It’s our right as college football fans to tell anyone who’ll listen why a player is better than they’re getting credit for.

We must pick our spots when banging the drum for a player. If you bang the drum for everyone, you bang the drum for no one. Not everyone deserves that treatment.

This marks the 3rd consecutive year that I released an All-Bang The Drum Team. This isn’t about predicting a first-team All-SEC selection. It’s about showing which players I want to lead the bandwagon for. While that’s usually for on-field reasons, I’ve been known to give love to a player simply because they had the perfect nickname.

(In my defense, it was a running back with the nickname “Cheeks.” Fault me for many things, but not that.)

This morphed as a way for me to try and spread the love while also perhaps making you, reader of this column, a more informed fan.

Going to a BBQ and trying to impress your significant other’s dad? Let him know that Trevor Etienne needs more run, and yes, you meant “Trevor” and not “Travis.”

These are the things one must be equipped with at any time of the year, not just in the fall.

Here are my made-up parameters for the All-Bang The Drum Team:

  • 1 player per team
  • No first-team All-SEC selections from last year
  • No quarterbacks

The 1 player per team parameter allows me to avoid claims that I’m biased even though this is literally a list about guys I find myself pulling for. I don’t need to bang the drum for a first-team All-SEC selection, nor do I need to fire up a campaign for a quarterback when we know 1 good month can make you a household name.

So here’s my 2023 All-Bang The Drum Team:

Alabama — Jase McClellan, RB

He missed the spring, and Justice Haynes became the breakout player in the backfield after enrolling early, but man, don’t sell your McClellan stock. Lost in the shuffle of Alabama’s offense after it suffered loss No. 2 was just how good McClellan was down the stretch. He averaged 34.5 snaps in those final 4 games, and he racked up an average of 86.8 scrimmage yards. With the versatile Jahmyr Gibbs off to the NFL, there’s a clear path for McClellan to become the go-to guy in a more run-heavy Tommy Rees offense.

He might not be a 250-touch guy in 2023, but McClellan’s vision and patience between the tackles could be a major asset for an Alabama offense that’s trying to get back to playing smash-mouth football.

Arkansas — Al Walcott, S

Arkansas needed secondary help perhaps as much as any SEC team needed any specific position group. Jalen Catalon is off to Texas, Myles Slusher is off to Colorado and if we’re being honest, the depleted Arkansas secondary felt like it took off the entire 2022 season. Harsh? Nah. Finish dead last in FBS in passing defense and that’s not harsh enough.

Walcott’s commitment from Baylor was massive. He could be a more durable version of the talented but oft-injured Catalon. Walcott was a second-team All-Big 12 selection with 82 tackles, 10 tackles for loss, 3 forced fumbles, 2 sacks and an interception. He just makes plays. He also had a back-breaking 96-yard pick-6 against Ole Miss in the Sugar Bowl a year earlier. New Arkansas defensive coordinator Travis Williams will be able to line him up all over the field and watch him go to work. Here was Walcott’s snap count in Year 3 of Dave Aranda’s defense at Baylor:

  • Slot CB: 420
  • Box: 137
  • D-Line: 97
  • Free safety: 62
  • Wide CB: 6

Don’t be surprised if Walcott works his way into the first-team All-SEC discussion as the Hogs’ most valuable defensive player.

Auburn — Dillon Wade, OL

Shoutout to Cole Cubelic for this one. Earlier in the offseason, I was talking to the SEC Network analyst and he made me aware of why Wade is going to be “the guy” on that Auburn offensive line after coming over from Tulsa with Phillip Montgomery. Wade could be this year’s version of O’Cyrus Torrence, who came with Billy Napier to Florida and proved to be a revelation for an offensive line that desperately sought stability. Wade knows the scheme, and he was quietly an excellent addition to become the blindside protector that Hugh Freeze needed to help establish his passing game in Year 1.

Along with post-spring Tulsa transfer Jaden Muskrat, the Auburn offensive line will have a much better shot at staying afloat than any point in the abbreviated Bryan Harsin era.

