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Alabama might have fallen to No. 2 in ESPN colleague Mark Schlabach's Way-Too-Early Preseason Top 25, but I'd like to think that most of the college football world still considers the Crimson Tide to be the favorites to win the national championship again.

Alabama lost nine draft picks, including three first-rounders, but Nick Saban has a host of talent returning on both sides of the ball, and the Tide's schedule isn't too daunting after the first two games.

But there are teams that will test the Tide's road to a national championship trifecta in 2013. Colleague Travis Haney picked five teams from around the country that could challenge Alabama's title hopes this fall. Ohio State topped his list, while Texas A&M made it from the SEC.

No surprise there with the Aggies. Heisman Trophy winner Johnny Manziel returns with a bundle of riches to accompany him in the Aggies' backfield.

Johnny Football might not have Luke Joeckel protecting him, but Jake Matthews provides quite the safety net with his move to left tackle, and there is still talent and experience up front. Mike Evans leads a young but talented group of pass-catchers.

The defense is a concern, with five members of last season's front seven gone, but the Aggies will still be equipped to win most shootouts.

A&M benefits from getting Alabama at home early in the season, but has to play Arkansas, Ole Miss, LSU and Missouri on the road. Even beating Alabama early doesn't guarantee the Aggies will make it to Atlanta over the Tide.

We almost had quite the quarterback matchup on our hands this fall.

According to ESPN's Brett McMurphy, Texas A&M and Louisville were in discussions to open the 2013 season at Houston's Reliant Stadium. That would have given us Johnny Manziel vs. Teddy Bridgewater. Or, Johnny Football vs. Teddy Ballgame.

Unfortunately, things just didn't get worked out between the two parties, so we're left with the Aggies taking on Rice at home on Aug. 31. It just won't be the same as seeing the Aggies take on what should be another talented Charlie Strong-led Louisville squad. And after what the Cardinals did to Florida in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, Louisville is a hot ticket and qualifies as must-see TV.

Oh, the early Heisman talk that would come out of that game, too.

"It would have been a great experience to play against last year's Heisman Trophy winner and arguably the best player in college football," Bridgewater said. "He lays it on the line like I do. It would have been a great matchup."

Louisville is clearly looking to sit at the big boys' table, because the Cards not only tried to play the Aggies, but they also wanted a neutral-site game with the defending champs ... and almost got it.

According to McMurphy's report, Louisville almost played Alabama in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta. Virginia Tech, which will face Alabama on Aug. 31 at 5:30 p.m. ET inside the Georgia Dome instead, was ready to back out of the game if quarterback Logan Thomas made an early jump to the NFL. If Logan had skipped his senior year, the Cardinals would have replaced the Hokies in Atlanta.

However, Thomas opted to stay, so Alabama will start the season against Virginia Tech, which isn't a bad matchup at all.

We might get to watch Johnny Football take on Teddy Ballgame, but there are some pretty exciting nonconference games that SEC teams are involved in this fall. Here are five (outside of Alabama-Virginia Tech) that I'm most excited about:

LSU vs. TCU (Arlington, Texas), Aug. 31: The Tigers did just fine last time they were in this building, but after losing a chunk of defensive talent, LSU has to face a TCU team that returns nine offensive starters and will be less than 20 miles from campus.

Georgia at Clemson, Aug. 31: The Bulldogs will be without 12 players who either started or saw significant time on defense in 2012. Clemson, led by quarterback Tajh Boyd and wide receiver Sammy Watkins, should provide problems with its offense. However, Georgia should like its offensive matchup with a Tigers defense that surrendered nearly 400 yards a game last season.

Mississippi State vs. Oklahoma State (Houston), Aug. 31: Mississippi State's defense has a lot of questions to answer up front and in the secondary, and its first test comes against the Big 12's top scoring offense from a season ago. Seven OSU starters return on an offense that averaged 547 yards last season.

