Ala Hann Sport picks

The ranks of NCAA football betting diehards will find it relatively easy to pick the champion of the SEC West and the two bottom-rung teams in the division. It’s the second through fourth spots that will prove hard to peg.

Ole Miss – without Dexter McCluster and John Jerry, just to name a few stars from the disappointing 2009 team – is going to be a wafer-thin outfit in 2010. This is the unanimous view of online betting experts. Last season gave the Rebels their big chance to bust through the threshold and win their first-ever SEC West crown, but that window came and went. Coach Houston Nutt will have his hands full this season.

Mississippi State and coach Dan Mullen are also staring at a long and arduous campaign in 2010. The Bulldogs will give it the old college try, but they lack top-tier offensive ability at every position. They’re pushing uphill in a division that is loaded with skill-position studs. The outlook is still stark in Starkville, and the Bulldogs will almost certainly remain handcuffed to the bottom realm of this six-team collection.

There’s some reason for concern at LSU, a program that generally intends to compete for national championships and expects to win 10 games on an annual basis. Only 10 starters return overall, and only four on the defense that powered the team in 2009. The defense does return its leading tackler, linebacker Kelvin Sheppard, plus All-America candidate Patrick Peterson at cornerback. Head coach Les Miles and defensive coordinator John Chavis have to be alarmed at the substantial amount of flux on a defense that delivered the goods last year

As good the Auburn offense was in 2009, it may be even better in 2010 as seven starters return. The biggest offseason addition was quarterback Cameron Newton. He’s the strong-armed and mobile weapon who can make coordinator Gus Malzahn’s offense hum at a high level. If Auburn’s offense can reach the ceiling of its capabilities, this team could go a long way and maybe claim the West.

The same can be said for Arkansas, which will also lean on offense to win games. Ten of 11 starters return on the offense including heralded quarterback Ryan Mallett, four of the top five rushers, and all four for the top receivers. Many preseason magazines have listed the Arkansas receiving triumvirate of Jarius Wright, Greg Childs, and Joe Adams as one of the top groups in the nation. With coach Bobby Petrino’s playcalling, Mallett’s lethal arm, the skill position weapons, and four of five offensive linemen returning, the Razorbacks will be a matchup nightmare for every opponent on the offensive side of the ball.

However, for all that Arkansas (and Auburn, and LSU) might do to mount an insurrection, the team that won the SEC West in 2008 and 2009 should return to the mountaintop this year. Sports betting junkies know that this division will be colored Crimson – the Tide will not ebb or fade in 2010.

Alabama, though coached by a defensive guru in Nick Saban, will also put its best foot forward on the offensive side of the ball. The dynamic running back combo of Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson returns, plus quarterback Greg McElroy, omnipresent wide receivers Julio Jones and Darius Hanks, and three starters on the offensive front. Look for the Tide to maintain the physical, ball-control style that resorts to a mix of the running game and play-action passing.

All in all, Arkansas is in good shape to make a run at the brass ring, with Auburn having an outside shot. Yet, it’s difficult to think that Alabama – the two-time defending champion – won’t hold onto its position as the owner of unquestioned supremacy in the SEC West.

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