Edwards: SEC East spring report Brian Edwards link **Georgia Bulldogs** 2003: 11-3 straight up, 6-2 SEC. Lost to LSU 34-13 in SEC Championship Game; beat Purdue 34-27 (OT) in Capital One Bowl. Starters returning: Offense 10, defense 7, kicker 1. Georgia is expected to be the favorite to win the SEC this year. How come? Well, nearly its entire nucleus returns, including All-American defensive end David Pollack, who passed up the NFL Draft for another season in Athens. Pollack is -- without a doubt -- one of the best players in the nation regardless of position. All in all, the Bulldogs return 18 starters. David Greene is back at QB for his senior season, while backup junior D.J. Shockley is still in the mix (and, in my opinion, is the best backup signal caller in the country). Head coach Mark Richt has a stable of young running backs who all saw quality playing time in 2003. WR Fred Gibson had catches of 46 and 64 yards in the spring game. Gibson has shown flashes of brilliance in his career, but he has too often dropped critical passes (three against Florida last year) and been injured. The Dawgs need Gibson to have a breakout campaign. The defense suffered a costly blow at the end of spring drills, as LB Tony Taylor was lost for the entire 2004 season to a torn ACL. Taylor played in 12 of 13 games last year and was expected to be a key contributor. However, DE Will Thompson, who missed all of 2003 with a broken ankle, had an excellent spring and is back at 100 percent. One concern for UGA is the kicking game. Billy Bennett has departed, and the placekicking job is wide open. Also, fullback Jeremy Thomas has been suspended for the first two games of 2004. Of course, there's also this 14-year Halloween curse to overcome. That's right, UGA is still in the midst of its worst slump against any opponent in school history. Despite winning back-to-back SEC East titles, the Dawgs have lost six straight and 13 of the last 14 meetings versus the Gators. But that's it for the concerns. The consensus opinion is that Richt will field his best team to date this season, and don't be shocked if many publications tag the Dawgs as a pre-season No. 1 team. Our friends at Sportsbook.com have issued UGA with 12/1 odds to win this year's BCS Championship Game. The Dawgs open at home Sept. 4 against Georgia Southern. **Florida Gators** 2003: 8-5 SU, 6-2 SEC. Lost to Iowa 37-17 in Outback Bowl. Starters returning: Offense 5, defense 3, kicker 2. The pressure cooker for Ron Zook will be at an all-time high this season. Yes, Zook has fought an uphill battle since his arrival as Steve Spurrier's replacement, so this won't be unchartered territory. But make no mistake, not even Zook's closest confidant -- Florida AD Jeremy Foley -- will be able to save the Zooker if the Gators don't improve on consecutive 8-5 seasons. Quick little factoid: Florida lost only five games at the Swamp by a combined 25 points in 12 years under Steve Spurrier. In the two seasons of Zook's tenure, the Gators have lost five home games by a combined 75 points. Hello! Will Chris Leak guide the Gators to their first SEC Championship Game since 2000? (Getty Images) The good news for Gator fans? Chris Leak is back for his sophomore year at QB after thriving toward the end of his freshman year. Leak has all the tools -- brains, poise, toughness and a cannon for an arm -- to become the next great Gator signal caller in the footsteps of Rex Grossman, Danny Wuerffel, Shane Matthews, Kerwin Bell, John Reaves and the ole' Ball Coach himself. The word out of Gainesville from spring drills is that Leak demonstrated complete control of the offense. In addition, his fundamentals were improved, particularly his play-action fakes. Leak will have a new play caller, as Larry Fedora has been promoted to offensive coordinator, replacing Ed Zaunbrecher, who remains on the UF staff as QBs coach. The mantra from the UF camp is that the offense won't change much, but Fedora will try to quicken the pace of this unit and look downfield more often. Leak lost his three favorite targets, with Ben Troupe, Carlos Perez and Kelvin Kight departing. However, the Gators still have a talented collection of wideouts, including O.J. Small, Dallas Baker and Andre Caldwell. Small missed spring drills with an injury, but he is a veteran with experience and sure hands. The backfield is loaded with talent despite the loss of Ran Carthon. DeShawn Wynn and Ciatrick Fason are expected to carry most of the load, but don't be surprised if Skyler Thornton emerges to get significant playing time. Defensively, the Gators have stockpiled