Florida at Miami, Sept. 7: Miami isn't close to the power it once was, but taking an offense that has a lot of questions surrounding it on the road early will make this quite the test for the Gators. The good news for Florida is that Miami returns nine starters on a defense that was last in the ACC in total defense, passing defense and rushing defense in 2012.

Ole Miss at Texas, Sept. 14: Players in Oxford are already talking revenge after getting blown out by 35 against the Longhorns at home last season. Both sides of the ball should be improved for the Rebels this fall, and even though the jury is still out on Texas, the Horns return 19 total starters.

A lot can (and will) change before we get into the teeth of the 2013 season, but who would you take right now as the top receiving duo in the SEC?

The most productive receiving tandem in the league a year ago was the Vanderbilt combo of Jordan Matthews and Chris Boyd. They combined for 2,097 receiving yards, 144 catches and 13 touchdown receptions.

The good news for the Commodores is that they’re both back.

It’s tough to pick against a proven twosome like Matthews and Boyd, but Texas A&M also has a tandem to watch next season.

Mike Evans/Malcome Kennedy (Texas A&M): The Aggies also signed a trio of talented freshmen who will be on campus this summer. Evans has built off a terrific redshirt freshman season and has been a force this spring. He had more than 200 yards receiving in the scrimmage last weekend. Kennedy had the big catch against Alabama last season and is one of those guys who could really blossom as a fourth-year junior.

In keeping with our March Madness theme, I decided to take a look at one area everyone loves about the Big Dance and translate it to the football field: upsets.

We saw some good ones last year, like Louisiana-Monroe upending Arkansas, Texas A&M knocking off No. 1 Alabama in Tuscaloosa and Louisville embarrassing Florida in the Sugar Bowl.

Since anything -- and everything -- can happen on any given Saturday, we'll probably see some fun upsets yet again this fall.

Here are some potential upsets involving SEC teams to look out for in 2013:

TCU over LSU, Aug. 31: The Tigers have a lot of holes to fill on defense, and TCU just happens to bring back nine offensive starters. Plus, quarterback Casey Pachall is back. This game will also be played in Arlington, Texas, which is less than 20 miles away from TCU's campus.

Ole Miss over Texas A&M, Oct. 12: The Rebels choked away a second-half lead in this game last year, so there's plenty of motivation on Ole Miss' side. This game is in Oxford again, too. The Aggies have to replace five starters in their front seven, and the Rebels' explosive offense, which returns eight starters, could be a bad matchup for a younger defense like that.

Here are a few storylines to watch this spring in the Western Division. Edward took a look at the Eastern Division on Monday.

ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE

Start date: March 16

Spring game: April 20

What to watch:

1. Battling complacency: Alabama is gearing up for yet another title defense. Will complacency finally rear its ugly head? Not if Nick Saban has anything to do with it. The head coach will no doubt remind players of the targets on their backs and what little they've accomplished as presently constituted.
2. Opening up the passing game: The return of AJ McCarron, coupled with a talented, deep crop of receivers, could mean a more wide-open passing game in Tuscaloosa. If true freshman tight end O.J. Howard develops as some expect, the offense could become even more dynamic.
3. Offensive line makeover: Barrett Jones, Chance Warmack and D.J. Fluker are gone. And with them the best offensive line in college football has vanished. Veterans Cyrus Kouandjio and Anthony Steen return, but few experienced players are waiting in the wings for Alabama.
   -- Alex Scarborough, TideNation

ARKANSAS RAZORBACKS

Start date: March 10

Spring game: April 20

What to watch:

