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Ole Miss didn’t stage a spring game due to renovations to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Auburn is following up Saturday’s A-Day game with one additional practice.
Still, a half-dozen SEC teams are essentially done with organized practice until the fall.
After a Friday and Saturday spent in front of a TV watching four spring games on the SEC Network, here’s what we’ve learned about the conference thus far.
1. There’s clarity at the quarterback position.
The story of spring practice in the SEC has been all the uncertainty at the quarterback position.
Outside of Chad Kelly at Ole Miss, Brandon Harris at LSU and Joshua Dobbs at Tennessee, there weren’t any established veteran starters certain to keep their jobs.
Thus far, though, most every team that has held a spring game exited with a much greater understanding of its options at quarterback.
Vanderbilt: Kyle Shurmur exited spring ball as the team’s starting quarterback. The ‘Dores are desperate for stability at the position, so it likely will take an injury for the team to displace the sophomore-to-be before the season opener.
Florida: Luke Del Rio’s command of the Gators offense impressed even more than his completion percentage (90.9). Jim McElwain took a risk when he didn’t fight to convince Will Grier to return. Florida’s recent history at quarterback is bad. But thus far, indications are that bet will pay off. That should allow the Gators to redshirt Feleipe Franks and Kyle Trask, the latter of which upstaged the more touted ’16 class signee in the spring game.
South Carolina: With half the so-called contestants out due to injury, this narrative is incomplete. Or perhaps the absences of Lorenzo Nunez (knee) and Perry Orth (collarbone) will cost them both. True freshman Brandon McIlwain didn’t look like a certified SEC starter, but he sure was impressive for a kid who should still be in high school. He should enter the fall with at least a real chance at the job.
Auburn: Of the five SEC teams that have completed spring football games, the Tigers’ quarterback situation is the most uncertain. Jeremy Johnson, last year’s starter entering the season, looked more or less as shaky as he was in ’15. John Franklin III’s lone completion of any real substance was more of a misplay by the secondary, and Auburn rarely allowed him to throw downfield. Sean White looked like the best passer, but he fumbled a snap and threw what should’ve been an interception. The good news? Auburn has about five months to figure out the quarterback position.
Texas A&M: After all the turmoil at the position, the Aggies couldn’t feel much better exiting the spring game. Trevor Knight looked like the steady veteran playmaker that the fans hoped he’d be. Jake Hubenak looked like a feisty backup with a good deep ball. The receivers, even Speedy Noil, made plays. Noel Mazzone’s offense looks balanced. Expect Knight to be the starter when the team takes the field against UCLA on Sept. 3.
(Update: Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin has named Knight the starter.)
2. Carl Lawson is capable of single-handedly changing Auburn’s defense
To this point in his career, talk about Lawson has exceeded what he’s done on the field.
After an impressive freshman season, he missed all of 2014 with a torn ACL. After a spectacular half against Louisville in last year’s season opener, he hurt his hip, missing another half-season.
He’s healthy again. And as long as it stays that way, he has a chance to singlehandedly improve Auburn’s defense.
On Saturday, he played in his first A-Day game — a weird notation for a player who nearly left for the NFL draft after last season.
On one play, his first step was so quick that he blew past the right tackle and would’ve lit up Sean White if not for the presence of White’s red “do not hit me” jersey. On another, he ran across the field to track down a ball-carrier from the back side of the formation.
Carl Lawson and Montravius Adams all over the field. https://t.co/fHT6M9N258
— Brandon Marcello (@bmarcello) April 9, 2016
Here's a comprehensive flowchart for breaking down A-Day, tho:
Was Carl Lawson injured?
YES—–> abject failure
NO—–> wild success— Jerry Hinnen (@JerryHinnen) April 9, 2016
Players like Montravius Adams and freshman Marlon Davidson looked good Saturday, but the guess here is they look much better when Lawson is on the field alongside them.
3. Texas A&M’s mindset is evolving.
There is some concern that the talent level along the offensive line is declining from what was an unbelievable group three years ago.
Still, a year ago this team was going through a novella at starting quarterback. And coach Kevin Sumlin was openly admitting his ’14 team was too soft to compete for an SEC West title.
We’re still taking a “believe it when we see it” approach in terms of Texas A&M’s capabilities in the running game on both sides of the ball. The backfield, secondary and especially the linebackers have something to prove.
But there are signs that the Aggies culture is going through a transformation.
Sumlin chuckled on the SEC Network broadcast when it jokingly called him to task for guaranteeing a “vanilla” game plan, pointing to a wide receiver pass for a touchdown. The coach insisted the defense deployed some blitzes that also were supposed to be off limits, shrugging it off as his team’s competitiveness.
WR ➡️ WR! Yup, You read that right.
Christian Kirk's 36-yd TD pass to Speedy Noil was WOW: https://t.co/FCPprAI2Jl pic.twitter.com/gzi4KAqW5K
— SEC Network (@SECNetwork) April 9, 2016
Daeshon Hall has become a worthy partner to Myles Garrett. Armani Watts looks more like an NFL-caliber safety after growing pains early in his college career. And while the results weren’t always there, the team seemed to play with more of an edge against the run.
Pair what should be a hyper-tempo offense under Noel Mazzone with an aggressive, opportunistic John Chavis defense and this team that has been bullied the last few years seems much better suited to do some bullying of its own.
4. Florida is looking more dynamic.
The Gators appear on track to restore competency at quarterback. It’s a safe assumption that a deeper, more experienced offensive line will improve. And Kelvin Taylor was one of the least explosive starting running backs in the East Division last season. Mark Thompson and the Jordans should be an improvement.
Still, the most exciting development in Gainesville may be the presence of Eddy Piniero.
Adam Silverstein of OnlyGators.com wrote a thoughtful, against-the-grain piece on Piniero after the game.
It was a thrill to see the social media sensation be able to nail kicks from 52, 46 and 56 yards, offering tangible proof that his videos were no fakes. He boomed kickoffs out of the back of the end zone, and hung them for an eternity when the Gators asked him to drop them at the goal line. His extra points were confident and split the uprights.
Still, he missed from 52 and 53 yards. Badly. And his timing appeared slow on a few kicks. Florida didn’t pit him against a rush. He’s never kicked in a college game before, so there’s a chance that at this point some of his tries would get blocked. And 3-for-5, even with the impressive distance on his tries, isn’t going to win him a Lou Groza Award.
But there’s legitimate hope in his talent. More importantly, it gives Florida options. No longer are the Gators forced to go for every fourth down deep inside enemy territory.
If Florida needs to rely on its defense and use Del Rio as more of a game manager who protects the ball, Piniero is a nice asset to add to the equation.
5. Vanderbilt is no longer the SEC’s clear-cut worst team.
Laugh all you want. The Commodores may not avoid last place in the SEC East this year, much less win 6 games to become bowl-eligible. But Vandy should no longer be the easy win it was for all of ’14 and parts of ’15.
Derek Mason appeared overmatched during his first season as head coach. But he’s improved the staff around him. Last season, his team lost two star players for the entire schedule and another for most of the year. All three return in 2016. There’s stability at quarterback. Mason has the defense playing well, and Ralph Webb is one of the SEC’s better running backs.
Expect this team to still get beat at the line of scrimmage, especially on offense. Most every team in the SEC will field more playmakers at receiver. And Vandy’s depth does not compare well to the rest of the conference.
But don’t anticipate much difference between the ‘Dores and the three other division teams that failed to make a bowl appearance last year: South Carolina, Kentucky and Missouri. Play well in those three games and Vandy will have a great chance to improve on its 4-8 record from last year.
An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.