young talent, especially in Zook's last two recruiting classes, both of which ranked among the nation's top 10. True sophomores Earl Everett and Channing Crowder appear poised for breakout seasons at the LB position, while DT Ray McDonald is an All-SEC candidate as well. So the front seven should be strong, but defensive coordinator Charlie Strong has to replace his entire secondary, including shutdown CB Keiwan Ratliff, a second-round pick in last month's NFL Draft. The special teams have been an adventure during Zook's tenure. Actually, they have bordered on atrocious at times. Nevertheless, both kickers are back, and the guess here is that the special teams' units will be improved. After all, they can't get much worse. Sportsbook.com is listing the Gators with 20/1 odds to win the BCS Championship Game. UF opens at home versus Middle Tennessee State on Sept. 4. **Tennessee Volunteers** 2003: 10-3 SU, 6-2 SEC. Lost to Clemson 27-14 in Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. Starters returning: Offense 5, defense 4, kicker 2. Say what you want about Casey Clausen. The guy was cheesy, no doubt about it. And yes, his nickname was the Ice Man. And yes, he seemed out of place with his California roots deep in the heart of the South. He wasn't fast, nor did he have a great arm. All that said, there's no denying the guy was a winner. And now that he's gone, I have to give 'em his kudos. Consider this: Clausen was 14-1 in 15 career starts on the road, including a 3-0 record in the Sunshine State with a pair of wins at the Swamp and a 1-0 record at the Orange Bowl versus Miami. He's second in UT annals behind only Peyton Manning in nearly every passing stat. What else? How about sixth in SEC history in career passsing yards. Phillip Fulmer's team has big shoes to fill under center. The candidates have familiar last names, but most pundits would argue that they are the lesser compared to their siblings. C.J. Leak, the older brother of UF's Chris Leak, is competing with Rick Clausen, the younger brother of Casey. Neither player locked down the starter's role during spring drills, and one of the incoming freshman QBs could get an opportunity. The defense will be led by a pair of veteran All-SEC candidates in LBs Kevin Simon and Kevin Burnett. The Vols open at home against UNLV. They own long 30/1 odds from Sportsbook.com to win the BCS Game for the first time since 1998. **South Carolina Gamecocks** 2003: 5-7 SU, 2-6 SEC. Starters returning: Offense 9, defense 6, kicker 1. True or false: Lou Holtz owns a winning record during his tenure at South Carolina. If you guessed true, you'd be wrong. Holtz is only 27-32 in five seasons, including an abysmal seven-loss campaign in 2003. Holtz has brought in four new assistants, with Rick Minter (new defensive coordinator) and Ron Cooper (secondary coach) expected to spark a defense that finished eighth in the SEC last year. QB Dondrial Pinkins is back, but he's more of an athlete than a passer. Don't be surprised if the younger QBs -- sophomore Syvelle Newton and redshirt freshman Blake Mitchell -- get a chance to show their stuff. And we all know Holtz is not afraid to use a two-QB system. SC opens the season Sept. 4 at Vanderbilt. The Gamecocks have odds of 100/1 to win the BCS title game. **Kentucky Wildcats** 2003: 4-8 SU, 1-7 SEC. Starters returning: Offense 6, defense 9, kicker 2. Jared Lorenzen has finally run out of eligibility, but Kentucky has some experience taking over under center. QB Shane Boyd appeared in all 12 games last season and produced more than 400 yards of total offense. He is a threat with his arm and his speed. The only question mark with Boyd is his accuracy. Now he gets his chance to prove himself. The defense should be very improved, and the Wildcats have an all-star candidate in Vincent "Sweet Pea" Burns. There was bad news at the end of spring ball, as senior WR Tommy Cook was lost for the 2004 season with a torn ACL in his left knee. Bettors can back Kentucky to win the BCS title game by making a field bet at Sportsbook.com for a 25/1 return. The 'Cats open at Louisville on Sept. 5. **Vanderbilt Commodores** 2003: 2-10 SU, 1-7 SEC. Starters returning: Offense 10, defense 11, 0 kicker . Bobby Johnson has won only four games in two seasons at Vandy. That could change this year, though. The Commodores return 21 starters, including junior QB Jay Cutler, who finished fourth in the SEC in total offense last year. Depth at the WR position could be a problem because Jason Caldwell (ACL tear) and George Smith (serious illness) are not expected to play in 2004.