1. Bielema’s stamp: They won’t remember 2012 very fondly in Arkansas. It started with Bobby Petrino’s embarrassing ouster last spring and ended with a forgettable 4-8 season. The Hogs are starting all over with Bret Bielema, who led Wisconsin to three straight Rose Bowl appearances. This spring will be Bielema’s first real chance to put his stamp on the program and introduce the Hogs to his brand of power football.
2. Offensive overhaul: Bielema was known at Wisconsin for running the football behind big, physical offensive lines. His offensive coordinator, Jim Chaney, has more of a passing pedigree. It will be interesting to see how it all comes together offensively for the Hogs, who are losing their top passer, top two rushers and top three receivers from last season. Brandon Allen and Brandon Mitchell will vie for the starting quarterback job.
3. Defense takes the lead: The Hogs won under Petrino thanks to their high-scoring offense, and at times, in spite of their defense. But in 2013, the defense may have to carry a lot more of the load. First-year coordinator Chris Ash inherits a veteran front, some young talent at linebacker and a secondary that also should be much improved. It’s a unit that will need to mesh quickly, and that starts this spring.

AUBURN TIGERS

Start date: March 27

Spring game: April 20

What to watch:

1. Malzahn’s back: Gus Malzahn returns to the Plains as head coach, which means this spring will be critical in re-installing his hurry-up, no-huddle offense. The first task will be finding a quarterback. Kiehl Frazier struggled last season, but was handpicked by Malzahn when Malzahn was at Auburn the first time. The Tigers need to rediscover their passing game after finishing with eight touchdown passes and 15 interceptions a year ago.
2. Power running game: Tre Mason was a pleasant surprise last season for the Tigers and rushed for 1,002 yards. With heralded junior college newcomer Cameron Artis-Payne on campus and set to go through spring practice, Auburn would like to establish him as that power back with size and speed to serve as a complement to Mason.
3. Getting defensive: Veteran defensive coordinator Ellis Johnson looks to revive an Auburn defense that has fallen on hard times each of the past two seasons and will put in his 4-2-5 scheme this spring. The key will be finding players who fit. The Tigers will have 18 defensive linemen on the roster in the fall and aren't lacking for talent. Kris Frost could be a fit for that hybrid linebacker/safety spot in Johnson’s defense.

LSU TIGERS

Start date: March 14

Spring game: April 20

What to watch:

1. Cam's influence: When you think of LSU, you think of defense, special teams, defense, a quirky coach and defense. Never offense. Cam Cameron, most recently of the Baltimore Ravens, has been brought in as the new offensive coordinator to try to jump-start an offense that sometimes sputters, especially in big games. We won't really have any answers until this fall, but will we see signs of offensive progress in the spring?
2. Rebuilding the front: LSU lost all four starters from its vaunted defensive line, plus middle linebacker Kevin Minter. Can defensive coordinator John Chavis find playmakers up front ... or a new leader at middle linebacker?
3. Anchoring the line: Some were surprised to see left tackle Chris Faulk leave for the NFL after missing all but one game with a knee injury. It happened, and LSU has a question mark in what was otherwise a solid returning offensive line and offense in general. Who will fill the void? It could be left guard La'el Collins. If so, who plays left guard? The offensive line will be an interesting puzzle for Cameron.
   -- Gary Laney, GeauxTigerNation

MISSISSIPPI STATE BULLDOGS

Start date: March 21

Spring game: April 20

What to watch:

1. Catching on: Quarterback Tyler Russell made tremendous strides last season and set school records with 2,897 passing yards and 24 touchdowns, but all of his top receiving targets are gone. This is a big spring for sophomore Joe Morrow, who was impressive last spring, but didn’t do much during the season. Junior Robert Johnson and junior college newcomer Jeremey Chappelle will also figure prominently in the rotation.
2. More pressure: Mississippi State didn’t get much pressure on the quarterback last season and also finished 11^th in the SEC against the run. Tackle Josh Boyd is gone, which means the door is wide open for sophomores Quay Evans and Nick James to make moves after playing as true freshmen a year ago. The Bulldogs also need more production from senior end Denico Autry.
3. Secondary makeover: The Bulldogs are losing three starters in their secondary, including Jim Thorpe Award winner Johnthan Banks at cornerback. There will be some serious competition for spots this spring. Somebody to watch is junior college newcomer Justin Cox, who may be an immediate starter at cornerback. He’s one of the fastest players on the team.

