Familiar Faces in New Places, A Welcome Back to the SEC.
The South Eastern Conference has not come up short in the coaching changes, transfers, and schematic modifications. The Air Raid is in Athens. There's a pair of dynamic personalities battling over the Magnolia State, and there's a Pitt Boss running the Hogs in Arkansas.
Today, we take a look at each coach's new role:
Todd Monken
Though Monken is not new to play-calling duties at the collegiate level, it will be the first time he's done as much in the SEC. Monken spent 2005-2006 as the passing game coordinator at LSU under head coach Les Miles and play-caller Jimbo Fisher.
With the addition of both Monken and Faulkner, the Air Raid movement could be underway at Georgia. It's not new to the SEC though. LSU played a Big12 offense this past season, David Pollack said as much prior to the SECCG. This type of offensive attack has been done before, and the next guy on our list will be doing it to the 100th degree.
Miss St. head coach Mike Leach
Mike Leach
Leach and former Kentucky head coach Hal Mumme were the original creators of the famous Air Raid offense, at least in the SEC. Those Wildcat teams were the first in the conference to consistently throw the football 50 times per game.
Leach hasn't slowed down since becoming a head coach either. His teams chunk it more than any program in the country. Last year, Anthony Gordon through the ball 689 times... No other quarterback had even 600 attempts. Joe Burrow finished second with 527. This is Air Raid on steroids, and we get to see what it will do in the SEC and whether or not Leach can recruit the level of athletes required to do so in this conference.
Lane Kiffin
The Egg Bowl won't be hurting for entertainment as long as these two are in town. Kiffin makes his return after just one (7-6) season at Tennessee before pulling the 'chute and heading to California for the USC job.
Kiffin's departure from Knoxville involved literal fires, and he was fired and left at the Tarmac by the folks at USC. Then was left by the team bus at Alabama, all to end up in Boca Raton coaching the Owls of FAU. Now, he takes up the Ole Miss program fresh off a scandal.
Meanwhile, he's somehow managed to stay extremely likable and hirable. Lane gets his second crack at an SEC program and with the bones of a decent football team left by Matt Luke.
Sam Pittman
Sam Pittman has been in the SEC for the last eight seasons, but he hasn't held the title of head coach since 1993 and that was Hutchinson Community College in Kansas. So, there's really no telling what the former offensive line coach's offense or defense will even look like.
One thing that you do know, is that Pittman will always be able to identify and recruit linemen. However, we will see if he can continue to do so in the SEC West, and at Arkansas. He certainly won't pull in five stars at the rate he did in Athens, but he won't have to in order to be deemed a success at his dream job.
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