SEC Baseball Tournament 2012 Poll
SEC Baseball Tournament Preview
I will walk you through my bracket, but here is how I see the SEC Baseball Tournament playing out next week:
I first thought that LSU and Vandy would play in the finals next Sunday, but I think Mississippi State is on a roll and they just may beat the Tigers.
Kentucky will have an early exit and Florida will lose early before being knocked out by South Carolina.
USC typically plays poorly in Hoover, and this year may be a slight improvement.
Ole Miss will continue their misery and Auburn will get an early win and then head home.
Georgia will be, well they will be Georgia.
You may feel free to disagree and I hope you will share your comments with me.
If you would like to submit your thoughts for the championship you can fill out your own bracket by clicking here and submitting the results.
Hope to see many of you in Hoover. I hope to see myself there next Sunday to watch the Dores play.
As we head to Hoover…
First, let me say it has been way too long since my last post. Work keeps getting in the way.
As we head into the final curve of the regular season in SEC baseball let’s take a look at “who’s hot and who’s not” as we head into Hoover and the SEC baseball tournament next week:
Stone cold
Tennessee and Alabama will watch from the sidelines as they didn’t make the field. Both teams had challenging seasons, but I suspect we will see the same leadership at each school as we head into the next season.
Chilly
Georgia and Auburn have not ended the season on high notes and Ole Miss is also on life support as they try to salvage a game today in Nashville. The Mildcats of Kentucky are also creeping along after learning that winning 22 in a row over sub-par competition doesn’t do much when you get into the conference season.
Warm
Florida, LSU and South Carolina are always doing well and they are ending the season on high notes. Arkansas is also doing OK, but they are not the stalwart we all through they would be earlier in the season.
Hot
Mississippi State and Vanderbilt are playing their best baseball at the right time. The kiddie corps at Vandy is coming of age (razors have been issued) and they will be a force in the tournament in Hoover.
I so look forward to the tourney next week and hope to see you there when Vandy plays LSU in the finals next Sunday.
Until then, enjoy your baseball.
Another page turns in the SEC Men’s basketball season…
We are heading into the third full week of SEC Men’s basketball and here is a quick synopsis of what we know:
The “Have Nots”
- Ole Miss is really bad and Andy Kennedy needs to be comparing notes with Houston Nutt regarding buyout suggestions.
- Darrin Horne has the same fate in front of him at South Carolina
- Auburn is not great, but they beat Ole Miss, better known as Ole Misery
- Tennessee is down, but the addition of the Jarnell Stokes should make the Vols a decent team
- Georgia has a long rebuilding process in front of them, but they have senior Gerald Robinson and freshman Kentavius Caldwell-Pope to build around
The “Haves”
- Kentucky is loaded again, but most of the talent is green with the exception of Darius Miller, Doron Lamb and Terence Jones
- Florida is like a donut; strong around the outside, but weak in the middle. Boynton and Erving Walker give the Gators a strong perimeter presence
- Alabama is just the opposite of Florida; weak in perimeter shooting, but strong in the middle with Jamychal Green and Tony Mitchell
- Mississippi State is a strong, balanced club led by Dee Bost, Arnett Moultrie and Renardo Sydney
- Vanderbilt has a starting lineup with 4 seniors and a junior; they have considerable experience, but questionable ability to “close out” close games
To be determined
- Arkansas is in a transition stage with new coach Mike Anderson and they feature freshman phenom BJ Young of St. Louis
- LSU has shown signs of promise, especially their win over Marquette, and they are led by junior, Iowa State transfer Justin Hamilton and sophomore Andre Stringer.
So there you have it, the Haves, the Have Nots, and the to be determined pieces of the SEC men’s basketball puzzle.
My prediction is that all of the Haves will make the NCAA tournament and that LSU and Arkansas will make the NIT.
I’ll be back in future editions to revisit this early prediction and to see if I have to eat any crow.
I doubt that will happen. 
It is early Sunday morning and here are a few thoughts after the first day of conference play for the SEC men:
Vandy has picked up their game, but Auburn looks really bad right now. The Tigers played a cupcake pre-conference schedule and that was apparent after the beating they took in Nashville yesterday.
Kentucky is, well, Kentucky. They won again at home, but we will see how the road treats them soon. USC is not strong again this year and I suspect that Darrin Horne will be looking for a new role after this season.
LSU is still a work in progress. I was shocked when they defeated Marquette last month and the Tigers handled the Rebs from Ole Miss quite handily yesterday. I believe that Andy Kennedy could share some resume tips with the aforementioned Darrin Horne after this season, even sooner.
