Opening SEC Conference Odds: Georgia, Alabama Front Runners Again

Plenty of New Quarterbacks Set to Hit SEC Field in 2023

The more things change, the more they stay the same as the opening SEC Conference odds have Georgia and Alabama as the favorites to meet in the SEC title game as has been the case in the last few years.

Once again, Georgia and Alabama had the most players selected in the NFL Draft.

Three of the top four players and five of the top 10 in the 2023 NFL Draft came from SEC programs so there are some holes to fill throughout the league.

It is interesting that only five of the top 20-rated transfers according to the 247sports.com database landed in the SEC. Cornerback Denver Harris, the No. 3 transfer, went fromLouisiana State, quarterback Devin Leary moved from North Carolina State to Kentucky while Georgia landed former Missouri receiver Dominic Lovett.

When looking at the 2023 NCAA football schedule, the Florida-Utah, Virginia-Tennessee and South Carolina-North Carolina matchups are the most intriguing of the Week 1 contests.

Georgia and Alabama are first and second in the odds to win the 2023 national title.

Here is an early look at the SEC with some NCAA football betting odds to consider.

Georgia saw defensive tackle Jalen Carter, offensive tackle Broderick Thomas and edge rusher Nolan Smith taken in the first round of the draft. Quarterback Stetson Bennett is also gone after leading Georgia to back-to-back national titles. Still, the opening SEC Conference odds have Georgia as the team to beat.

Will it be Brock Vandagriff or BYU transfer Carson Beck at quarterback? Whoever it is will be throwing early and often to all-everything tight end, Brock Bowers.

Receivers Rara Thomas and Dominic Lovett come in from Mississippi State and Missouri and that will help whoever is the quarterback.

Defensive end Mykel Williams, safety Malaki Starks and linebacker Jamon Dumas-Johnson are among the top players returning on defense.

Losing quarterback Bryce Young, sack leader Will Anderson and running back Jahmyr Gibbs leaves some holes to fill. However, Alabama doesn’t lack talent as the Crimson Tide is second only to Georgia in the opening SEC Conference odds.

Defensive end Dallas Turner and cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry are among the players to watch on defense. Former Louisiana cornerback Tre Amos is another player to keep an eye on.

Jermaine Burton, who led Alabama with nearly 700 receiving yards, and second-leading rusher Jase McClellan are among the top returnees on offense.

Unlike many of the SEC contenders, LSU returns its quarterback (Jayden Daniels) and many of the top catchers are also back.

Edge rusher Harold Perkins should be one of the best defenders in the country and the return of Maason Smith will be a huge help.

Expect the offensive line to play much better than it did in 2022.

Malik Nabers had 72 catches for 1,017 yards in 2022. Could he sur those numbers this season?

Texas A&M was one of the biggest disappointments in college football in 2022. However, a top recruiting class signed heading into the 2022 season could help head coach Jimbo Fisher have more success this season. Quarterback Conner Weigman and receiver Evan Stewart could make huge jumps.

Weigman had eight touchdown es and no interceptions in the five games that he played as a true freshman.

Replacing the production from running back Devon Achane will be no easy task.

Defensive lineman Shemar Stewart and defensive back Jardin Gilbert are among the defensive players returning for the Aggies.

Quarterback Joe Milton and receiver Bru McCoy lead the list of returning players so the offense should be in good shape.

There are questions on the other side of the ball.

Tennessee had serious issues defending the in 2022 even though the top 11 tacklers were either juniors or seniors.

Former Miami starting offensive tackle John Campbell was a key pickup in the transfer portal.

Quinshon Judkins could be one of the nation’s top running backs in 2023 after running for more than 1,500 yards as a freshman and the Rebels love to run the football since Lane Kiffin arrived in Oxford.

Jaxson Dart is back at quarterback and with the additions of catchers Tre Harris and Chris Marshall from Louisiana Tech and Texas A&M, perhaps the ing game will improve in 2023.

North Carolina State transfer Joshua Harris should help when it comes to stopping the run. Ole Miss also hit the transfer portal to add some reinforcements in the secondary.

New head coach Hugh Freeze has a bit of a checkered past. If he wins, that won’t get as much attention.

Auburn should be able to run the ball with the return of Jazquez Hunter and the addition of Brian Battie from South Florida.

Kentucky transfer Justin Rogers will help a defense that struggled a season ago.

Ole Miss added key players at all three levels of the defense through the transfer portal.

The death of head coach Mike Leach rocked the Bulldogs. Things could look different on offense with perhaps more of a running game. Quarterback Will Rogers is back for Mississippi State.

Mississippi State returns four players who caught at least 30 es and four offensive line starters.

If the secondary can replace some key departures, this has the potential to be a very good defense with the return of Nathaniel Watson, Jett Johnson, Jordan Davis, Jaden Crumedy, and Nathan Pickering. Watson and Johnson each had more than 100 tackles last season.

With Will Richardson now with the Indianapolis Colts, former Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz figures to run the offense.

Receiver Ricky Pearsall and running backs Trevor Etienne and Montrell Johnson return and that should help Mertz make the transition into the SEC.

The defense was hurt by some NFL departures. However, 17 of the top 21 tacklers last season were either freshmen or sophomores.

Arkansas will be fun to watch on offense thanks to the return of quarterback K.J. Jefferson and running back Raheem Sanders.

Replacing leading tackler Drew Sanders will not be easy. The Razorbacks added multiple transfers from Power-5 conference programs to try to shore up things on defense.

Quarterback Spencer Rattler and receiver Juice Wells both return so South Carolina should be able to score points. There are questions on the other side of the ball.

South Carolina returns three starters on the offensive line. Is that a good thing based on how the unit fared in 2022?

There are questions at running back and only a handful of returning starters on defense.

Kentucky Wildcats brought in quarterback Devin Leary from North Carolina State to replace Will Levis and Vanderbilt transfer Ray Davis could help fill the void left by leading rusher Chris Rodriguez.

Kentucky will have an experienced group on offense.

The defense could be a work in progress, especially in the secondary.

Quarterback Brady Cook is back to lead the offense. Four of the seven players with more than 100 receiving yards were either freshmen or sophomores. However, leading receiver Dominic Lovett transferred.

Jaylon Carlies (81 tackles) and Tyron Hopper (78 tackles) are back to lead the defense.

It was a baptism by fire for quarterback A.J. Swann in 2022 and should be better as a sophomore, especially with receivers Will Sheppard and Jayden McGowan both back.

Six freshmen and 10 sophomores made tackles for Vanderbilt a season ago so perhaps that will help improve a unit that ranked 13th out of 14 SEC teams in yards allowed per game in 2022.

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