ESPN College Football

2011 record: 5-7
2011 conference record: 1-7
Returning starters: Offense: 10; defense: 8; kicker/punter: 2

Top returners:
OG Dallas Thomas, WR Da'Rick Rogers, OT Ja'Wuan James, WR Justin Hunter, TE Mychal Rivera, QB Tyler Bray, LB A.J. Johnson, S Brian Randolph, LB Curt Maggitt, LB Herman Lathers, CB Prentiss Waggner

Key losses:
RB Tauren Poole, DT Malik Jackson, DE Ben Martin, LB Austin Johnson

2011 statistical leaders (*returners)

Rushing: Tauren Poole (693 yards)
Passing: Tyler Bray* (1,983 yards)
Receiving: Da'Rick Rogers* (1,040 yards)
Tackles: Austin Johnson (81)
Sacks: Malik Jackson (2.5)
Interceptions: Austin Johnson (4)

Spring answers

1. Tyler Bray's leadership: No one has questioned Bray's arm as he can sling it with the best of them. But his heart has been questioned, and he knew it heading into spring. He never considered himself a real leader until this year, when he decided to take his job more seriously. Bray said players listened to him more in practice and respected him more as a person, not just a player. Bray can now be looked at as someone to rally around and look up to. He's finally learning how to be a real quarterback in this league.

2. Richardson's revival: Tennessee's offensive line took a lot of heat last season and for good reason. The Vols were last in the SEC and 116th nationally in rushing. The line needed to find a spark and rising sophomore Antonio Richardson might be just that. His potential has always impressed coaches and after playing on special teams last year, he came out of the spring as the starter at left tackle. Richardson is an extremely athletic and gifted player and the coaches feel confident that he can protect Bray's blind side.

3. Lathers' and Hunter's health: Linebacker Herman Lathers and wide receiver Justin Hunter did all the right things this spring. Lathers missed the 2011 season with an ankle injury, while Hunter missed most of the season after tearing his ACL in against Florida last September. While both still aren't 100 percent, the coaches feel confident that both will be by the fall. Hunter got some good work in this spring and even flew by some players in a scrimmage. Lathers' ankle progressed more and more and thinks he'll be right on track come fall practice.

Fall questions

1. Defensive comfort: Tennessee returns eight defensive starters, but it welcomed a brand new defensive coordinator in Sal Suneri, three other new coaches and a new defensive scheme. Sunseri would like to run more 3-4 this fall, but it'll take time for his players to adjust and Tennessee isn't sure if that comfort level is quite there yet. Tennessee players will also have to continuing adjusting to the new coaching faces they'll be working with this fall. It's important that this defense, which is still relatively young, get on the same page exiting camp.

2. Running the ball: Rising sophomore Marlin Lane showed nice improvement, but he finished the spring tied with Rajion Neal and Devrin Young at running back. So, the jury is still out on whether this team will be able to run the ball more consistently this season and Tennessee might have to look to its incoming freshmen for more help. While the running backs struggled last year, the offensive line was another reason for the Vols' shortcomings in the rushing department. There was a lot of movement up front and improvements need to start there before Tennessee can even think about handing the ball off more.

3. Defensive tackle: There's a lot of uncertainty and inexperience at tackle, and a lot of of players listed as co-starters on Tennessee's post-spring depth chart. Maurice Couch had an up-and-down 2011 season and now will be called to take on more responsibility now that Malik Jackson is gone. Daniel Hood, who was recovering from shoulder surgery this spring, Steven Fowlkes, Darrington Sentimore and Gregory Clark will all get chances in the middle. Also, keep an eye on incoming junior college transfer Daniel McCullers, who the coaches think can contribute immediately.

Tennessee was one of the worst running teams in the country last season, so the running game was a huge priority this spring in Knoxville.

That was never more apparent than Saturday in the Vols' annual Orange and White spring game when the top four rushers for Tennessee combined for 236 yards in the Orange's 17-14 win over the White before an announced crowd of 35,421 in Neyland Stadium.

Sophomore Marlin Lane led the way with 106 yards and had touchdown runs of 39 and 19 yards.

