7 spring football questions we have about the SEC

Spring football is upon us, and today we start a week-long series on big spring questions for each league. First up is the SEC.

New coaches obviously mean questions, but we’re bypassing questions about the teams for new coaches Brian Kelly at LSU and Billy Napier at Florida because they’re too easy. And, truthfully, given the past few weeks for Bryan Harsin and Auburn, all these questions could’ve been about the Tigers. But those are too easy, as well. We’re trying to go deeper.

With those caveats, here are our biggest questions about the SEC. We’ll look at the Big Ten on Thursday, ACC on Friday, Pac-12 on Saturday, Big 12 on Monday and the Group of 5 and independent ranks Tuesday.

Alabama: What does Jahmyr Gibbs’ addition mean to the offense?

The skinny: For a variety of reasons, Alabama basically was a one-man show at running back in 2021, with Brian Robinson carrying a heavy load (he had 49.4 percent of the rushing attempts). Robinson is gone now, and Jahmyr Gibbs arrives from Georgia Tech to be the lead back. Gibbs did good work for mediocre Georgia Tech offenses the past two seasons, rushing for 1,206 yards and eight touchdowns and averaging 5.2 yards per carry. Alabama returns Jase McClellan, Roydell Williams and Trey Sanders at running back. But the Tide didn’t bring in Gibbs to sit on the bench. He will share carries, yes, but he’ll also get more carries than the other guys. Gibbs has good speed and is an excellent receiver (59 receptions in two seasons). How offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien will deploy him is going to be interesting to watch. (Speaking of O’Brien, raise your hand if you thought he would be back for his second season with the Tide. And if you’ve raised your hand, well, you’re lying.) Gibbs has more speed than Robinson, and while Robinson was a good receiver, Gibbs also should provide an explosiveness as a receiver that Robinson did not possess.

Arkansas: Uhh, who replaces Treylon Burks?

The skinny: Arkansas threw for 2,781 yards last season, which was 11^th in the SEC; the Hogs’ average of 213.9 yards per game was 86^th nationally. Star WR Treylon Burks had 40 percent of that yardage (1,104 receiving yards), but he’s gone to the NFL. Burks had 66 receptions, and the leading returning wide receiver is Warren Thompson, the former Florida State transfer who had 19 catches. Thompson is not a go-to receiver. Arkansas did sign former Oklahoma WR Jadon Haselwood out of the portal, but while Haselwood was the On3 Consensus nation’s No. 1 receiver in the class of 2019, he always was a complementary guy with the Sooners; he had 62 catches for 736 yards and seven TDs in three seasons at OU (six of those TDs came last season). Arkansas signed three freshman receivers and there are some young holdovers, but offensive coordinator Kendal Briles may find it tough to find a true go-to guy. That, in turn, might hamper QB K.J. Jefferson.

Georgia: Is Jalen Carter ready to become a true force?

The skinny: DT Jordan Davis got most of the national attention in 2021, though a case can be made that DT Devonte Wyatt actually outplayed him for the national-champion Bulldogs. But both are gone, meaning it’s now on Jalen Carter — who is immensely talented — to be the guy in the middle who gets all of the attention. Carter has played extensively since arriving on campus and he has played quite well. But he also has been content to sort of be in the shadows. Those days are over. With all the key losses in the front seven for Georgia, Carter needs to be front and center as a defensive leader. And he’ll need to do that with a surrounding cast that won’t be quite as good as 2021’s. Still, chances are that next year at this time, people will be talking about him as a possible top-10 pick in the 2023 draft. (Did we mention that Carter is immensely talented?)

Kentucky: What kind of strides can the pass offense make?

The skinny: First-year offensive coordinator Liam Coen revved up UK’s passing attack in 2021, for sure; last season was the first time the Wildcats averaged more than 200 passing yards per game since 2015, and UK was sixth in the league in passing efficiency. But let’s not go overboard: UK averaged 224.5 yards per game, which was 10^th in the SEC, and the Wildcats threw for more than 179 yards in an SEC game once (387 in a loss to Tennessee). Now Coen has gone back to the NFL, and coach Mark Stoops is looking for a new OC and a new go-to receiver with the departure of Wan’Dale Robinson to the NFL. Virginia Tech transfer Tayvion Robinson, who led the Hokies with 44 receptions in 2021, will be hugely important and how quickly he acclimates is a big story. RB Chris Rodriguez Jr., who seems likely to leave UK as the school’s leading career rusher, again will be the offensive focal point, but UK doesn’t need the pass offense to back slide.

Ole Miss: How quickly can a new-look backfield mesh?

The skinny: Ole Miss lost a ton of firepower off the 2021 squad, along with offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby (now at Oklahoma). The Rebels’ top four rushers are gone, including QB Matt Corral. New OC Charlie Weis Jr., who had been at USF, has to make sure Ole Miss’ key transfer portal additions, QB Jaxson Dart from USC and RB Zach Evans from TCU, get quickly up to speed in a new offense — and get used to each other. Dart certainly can sling it, and Evans has a ton of talent and explosiveness. Western Kentucky transfer Mason Brooks was another important addition, and he’ll start at one of the tackle spots. But getting Dart and Evans acclimated during the spring is Job One for the new OC. Evans, in particular, gives Ole Miss a different dimension in the backfield. He has a big-time burst, can run between the tackles and has promising ability as a receiver, too.

South Carolina: What does Spencer Rattler mean for the pass offense?

The skinny: The Gamecocks’ passing attack has been pedestrian the past three seasons; in that span, they have had just three 300-yard games against SEC foes and thrown 30 TD passes in 26 conference games. But there is reason to believe things will change this season. The biggest reason: QB Spencer Rattler, who was the On3 Consensus nation’s top quarterback prospect in the 2019 recruiting class, has transferred in from Oklahoma. Rattler was productive in Lincoln Riley’s attack in 2020, then struggled mightily and lost his starting job last season. Gamecocks OC Marcus Satterfield needs to help rebuild Rattler’s confidence, and it’ll be interesting this spring to see how Satterfield changes his passing offense to take advantage of Rattler’s arm. The weapons appear to be there. Leading receiver Josh Vann is back. TE Jaheim Bell looked great down the stretch in 2021. TE Austin Stogner came with Rattler from Oklahoma. And an underrated addition from the portal is James Madison transfer WR Antwane Wells Jr., who had 83 catches for 1,250 yards and 15 touchdowns with the Dukes last season. He and Vann could do some damage together.

Texas A&M: What will happen at quarterback?

The skinny: A lot was expected of Texas A&M in 2021, and, hey, the Aggies did beat Alabama. But they also lost four league games because of a spotty offense. Starting QB Haynes King was lost for the season with a knee injury early in Game 2, and that caused issues. Replacement Zach Calzada was tremendous in the win over Alabama but just adequate (at best) against other SEC opponents. Calzada now is at Auburn, and King is back; in addition, Max Johnson — who threw 27 TD passes for LSU last season (though 15 came in the first four games) — has transferred in. King’s dual-threat ability is noteworthy. If healthy (and he appears to be for the spring), he adds a different dimension than Calzada and Johnson, who are dropback guys. A&M’s defense was excellent last season, but it might take a half-step back because of some personnel losses. That means the offense needs to be better than it was last season. If King truly is back, it should be.