Nobody said it was easy. Shoutout, Coldplay.

It’s not easy to come up with the most valuable player for every SEC program in the past decade. The word “valuable” does not equal “best.” We’re not automatically talking about the guy who had the gaudiest numbers, nor are we talking about the guy who had the most NFL success.

It’s value to the program. Sometimes, that’s bridging the gap with a new coaching staff. Other times, it’s playing quarterback at a high level for several years when that’s been tough to come by at times.

Also, it’s not easy to pick just 1 player because we’re talking about a conference with 11 programs that won double-digit games at least once in the past decade (2012-21).

That’s the other caveat. We’re only talking about guys who played during that stretch (2012-21). Yes, the guys who played 3-4 seasons within that timeframe will benefit more than guys who played 1 season in that stretch like Jarvis Jones or Cordarrelle Patterson. Keep that in mind, as well.

So here’s the most valuable player for every SEC team in the last decade (2012-21):

Alabama — Jalen Hurts, QB

I know, I know. Hurts wasn’t even a top-2 player at his own position at Alabama. He’s the guy who left. How could that possibly make him the most valuable? He stepped into that program as a true freshman and established himself as the QB1 in Week 1. He led Bama to the national title game as a freshman. Remember, Hurts scored the go-ahead TD on a 30-yard run in the final minutes, only to watch Deshaun Watson lead Clemson on the championship-winning drive. The SEC Offensive Player of the Year honor as a true freshman quarterback is an insane feat, and I think we’re numb to any Alabama QB accomplishments now. Yeah, 2017 wasn’t a roaring success. He never really fit with Brian Daboll’s offense. He still led Alabama to a national championship game for the second consecutive time, though he needed Tua Tagovailoa’s magic to lift the trophy.

Let’s also not forget that Hurts then delivered one of the great relief performances of the 21st century when he stepped in for Tagovailoa in the 2018 SEC Championship. If Hurts had checked out or transferred to preserve a year of eligibility, that Alabama team could’ve had a much different feel to it. Hurts could’ve been the guy who divided the locker room. Instead, after he lost the starting job, he handled his business like a professional and did exactly what was asked of him.

That’s value.

Arkansas — Treylon Burks, WR

I have no problem if you want to go with Frank Ragnow. I almost did. Ragnow was a leader of that program as a 3-year starter who played multiple positions on the offensive line. Grant Morgan has a case to be made, as well, especially as a walk-on who started his career with Bret Bielema and didn’t start until Sam Pittman and Barry Odom arrived.

But I went with Burks for an obvious reason. Take him off Arkansas during the first 2 years of the Pittman era and what was that offense? It wouldn’t have been nearly as effective. He stretched the field and gave Kendal Briles’ up-tempo offense such a dynamic, versatile weapon to keep defenses honest. There’s a strong argument to be made that because Burks stayed after Chad Morris’ firing, he’s the most valuable Razorback since Darren McFadden. I don’t disagree with that.

Auburn — Nick Marshall, QB

I debated Marshall or Derrick Brown. I almost went with the latter, considering that he allowed Auburn to consistently rush 3 and get pressure. Brown was phenomenal, and I have no problem with him in this spot, either. But Marshall gets the nod for what he did in 2013. Yes, the Prayer at Jordan-Hare and the Kick 6 fueled that season. You know what people forget, though? The Kick 6 wouldn’t have happened without Marshall rushing for 99 yards and a score against Alabama, which used to be unheard of. We also forget that Auburn tied the game with that RPO, 39-yard touchdown pass to Sammie Coates.

Chef’s kiss, that was. That play showed why Marshall was the perfect Gus Malzahn quarterback, which is crazy to think about considering the likes of Jeremy Johnson, Jarrett Stidham and Bo Nix were all billed as more talented options. But it was Marshall who changed games with his legs and connecting on the occasional downfield shot.

That Auburn team might’ve caught 2 of the most fortunate bounces ever, but it was still darn good with Marshall leading the way. We also forget that he beat that loaded A&M team with Johnny Manziel (there was a missed unnecessary roughness call late that would’ve changed things for A&M, but it still counted as an Auburn win). Marshall was actually what the Tigers needed to help turn that offense around, and his play nearly yielded a national title.

Florida — Kyle Trask, QB

You might disagree with this. That’s fine. I can’t pick a corner here just because I don’t think the impact is significant enough (that means no Vernon Hargreaves, Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, CJ Henderson or Kaiir Elam). I can’t go with Kyle Pitts because it was really 1.5 seasons of dominance at the tight end position. And as much as I’d love to pick an edge rusher like Dante Fowler or CeCe Jefferson, there aren’t many examples of those guys who dominated for 3 years.