Florida — Trevor Etienne, RB

Florida always has to have that one guy fans insist needs more touches. Forever, it felt like Kadarius Toney. Now, it’s Etienne. Yes, it’s well documented that he’s the younger brother of all-time ACC touchdowns leader and current Jags tailback Travis Etienne, but make no mistake about it. Trevor already is making a name for himself. He might still be in a timeshare with Montrell Johnson, but Etienne simply cannot get just 9 carries per game like he did last year. He’s too explosive, and in an offense that’s lacking big-play weapons, Etienne’s presence is essential. It’s maddening to think he only had 1 game with 20 snaps in the first 7 contests. He’s a liability in pass protection, but Etienne is still a pass-catching threat. Don’t let his 5-9 frame fool you. He’s so much more than just a change-of-pace back:

Get this man the football.

Georgia — Dan Jackson, S

It’s hard to fly under the radar at a place like Georgia. Among UGA fans, “Dirty” Dan Jackson is very much on their radar. The rest of the college football world might not know a whole lot about him. He’s a former walk-on who, when healthy, has been a playmaker on defense and special teams. It speaks to his work ethic that in a room loaded with 5-star talent, Jackson impressed Kirby Smart enough to earn snaps last year before he suffered a season-ending stress fracture in October. With the ageless Christopher Smith off to the NFL, Jackson should be in line for an even bigger role alongside preseason All-American Malaki Starks.

It feels inevitable that Jackson will make a game-changing play at a key moment — I’ll predict a ball-separating hit that leads to an interception against Tennessee — and we’ll get a reminder it’s not just 5-stars who do the heavy lifting in Athens.

Kentucky — Ray Davis, RB

I feel like if you told a diehard SEC fan that Davis was a 1,000-yard rusher last year, they’d call you a liar. No lie. Davis did that for Vandy, and then he opted to become Chris Rodriguez’s replacement at Kentucky. Usually I’m not banging the drum for an SEC back who had 1,211 scrimmage yards, but here we are. It probably helped the Cats’ evaluation of Davis to see him go off for 129 yards in Vandy’s win against the Cats in snowy Lexington. Even if Kentucky doesn’t have a total night and day improvement on the offensive line — all reports out of spring have been that it’ll be a significant improvement … as long as that starting group can stay healthy — Davis is prepared for that. It wasn’t like the Vandy offensive line was at an advantage against that SEC slate.

Davis is entering Year 5 (he spent his first 2 seasons at Temple). He looks the part, in more ways than one:

Start the Heisman campaign now.

LSU — Brian Thomas Jr., WR

Thomas isn’t going to get national attention in the way that Malik Nabers is, and understandably so. Nabers and Juice Wells are the top 2 returning receivers in the SEC, and there might not be 5 better wideouts nationally than those 2. But Thomas is plenty capable of having moments — or perhaps an entire season — of looking like an All-SEC guy. I actually think it’s Thomas who stands to benefit the most from Jayden Daniels’ increased trust in the wideouts. There’ll be more 50-50 opportunities for him, which really aren’t 50-50 balls with Thomas.

Even in a loaded receiver room, Thomas needs more targets and in Year 2 in the offense for the LSU signal-caller, I expect that’ll happen … even if he isn’t the go-to guy.

Mizzou — Javon Foster, OT

Foster was a second-team All-SEC guy, but only by the AP, so this still counts. PFF has Foster as the SEC’s top-graded returning tackle, and he’s No. 7 nationally. No returning Power 5 tackle had a better pass-blocking grade than him in 2022. Take that for what it is. Foster returned for his senior year instead of going to the NFL, which was huge for a team looking to establish more of an offensive identity with new play-caller Kirby Moore. He allowed just a 3.5% pressure rate.

No matter what Mizzou’s quarterback situation looks like in 2023, Foster will be a valuable piece of the puzzle. He can help the Tigers make a much-needed jump while perhaps solidifying himself as an early-round prospect.

MSU — Jo’quavious Marks, RB

The man they call “Woody” is in for an entirely new offense after 3 years of being a receiver out of the backfield in the Mike Leach Air Raid. Don’t get it twisted. In Kevin Barbay’s offense, Marks should still get opportunities to catch passes and make people miss in the open field. But even in the likely event that he’s not catching 4 or 5 passes per game, he can absolutely be one of the conference’s better backs in a more traditional sense. His burst can catch teams off guard — Ole Miss didn’t seem to have an answer — and he can rack up 1,200-1,300 scrimmage yards if he stays healthy.

