The SEC had 12 players selected in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and the conference is sure to be well-represented this April, too.

However, even though a lot of talented athletes are leaving the SEC, some will be tougher to replace than others.

Here are the 10 SEC players who will be the toughest to replace:

10. John Kelly, RB, Tennessee

The Vols have Ty Chandler waiting in the wings for 2018, but losing a guy like Kelly, who was just as good as a receiver as he was a runner, will be tough.

Tennessee’s offense struggled even with Kelly last year, finishing last in scoring overall (19.8 points per game) and against SEC teams (14.1). That obviously contributed to their 0-8 SEC record.

The Vols have bigger problems than replacing Kelly, but it’s safe to say his absence will be felt in a big way next season.

9. Austin Allen, QB, Arkansas

It’s hard to discuss what Allen meant to the Razorbacks without getting into platitudes, but his impact went beyond the numbers.

As far as leadership goes, the Hogs couldn’t have asked for a quarterback better than Allen, who took more big hits than any other SEC quarterback and kept on returning to the field.

No, his senior year didn’t go the way he wanted, but it’s safe to say new coach Chad Morris wishes Allen had at least one more year of eligibility remaining.

8. D.J. Chark, WR, LSU

Chark stepped into his own in 2017, catching 40 passes for an impressive 874 yards and three touchdowns. He also had a rushing touchdown and two scores as a punt returner.

Of those 40 catches, an incredible 18 of them went for 20 or more yards, which was good for second place in the SEC (behind Mizzou’s J’Mon Moore and tied with Ole Miss’ A.J. Brown).

The Tigers face an uncertain situation at quarterback entering 2018 — Myles Brennan is the favorite over Lowell Narcisse — and not having a reliable receiver like Chark returning will definitely make things tougher on whoever ends up winning the job.

7. Frank Ragnow, C, Arkansas

Arkansas allowed 35 sacks in 2017, but that number would have been a lot higher without Ragnow in the mix.

Yes, he missed the end of the season after going down with a season-ending ankle injury in Week 8 against Auburn. Statistically, the Arkansas line actually played slightly better after that, allowing 12 of those 35 sacks in the five games without Ragnow.

However, the Hogs allowed six sacks in the Auburn game, and what will be tough for the Razorbacks is replacing Ragnow’s communication skills. Running an offense like first-year coach Chad Morris runs doesn’t necessarily require big, brutish linemen like Ragnow, but it does require smart linemen who can make quick decisions and play together as a unit.

No one was better at that than Ragnow.

6. Calvin Ridley, WR, Alabama

Ridley would be much higher on the list if not for the fact that Alabama has several 4- and 5-star athletes waiting to take his spot.

The junior receiver still will be tough to replace though, as he recorded 30.9 percent of Alabama’s receptions in 2017 (63 of 204).

Credit: Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports

DeVonta Smith, Jerry Jeudy, Henry Ruggs III and others will step up to fill his production, but it’s tough to replicate entirely what Ridley brought to the Tide the past three years.

5. Hayden Hurst, TE, South Carolina

Every quarterback needs a safety net — someone he can throw the ball to in any situation and trust that nothing bad will happen.

South Carolina QB Jake Bentley had a great one in Hurst, who accounted for 92 catches, 1,175 yards and three touchdowns over the past two years.

No, Hurst didn’t find the end zone as much as the Gamecocks would have liked, but he was about as reliable as they come, and he has a great chance of being the first tight end to come off the board in the 2018 NFL Draft.

4. Christian Kirk, WR/KR, Texas A&M

Kirk finished his three years in College Station with 2,856 receiving yards and 26 touchdowns and also added six punt return scores and brought a kickoff all the way back during his career.

This year, he finished tied for 19th in the country with eight all-purpose plays of 40 or more yards, even while working primarily with a true freshman quarterback in Kellen Mond (and a redshirt freshman in Nick Starkel).

He’ll be a very versatile NFL player, but new Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher is going to have a very tough time replacing Kirk in 2018 and beyond.

3. Roquan Smith, LB, Georgia

Smith is another player (like Ridley) who would be higher on the list if not for his team’s recruiting prowess.

However, as good as Smith was, finishing the 2017 season with 14 tackles for loss, the Bulldogs have some athletes coming in who could help replace him. The Dawgs’ 2018 class has 5-star OLB Adam Anderson and 4-star ILB Channing Tindall and there are a few other in-house candidates to step into Smith’s role.

Playing linebacker in the SEC isn’t as easy as Smith made it look, though, so the new players would be wise to watch a ton of tape from Smith’s incredible 2017 campaign.

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2. Kerryon Johnson, RB, Auburn

Despite missing a game early in the season and occasionally sharing carries with Kamryn Pettway, Johnson led the SEC in rushing with 1,391 yards and also finished second to Kentucky’s Benny Snell Jr. with 18 touchdowns on the ground (to Snell’s 19).

When Johnson was on his game, he could single-handedly carry the Tigers to victory. The fact that he wasn’t 100 percent for the SEC title game against Georgia showed, and it’s the biggest reason the Tigers didn’t make it to the College Football Playoff.

With Kam Martin and Malik Miller set to take over Auburn’s rushing game in 2018, more pressure will be put on QB Jarrett Stidham to make big plays. If he can’t handle that increased workload, the Tigers will struggle to beat teams like Alabama and Georgia again.

1. Minkah Fitzpatrick, DB, Alabama

There’s a reason Fitzpatrick likely will be a top-five pick in the 2018 NFL Draft and it’s his versatility (not to mention his otherworldly talent).

Play corner? Sure. Move to safety because of an injury to another player? Why not. Fitzpatrick did everything coach Nick Saban asked of him, and for that reason, he’s the toughest to replace.

No matter how many 5-star guys Saban and the Crimson Tide bring in, it takes time to mold players into Eddie Jacksons or Minkah Fitzpatricks. Fitzpatrick could lock down an opposing team’s No. 1 receiver, play a ballhawk role or do anything else Saban schemed.

Alabama’s defense will be fine in 2018, but especially early on, it’ll be obvious that they’re missing Fitzpatrick’s leadership in the secondary.