Why hello there, spring football.

Apologies if you’ve felt neglected. You see, the SEC put a team in the Final Four for the first time since 2019. That was after the SEC matched its record with 8 teams in the men’s NCAA Tournament. Of course, 5 of those teams lost to lower-seeded teams in the first round a few weeks ago, so the vast majority of the conference had probably already turned the page to spring football.

Well, check that. South Carolina and LSU fans — along with the rest of America — watched their respective teams have deep runs in the women’s NCAA Tournament.

Nonetheless, I now have all of your attention.

There are 8 SEC teams in action Saturday. Football action, that is.

Here’s 1 question I have about each spring game:

Arkansas — What does the Bobby Petrino offense look like?

Of all the things that have happened in the SEC this offseason — Nick Saban retiring, Texas and Oklahoma joining the conference, etc. — I feel like Petrino’s return to Arkansas has been on the back burner. It comes with the territory for a 4-win team. Petrino will do a better job than Dan Enos at moving the quarterback out of the pocket and utilizing more tempo, which isn’t saying much. How will Boise State transfer Taylen Green look as the expected QB1? And will this offensive line have a chance against a defensive line that figures to be the strength of Arkansas’ defense? Even if Petrino plays things close to the vest with mostly basic looks, I’d expect that to be the No. 1 topic of conversation on Saturday.

Florida — Does DC Austin Armstrong try to harass DJ Lagway?

Last year, Armstrong treated the spring game like his Super Bowl. That wasn’t necessarily a surprise for the 20-something defensive coordinator, who was eager to turn around Florida’s incredibly disappointing unit. But this year, with the prized Lagway in the fold, will he throw the kitchen sink at the true freshman? Or will Billy Napier put his star recruit in favorable spots so that he can build up some confidence? Lagway won’t be live, so this is won’t be about the type of punishment he takes on, but it’ll be interesting to see if Armstrong tries to confuse the decorated true freshman and make it a humbling day at the office.

Kentucky — Should be concerned about the non-Deone Walker elements of the UK defensive line?

Depth is the issue at this point of the season, even with Walker, AKA the best returning defensive lineman in the SEC. Walker is actually part of the reason why the Cats are limited up front. He underwent shoulder surgery this offseason, which is par for the course for this UK defensive line. That unit is down 8 guys in spring. That’s why Kentucky isn’t doing a “full-scale” spring game, according to Mark Stoops (H/T Jeff Drummond). Maybe that sets up new Kentucky QB Brock Vandagriff to have a big day to boost his confidence in his first starting role after spending 3 years at Georgia. Either way, the health of that group figures to have a big say in whether Mark Stoops’ defense bounces back after a frustrating 2023.

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Georgia — What does the day look like for Trevor Etienne?

It’s been an eventful offseason for Etienne, to say the least. He crossed enemy lines by leaving Florida for Georgia, where he’s expected to step into the starting role. His March arrest certainly shined the spotlight even brighter on him. Kirby Smart said that the new tailback is “embarrassed” by his mistake and that he’d be disciplined internally while waiting on the legal process to play out. It’ll be interesting to see what his reception is in the spring game. Does he get some decent run or will he look similar to — or even a step behind — the decorated Roderick Robinson II? Are Georgia fans buzzing every time he touches the ball? There’s a path for Etienne to be the Dawgs’ best tailback since D’Andre Swift. If he pops in G-Day, it’ll only speed up that hype train.

LSU — How evident is it that Kyren Lacy is the new alpha WR?

I know ESPN Baton Rouge’s Matt Moscona and some other LSU insiders have been all over this take, so I’m not the first or last one to discuss Lacy as the clear WR1. After all, the guy looked liked WR1 at last year’s spring game. Of course, when the games actually started, Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. did their best imitation of Justin Jefferson and Ja’Marr Chase for an LSU offense that was one of the best of any during the 4-team Playoff era. Lacy waited his turn. All signs out of spring are that he’s ready for his chance to become the new primary target, though he should have competition with Liberty’s CJ Daniels. If Lacy can continue to show that he moved past those drops issues, the sky is the limit in the Tigers’ offense.

Alabama — Is the offense clearly the superior unit to start the Kalen DeBoer era?

We know that it’s a different era in Tuscaloosa. Roll Tide Willie’s presence alone is a sign that there’s a significant shift. I’d expect that shift to be evident on the field, too. Throughout the Saban era, it felt like the defense was always set up to look like the superior unit, even as the offense put things into overdrive in recent years. Why? The scheme, the coaching, the depth, etc. But now with the offensive-minded DeBoer on board, it’s fair to wonder if we’re going to see that group have a clear edge against a new-look defense. Sure, Alabama has its staples like Deontae Lawson and Malachi Moore back, but the blind faith in the new faces that was there during the Saban era feels a little bit different now. Even if Jalen Milroe looks like he’s still figuring out the DeBoer offense with Nick Sheridan calling plays, one would think that group should have the edge entering 2024.

Ole Miss — How are all of those new portal pieces fitting on defense?

I don’t think there’s any question that Ole Miss has its most talented defense since the Hugh Freeze era. The established SEC players that Lane Kiffin acquired via the transfer portal should help a unit that took a big step forward in 2023. There are legitimate All-SEC candidates — Princely Umanmielen already earned that honor at Florida — who should step in and have prominent roles:

  • Florida Edge Princely Umanmielen
  • Tennessee Edge Tyler Baron
  • Arkansas LB Chris Paul Jr.
  • Texas A&M DL Walter Nolen
  • Alabama CB Trey Amos

The question that awaits Pete Golding is how those pieces will fit together. He has some stud front-7 returners with JJ Pegues, Jared Ivey and Khari Coleman. Those guys should have a favorable chance to look the part, even in a spring game setting wherein Kiffin will likely call for the defense to keep things as basic as it gets. But as Kiffin has reiterated during the offseason, you don’t win SEC games just by having household names. They need those guys to gel, play off one another and buy into their new surroundings.

Tennessee — Will Nico Iamaleava somehow generate even more hype? Is that possible?

Look, I’m part of the problem here. I salivated at some of the throws that Iamaleava made as a true freshman. I also salivated at plenty of the throws that Hendon Hooker made as a mid-20s force of nature back in 2022. Iamaleava’s potential suggest that he can be every bit as good as Hooker was. Remember that at this time last year, he was still trying to master the tempo aspect of Josh Heupel’s offense. Joe Milton was far more comfortable, and that’s why he was the bridge-the-gap quarterback from Hooker to Iamaleava.

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But now, with Iamaleava entrenched as the clear QB1, it’ll be interesting to see how many “start the Heisman campaign” moments he has in a controlled setting. Heupel also has to weigh the Vols’ lack of QB depth into his reps. It’s that that Iamaleava will be live, but the worse-case scenario would be him rolling an ankle. My guess for Saturday? More Iamaleava salivating and an even faster hype train.