Lackluster recruiting, injuries, absences or NCAA-related scandals are just a few of the ways a program can spoil an offseason. Any or all are a surefire way to rile up the fan base, and get the message boards and sports radio show switchboards to launch into midseason form.

Here are five teams who have had the worst offseasons in the SEC:

Ole Miss

The cloud of cheating allegations continued to hover over Hugh Freeze and Ole Miss as the school is facing charges of lack of institutional control and the head coach personally for unsatisfactory oversight of his assistants. It proved to be a long way from his February 2013 tweet: “If you have facts about a violation, email compliance@olemiss.edu. If not, please don’t slander the young men.”

Since the end of the 2016 season, Ole Miss has also lost five assistant coaches: wide receivers coach Grant Heard, offensive coordinator Dan Werner, defensive coordinator Dave Wommack, defensive line coach Chris Kiffin and Barney Farrar, assistant AD for high school and JUCO relations.

Whatever changes are made, at least defensively, they must address the issues that led to allowing 38 points at Vanderbilt, and losing the Egg Bowl 55-20. Ole Miss gave up at least 27 points in every game in October and November.

Texas A&M

Fans are getting increasingly restless about the string of three consecutive 8-5 seasons and wondering if this is the ceiling for Kevin Sumlin, the sixth-year coach. After its well-known defensive ends left for the NFL Draft, Texas A&M is looking to improve its defense again after it went from 102nd nationally three years ago, to 51st in 2015 and 90th last year.

The Aggies also left spring with a three-man quarterback competition undecided. Senior Jake Hubenak, redshirt freshman Nick Starkel and true freshman Kellen Mond appear to be neck-and-neck as they look to live up to expectations left by Trevor Knight and Johnny Manziel.

Dave South, also known as, “The Voice of Aggieland,” said fans are expecting more than they did years ago.

“There was a time when people would have been thrilled to win eight games or nine games,” South said on the air. “Now, the benchmark seems to be 10 or 11, and everybody’s not going to do that every year. That’s just not going to happen.

“Yeah, I hear the rumblings, and I go out to speak to a lot of Aggie groups. They won’t necessarily talk openly in front of the whole group, but they’ll come up before or after I’m through talking to say they’re not happy about eight wins. So that may be the consensus right now — that this team needs to win nine or 10 games this year.”

Georgia

Recruiting is an increasing concern for Kirby Smart as the Bulldogs’ 2018 class has dropped to just two commits and a second-to-last ranking in the SEC, according to 247Sports. The class is also No. 74 nationally.

The recruits are a 3-star cornerback, and a 2-star kicker.

The perplexing case of Trenton Thompson is also cause for concern since the defensive lineman is viewed as a first-round player in next year’s NFL Draft. Thompson dealt with an offseason shoulder injury, but also withdrew from classes following an episode in February when he was hospitalized.

Thompson was one of the best defenders in 2016 and had three sacks to be named the Liberty Bowl MVP against TCU. That followed the increasing chatter of a quarterback competition with the emergence of Jake Fromm to challenge Jacob Eason. While the competition might not be much of one for the coaching staff, it’s at least on the back burner for some fans.

Arkansas

The retirement of Arkansas RB Rawleigh Williams because of a neck injury suffered in the Hogs’ spring game was one of the worst pieces of news in the offseason. The switch from a 4-3 to a 3-4 defense under Paul Rhoads will try to avoid the recent track records of SEC teams doing the same thing. Alabama went 7-6 in 2007, Georgia went 6-7 in 2010 and Tennessee went 5-7 in 2012.

Not to mention, the Razorbacks need to find reliable playmakers after the departures of Drew Morgan and tight end Jeremy Sprinkle. Arkansas will look for Jeremy Patton, the No. 1 junior-college tight end in the 2017 signing class from Arizona Western College, to emerge.

Missouri

There are concerns about in-state recruiting, and recruiting in general as Missouri sits at the bottom of the league, according to 247Sports.

The Tigers have just one commit, a 3-star dual threat quarterback from Montgomery, Ala. What’s more, two in-state Missouri players have committed to Nebraska.

With the current roster, the defense is trying to bounce back after a sub-par season when it allowed 31.5 points per game, nearly double its 2015 average and the most since 2000.

That could be a leading factor for why the Tigers got rid of their read-and-react scheme, and went back to the 2015 version.