OLE MISS REBELS

Start date: March 17

Spring game: April 13

What to watch:

1. Brunetti's chance: Starting quarterback Bo Wallace will miss the spring while recovering from clavicle surgery. That means Barry Brunetti will get most of the first-team reps. He needs to become a better quarterback and give the coaches confidence that he can be the guy if something should happen to Wallace. Right now, he’s more of a runner playing quarterback. He’s a good enough athlete that he could play elsewhere on offense in the fall.
2. Lining up: The Rebels’ defensive line has big-time potential, especially with the arrival of coveted defensive end signee Robert Nkemdiche this summer. But this spring, sophomore end Channing Ward and sophomore tackle Issac Gross will be under the spotlight. Gross is trying to beef up, and the Rebels would like to see him around 285 pounds after he played at 265 last season. Also, junior college newcomer Lavon Hooks will get a chance to show what he can do at tackle.
3. Shackelford's return: D.T. Shackelford hasn’t played in two seasons after undergoing multiple surgeries on his right knee, but he’s raring to go this spring and should be 100 percent healthy. Not only does Shackelford give the Rebels another experienced linebacker, but he’s one of the strongest leaders on the team. Just having him back on the practice field should do wonders for the Ole Miss defense.

TEXAS A&M AGGIES

Start date: March 2

Spring game: April 13

What to watch:

1. Who's Manziel throwing to?: Three of the four starters at receiver from the Aggies' 2012 team were seniors, so they're gone now, including Ryan Swope. Mike Evans, who had a sensational redshirt freshman season, is back, but who is going to surround him as targets for Johnny Football?
2. Thunder and lightning: Two running backs -- Brandon Williams (transfer from Oklahoma) and Tra Carson (transfer from Oregon) will join starter Ben Malena and young Trey Williams in the backfield after sitting out last season per transfer rules. Carson brings heft (230-240 pounds), while Williams, who is nicknamed "Slim," could be a game-breaker.
3. New coaches: Running backs coach Clarence McKinney has been promoted to offensive coordinator and will call the plays, succeeding Kliff Kingsbury in that role. The Aggies also welcome a new quarterbacks coach (Jake Spavital from West Virginia), linebackers coach (Mark Hagen from Indiana) and special-teams coordinator (Jeff Banks from UTEP).
   -- Sam Khan Jr., GigEmNation

Players are gathering in Indianapolis, so that means this year's NFL combine is officially underway. The first two days are all about the interviews and eye tests, while the on-field workouts begin Saturday.

But before any of them stepped foot in Indy, ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. released his pre-Combine Big Board . Naturally, it's loaded with SEC players. Twelve of the 25 players on Kiper's Big Board are from the SEC, including six of the top 10 players.

Georgia linebacker Jarvis Jones kept his place in the No. 1 spot, while Texas A&M offensive tackle Luke Joeckel jumped in front of teammate Damontre Moore to move from No. 3 to No. 2.

Florida defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd made a major move up Kiper's rankings, moving from No. 15 to No. 8.

Here's where all 12 SEC players ranked on Kiper's Big Board heading into the Combine:

1. Jarvis Jones, LB, Georgia

2. Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M

3. Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M

6. Dee Milliner, CB, Alabama

8. Sharrif Floyd, DT, Florida

10. Chance Warmack, OG, Alabama

12. Barkevious Mingo, DE, LSU

15. Sheldon Richardson, DT, Missouri

16. D.J. Fluker, OT, Alabama

18. Alec Ogletree, LB, Georgia

21. Cordarrelle Patterson, WR, Tennessee

25. Matt Elam, S, Florida

Kiper also updated his position rankings this week. Twenty-eight SEC players made Kiper's position rankings, and the league was represented by at least one player at every position, except fullback.

