Around The SEC: Fall Camp Storylines
It's going to tough climb for the South Carolina Gamecocks as they look to avenge a 4-8 finish last season and the first test comes week one. They will host a Tennessee team that was able to build some momentum towards the end of the season. South Carolina built a 21-13 lead last season but ultimately fell 41-21. Taking care of Tennessee in week one would show improvement from the jump.
"We get the score and have all the momentum, but you give up 14 points and your defense isn’t on the field it's hard to win on the road in the Southeastern Conference," Will Muschamp said in a Zoom press conference on Monday. "We actually gave up 35 points last year when our defense wasn't on the field. So didn’t do as much offensively in the second half and gave up too many explosive plays defensively. They’ve certainly turned it around. They played extremely well, they’ve recruited well. I got a lot of respect for Jeremy [Pruitt] and their entire staff, they do a really good job.”
South Carolina is replacing a number of now pro players and has a talented freshmen coming in with a short learning curve. Muschamp said he’s pleased with how they've gotten acclimated so far and time will tell how exactly they will be used. With the move to an all-SEC schedule, the Gamecocks will certainly get time to prove themselves as Muschamp made note how depth would be one of the most important aspects of the team this year. The Gameocks were already in a mindset of playing multiple players in order to find new rotations, so they should fare well if everyone is able to remain healthy.
Alabama
In addition to opening fall camp and having the schedule released, four-star dual-threat quarterback Jalen Milroe flipped his commitment from Texas to the Crimson Tide on Monday night. He had been committed to the Longhorns since June of 2019. The 6-foot-2, 195-pound Milroe suits up for Tompkins High School in Katy, Tex. In 2019, he completed 62 percent of his passes, throwing for 2,689 yards and 29 touchdowns with only eight interceptions. As a running threat, he added 378 yards on the ground and eight additional scores. … Alabama’s lone injury so far is reserve linebacker Ale Kaho with a slight knee injury. Saban declined to say if any players had opted out. "We’re going to keep all those issues internal to our team," Saban said after the team's first practice of fall camp. "The players have asked me to do that, and I agree with them. That’s what I meant by the privacy laws and what we have to do to protect guys in college football. If and when a player is ready to make an announcement about that we’ll give it to you, and that will be his prerogative to do that." —Christopher Walsh, BamaCentral
Florida: Florida faces a dilemma to begin spring practice with four veteran players, all of whom were set to start this season, held out of the first day of camp, according to multiple sources. Three of which are wide receivers, and should the holdouts last an extended period of time or lead to opt-outs, Florida’s No. 16 passing offense from a year ago could be in serious trouble. That news dominated the Monday’s Gators news cycle until the SEC schedule release, when Florida was given a favorable schedule that notably includes an away game at Texas A&M followed by the annual LSU matchup at home in weeks three and four. As the schedule panned out in the Gators favor, the annual Florida-Georgia game being pushed back a week to Nov. 7th, the day before a home Jaguars game at TIAA Bank Field where UF vs UGA will be played, is the only other major item of note.
https://www.si.com/college/florida/football/sources-florida-gators-fall-camp-holdout-2020
—Zach Goodall, AllGators
LSU
The Tigers drew as favorable a schedule as they could have hoped for. The bye week before Bama rolls on for and 11th straight year and games like Missouri and South Carolina are played right before Florida and Auburn. It’s beneficial to have those weaker SEC opponents (sorry Gamecock fans) in front of the loaded rival games which are played with unmatched emotional energy and effort. LSU also held its first fall practice on Monday and while no media was allowed to view it, LSU sent over some footage from the practice, which can be seen here.
https://www.si.com/college/lsu/football/lsu-video-first-fall-practice
— Glen West
Mississippi State
New Mississippi State head coach Mike Leach is going to get introduced quickly to the rigors of playing in the Southeastern Conference. With the release of the Bulldogs’ schedule on Monday, it cemented how year one of the Leach era will be a challenge to say the least. Mississippi State will play what might be the toughest road schedule in all the SEC. The Bulldogs open the season at LSU, then later in the season, make trips to Alabama and Georgia. The other two road games? A trek to play what’s expected to be a good Kentucky team, as well as the instate road trip to Oxford for the annual Egg Bowl, which is always a toss up. … For the first time in nearly 20 years, the Mississippi State-Ole Miss battle won’t close out the regular season. It was 2001 the last time the Bulldogs and Rebels didn’t meet in the regular season finale. That happened because State’s game against BYU earlier that year was postponed to the last contest of the season due to the September 11 terrorist attacks. … While the road portion of State’s schedule is intimidating, the Bulldogs have a much more manageable slate at home. They’ll face Arkansas, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt, Auburn and Missouri in Starkville. On paper, Mississippi State has a good chance to win three of those (Arkansas, Vanderbilt and Missouri) and the Bulldogs have also had a measure of success against Texas A&M and Auburn in recent seasons. While inside the program few might admit it, given the schedule, a .500 record might be plenty good enough to consider year one of Leach a roaring success at Mississippi State.
— Joel Coleman, Cowbell Corner
Tennessee
The Volunteers’ lineup took a hit when the transfer waiver submitted by tackle Cade Mays was denied. “We’re in the process of appealing that,” Coach Jeremy Preuitt said. “For me, it is frustrating, and it’s frustrating for Cade. Just looking at it, for his sake, a guy that, to me, I think he was a really good player at Georgia, and I don’t know how he did there, but I know playing against him, I thought he was one of the better players in the league. I thought he played the right way." Mays, a legacy as his father played for the Vols, transferred from Georgia and had been penciled into the starting lineup at right tackle next to Trey Smith. "The circumstances surrounding him and his family is something that he had no control over,” Pruitt continued. “When you look at a young man once he transfers, going through the process of how is he going to be eligible, there’s a lot that goes into that. He’s sitting there with this case looming. Does that affect where he’s at on the depth chart? Does that affect anything that goes on around him? It’s an unusual circumstance.”
https://www.si.com/college/tennessee/football/cade-mays-eligibility-update
— Matthew Ray, Volunteer Country
Vanderbilt
We heard from Derek Mason for the first time since March on Monday, and what we learned was that there isn't a clear leader in the battle to be the starting quarterback this season. Mason said that the four candidates split 78 reps during the first practice and that he felt there were enough to go around. He was also asked about the rape allegations that became public over the summer against two former and one current player. It then turned into coach speak where he said a lot but gave very little actual information. Soon after those comments were shared, fan reaction was as expected, with renewed disapproval of Mason and Vanderbilt for their handling of this situation, at least publicly to this point. These questions and fan discontent will likely continue. Mason spoke before the announcement of the week one game, or the schedule release, so there was no reaction on those announcements, though the Commodores schedule will be daunting. Greg Arias/ @gregariassports- Commodore Country