"I think Marlin's experience back there probably showed up [Saturday]," Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said. "It was good to see. You'd rather have him do that [play well] than not do it, but I try to judge the body of work over 15 practices. This game is important because it's a true game setting, and that's why I say his experience at running back probably gave him a little edge."

Junior quarterback Tyler Bray also played much better than he did a year ago in a woeful spring game showing. He was 14-of-26 for 157 yards and threw a 1-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mychal Rivera. Bray's added maturity this spring is what earned him the most points with his coaches.

The flip side to running the ball better was that the Vols, transitioning from a 4-3 to 3-4 scheme on defense, didn't stop the run. Dooley was also displeased with some of the errors, including a turnover in the red zone and a fumbled snap on third-and-2. The biggest cause for concern, though, was the kicking game, which again struggled mightily.

On defense, sophomore safety Brian Randolph capped a big spring with another impressive outing.

All in all, it's the best Dooley has felt coming out of spring practice since taking the job prior to the 2010 season.

"I've made this statement: It's the most settled we've been since I've been here, and that showed," Dooley said.

For more on the Vols' spring game, including stats, interviews and a photo gallery, fans can go here.

Making the rounds on a Monday:

• Scott Rabalais of The Baton Rouge Advocate examines the answers and questions for LSU coming out of spring practice.
• Sophomore safety Brian Randolph is maturing right before Tennessee's very eyes.
• There's no such thing as too many running backs for Kentucky.
• South Carolina's passing game comes alive in its spring game.
• Tight end Malcolm Johnson is poised to become a big part of Mississippi State's offense.
• Ole Miss' two quarterbacks combine for eight touchdowns in the Rebels' scrimmage.
• Security is big business in the SEC.
• David Climer of The Tennessean writes that Vanderbilt's Jordan Rodgers has matured into a leader.
• Georgia ends its spring and needs a quiet summer, writes Jeff Schultz of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
• Recruits are buzzing following their visit to Tuscaloosa for Alabama's A-Day spring game.
• Auburn's A-Day spring game offers only token insight.
• Arkansas' Tyler Wilson, who chose to come back for his senior season, isn't looking back.
• Jameill Showers and Johnny Manziel could be battling for the Texas A&M quarterback job for a while.
• Robbie Andreu of The Gainesville Sun ranks Florida's positions of strength exiting the spring.

Revving up the running game is a priority this spring for Tennessee, so it was encouraging for the Vols to have some success running the ball Friday in their first full scrimmage of the spring.

Junior Rajion Neal rushed for 100 yards on 15 carries and had several explosive plays. It's one of the reasons the Vols moved Neal back to running back from receiver, his ability to pick up yards in chunks.

"I felt like we really showed a lot of improvement running the ball, and that's been our emphasis," Tennessee coach Derek Dooley said. "The line was coming off (the ball), runners were running good and we generated a lot of run yards."

Last season, the Vols averaged just 90.1 rushing yards per game and were the only team in the SEC that averaged fewer than 100 yards per game.

Dooley said he was also pleased with the way quarterback Tyler Bray managed the offense in the closed scrimmage. Bray finished 13-of-32 for 142 yards with an interception and a 5-yard touchdown pass to tight end Mychal Rivera.

The defense, according to Dooley, was playing very aggressive, especially in the secondary. Sophomore cornerback Brian Randolph had an interception and also blocked an extra point.

"There weren't a lot of mental breakdowns, which allowed them to play fast," Dooley said. "We have got to do a better job of stopping the run, but we're playing a lot more aggressively, playing more physical and denying the ball in the back end a little bit better. As long as you're playing with that kind of aggressiveness and toughness, all the other stuff will come."

A complete report on the Vols' scrimmage can be found here on their official web site.

The coaches have spoken with their own SEC All-Freshman team, so we here at the SEC blog decided to come up with our own team.

We couldn't fit all of the youngsters on the list, and some tough cuts had to be made.

Honestly, our list wasn't much different from the coaches' list. There were a couple of changes, but nothing extreme.

One tough cut we made was Vanderbilt wide receiver Chris Boyd. He was Vandy's second wide receiver, catching 29 passes for 404 yards and seven touchdowns. He had a very solid first year in Nashville, Tenn., but we decided to go with LSU's Odell Beckham, who caught seven more passes and had 33 more yards. Although, Boyd had five more touchdowns. In the end, we felt he was more valuable to LSU's offense this season.