Alabama is a team in search of a perimeter game and when it appears, consistently, they will be a bona fide Top 20 program. Yesterday may have been that day. Georgia may have peaked under Mark Fox and the future there looks murky.
Florida came to Knoxville and expected their newspaper clippings to win the game for them. The pesky Vols had a different outcome in mind and Cuonzo Martin’s crew played hard and spanked the Gators. Florida is the flip of Bama; the Gators are searching for an inside game and they should look up the word defense in the dictionary while looking.
Mississippi State learned the challenges of the road in league play as they went down to the Hogs in Fayetteville. Mike Anderson was the perfect fit for the Razorbacks and I suspect they will be a surprise team this year in conference play.
More next weekend. Be sure to tune in for the second LSU win over Alabama tomorrow in the SEC playoff, also known as the BCS National Championship.
In 2012, James Franklin will meet James Franklin; really!
Depending upon your allegiance and your geography, this post title will make complete sense or no sense whatsoever. Let me take a moment to explain.
For those who know me best you will think of Vanderbilt head football coach James Franklin, 
the man who has helped lead one of the biggest turnarounds in college football in 2011. The Commodores won two games in each of the 2009 and 2010 seasons, but then changed course to have a stunning 6 win season in 2011. Coach Franklin’s success is still being felt as many teams continue to poach his coaching staff. Having others recruit your coaches is a sure sign that you are headed in the right direction.
The “Other James Franklin” is a newcomer to the SEC, but he has already made a name for himself in college football. James Franklin, the quarterback of the Missouri Tigers, will line up against the Commodores in Columbia, MO on October 6 as the Tigers begin their inaugural season of SEC football competition.
This James Franklin started all 13 games for Mizzou in 2011 and threw for 2865 yards and 21 touchdowns while rushing for 981 yards and 15 touchdowns. I suspect he will be a handful for many teams because of his dual-threat capability.
So there you have it-James Franklin will meet James Franklin in 2012. The victor will be determined on the field, but both of these gentlemen are well respected and successful in their careers.
SEC sports in review-2011 was another very good year!
I know many of you have your calendar’s marked for the BCS National Championship game on January 9 between LSU and Alabama, but I thought there would be value in looking back over the past 12 months at the highlights of SEC sports for this past calendar year. The highlights are many and I’ll do my best to not miss anything of importance.
1. The sun rises in the east, Democrats want to raise taxes, and the SEC wins the BCS National Championship as the Auburn Tigers defeat the Oregon Ducks on a last second field goal by Wes Byrum.
The Tigers were a dream team in 2011, led by the Heisman Trophy winning Cam Newton on offense and spearheaded by Nick Fairly on defense.
2. Florida won the Men’s Indoor Track and Field championship in College Station, TX
3. South Carolina won their second consecutive baseball championship by sweeping a two-game series over arch-rival Florida in the finals in the “new” Rosenblatt” stadium in Omaha, NE. Fellow SEC rival Vanderbilt joined the top two in the final four.
4. Vanderbilt ended up as the runner-up in Women’s Bowling in 2011. The Commodores won the national championship in 2007.
5. Alabama won the Women’s Gymnastics national championship in Cleveland, OH.
6. Kentucky won the Women’s rifle championship.
7. Florida finished as the runner-up in Women’s softball.
8. Georgia finished as the runner-up in Women’s Swimming & Diving.
9. Florida won the Women’s Tennis national championship
As you can see, it was a great year for the league and the best keep getting better. With the Tigers playing the Tide in January we are guaranteed our 6th consecutive BCS football championship and the Gators are ranked #1 in baseball in many preseason polls.
Congratulations to all of the athletes of the SEC. We are proud of you!
As we enter the last days of December it is becoming quite apparent that a few SEC Basketball coaches might be looking for very specific presents under their trees this weekend.
Here are a few thoughts about what some of them might be looking for:
A shooting guard, maybe two
Respect and a fan base that cares about something other than football
More hell, such as the 40 minute variety
An inside presence to go with the strong complement of guards they have
Consistency
Mental toughness for Terrance Jones-they have everything else…
See Auburn
Anything will do, because the cupboard is bare
Crossed fingers and toes that this team will not implode like they did last year
See Ole Miss
Christmas came early with the addition of Stokes
Mental toughness for Festus Ezeli and consistency from John Jenkins-a little bench scoring would help
I hope you and your family have a great Christmas!
Welcome to our 2012 additions to the SEC, Texas A&M and Missouri.