Here's where Kiper put SEC players in his position rankings:

Quarterbacks

4. Tyler Wilson, Arkansas

Running backs

1. Eddie Lacy, Alabama

5. Marcus Lattimore, South Carolina

Fullbacks

None

Wide receivers

1. Cordarrelle Patterson, Tennessee

Tight ends

3. Jordan Reed, Florida

Offensive tackles

1. Luke Joeckel, Texas A&M

3. D.J. Fluker, Alabama

Offensive guards

1. Chance Warmack, Alabama

3. Larry Warford, Kentucky

4. Dallas Thomas, Tennessee

Centers

2. Barrett Jones, Alabama

Defensive ends

1. Damontre Moore, Texas A&M

4. Barkevious Mingo, LSU

Defensive tackles

2. Sharrif Floyd, Florida

3. Sheldon Richardson, Missouri

Inside linebackers

1. Alec Ogletree, Georgia

3. Kevin Minter, LSU

5. Jon Bostic, Florida

Outside linebackers

1. Jarvis Jones, Georgia

4. Zaviar Gooden, Missouri

5. Cornelius Washington, Georgia

Cornerbacks

1. Dee Milliner, Alabama

3. Johnthan Banks, Mississippi State

Safeties

2. Matt Elam, Florida

4. Eric Reid, LSU

5. D.J. Swearinger, South Carolina

Kickers

2. Caleb Sturgis, Florida

Punters

2. Brad Wing, LSU

Renderings of the $425 million renovation to Kyle Field are starting to leak out, and they look mighty impressive.

The work is supposed to begin on Nov. 10, a day after Texas A&M plays its final home game of the 2013 season.

The new seating capacity is expected to exceed 100,000 and could make Kyle Field the largest stadium in the SEC. Currently, Tennessee's Neyland Stadium has the largest seating capacity (102,455).

To get a glimpse of some of the renderings of the new Kyle Field, click here.

With Kyle Field expected to surpass 100,000 in seating capacity, that means the SEC would have three stadiums that seat more than 100,000. Alabama's Bryant-Denny Stadium has a seating capacity of 101,821.

Eight of the 14 home stadiums in the SEC seat at least 80,000 people.

• Tennessee (Neyland Stadium) -- 102,455
• Alabama (Bryant-Denny Stadium) -- 101,821
• Georgia (Sanford Stadium) -- 92,746
• LSU (Tiger Stadium) -- 92,542
• Florida (The Swamp) -- 88,548
• Auburn (Jordan-Hare Stadium) -- 87,451
• Texas A&M (Kyle Field) -- 82,589
• South Carolina (Williams-Brice Stadium) -- 80,250

We checked on the SEC's 3,000-yard passers from 2012 on Thursday, so we're taking a look at the running backs who hit the coveted 1,000-yard mark last fall.

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Last summer, we looked at 10 running backs we thought could eclipse the 1,000-yard rushing mark. The SEC had four players reach 1,000 yards on the ground in 2011, and had nine, including Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel, in 2012. I thought it was supposed to be the Year of the Quarterback?

Here's how the Texas A&M running backs we looked at last year did in 2012:

6. Christine Michael, Texas A&M: Like Lattimore, Michael was coming off of an ACL injury this fall, but he never seemed to really fit in the Aggies' new spread scheme. Eventually, he really wasn't Texas A&M's first option at running back and he finished the season with 417 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns in 11 games of action.

Who was overlooked:

• Johnny Manziel, Texas A&M: The Heisman winner was arguably the nation's most elusive player in the country when he took off running. He shredded defenses all season and led the SEC with 1,410 yards and 21 touchdowns. He also averaged 7 yards per carry.

The booming “S-E-C” chants that rang throughout South Beach during Alabama’s 42-14 romp against Notre Dame immediately served as another harsh reminder to the college football world that the SEC is still king.

Alabama’s utter domination of the No. 1 team in the country gave SEC commissioner Mike Slive and his league one more crystal ball to add to a stellar collection. It made seven BCS titles in row for the SEC, and continued to show the massive stronghold the SEC has built in college football.