LSU also led the way with five selections, while Tennessee was second with four selections.

Here's our freshman team:

OFFENSE

QB -- Maxwell Smith, Kentucky
RB -- Kenny Hilliard, LSU
RB -- Isaiah Crowell, Georgia
WR -- Malcolm Mitchell, Georgia
WR -- Odell Beckham, Jr., LSU
TE -- Malcolm Johnson, Mississippi State
OL -- Chaz Green, Florida
OL -- Marcus Jackson, Tennessee
OL - A.J. Cann, South Carolina
OL -- Cyrus Kouandjio, Alabama
C -- Reese Dismukes, Auburn

DEFENSE

DL -- Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina
DL -- Anthony Johnson, LSU
DL -- Kelcy Quarles, South Carolina
DL -- Trey Flowers, Arkansas
LB -- A.J. Johnson, Tennessee
LB -- Curt Maggitt, Tennessee
LB -- Serderius Bryant, Ole Miss
CB -- Marcus Roberson, Florida
CB -- Tevin Mitchel, Arkansas
S -- Brian Randolph, Tennessee
S -- Vinnie Sunseri, Alabama

SPECIAL TEAMS

K -- James Hairston, LSU (He handled kickoff duties for the Tigers.)
P -- Brad Wing, LSU
RS -- Tre Mason, Auburn

The SEC coaches announced their selections for the 2011 SEC All-Freshman Team Thursday.

LSU led the way with five selections, while Tennessee and Arkansas both had four selections.

The coaches also made Arkansas tight end Garrett Uekman, who died suddenly last month, Honorary Captain.

South Carolina placed three on the team, including SEC Freshman of the Year Jadeveon Clowney.

Here is the 2011 SEC All-Freshman Team:

OFFENSE

HONORARY CAPTAIN
Garrett Uekman, Tight End, Arkansas

TE - Malcolm Johnson, Mississippi State
OL - A.J. Cann, South Carolina
OL - Marcus Jackson, Tennessee
OL - Cyrus Kouandjio, Alabama
OL - Chaz Green, Florida
C - Reese Dismukes, Auburn
WR - Malcolm Mitchell, Georgia
WR - Odell Beckham Jr., LSU
QB – Maxwell Smith, Kentucky
RB – Isaiah Crowell, Georgia
RB – Kenny Hilliard, LSU
AP - Bruce Ellington, South Carolina

DEFENSE

DL - Jadeveon Clowney, South Carolina
DL - Trey Flowers, Arkansas
DL - Anthony Johnson, LSU
DL - Kaleb Eulls, Mississippi State
LB - A.J. Johnson, Tennessee
LB - Curt Maggitt, Tennessee
LB - Serderius Bryant, Ole Miss
DB - Brian Randolph, Tennessee
DB - Vinnie Sunseri, Alabama
DB - De'Ante Saunders, Florida
DB - Tevin Mitchel, Arkansas

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK - James Hairston, LSU
P - Brad Wing, LSU
RS – Marquel Wade, Arkansas

• I'm actually surprised to see Saunders get the nod over teammate Marcus Roberson. Roberson was easily Florida's best cornerback this season. He has the makings of being a talented cover corner, but he did get overly aggressive throughout the season. I guess coaches paid attention to flags he earned.
• It had to be tough when the coaches looked at the quarterback position. Smith was probably the best of the bunch, and even he threw just four touchdowns to four interceptions. Still, Kentucky's offense moved down the field much better when he was on the field.
• Remember when all the talk in Oxford, Miss., before the season centered around how great true freshman linebacker C.J. Johnson was going to be? Well, he had a solid first year, but it was Bryant who really came on as one of the young guys on defense. He saw tremendous playing time and was fourth on the team with 61 tackles.