Don’t forget that Dillon Johnson’s awkward exit means that Marks is clearly the most experienced member of that backfield. With an offensive coordinator who called plays for an offense that averaged nearly 40 rushing attempts per game, Marks could stand to benefit more from the scheme change than any other MSU player.

Ole Miss — Ulysses Bentley IV, RB

I realize that I’m just banging the drum for running backs. I’ll make this my last tailback of the list. With all the love deservedly going to Quinshon Judkins, we mustn’t forget that Lane Kiffin’s offense needs usually 3 rushing threats to go. Bentley, after he got hurt early, struggled to adapt to the SEC. Now healthy and with a better understanding of north-south running, he should be in line to scoop up a lot of the production left by Zach Evans. He can be a great pass-catcher, but Kiffin really wants that one-cut back to take advantage of those gaping holes that the Ole Miss offensive line often opens up.

The former SMU transfer might not have All-SEC upside sharing a backfield with Judkins, but I wouldn’t be surprised if several 100-yard games are in his future. Preserving Judkins will be prioritized. Bentley figures to be a big part of that.

South Carolina — Nick Emmanwori, S

This might sound weird, but stick with me on it. Emmanwori was so good from the jump as a true freshman that the play after he left the Georgia game with an injury, Todd Monken immediately dialed up a look in the seam to Brock Bowers … which turned into a 78-yard touchdown wherein he escaped 2 tacklers at the second level. There’s no way that sequence happens if Emmanwori is on the field. Consider that a little example of just how valuable he already is. The 6-4, 218-pound defensive back can absolutely jet, which should help him improve in coverage. For now, his best asset is his open-field tackling. Not many dudes immediately step into the SEC and rack up 62 solo stops. That was best among FBS freshmen.

The South Carolina coaching staff is ecstatic about what Emmanwori showed as an 18-year-old in the SEC. My guess? He’s ineligible for this list next year because he earns first-team All-SEC honors in 2023.

Tennessee — Squirrel White, WR

Always bet on a dude named “Squirrel.” That’s what I always say. Bru McCoy is going to get a lot of the preseason love across the SEC because he’s the former 5-star guy who flashed in some big moments last year, including the catch that set up the game-winning field goal to take down Alabama. But White is the guy who could actually be the more prolific player after spending all that time developing a rapport with Joe Milton as a second-teamer. Want a crazy stat? White only had 1 game with 20 snaps in the first 11 weeks of the season, yet he finished the year with more 40-yard catches of any returning SEC receiver (6). Among all SEC receivers in 2022, only teammate Jalin Hyatt had more 40-yard grabs.

Like Hyatt, White figures to line up mostly in the slot. He could very well turn into Milton’s favorite target who’ll inevitably test the limits of his ham cannon for an arm.

Texas A&M — McKinnley Jackson, DT

For all the talk about the train wreck that was Jimbo Fisher’s offense, A&M’s run defense last year was equally embarrassing. Not having Jackson for roughly half the season was a big part of that. Unfortunately, he was banged up late in spring, as well. When healthy, though, he’s the run-stuffer that DJ Durkin desperately needs in the middle of that defense. He still managed to have 7 tackles for loss as an interior defender in an injury-shortened season. His return announcement was monumental for an A&M team who simply has to improve with the SEC’s highest percentage of returning production.

There’s no reason why Jackson and former No. 2 overall recruit Walter Nolen shouldn’t form one of the best interior DL duos in the SEC, if not all of college football.

Vanderbilt — CJ Taylor, DB

I might just have to automatically put this spot for anyone who gets to play the “anchor” position in Clark Lea’s defense. Call it “anchor” or “star” or whatever. Taylor is extremely versatile, and he’s going to be asked to do a ton for Lea’s defense in Year 3. He became a full-time starter after the first month of the season and rewarded his head coach with 59 tackles, 7 TFLs, 5 pass breakups, 1 interception and 1 sack. Taylor was huge in that stunner against Florida, especially in coverage.

Taylor’s versatility apparently coveted some interest from Tennessee, but he opted for another year in Nashville. For a defense that looked like it played on its heels far too often in recent memory, Taylor is a confident, downhill player who should have a big say in whether Vandy can end its bowl drought.