Florida will win the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division in 2009. The Gators are the No. 1 team in the nation, return 11 starters on defense and still have the great Tim Tebow behind center.
Hey, this is my SEC prediction column so I figured I'd get the easy stuff out of the way.
The West, however, isn't so simple.
The three-team race between No. 5 Alabama, No. 8 Ole Miss and No. 11 LSU will be the most entertaining story in the league.
Alabama's Nick Saban is the best coach in the division and knows what it takes to win at this level. A year ago many folks claimed he was a season away from putting together a great team. However, the Tide went out and won 12 consecutive games in 2008 before falling to Florida,31-20, in the SEC championship game and to Utah, 31-17, in the Sugar Bowl.
If this is going to be Saban's best club at Alabama, that's just scary.
He has a new quarterback with little experience, but Greg McElroy probably has more talent than John Parker Wilson, last year's starter.
Receiver Julio Jones is one of the best in the nation, and linebacker Rolando McClain is as good as they come.
Many national pundits have fallen in love with the Rebels. Behind quarterback and pro prospect Jevan Snead, Ole Miss brings back several skilled position players and a typically strong Houston Nutt defense.
So, there's plenty to like about the Rebels -- except history. Ole Miss had a great run in the middle of the last century, winning six SEC titles and three national championships from 1947-63. The Rebels have only sniffed a share of a West crown since.
And as much as I like Nutt and Ole Miss' upside, there's not enough that screams "champion" about this team. I have to see it to believe it.
LSU has the trio's least amount of hype heading into September. The Tigers have tons of talent as they recruit as well as any team year-in and year-out in the nation.
It's hard to say that the Tigers could come out of nowhere -- they return one of the best backs in the nation in Charles Scott and lots of NFL talent on defense -- but in many eyes, they're probably the third-best team in the West.
As far as schedules go, LSU has the hardest slate since it has to face the Tide and Rebels on the road, as well as Georgia. And the Tigers are the only of the three contenders to get Florida.
Ole Miss plays Alabama in Oxford, and the only questionable road game is at South Carolina.
The Crimson Tide's first five games are a cake walk heading into Oct. 10's match with the Rebels, and it gets South Carolina, Tennessee and LSU at home the next three games.
In the end, the safe pick is Alabama, a team that's been there and has the best coach. Just don't expect me to pick the Tide to knock off the Gators.
(Contact Brad Senkiw of the Anderson Independent-Mail in Anderson, S.C., at senkiwb(at)independentmail.com.)
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