SEC East Division Predictions

1. Florida - Pretty much just slot them in for Atlanta in early December.
2. Georgia - Losing Stafford won't hurt Georgia that much. They will probably be going with RB by committee to replace Moreno, but I wouldn't expect the rushing numbers to dip too much. DTs Geno Atkins and Jeff Owens, who returns after missing last season with a knee injury, are two of the best in the league.
3. Vanderbilt - This should be Bobby Johnson's best team as Vandy returns just about everyone from last year's bowl team except for CB D.J. Moore, who is now with the Chicago Bears.
4. Tennessee - Defense hasn't been an issue for Tennessee the past few years. Anemic offenses led to losing seasons in 2005 and 2008. Safety Eric Berry will lead a once again stout Vol defense, and I think the offense will improve just enough to secure a winning season and bowl berth.
5. South Carolina - Like Tennessee, defense hasn't been the problem (except when playing Florida) but the offense has been close to non-existent and certainly not up to Spurrier's standards. Stephen Garcia will have the QB job all to himself, but he is going to need a running game that averaged just 2.9 yards a carry last season to improve for the South Carolina offense to get any better.
6. Kentucky - The definition of average. Quarterback play put Kentucky in the division cellar last year and it is not going to get much better this season.

Late

So there were supposed to be four practices open to the public, two for vets and two for freshman, but they cut it down to three and just had the freshman play with the upperclassmen on Friday. Here's some tidbits:

• Moody, Black, and Moore didn't practice due to injury but they are expected back soon. I get the feeling that we'll only be seeing Moody in the fourth quarter of blowouts again this season.
• Dustin Doe is still suspended from the team for driving with a suspended license. Doe was a starter in 2007 and the first part of 2008 but lost his job when he had to sit out a few weeks due to injury. The depth at linebacker and in the secondary is just ridiculous. Speaking of secondary depth...
  
• Will Hill stepped in for Black and was impressive. Meyer called Hill "one of the top 5 guys" right now. Black was tied for the NCAA lead in interceptions last year so I doubt Hill is going to replace him, but I am sure Meyer and Strong will find a way to get him on the field. Hill was the nickel cornerback and lead the team in special teams tackles last year with 22.
• Tim Tebow still has the big windup delivery when throwing the football, but supposedly it has been sped up to allow him to get rid of the ball faster. Every year I read about changes in Tebow's mechanics and every year they still look the same to me... I guess we'll see.
  
• Deonte Thompson is emerging as the the go-to receiver.
  
• Riley Cooper was practicing (sorry Phil).
• Andre Debose has mostly looked lost.
• I couldn't find anything on who is playing with the first team offensive line. I am not overly concerned about replacing last year's tackles; offensive line coach Steve Addazio has plenty of talent to plug in there.
• Starting CB Joe Haden has lined up some in the Wildcat formation. Haden was a quarterback in high school and was originally slotted to play wide receiver at Florida before moving to the defensive side of the ball and becoming the first freshman corner in Gator history to start on opening day. I doubt the Wildcat formation makes an appearance during the regular season.
  

That's it for now. I am going to release some SEC predictions sometime today or tomorrow and I'll have my preseason Top 25 out by next week.