HOOVER, Ala. — The SEC media has deemed Auburn as the preseason conference favorites.

After an 8-5 season in 2014 and losing quarterback Nick Marshall, the Tigers will face lofty expectations this fall. The team hired former Florida coach Will Muschamp as defensive coordinator and elevated Jeremy Johnson into the starting quarterback role.

In an interesting twist, the media selected Alabama (SEC West) and Georgia (SEC East) as the division winners. Auburn received more first-place votes in the West Division (108 to 92) despite losing to the Tide on total points.

In other words, some media members aren’t so sure about Auburn, even though the majority picked them ahead of Alabama.

After winning back-to-back SEC East titles, the media selected Missouri third in the division this year. Georgia is the overwhelming favorite to win that division, and received 166 of 225 first-place votes (73.8 percent).

Here’s the entire predicted order of finish, according to the media:

SEC CHAMPION

1. Auburn, 96 points
2. Alabama, 80 points
3. Georgia, 28 points
4. LSU, 9 points
T5. Ole Miss, 3 points
T5. Arkansas, 3 points
T7. Texas A&M, 2 points
T7. Tennessee, 2 points
T9. Mississippi State, 1 point
T9. Florida, 1 point

WESTERN DIVISION

1. Alabama (92), 1,405 points
2. Auburn (108), 1,362 points
3. LSU (10), 870 points
4. Arkansas (6), 821 points
5. Ole Miss (3), 732 points
6. Texas A&M (4), 628 points
7. Mississippi State (2), 482 points

EASTERN DIVISION

1. Georgia (166), 1,498 points
2. Tennessee (36), 1,231 points
3. Missouri (20), 1,196 points
4. South Carolina (1), 830 points
5. Florida (1), 768 points
6. Kentucky (1), 534 points
7. Vanderbilt, 243 points