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.