Trask did something no Florida player has in the post-Tim Tebow era — he got a Heisman Trophy invite. Shoot, he’s the only Florida player to finish in the top 10 in the Heisman voting. He beat Georgia and won an SEC East title while delivering the nation’s No. 1 passing offense. That was for a team that had its worst defense since the Woodrow Wilson administration. As great as Pitts, Kadarius Toney and Trevon Grimes were, none of them took on the burden that Trask did.

Let’s also not forget that he replaced an injured Feleipe Franks in September 2019 and then led Florida to a top-6 season with a New Year’s 6 bowl victory while scoring 29 touchdowns (25 passing, 4 rushing). He was the program’s first great quarterback of the post-Tebow era. Rough ending aside — Florida stopping anything against LSU or Alabama would’ve helped — Trask went from being the last scholarship of the 2016 class to being the program’s most valuable player of the decade.

Georgia — Nick Chubb, RB

The only reason that Todd Gurley’s injuries and suspension wasn’t some massive setback for UGA was because Chubb was ready to roll as a true freshman in 2014. Had he never returned to form following his brutal 2015 injury, we would’ve treated him like Marcus Lattimore. Instead, Chubb stayed for the Kirby Smart era and he was the driving force behind the national runner-up season in 2017. Sure, Sony Michel was a star, too, but Chubb bridged the gap between the Mark Richt era and the Smart era.

Chubb finished his career looking up only at Herschel Walker on the SEC’s career rushing leaderboard. That’s incredible considering what he went through in the middle of his career. He became an even better player by the time he left Georgia. No, he didn’t win a national championship, but had he left early for the NFL Draft, there’s no way UGA in 2017 would’ve been a blown Cover 2 assignment away from winning its first title since 1980.

Kentucky — Josh Allen, OLB

You could make a case that Lynn Bowden dropping his All-SEC receiver abilities to play quarterback for Kentucky in his pre-draft season makes him worthy of this spot. It’s perfectly fair. Bowden is a Kentucky legend for what he did in 2019.

But I’ll give the edge to Allen, who was one of the nation’s best defensive players of the 2010s. We all remember his 17-sack All-American season in 2018 when he led Kentucky to its best season in 4 decades. He rushed off the edge, he blew up plays in the backfield, he covered in space, he made ball-separating tackles. Allen did it all. It made me cringe seeing the word “edge” used as his position during the pre-draft process because he was so much more than just a guy who got after the quarterback.

Allen might not have been as vocal as Benny Snell, but on and off the field, that guy was the alpha who played the biggest role in getting Mark Stoops’ program over the hump (go back and watch him in that 2018 Florida game). Allen was more than just a 1-year wonder, too. He finished his 4-year career with 220 tackles, 42 tackles for loss, 31.5 sacks, 11 forced fumbles (!), 2 fumble recoveries and 1 interception. Kentucky isn’t where it is today without Allen’s greatness.

LSU — Joe Burrow, QB

I mean, this isn’t really a discussion, is it? All the guy did was deliver arguably the best single season we’ve ever seen at the FBS level. Don’t forget that when Ed Orgeron entered 2018 on the hot seat, Burrow saved his job by leading LSU to its first New Year’s 6 bowl of the Playoff era. Burrow doubled down on that with 2019, wherein he led an LSU offense to the most impressive season we’ve had in the modern era as part of a perfect season.

Yeah, this isn’t a discussion. Let’s keep this moving.

Mizzou — Drew Lock, QB

Nick Bolton would’ve been a worthy choice, especially with how valuable he was in his pre-draft season in Year 1 of the Eli Drinkwitz era. But Lock got the nod because he was a 4-year starter who played the biggest part in helping Mizzou bounce back in the post-Gary Pinkel era. Yeah, Lock struggled against the elite foes. Most quarterbacks in his spot would’ve also been a lesser version of themselves. Lock still led consecutive top-20 offenses in his junior and senior seasons.

It’s also easy to forget that among SEC quarterbacks, he ranks:

  • No. 2 in career passing yards
  • No. 3 in career passing TDs
  • No. 3 in single season passing TDs
  • No. 5 in career TDs responsible for

Sure, it was a different era compared to the mid-90s. Still, though. That’s darn impressive. Lock’s impact was greater than those elite defensive linemen that Mizzou cranked out in the first part of the decade. Don’t let the lack of consistent NFL success get in the way of that.

MSU — Dak Prescott, QB

Easiest choice on this list. Prescott could’ve never played a down in the NFL and that wouldn’t have changed that. Until Will Rogers and the Air Raid offense shatters all of Prescott’s records, Prescott will stand alone (that total touchdowns record might be tough to get to for Rogers … unless he uses all 3 of his remaining years of eligibility).

The achievement that Rogers and a high-powered passing attack likely won’t touch is the fact that Prescott led MSU to a No. 1 ranking in the Playoff poll (the first Playoff poll). That season had a disappointing ending, but it was still MSU’s lone year with a winning record in conference play in the 21st century. That’s significant. He was a perfect fit in Dan Mullen’s offense, and he was exactly what MSU needed to keep its head above water in the ever-demanding SEC West. There’s no debate here.

