“If wishes and buts were candies and nuts, we’d all have a Merry Christmas.” Well, here at SDS, we’d love for everybody to have a Merry Christmas. Here’s one “what if” for each SEC team’s 2017 to ponder around the holiday fire.

Alabama: What if it had gone with Tua?

Few freshmen have ever been as exciting as Tua Tagovailoa. Unfortunately, he spent most of the season stuck to the bench behind Jalen Hurts, who is himself not only talented and skilled but experienced. Could Tagovailoa have been the spark to get Alabama past Auburn? Would he give the Tide a different element in the College Football Playoff? These questions will probably remain hypothetical, but if Bama comes up short, they’ll be discussed a good deal in the offseason.

Arkansas: What if Rawleigh Williams III had been back?

After a neck injury in Arkansas’s spring game, Williams was forced to give up football. Did Arkansas miss his 1,360 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns? Certainly. For a team that lost three conference games by one score, being able to keep their weak defense off the field with Williams’s slashing running would have probably made a difference between bowl being eligible and hiring a new head coach.

Credit: Jeremy Brevard-USA TODAY Sports

Auburn: What if it hadn’t taken the foot off the gas against LSU?

Seriously, Auburn led the LSU Tigers 20-0 in the second quarter and limped their way into a 27-23 loss which was crucial. How crucial? Well, if Auburn’s only losses were to Clemson in Week 1 and Georgia in the SEC title game, and they could boast wins over Georgia in the regular season and Alabama in the Iron Bowl, who’s to say Auburn wouldn’t have jumped the Crimson Tide for the last CFP spot?

LSU: What if the Tigers had gone with Myles Brennan?

LSU’s limitations continued to center around a fairly pedestrian passing game. Did new offensive coordinator Matt Canada help? Sure, but Danny Etling just wasn’t a championship quarterback. Is freshman backup Myles Brennan? Well, hard to say. Brennan has the next-level skills which Etling lacks, and LSU tried to rotate QBs at times. But would it have been for the better for the Tigers to have just given the job to the youngster? Might be a good question to ponder heading into LSU’s bowl game.

Mississippi: What if Freeze hadn’t faltered and the sky hadn’t fallen in?

The Rebels were one of the most fascinating teams in the SEC. An offense led by Shea Patterson — then, after Patterson’s injury, by Jordan Ta’amu — with big-play receivers and running back Jordan Wilkins was incredible to experience. How good could Ole Miss have been with the architect of the team still on board and with sometime to play for the in the postseason? It’s entirely speculative, but it’s not hard to imagine an 8-4 or 9-3 Ole Miss team instead of its 6-6 reality.

Credit: Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports

Mississippi State: What if it had taken down Bama?

Dan Mullen was so close to his crowning victory in Starkville. What kind of fallout would have occurred if the Bulldogs pulled it off? First, Alabama would be out of the CFP. Second, it would’ve been a lot harder for Mullen to escape Starkville for Gainesville. Third, we’d have a different SEC coach of the year. That’s a lot of change.

Texas A&M: What if it hadn’t folded against UCLA?

Give a team a 34-point lead and tell it to hold on for 19 minutes. Frankly, that team should take a knee three times and punt and bleed out the clock for a two-score win. But not the Aggies. If A&M wins that game respectably, would the program still have dumped Kevin Sumlin? For A&M fans, it might have been a case of losing the battle, but winning Jimbo Fisher.

East

Florida: What if the credit card fraud investigation/suspensions hadn’t happened?

Sure, on one level, that whole scandal was an annoyance. On another, it kept Florida’s top receiver (Antonio Callaway) and back (Jordan Scarlett) out of the lineup, as well as hurting the defensive depth. With better playmakers, Florida would have gotten past LSU and A&M (they lost by one and two points, respectively), and the Georgia loss wouldn’t have gotten Jim McElwain axed. Florida would have ended up in a 7-5 type season … but Dan Mullen would probably still be in Starkville.

Georgia: What if Jacob Eason had been the man?

Could UGA have made this run without Jake Fromm under center? It’s hard to say. Maybe with Eason at quarterback, UGA would have stung the Auburn defense in their first meeting and would have a perfect season. Of course, on the other side, it could be that the gutty win against Notre Dame might have been a loss with Eason at the helm. It’s hard to say, but if Eason ends up transferring, UGA fans will watch him there and wonder about this one — particularly if the Bulldogs come up short in the CFP.

Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Kentucky: What if Jeff Badet and Boom Williams had stuck around?

Kentucky somehow made a 7-5 season feel disappointing, in large part because the big-play aspect of their offense was missing. Mostly, it was missing because Williams made an ill-advised gamble on the NFL and Badet transferred to Oklahoma, where he probably didn’t do much to help his NFL chances. If both had returned, Kentucky could easily have ended up 9-3 with narrow home losses to Florida and Ole Miss ending up as victories with just one more offensive big play.

Missouri: What if the program had panicked?

In today’s microwave society, after Barry Odom opened 2017 with a 1-5 start (which made him 5-13 overall at Mizzou), many were sure he wouldn’t be back. What if the Tigers had pulled the trigger and fired Odom? Sure, part of Missouri’s 6-0 finish was its schedule — the Tigers played two weak nonconference foes and drew Florida and Tennessee at the right time. But it’s not hard to imagine a rudderless Mizzou team grinding out another 4-8 finish. The Tigers earned their comeback by standing by their man.

South Carolina: What if Deebo Samuel had stayed healthy?

South Carolina was a very solid team, making few mistakes and playing very competitive games. The Gamecocks would have been much more explosive had they not lost their best skill player, wide receiver Deebo Samuel, to injury during the third game of the season. With Samuel, the Gamecocks would’ve probably beaten Texas A&M, though upsetting Georgia or Clemson was probably out of reach.

Tennessee: What if Florida’s Hail Mary had been incomplete?

Even for a team with a dumpster fire season, one play could have made a huge difference. UT probably had an advantage over a bad offensive UF team in overtime, but that OT didn’t happen. UT lost to South Carolina and Kentucky by close margins. The confidence boost of beating UF probably would’ve helped turn Tennessee’s 4-8 season turn into a 7-5 one.

Vanderbilt: What if Nifae Lealao hadn’t trash-talked Alabama?

It wasn’t like Vandy was going to beat Alabama. That 59-0 beatdown should make that pretty clear. But in making Alabama very, very angry, Vandy lost the spark that saw the Commodores start 3-0. Had they not inflamed the sensibilities of the Tide and merely lost by 35 or 40, might Vandy have had enough gas in the tank to get by Florida (two-score loss) or South Carolina (one-score loss)? In a 5-7 season, anything that might have delivered one more win would have made a big difference.