Entering the 2023 season, there’s a clear-cut top team in the SEC. The Georgia Bulldogs have won back-to-back national titles, and even after losing a lot this offseason, this still looks like the most dominant team in the league.
After that, though, things get interesting. Who is most deserving of the No. 2 spot?
Is it an LSU team that had a breakout 2022 season, winning 10 games and capturing a West division title? Or will it be the Alabama team it beat to win the division, which has questions but also gets the Tigers in Tuscaloosa?
To the chagrin of LSU fans, On3’s Jesse Simonton went with the latter in his preseason SEC power rankings, giving ‘Bama the second spot while LSU came in at No. 3.
Brian Kelly exceeded expectations in Year 1 with the Tigers, and LSU has the look of a potential national title team with the return of quarterback Jayden Daniels, the SEC’s best collection of wideouts, all five starting offensive linemen and perhaps the top 1-2 defensive players in the conference in sophomore phenom Harold Perkins Jr. and former 5-star DL Maason Smith.
And yet, LSU’s second-year head coach has spent much of the offseason tapping the breaks on LSU’s title hopes, saying he believes the program is “a year away” from bridging the gap with the likes of Georgia and Alabama. Maybe Kelly is sandbagging the Tigers’ chances this fall, or maybe he’s right to be concerned about a lack of depth at several key spots.
Depth is a concern, especially for a team that has relied so heavily on the transfer portal, specifically on defense.
Simonton’s prediction is in line with the rest of the media, which picked the Crimson Tide to win the West division. LSU will hope to silence the critics when it opens the season in what could be a top-10 matchup against Florida State.
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