest divides households all over the Magnolia State, and understandably so. The SEC stepped in and pushed for a more respectful showing from both schools after in-game and postgame scuffles broke out. What other rivalry has a quarterback fighting after he throws a touchdown pass?!

19. Nolan Smith’s debut

Maybe it’s because he picked a team loaded with 5-star recruits already or that he went to IMG, but it seems like the buzz surrounding Smith’s arrival in Athens is somewhat subdued. That could also be because he’s a defensive end. Whatever the case, Georgia signed the No. 1 overall recruit in the 2019 class — Justin Fields is the only higher-rated recruit that Georgia has ever signed — after some late pushes from Alabama, Penn State and Tennessee. Smith will have a chance to play immediately, and when he does, he could take the league by storm rushing off the edge.

18. Fall camp begins

This is one of those things because it isn’t the event itself that gets us excited. It’s what it symbolizes. All the offseason chatter of position battles, transfers, coaching moves and everything else comes to a head when fall camp kicks off. It kicks off earlier than ever now, which means we get to feel like football is right around the corner in July. That’s not such a bad thing at all.

17. The first in-stadium anthems of the year at SEC games

OK, so you know what I’m talking about. The first time you hear your team’s anthem — whether it’s “Won’t Back Down,” “Dixieland Delight” or “Neck” — is an event. It doesn’t matter if it’s again Jacksonville State, either. There’s a certain electricity behind the first one because it’s usually with a full stadium, and there’s so much promise that awaits.

Chills.

16. Florida-LSU

What a perfect transition into Florida-LSU, which is actually where that video is from. One of the best rivalries in the sport will finally make its way back to Baton Rouge. Both programs are coming off top-10 finishes, which actually hasn’t happened since Florida and LSU finished No. 1 and No. 3, respectively, in 2006. Both should be in the top 10 to start the season, and if history is any indication, this will be a down-to-the-wire game with some major implications for both divisions.

15. Unique, intriguing crossovers

Florida vs. LSU isn’t a unique crossover because they play every year. These, however, are all intriguing crossover matchups that’ll be fun to watch this year:

  • Sept. 14 — Alabama vs. South Carolina
  • Oct. 5 — Auburn vs. Florida
  • Oct. 12 — Mississippi State vs. Tennessee
  • Nov. 23 — Texas A&M vs. Georgia

As great as it is to talk about heated rivalries all the time, it’s fun to watch teams without a ton of recent history play. After all, that’s why non-conference headliners are so entertaining.

14. Texas A&M-Clemson

Another seamless transition …. In case you forgot, nobody played the 2018 National Champion Clemson Tigers tougher than A&M. That’s what the scoreboard said while everything else said “yeah, but Kelly Bryant was the starter for that game.” Those are both true. I am looking forward to seeing how well the Aggies stack up against the defending champs in Year 2 of the Jimbo Fisher era. This will be an obvious pick for College GameDay with both programs likely in the top 10 for the Week 2 showdown in Death Valley.

13. Zamir White’s Georgia debut

We didn’t get a chance to see the former 5-star recruit in 2018 because of a torn ACL, but there’s plenty of anticipation in Athens to see what White can do. The talented tailback will be in a crowded backfield with D’Andre Swift and James Cook returning, but there should still be plenty of work for the redshirt freshman. Without Justin Fields around anymore, White will be the guy that Georgia fans are clamoring for to get more work on a weekly basis.

12. SEC Media Days

Does the event deliver big splashy headlines on a yearly basis? Not necessarily, but even in a tame year, SEC Media Days sort of mark the unofficial start of the season.

Something tells me this won’t be a typical year. It’ll be back in Hoover, and with Alabama coming off an unprecedented loss, that itself will make for some entertainment. We’ll also have Gus Malzahn dodging hot seat questions with Ed Orgeron, Dan Mullen, Kirby Smart and Jimbo Fisher attempting to pour cold water on the fire takes that’ll have them making surprise Playoff runs.

That, plus all of the usual SEC personalities who’ll be in attendance, will make the 2019 event worth getting excited for. Most notably, my best friend Tiger Jake.

11. Alabama-Texas A&M

Nobody really went into this year’s matchup giving A&M much of a chance, and understandably so. It was Year 1 of the Fisher era, and Alabama was, well, Alabama. In Year 2 of the Fisher era, this will be hyped in a major way. Both teams get a bye week before the early-October showdown in College Station. Even if the Aggies lose at Clemson before then, there’s a decent chance that both teams could be in the top 10. Sign me up for that.

10. The 2019 NFL Draft

Yeah, this is definitely an SEC event. Find a mock draft wherein the SEC doesn’t have the most players selected and I’ll change my thinking on that. I’ve seen some with half the first-round selections coming from the SEC. Between Josh Allen, Quinnen Williams, Greedy Williams and others, the SEC will have its usual household names coming off the board early. And by the end of the weekend, nobody will be surprised when the SEC holds the draft title for the 13th year in a row.

