Numbers don’t define football, but they do a lot to explain it. They also give us all something to look forward to — whether it’s records to be equaled or broken, feats to be completed, or just improvement of bad numbers into ones that make fans proud, stats will tell much of the story of the 2018 season. Here are 10 numbers we’re looking forward to seeing in 2018.

3,488

That’s one more than the Alabama record for passing yards in a season, held by Blake Sims. Given what we all saw from Tua Tagovailoa last season, if he can stay healthy, there’s absolutely no reason that in a season that is likely to extend to 15 games, that he can’t set a new Tide record.

3

Damien Harris is probably not quite going to end up as Alabama’s all-time leading rusher (he’s 1,397 yards shy). That said, if he replicates his performances of the past two seasons (1,037 yards rushing in 2016 and 1,000 even in 2017), he will become the first Tide back to rush for 1,000 yards in three seasons. For the guy who has spent most of his career as something of an afterthought, it would be a fun way to go out.

3,278

A year after Jarrett Stidham became only the second Auburn QB to pass for 3,000 yards in a season, there’s no reason he can’t break Dameyune Craig’s single-season passing mark of 3,277 yards. He was 119 yards short last season, and with the Tigers’ running back situation a bit more uncertain, Stidham can set some Auburn records in 2018.

Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Zero

Kentucky hasn’t won a bowl game in its past nine seasons. The team would love to change that number to zero in 2018. The Wildcats’ bowl victory drought (and they do have four bowl losses in that period) is by far the longest in the conference, with Vandy’s streak of four years and running as the next-longest. A bowl win isn’t the only thing on Mark Stoops’s radar, but it would help his long-term job security.

2:1

Last season, Florida’s morbid passing attack was so bad that the Gators ended the season with a 1:1 touchdown to interception ratio (10 scores, 10 picks). If Dan Mullen hopes to be any kind of a factor in the East, Florida should hope to at least double that stat to a respectable 2:1. It’s not that hard — in 2015, the Gators did just that, with 20 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. If they want to get back to double-figure victory totals (as they did that year), fixing the TD/INT ratio would be a good start.

7.6

That was D’Andre Swift’s yards per carry number last season, and if he can replicate it, the Bulldogs figure to be in excellent shape in their pursuit of a second consecutive East division title. Such a number seems unlikely to be repeated, but bear in mind that Sony Michel, who got almost twice as many carries as Swift, averaged a 7.9 yards per carry. Both backs have the extra gear that dazzles fans and horrifies defenders.

Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports

130

Last season, LSU’s Devin White was one of the league’s top defenders. His 133 tackles led the conference until the national title game when he was passed by Roquan Smith (who played in two more games than White). If White could post 130 tackles, he would be only the second SEC player in the past decade to twice have 130 stops in a single season (the other being Kentucky’s Danny Trevathan). That kind of production could help the Tiger defense be a force in the West.

5

South Carolina’s all-everything Deebo Samuel missed most of the 2017 season due to injury. But he’s back and it’s worth seeing if Samuel can somehow conjure up a fifth way to score a touchdown. You see, in his career, Samuel has 5 receiving touchdowns, and a surprising 7 rushing touchdowns  (on just 17 career carries). He’s also returned 3 kickoffs for scores, including both kickoffs he returned in his abbreviated 2017 campaign. But don’t forget, Samuel threw a 33-yard touchdown pass in 2016. Can Will Muschamp figure out a fifth way to get Samuel on the scoreboard?

13

Twelve of the SEC’s 14 teams connected on 13 or more field goals in 2017. And then there was Vanderbilt, which made three kicks all season. Eight games into the season, senior kicker Tommy Openshaw was 1-for-5 on field goals. Vandy doesn’t have enough cushion to NOT score points in any way possible. Another 10 field goals would equal out to the handful of points that might make the difference between another 5-win season and an elusive sixth win. Speaking of which …

12

A dozen SEC bowl teams is still the conference’s record, set in 2014 and matched in 2016. Can the even numbered streak continue? Well, it’ll be tough with Ole Miss already ineligible for bowl play. But given the competitive nature of the conference outside the top couple of teams, it’s certainly possible. It might come down to some APR help, as it did in 2016. But hey, bowls are bowls.