Alabama’s win also gave the league a 6-3 bowl record, which was the best of any AQ conference. The last time the SEC failed to have a winning record in the postseason? Well, you have to go back to 2005 (3-3). The last time the SEC had a losing record: 2002 (3-4).

More importantly, the league has more crystal hardware for the rest of the nation to glare at.

Alabama’s win helped the SEC’s perception after a few sluggish bowl performances from the Tide’s peers.

Only days before Nick Saban's squad won its second straight national title and third in four years, fans from all over took to social media to berate the SEC for its bowl shortcomings, thanks to flat performances by Florida, LSU and Mississippi State. It didn’t matter that the SEC entered the final weekend of the bowl season with a winning record, those three losses had people screaming that the SEC wasn’t the beast it -- and the media -- portrayed it to be.

Sure, six teams finished the regular season ranked inside the top 10 of the BCS standings, but two fell at the hands of teams deemed inferior. First, it was No. 8 LSU, which appeared to have the Chick-fil-A Bowl in hand late in the third quarter before No. 14 Clemson roared back with three straight scoring drives to win 25-24 on a last-second field goal.

The next day, Northwestern blasted Mississippi State 34-20 before No. 3 Florida was run out of the Mercedes-Benz Superdome by No. 20 Louisville in a 33-23 loss in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on Jan. 2.

Those three games had the SEC temporarily hunched over with its tail between its legs, but there was much more to the bowl season than just three losses.

You had Vanderbilt’s 38-24 win against NC State in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl in which the Commodores dominated just about every moment of the game. Tenth-ranked South Carolina registered a thrilling, last-minute Outback Bowl win against No. 18 Michigan, while No. 7 Georgia won a back-and-forth game with 16th-ranked Nebraska 45-31 in the Capital One Bowl to take some pride away from the Big Ten.

That was all before Johnny Manziel and his ninth-ranked Aggies rolled past No. 11 Oklahoma 41-13 in the AT&T Cotton Bowl, and Ole Miss creamed Pittsburgh 38-17.

Still, it took an Alabama beatdown for the rest of the country to quiet down about all the overrated talk. Did the SEC come up short in a couple of games? Absolutely. Florida and LSU were the more talented teams, but laid eggs for the league, while Mississippi State looked lost from the start against Northwestern.

The league was far from perfect, but it led BCS conferences in bowl wins and captured the biggest one of all -- for the seventh straight year -- to once again leave the rest of the country looking up at the South.

It was a memorable season all the way around for Texas A&M in its first campaign in the SEC:

BEST

Where do you start? Obviously, quarterback Johnny Manziel becoming the first freshman in history to win the Heisman Trophy has to be right up there when you start ranking memorable moments for the Aggies this season. But on the field, nothing surpasses Texas A&M's 29-24 win over then-No. 1 and previously unbeaten Alabama on Nov. 10. Not only did that thrilling win propel Manziel to the forefront of the Heisman picture, but it served notice that the Aggies are going to be a force in the rugged Western Division. Going into Bryant-Denny Stadium and winning made it even more special. It's the kind of win that will continue to pay dividends on the recruiting trail for the Aggies, who won 10 games for the first time since the 1998 season.

WORST

The 20-17 home loss to Florida in the season-opener was a tough one to digest, but it was Manziel's first game and the Aggies were still figuring things out as a team. The one that hurt was the 24-19 home loss to LSU a month and a half later. The Aggies jumped out to a 12-0 lead, but couldn't make it hold up. They turned the ball over five times, including three interceptions by Manziel, and were unable to stop LSU's running game when it counted. Had they been able to hold on and win, they would have claimed the Western Division title by virture of their win over Alabama and would have played in the SEC championship game in their first season in the league. It's likely that they would have also been playing for a berth in the Discover BCS National Championship.

The SEC was 5-2 in bowl games a year ago, which includes Alabama's 21-0 win against LSU in an all-SEC affair in the BCS title game.

Can the SEC better that mark this season? We’ll start to find out Dec. 31 when Vanderbilt takes on NC State in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl.

