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7 things that changed our opinion in the SEC East this spring

Randy Capps

By Randy Capps

Published:

Spring games have come and gone for SEC East teams, which means college football fans can start counting down the days until September.

Until then, it’s time to look back at the spring and see whether it changed our mind a bit about the season to come:

GATORS STEADY AT QB?

The quarterback position has been a sore spot in Gainesville for quite some time. Aside from the first half of last season, when Will Grier was putting up strong numbers, Gators quarterbacks generally have struggled since Tim Tebow left.

Luke Del Rio, the well traveled transfer from Alabama and Oregon State, took a step forward out of a crowded field of contenders this spring to stake his claim for the starting job in 2016.

Del Rio was 10-of-11 for 176 yards and two scores in the spring game, drawing only a tepid endorsement from coach Jim McElwain, who clearly wants his quarterback group to keep pushing each other into the summer.

“Whether Coach Mac says I have a slight lead or not, that doesn’t change how I work, how I study, how I prepare,” Del Rio told gatorcountry.com when told about his coach’s comments after the spring game. “So through these next summer workouts it will be big to get better as an offense, not just me. Everybody needs to get better and I need to get a lot better.”

He looks comfortable in coordinator Doug Nussmeier’s system, and if he can be a good leader and a calm hand under center, the Florida offense could be much better than the second half of last season.

RECEIVING OPTIONS EMERGE IN ATHENS

Lost in the Jacob Eason mania from the Georgia spring game was a surprisingly effective day from its receiving corps.

Rising sophomore Terry Godwin is the leading returning receiver, but a host of other players seem eager to help offset the loss of Malcolm Mitchell.

At the top of that list is rising senior Reggie Davis, who racked up 134 yards on six catches in the spring game. True freshmen Riley Ridley (4 catches for 68 yards) and Isaac Nauta (6 catches, 56 yards and a touchdown) were also impressive, as was rising sophomore Jayson Stanley, who had four receptions for 87 yards.

New options at wide receiver and an already strong running game bode well for the eventual winner of the quarterback derby.

A STEP FORWARD FOR WARE?

Coming into the spring, the quarterback competition between Drew Barker and JUCO transfer Stephen Johnson II was the focus for Kentucky.

Barker won the job, but it was a defensive player who stole the show at the spring game.

Denzil Ware, who plays a bit of defensive end and outside linebacker, piled up 15 tackles and four sacks — and he sat during the fourth quarter.

“I feel more confident back there,” he told Kentucky Sports Radio after the game. ” I know a lot more about the defense. I feel like since I played last year, I know what they expect this year. So I’m attacking it, and not tip-toeing through. I’m just going head first into everything.”

TIGERS FIND A NEW WEAPON

No SEC team had more trouble putting the ball in the end zone last season than Missouri, so to say that coach Barry Odom was hoping to unearth some new offensive options this spring is a bit of an understatement.

Justin Smith redshirted last year, but the freshman managed to use his 6-foot-7-inch frame to haul in a touchdown pass from Marvin Zanders in the spring game.

A tall wide receiver is a quarterback’s best friend in the red zone, and Smith could make a big impact for the Tigers this fall.

GAMECOCKS COULD TURN TO A FRESHMAN QB

Throwing freshmen quarterbacks into the starting lineup is more common than it used to be. South Carolina tried it last year, giving Lorenzo Nunez a chance to start against UCF and Missouri with mixed results.

It’s a hit-or-miss proposition, but one the Gamecocks may make again this fall.

Brandon McIlwain has impressed coaches and teammates alike since arriving in Columbia in January with his poise and leadership qualities.

As we learned in the Garnet and Black Game, he can also play a little.

He finished 19-for-26 for 169 passing yards and two touchdowns while adding another touchdown on the ground. And it did it while showing the poise and athleticism that made him a four-star recruit.

The race isn’t over, but he’s in pole position to start the opener against Vanderbilt.

FINE TUNING IN KNOXVILLE

Expectations are sky high for Tennessee heading into the 2016 season, and aside from a rash of injuries on defense, nothing happened during the spring to change that perception.

If there was a knock on the Volunteers in the spring, it was the need to find more production from the wide receivers.

Preston Williams, who was named the team’s most improved offensive player in the spring, clearly got the message. The rising sophomore pulled in three passes for a team-high 77 yards, and will try to carve out a larger role for himself in the offense later this year.

COMMODORES SAILING TOWARD A BOWL?

It’s usually easy to pencil in Vanderbilt for a spot near the SEC East cellar, but that might not be a good idea in 2016.

The Commodores have gone 3-9 and 4-8 in coach Derek Mason’s first two seasons, but the defensive specialist has already worked his magic on that side of the ball.

The team finished 22nd nationally in scoring defense last fall, which means that even a marginal improvement from the offense, which ranked near the bottom nationally in scoring, could result in a couple of more victories.

“We need to move from just competing in games to winning games,” Mason told Sports Illustrated. “I think they’re hungry enough because they’ve had enough bad things come their way to recognize the opportunity to win. But that’s not going to happen by accident. My expectations for this football team haven’t waned one bit.”

Randy Capps

Randy Capps is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football, South Carolina and Georgia.

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