Ole Miss — Matt Corral, QB

If you want to say that someone from that historic 2013 recruiting class changed the culture and is worthy of one of these spots, I’d say, well, are we just supposed to forget about the sanctions that class was responsible for? Corral, on the other hand, was the biggest reason Ole Miss got out of those sanctions and he was easily the program’s most valuable player since Patrick Willis.

He made Ole Miss an instantly electric offense in Year 1 of the Lane Kiffin era, and in Year 2, he led Ole Miss to its best regular season win total in program history despite the fact that he was hobbled throughout the latter half of the season. The guy who was throwing haymakers in his first Egg Bowl stayed at Ole Miss even though he lost his job as a second-year player in 2019. In 2 seasons as a starter, Corral totaled:

  • 64 total TDs (49 passing, 15 rushing)
  • 6,686 passing yards
  • 1,120 rushing yards
  • 9.4 yards/pass attempt
  • 12-8 vs. Power 5 competition

He was everything you’d want out of a blue-chip recruit. Replacing his production and leadership is by no means a given.

South Carolina — Jadeveon Clowney, DE

Would it have been nice if Clowney repeated his sophomore season in his pre-draft year? Sure. But think about this. The former No. 1 overall recruit was obviously a massive get for Steve Spurrier. We remember the viral plays and the freakish moments when he took over games. In terms of value, though, do you think it’s a coincidence that the only top-10 finishes in program history happened in each of the 3 seasons that Clowney was in Columbia? I don’t.

All of those teams won 11 games and the worst defense that Clowney was a part of ranked No. 13 in FBS in points allowed. Even though he was at the top of every scouting report as a true freshman, he finished his career with 47 tackles for loss and 24 sacks. He also holds the school record with 9 forced fumbles. Clowney was valuable because of the double- and triple-teams he coveted any time he stepped on the field. Not to take anything away from recent South Carolina greats like Deebo Samuel and Jaycee Horn, but Clowney takes the cake.

Tennessee — Derek Barnett, DE

When I close my eyes and think about a set it and forget it player, Barnett is who comes to mind. I truly think that 2017 team would’ve had a better chance to stop the bleeding if Barnett had stuck around another year. Still, though, the guy managed to break Reggie White’s career sacks mark in the final game of his career. He finished his 3-year career — entirely as a starter — with a ridiculous 52 tackles for loss and he totaled 197 tackles from the defensive end position.

He wasn’t as physically gifted as someone like Myles Garrett, but what Barnett lacked in explosiveness, he made up for with technique and relentlessness. In the SEC, the guy had double digit sacks in all 3 seasons. That’s incredible. His 20.5 tackles for loss as a true freshman is one of the more underrated individual feats of recent memory (the position was loaded in the SEC and Barnett didn’t get first-team all-conference love).

The most stable period of the most-Phillip Fulmer era was the 3 years that Barnett was in Knoxville. That’s not a coincidence.

Texas A&M — Johnny Manziel, QB

I’m not saying Manziel was a perfect face of the program (he wasn’t), but if we’re being honest, every program in America would take the good with the bad. The good was Heisman Trophy-level, historically dominant stuff. The good was electrifying a sellout crowd and taking down No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa. That team was in the midst of its 3rd national title in 4 years, in case you forgot. Manziel was the first (redshirt) freshman to win the Heisman, and he led A&M to its best AP Top 25 finish (No. 5) in 56 years.

The timing of Manziel’s rise was monumental. His 2 years as a starter were A&M’s first seasons in the SEC. Half the league finished in the AP Top 25 and 5 teams ended up ranked in the top 10 in 2012. In other words, it would’ve been easy for A&M to get bullied in those first 2 years. Instead, Manziel took the program to new heights … and put more eyeballs on the program than ever before.

Vanderbilt — Jordan Matthews, WR

For about 7 years, Matthews was the answer to a great trivia question. That is, “who’s the SEC’s all-time receiving leader?” Then DeVonta Smith happened. But Matthews’ career résumé is still incredibly prolific. He finished his career with 3,759 receiving yards, which was 666 receiving yards more than any SEC receiver who came before him. Oh, and he is still the answer to the question “who’s the SEC’s all-time receptions leader?” That’s Matthews, who has 262 career catches and has a record that has somehow withstood this passing game boom in the SEC.

Like many on this list, it also helps his case that he played during his program’s best stretch of the 21st century. Matthews was rock solid in the transition to the James Franklin era, which culminated with consecutive Top 25 finishes for the first time in program history. Something tells me Matthews having consecutive 1,300-yard seasons at Vandy had something to do with that. He’s an easy to choice to represent the Dores.