Published Feb 13, 2023
The producers: looking at who's returning in the SEC
Mark Passwaters  •  AggieYell
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A couple of weeks back, there was a real interesting stat that came out about teams returning their producing players from 2022 and A&M came in 8th. That included offense and defense. But I’m going to take a look at the SEC and see who returns what in terms of top passing QB, top rushing RB and the three top receivers. Here’s how it comes out, with returners in bold:


A&M:

QB: Haynes King, 1,220

RB: Devon Achane, 1,149

WR/TE: Evan Stewart, 649; Moose Muhammad, 610; Ainias Smith, 291

This is kind of misleading because the QB with the most TD passes and started the last several games (Conner Weigman) returns. Achane, of course, is a loss. The wideout group should be really good.


Alabama:

QB: Bryce Young, 3,328

RB: Jahmyr Gibbs, 926

WR/TE/RB: Jermaine Burton, 677; Ja’Corey Brooks, 674; Gibbs, 444

Alabama’s wideout room has been totally turned over except for their top two guys, and they’ll have a new QB and RB1. It will be very interesting to see how this goes.


Arkansas:

QB: KJ Jefferson, 2,648

RB: Rocket Sanders, 1,443

WR/TE: Matt Landers, 901; Jadon Haselwood, 702; Trey Knox, 296

Jefferson coming back saved the Hogs from outright disaster, but their passing attack looks really weak going into 2023. Former A&M commit Isaiah Sategna could see a lot of playing time.


Auburn:

QB: Robby Ashford, 1,613

RB: Tank Bigsby, 970

WR/TE/RB: Ja’Varrius Johnson, 493; Koy Moore, 314; Jarquez Hunter (RB), 221

Ashford, to be polite, was pretty lousy in his first playing time at Auburn. Losing Bigsby will not help, but Hunter is pretty good. Auburn gets their top two wideouts left, but it won’t really matter unless the QB play improves (and Ashford is no slam dunk to start).


Florida:

QB: Anthony Richardson, 2,549

RB: Montrell Johnson, 841

WR/TE/RB: Ricky Pearsall, 661; Justin Shorter, 577; Xzavier Henderson, 410

Florida really, REALLY needs to find a quarterback. Right now, Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz is the guy, but he will need to be better than he was in Madison. The Gators are hoping Henderson, one of the game’s fastest players, will finally break out.


Georgia:

QB: Stetson Bennett, 4,127

RB: Kenny McIntosh, 829

WR/TE/RB: Brock Bowers, 942; Ladd McConkey, 762; McIntosh, 504

Clearly, replacing Bennett will be no mean feat, and losing McIntosh hurts. But Georgia has a ton of running backs it can turn to and their receivers and tight ends largely return.


Kentucky:

QB: Will Levis, 2,406

RB: Chris Rodriguez, 904

WR/TE/RB: Barion Brown, 628; Dane Key, 519; Tayvion Robinson, Tayvion Robinson, 497

Unlike A&M, Kentucky doesn’t have their new starter established and game-experienced. They also don’t have Amari Daniels, Le’Veon Moss and Reuben Owens to replace Rodriguez. So…ouch.


LSU:

QB: Jayden Daniels, 2,913

RB: Daniels, 885 (among running backs, Josh Williams, 532)

WR/TE: Malik Nabers, 1,017; Kayshon Boutte, 548; Mason Taylor, 414

LSU returns a ton of production, but this also shows their weakness in the running game and their offensive line remains an issue, as we saw in A&M’s win last fall.


Mississippi State:

QB: Will Rogers, 3,974

RB: Jo’quavious Marks, 582

WR: Rara Thomas, 626; Rufus Harvey, 505; Lideatrick Griffin, 502

The skill position personnel return for the Bulldogs, for the most part, but what the offense looks like after the passing of Mike Leach and the hiring of Zach Arnett remains a question mark.


Missouri:

QB: Brady Cook, 2,739

RB: Cody Schrader, 745

WR: Dominic Lovett, 846; Barrett Banister, 457; Luther Burden, 375

Mizzou really needs some guys to step up. Schrader was a walk-on from Truman State who ended up starting, and Burden really needs to make the jump you’d expect from a 5-star. And then Eli Drinkwitz needs help beyond that.


Ole Miss:

QB: Jaxson Dart, 2,974

RB: Qunishon Judkins, 1,567

WR: Malik Heath, 971; Jonathan Mingo, 861; Jordan Watkins, 449

With Walker Howard and Spencer Sanders both transferring in, Dart isn’t even secure as the starter. Judkins is, and will be a first team All-SEC preseason pick. But Ole Miss needs to come up with some help at wideout, which could include for A&M WR Chris Marshall. The biggest problems are on defense.


South Carolina:

QB: Spencer Rattler, 3,026

RB: Marshawn Lloyd, 573

WR/TE: Antwane Wells, 978; Jalen Brooks, 504; Josh Vann, 296

Getting Rattler back was massive for South Carolina, but the Gamecocks really need someone to help Wells. 5-star Nyckoles Harbor, who was projected as a tight end or defensive end by nearly everyone in the nation, looks like he’ll be a wideout in Columbia.


Tennessee:

QB: Hendon Hooker, 3,135

RB: Jaylen Wright, 875

WR: Jalin Hyatt, 1,267; Bru McCoy, 667; Ramel Keyton, 562

Hooker is gone, but Joe Milton played well in his stead late last season. He’ll have plenty to work with as Wright returns at running back and Oregon transfer Dont’e Thornton joins McCoy and Keyton at receiver.


Vanderbilt:

QB: AJ Swann, 1,274

RB: Ray Davis, 1,042

WR: Will Sheppard, 776; Jayden McGowan, 453; Quincy Skinner, 238

The Commodores return a lot of production, but it’s not much production — if you get the drift. And losing Davis to Kentucky really stings.