Here’s a look at the best-case/worst-case scenarios for SEC newbie Texas A&M this bowl season:

TEXAS A&M

Best case: The Aggies complete a dream first season in the SEC by beating up old Big 12 foe Oklahoma in the AT&T Cotton Bowl to win their 11th game and send a final resounding message that they’re going to be a serious player in the SEC.

Worst case: After all the Johnny Football hype that goes along with winning the Heisman Trophy, Johnny Manziel finally plays like a redshirt freshman. The Aggies can’t stop the Sooners in a disappointing season-ending loss in Cowboys Stadium.

Jon Solomon of The Birmingham News has an analysis of the 2012 college football attendance figures, and any guesses on who had the largest increase this season in the SEC by percentage?

It was Vanderbilt, which won eight games for the first time in 30 years. The Commodores averaged 37,860 for home games, which was a 15 percent increase.

The largest decrease for an SEC school was Kentucky, which averaged 49,691 fans and dropped 17 percent. The Wildcats finished 2-10 and fired coach Joker Phillips.

Tennessee also experienced a 5 percent drop in attendance. The Vols averaged 89,965 fans in what was their fourth losing season in the past five years. Derek Dooley was fired after three years on the job.

Even Florida, which went 11-1 and is headed to the Allstate Sugar Bowl, saw its home attendance drop by 2 percent.

The SEC led the nation in attendance with an average of 75,444 fans per game, but that was the league's lowest mark since 2007.

As Solomon points out in his piece, a face-value ticket for an SEC game reached $100 for the first time this season. The most expensive SEC ticket four years ago was $65, and that was the Alabama-Auburn game.

Below is a rundown of attendance figures for all 14 SEC schools:

• Alabama: 101,722 (minor decrease)
• Georgia: 92,723 (minor decrease)
• LSU: 92,626 (minor decrease)
• Tennessee: 89,965 (5 percent decrease)
• Florida: 87,597 (2 percent decrease)
• Texas A&M: 87,104 (minor decrease)
• Auburn: 82,646 (4 percent decrease)
• South Carolina: 80,001 (1 percent increase)
• Arkansas: 68,046 (2 percent increase)
• Missouri: 67,476 (9 percent increase)
• Ole Miss: 57,066 (1 percent increase)
• Mississippi State: 55,628 (minor decrease)
• Kentucky: 49,691 (17 percent decrease)
• Vanderbilt: 37,860 (15 percent increase)

If you put a lot of stock in recruiting rankings, the future really does look pretty bright for Kevin Sumlin in College Station, Texas.

With the addition of Ricky Seals-Jones, the top prospect in the state of Texas and the No. 13 overall player on the ESPN 150 list, the Aggies moved from 10th to sixth in ESPN's 2013 class rankings . Texas A&M now has 34 total verbal commitments in its 2013 class, including six ESPN 150 members and nine ESPN 300 members.

The Aggies aren't the only SEC team cleaning up in the class rankings. Florida continued to hold the top spot in the rankings, with its 24 commitments. Ten of those verbals are ESPN 150 members and 14 of them are ESPN 300 members. Alabama is steady at No. 4 with its 19 verbal commitments and nine ESPN 150 members.

LSU (No. 9) and Georgia (No. 10) both fell one spot in the rankings, but round out the top 10 for the SEC.

The SEC has eight teams within the top 25 of the class rankings. Auburn sits at 12th, South Carolina is 16th, Vanderbilt is 17th and Ole Miss is 21st.

Twelve SEC teams round out the top 40 of the class rankings, with Mississippi State coming in at 27th, Tennessee at 28th, Missouri at 34th and Arkansas at 38th.

With the season winding down, we figured we'd start looking to the future. Like, beyond bowl games future.

We are looking into our crystal ball to check out some of the SEC best who could declare for April's NFL draft early. We've talked to people around the league, those in the know at ESPN when it comes to the NFL draft, and came up with the Texas A&M underclassmen we feel are the best bets to come out and go the highest in next spring's draft.

