SEC SPRING PREVIEW NOTEBOOK
Tebow is his own worst enemy:
Tim Tebow's off-the-field activities concern Florida coach Urban Meyer. No, Tebow isn't running afoul of the law. It's the time demands he faces because he is Tim Tebow, an ambassador and quarterback.
"Tim Tebow's worst enemy is Tim Tebow, and his family can't say no," Meyer said. "He's going to speak at the FCA here, going to do this, going over there, and then, by the way, complete that 6-yard crossing route on third and 5.
"We're going to really watch it. But Tim's the one, I don't know if he can say no. So it all has to run through us and we have to be the bad guys. We've discussed it and protect him a little bit."
On the field, Meyer likes how Tebow learned from Chris Leak to put more touch on his passes, whereas Tebow previously used to "throw like a dart."
As for Tebow continuing to run from short-yardage packages, even as the starter, Meyer won't rule it out.
"Ideally, I wouldn't mind a tailback carrying the ball. But we better get the first down. Whoever our best guy is carrying the ball, if it's Tim to win the game, it's him."
Darren McFadden might have to share load:
Darren McFadden returns for his junior season as a Heisman Trophy favorite. He has at least two obstacles, though: Teammates Felix Jones and Michael Smith.
Jones, also a rising junior, ran for 1,186 yards last season, second in the league to Darren McFadden, and actually averaged 1.8 yards more per carry.
Then there's Smith, who averaged 7.1 yards a carry in very limited time and had a breakout game in one of the spring scrimmages. Throw in the versatile Peyton Hillis and there's yet another quandary for Arkansas coach Houston Nutt.
Four solid running backs. One solitary football.
You do the math.
"Michael is a talented back who will definitely have a role in our offense," Nutt said. "We are very fortunate to have such talented running backs. We'll need all of them."
But he'll still line up at QB:
Arkansas isn't about to give up the "Wildcat" package featuring Darren McFadden at quarterback. The package gave defenses fits trying to defend direct snaps to Darren McFadden, normally a tailback.
"We'll keep it going," Arkansas coach Houston Nutt said. "It gives him the ball, spreads the field and makes people stay responsible. And he's such a good athlete. He can throw the ball, too."
Flynn's presence pleases LSU:
No program goes into the season feeling better about a new starting quarterback than LSU.
Matt Flynn replaces JaMarcus Russell. In Flynn's one prominent game as JaMarcus Russell's heir apparent, he was named MVP in the 2005 Chik-Fil-A Bowl.
"I can not sit here and say, `Man, I should have been playing. I'm so much better than him,'" Matt Flynn told espn.com.
Matt Flynn has nothing to apologize for. He's an accurate passer who emerged as the No.1 quarterback during the spring. The suspension of backup Ryan Perrilloux further solidified his status.
Vandy offense has plenty of depth:
Let's hope the scoreboard operator at Vanderbilt Stadium has a limber wrist.
The top two offensive weapons, quarterback Chris Nickson and receiver Earl Bennett, are known commodities.
But suddenly, there's depth galore.
Begin at wide receiver, where George Smith came on strong at the end of the 2006 season, catching 13 passes for 209 yards and three touchdowns the final four games.
There's also strength up front, where five seniors are projected to start.
Vols rushing attack looking up:
Tennessee averaged a meager 108 yards rushing last fall, ranking 96th among Division I-A teams.
That was then. This is now. Junior Adrian Foster, previously slowed by an ankle injury, had a monster spring. And sophomores LaMarcus Coker and Montario Hardesty are both expected to be healthy after offseason knee surgeries.
Of more immediate concern is a replacement for the dependable James Wilhoit, who nailed 18 of 22 field-goal attempts. Redshirt freshman Daniel Lincoln came on during spring drills and finished as the clear successor. Compiled by News staff writers Doug Segrest and Jon Solomon.
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