9. SEC neutral-site openers

I’ll be honest. The opening weekend slate has been better. Auburn-Oregon in Dallas will be good, and Florida-Miami in Orlando will be fun, especially of Jalen Hurts is a Cane. The rest of it? Good, not great. Alabama-Duke in Atlanta won’t be close, and South Carolina-North Carolina in Charlotte shouldn’t be close, but given the Gamecocks’ tendency to play down to their opponents, nobody will be surprised if they give the Tar Heels some life in Mack Brown’s debut. Still, though. Neutral-site openers form narratives for a solid month, and they’re the games we spend most of the offseason talking about.

8. Opening weekend College GameDay

Few things are better than waking up on Saturday morning Week 1 and turning on GameDay. Say what you want about all the personalities on the ever-popular pregame show, but nobody does what they do. They get fan bases fired up, and whether you agree with all of their opinions or not, they’re the lifeblood of college football. The optimism of opening weekend on GameDay is off the charts. If fall camp and media day are unofficial starting points of the season, so is GameDay.

Plus, we go back to seeing signs like this on a weekly basis:

7. A game in Jacksonville in which cocktails might/might not be consumed

You get the picture.

Florida-Georgia in Year 2 of the Mullen era is going to be goooooood. Both programs figure to start as top-10 teams and with how both teams finished the season, the conversation about Florida narrowing the gap. Let’s be honest. It wasn’t a fair fight last year. As nice of a year as Florida had, Georgia still dominated that game in the second half (goal-line stand aside). On another note, Florida’s schedule is just loaded with headliner matchups. Miami in nonconference play, plus a crossover with Auburn and all the other usual showdowns (Florida State, Georgia and LSU) should make for an eventful 2019 in Gainesville.

6. The Iron Bowl

It’s still the best rivalry in the SEC, and I’m not here to say there’s one better in the sport. I say “still” because Alabama is coming off a convincing win and Auburn is coming into 2019 with some major question marks on offense. But the good news is that there hasn’t been an Iron Bowl at Auburn decided by more than 2 scores since 2011. So maybe it’ll be close?

Either way, the Iron Bowl is still appointment viewing until told otherwise. This isn’t me telling you otherwise.

5. The Irish come to Athens

Been there, done that? Yes and no. Yes, we’ve seen this matchup, but not in Athens. If the first matchup in 2017 was any indication, this game will feature a pair of Playoff-contending teams who will play each other tight. There’s a decent chance that College GameDay will want to take in the action, too. Believe it or not, GameDay hasn’t visited Athens since 2013. Maybe the only question is if Notre Dame fans will invade Athens the same way that Georgia fans invaded South Bend. I wouldn’t bet on it.

4. Jalen Hurts’ transfer announcement

So in all likelihood, Hurts’ transfer announcement will come via reports from “sources” or Hurts releasing a photoshopped picture of him in his next uniform with a note. Maybe we’ll get both! Who knows? What I do know is that it’ll be massive news that will be talked about well into the regular season. That’s true no matter where the former Alabama quarterback goes (Oklahoma makes the most sense, right?). Whatever the case, I’m here for that, and for him leading a team that could potentially face Alabama in a Playoff game.

3. LSU-Texas

Wait a minute. Am I really saying that LSU-Texas is the SEC regular season game I’m looking forward to the most? You bet. Why? This matchup has everything. Besides the likely scenario that it involves a pair of top-10 teams, it’s got the “Tom Herman turned down LSU for Texas” thing. Well, depending on what “turned down” means.

This matchup also has a pair of quarterbacks in Sam Ehlinger and Joe Burrow who are among the most outspoken and confident players in the country. The “is Texas really back” question will be out in full force, and it’ll be up to an SEC team to try and shut that down. With all of that on the table, I’d put good money on GameDay making its first trip to Austin in 10 years.

2. The SEC Championship

For all the people clamoring for the 8-team Playoff, don’t worry if you don’t get your wish. Just flip on the SEC Championship and you’ll get the quarterfinal matchup you want. The expectation now with Florida and Georgia looking like potentially Playoff-worthy teams is that the East will be competitive enough to have those aspirations on the line. And in the East, it’s practically a given at this point. Even 2-loss Auburn was still alive in 2017. Nobody else has a conference championship game that feels as meaningful as the SEC’s, and 2019 figures to be more of the same.

1. The College Football Playoff National Championship

OK, disclaimer here. Technically this isn’t a 2019 event because the next title game will take place in 2020. And technically, this isn’t an SEC event. But let’s be real. Twelve of the past 13 title games have had an SEC team. When 2 teams battle for it all on Jan. 13, 2020, it’ll be an SEC event.

Mark your calendars, y’all.

Connor O'Gara

Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Down South. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.

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