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Draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. updated his Big Board this week and featured 12 SEC players in his top 25. Ten were juniors.

We're going in alphabetical order, so here are Texas A&M underclassmen we feel have the highest draft stock:

Luke Joeckel, OT, Texas A&M: It's hard to find a better left tackle out there. Joeckel entered the season as a surefire first-round pick and has only helped his draft stock with an excellent junior season. He hasn't been rattled by the speed of opposing SEC ends, and has provided very good protection in the pass game. It sounds like he could be the first tackle off the board if he declares early.

Jake Matthews, OT, Texas A&M: The Aggies are really getting greedy with their tackles. Matthews has been excellent all season, and could play either right or left tackle in the NFL. He's very powerful and moves well up front. He could be a late first-round pick if he decides to come out.

Damontre Moore, DE, Texas A&M: Talk about really breaking out onto the national stage. He was excellent as an outside linebacker last season, but has been an absolute monster at defensive end in his first (and probably only) year in the SEC. He really adjusted to the new 4-3 scheme, and might have played himself into a top-10 pick. He has a team-high 74 tackles, leads the nation with 20 tackles for loss and is tied for first with 12.5 sacks.

How impressive was Texas A&M’s 29-24 win against previously unbeaten Alabama last week?

Going into Bryant-Denny Stadium and winning speaks for itself. It's only the third game Alabama has lost at home in the past five seasons. But when you consider that the Aggies were playing their third straight SEC road game in as many weeks, it’s an even more impressive accomplishment.

Texas A&M, in its first season in the SEC, was the only team in the league that had to go on the road for three straight weeks and play in an opposing SEC stadium. Until this season, the SEC wouldn’t allow a team to play three consecutive SEC road games.

And because the opener against Louisiana Tech was pushed back to Texas A&M’s open date on Oct. 13 because of the hurricane, that means the Aggies have played five of their past six games away from home.

“To run that gauntlet and come out of it the way we did says a lot about the leadership we’re getting from our seniors and the way our team is playing,” Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said. “I know, for our seniors, it’s a big deal to have the last few games here at Kyle Field, and they’ve done a great job of leading us, and I look for that to continue this week.”

The No. 8 Aggies (8-2, 5-2) are two close losses away from being unbeaten right now. They lost 20-17 to No. 6 Florida and 24-19 to No. 7 LSU.

As disappointing as those losses were, Sumlin said his team drew some confidence from both games.

“Those were top-tier teams, not only in this league, but in the country, and we had a chance to win both games,” Sumlin said. “Our defense played well enough to keep us in it and give us a chance to win, and we probably handcuffed Johnny (Manziel) and didn’t have the offense available the first part of the year that we do now in terms of volume, and it was his first game, too. Florida had a lot to do with it the second half, and against LSU, we turned the ball over. You can’t turn the ball over five times and miss two field goals and have a touchdown called back and beat a quality football team like LSU.

“We understood that. I think our kids understand that. What we’ve talked about here is more Texas A&M instead of the opponent, and limiting our mistakes. Our guys have taken pride in that and worked on it and understand that if we play a complete game, not a perfect game, but a complete game and limit our mistakes and take care of the football, that we can be a very dangerous team.”

Sumlin’s impression of the SEC hasn’t changed any, but he’s also not surprised that his up-tempo, spread offense has had the success that it’s had against SEC defenses.

“I think you guys anticipated that it wouldn’t (work),” said Sumlin, referring to media skepticism. “We have a system and a style we believe in. We’re very comfortable with it. We understand the strengths and the weaknesses of it. That’s why we run it. That’s what we do. If we didn’t believe it would work, we wouldn’t run it.”

Even though it was just one game, Sumlin conceded that the Alabama win was a degree of validation for the Aggies.

“How this team has performed, not just in that game, but throughout the year, I think, was important just to show that we belonged, that we could hold our own and that we could compete in the SEC,” he said.