Some notes about the SEC that you might not have known heading into Week 10:

• This season, the SEC has had eight teams ranked in the AP top-25 poll a total of 59 times after the first 10 weeks — above the league's average for the past five seasons.
• Using the latest published depth charts from the 12 SEC teams, South Carolina has the youngest offensive starting lineup and the most experienced defensive starting lineup in the league.
• Using a numerical formula of 1 point for freshmen, 2 points for sophomores, 3 points for juniors and 4 points for freshman, the Gamecocks average 2.33 on offense and 3.45 on defense.
• The most experienced offense is Kentucky at 3.25, the least experienced defense Florida at 2.36.
• On defense, there are just eight freshman starters in the SEC, three of them at Tennessee. On offense, South Carolina starts four freshmen and Ole Miss three.
• Mississippi State starts six seniors on offense, followed by Alabama, Kentucky and LSU with five each. On defense, Arkansas, Kentucky and South Carolina start five freshmen each.
• Alabama has started slowly in the first quarter this season, but has quickly turned things around and finished strong. The Crimson Tide have outscored its opponents 243-25 in the final three quarters of games this season after holding just a 72-30 edge in the first quarter. The disparity has grown even wider over the past six games, when Alabama owns a 44-27 scoring edge in the first quarter and a 196-10 edge in the final three quarters. Alabama has outscored its opposition in the second half of the past six games by a score of 142-7, but has not allowed a second-half point in the past four. Arkansas, in Week 4, was the last team to score against Alabama after halftime.
• Arkansas has won five consecutive games against opponents from the SEC Eastern Division, the longest winning streak against Eastern Division foes in school history and the third-longest current interdivision win streak in the SEC. Arkansas’ previous record for consecutive games won against the Eastern Division was three (1992-93 and 2006). Arkansas is off to its best start under Bobby Petrino and is 7-1 for just the third time since joining the SEC in 1992.
• With its victory over Ole Miss, Auburn has extended its Jordan-Hare Stadium winning streak to 13 games, its longest at home since winning 13 in a row from 1993-94. It is tied for the sixth-longest home winning streak in school history. The Tigers are 25-4 in night games (5 p.m. or later) at Jordan-Hare dating back to the 2000 season.
• Florida quarterback John Brantley returned from injury to start last week against Georgia, throwing for 245 yards and a touchdown. He averaged 20.4 yards per completion, the highest of his career as a starting quarterback. The mark is the highest in the SEC and eighth-best in the country this season for quarterbacks with a minimum of 10 completions). In his career, the fifth-year senior has completed 332 of 541 passes (61.4 percent) for 3,893 yards and 25 touchdowns, with 14 interceptions and a passer rating of 131.9.
• Georgia senior Brandon Boykin and junior Branden Smith are seeing action on defense, offense and special teams this season. Boykin has four career kickoff returns for touchdowns, and against No. 5 Boise State, he had an 80-yard rushing touchdowns on his first career carry. He had a school-record seven kickoff returns and tallied 198 all-purpose yards against No. 12 South Carolina. Smith and Boykin split time as punt returners while Boykin is one of the top kickoff returners in the nation.
• Kentucky seniors Danny Trevathan and Winston Guy are the SEC’s top two tacklers. Trevathan charted a career-high-tying 17 tackles last weekend and is now the league’s top tackler with 94 to Guy 's 83. The duo are tied for fifth and 16th, respectively, in the nation with 11.75 and 10.38 tackles per game.
• LSU went the entire month of October without a turnover. The Tigers have turned the ball over just three times this season (two fumbles, one interception), with their most recent turnover coming in the fourth quarter against Mississippi State in Week 3. LSU has gone 336 offensive snaps, 59 possessions and 174 minutes and 52 seconds of possession time since its last turnover. LSU has given up just 41 points in the first five SEC games, the fewest since 1985, when the Tigers also allowed 41 points in their first five league games. LSU has won 17 consecutive games when winning the turnover battle. Under Les Miles, LSU is 33-4 when forcing more turnovers than it gives up.
• Six true freshmen and three redshirt freshmen have started for Ole Miss this season. True freshmen have made a combined 18 starts, while redshirt freshmen have made a combined 10. Freshman wide receiver Donte Moncrief is tied for fifth in the nation among true freshmen with four touchdown receptions.
• Mississippi State has won nine consecutive non-conference games dating back to head coach Dan Mullen’s first season in 2009. Mullen’s teams have posted a 10-2 non-conference mark, with a pair of losses in 2009 to nationally ranked Georgia Tech and a Houston team that received votes in both polls the week of the game. The Bulldogs’ 10 consecutive out-of-league wins marks the longest such streak since an 11-game run from 1989-91.
• Junior wide receiver Alshon Jeffery (167 receptions for 2,748 yards) needs just 33 yards to match Kenny McKinley (2,781) as South Carolina’s all-time leader in receiving yards. He needs three catches to pass Sterling Sharpe (169) for second all-time in career receptions. He also needs three touchdown catches to tie Sidney Rice on the school’s all-time list for touchdown receptions at 23. Jeffery is also tied for first at South Carolina with 11 100-yard receiving games and is sixth in school history with 16.5 yards per reception.
• Three of Tennessee’s six leading tacklers are freshmen in A.J. Johnson (1st with 57), Curt Maggitt (fourth with 34) and Brian Randolph (sixth with 31), making the Vols the only team in the country with freshmen as three of its top six tacklers. Tennessee is the only team in the country with two true freshmen among its top four tacklers. In fact, there are only a pair of schools – Miami (Fla.) and Army – that even have two in their top six.
• Vanderbilt’s Casey Hayward knocked down six Arkansas passes last weekend – tied for most in any one game in the country this season with Duke’s Matt Daniels, who did it against Richmond. Hayward was named this week as one of 15 semifinalists for the Jim Thorpe Award, given annually to the nation’s top defensive back. Hayward is tied for fourth nationally with five interceptions and is the SEC active leader in career picks with 13.
• Mississippi State is 27-16 against non-conference foes since 2000 and has a nine-game win streak against out-of-SEC competition.
• South Carolina and Arkansas are 1-2 in the SEC in non-offensive touchdowns scored this season. Carolina has five (four defense/one punt return) while Arkansas has four (one defense/one kickoff return/two punt return) and tied with LSU and Vanderbilt.
• Florida leads the SEC with 291-game scoring streak. The last time Florida was shut out was Oct. 29, 1988, when it lost 16-0 to Auburn.
• South Carolina is 3-0 in SEC road games this season. The Gamecocks have never gone 4-0.
• Vanderbilt’s scoring drives average 6.77 plays, fewest in the SEC.
• South Carolina is 21-37 against the Western Division and Arkansas is 24-34 against the Eastern Division. Arkansas has won five in a row against the Eastern Division.
• Ole Miss’ Brandon Bolden is the SEC’s second active leading rusher with 2,426 yards, trailing active leader Trent Richardson of Alabama by only 14 yards (2,440).
• Georgia leads SEC with 21 scoring drives of less than two minutes.
• South Carolina is second in the SEC in holding opponents to three-downs-and-out at 42.5 percent (45 of 106).
• Georgia sophomore QB Aaron Murray is already SEC’s leading active player in total offensive yards (5,077), completions (344), TD responsibility (48), TD passe (42) and passing yards (4,871).
• Tennessee is one of four SEC teams not to allow a non-offensive touchdown this season (Alabama, LSU and South Carolina).
• Georgia has scored first in seven of its eight games this season, second in the league to LSU, which has scored first in all eight.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- We are all set down here inside Bryant-Denny Stadium, where temperatures could deep into the 40s tonight.

Both teams are making adjustments to their offensive lines tonight. For Alabama, right guard Anthony Steen is out after suffering a concussion against Ole Miss, so we'll see Alfred McCullough start in his place.

We could also see some of freshman Cyrus Kouandjio at left tackle tonight. Starter Barrett Jones missed time at practice this week, so Kouandjio could get more action tonight.

Tennessee has moved Alex Bullard, who transferred from Notre Dame, from left guard to center. James Stone moves from center to left guard. The Vols worked with this setup during the week — and Stone has had snapping issues all year.

The interesting thing about this move is that Bullard has yet to play center in an organized football game in his life. Well, what a time to make the move.

We could also see Prentiss Waggner play some corner tonight for the Vols, which would mean that freshman Brian Randolph would play in Waggner's place at safety. Waggner is Tennessee's best defensive back and is so versatile that he's also the Vols' best cover guy.

Tennessee will no doubt load the box to try and slow down Alabama running back Trent Richardson, so if someone's going to be on an island back there it might as well be Waggner.

Meanwhile, former Alabama quarterback Joe Namath is the honorary captain for the Crimson Tide tonight.