Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
The 70th annual Birmingham News/AL.com preseason All-SEC offense
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
It's a June SEC football tradition ...
It's time once again for the annual Birmingham News/AL.com preseason All-SEC team, voted on as always by the conference's sports information directors. Here are the players chosen to the first- and second-team offense for the 70th annual team. (Photo of LSU's Leonard Fournette by Jonathan Bachman/Associated Press)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team QB: Joshua Dobbs, Tennessee
Dobbs (6-2, 207, Sr.) completed 205 of 344 passes for 2,251 yards and 15 touchdowns with just 5 interceptions in 2015. He added 671 yards and 11 TDs rushing. The Volunteers are the likely SEC East favorites this season. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team RB: Leonard Fournette, LSU
Fournette (6-1, 230, Jr.) rushed for 1,953 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2015, averaging 6.5 yards per carry. He enters the 2016 season as one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy. (AL.com photo by Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team RB: Nick Chubb, Georgia
Chubb (5-10, 220) rushed for 747 yards and 7 touchdowns in just 6 full games last season, missing the second half of the year with a severe knee injury suffered on his first carry against Tennessee. He's hoping to be ready by the time the Bulldogs kick off the 2016 season against North Carolina. (Georgia Athletic Communications photo by Jim Hipple)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team WR: Calvin Ridley, Alabama
Ridley (6-1, 188, Soph.) re-wrote the Alabama freshman receiving records in 2015, outshining such luminaries as Julio Jones and Amari Cooper. Ridley caught 89 passes for 1,045 yards and 7 touchdowns as the Crimson Tide won the national championship. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team WR: Christian Kirk, Texas A&M
Kirk (5-11, 200, Soph.) caught 80 passes for 1,009 yards and 7 touchdowns, despite playing with three different starting quarterbacks. Kirk added a 24.4-yard average and 2 TDs on punt returns, and was named SEC Freshman of the Year. (AP photo by Dan Gutierrez)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team TE: O.J. Howard, Alabama
Howard (6-6, 242, Sr.) was quiet much of the 2015 season, before exploding in the national championship win over Clemson. Howard caught 5 passes for 208 yards and 2 TDs in Alabama's 45-41 win, securing game MVP honors. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team OT: Cam Robinson, Alabama
Robinson's status for 2016 is a bit murky after a May arrest, but he's still arguably the best offensive lineman in the SEC. The 6-foot-6, 327-pound junior has started for the Crimson Tide since the first game of his freshman year. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team OT: Dan Skipper, Arkansas
The mammoth (6-10, 326) Skipper has started 34 straight games at three different positions in his three years with the Razorbacks. After playing right tackle last season, the senior is likely to move to left tackle in 2016. (AP photo by Sarah Benthem)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team OG: Greg Pyke, Georgia
Along with Cam Robinson and Nick Chubb, Pyke (6-3, 313, Sr.) is one of three repeat first-teamers on the 2016 offense. Pyke has started 23 games the last two seasons, and was a second-team All-American in 2015. (Georgia Athletic Communications photo by Nick Williams)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team OG: Dylan Wiesman, Tennessee
Wiesman (6-3, 304, Sr.) is one 18 returning starters for the Volunteers, a number that includes 10 on offense. He started all 13 games in 2015, and is a two-time SEC Academic Honor Roll member. (AP photo by L.G. Patterson)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team OC: Brandon Kublanow, Georgia
Kublanow (6-3, 282, Sr.) has started 26 consecutive games on the offensive line for the Bulldogs, and was a second-team All-SEC pick in 2015. He also won the Frank Sinkwich Toughness Award following his junior season. (Georgia Athletic Communications photo by Andy Harrison)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
First-team P: JK Scott, Alabama
Scott (6-5, 198, Jr.) was not quite as dominant as a sophomore in 2015 as he was as a freshman the previous year, but was still among the best punters in the country. Scott averaged 44 yards per punt, and pinned 25 inside the opponent's 20-yard line. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team QB: Chad Kelly, Ole Miss
Kelly (6-2, 215, Sr.) obliterated most school passing records in his first season after transferring to Ole Miss. He passed for 4,042 yards and 31 touchdowns, and added 500 yards and 11 scores on the ground. (AL.com photo by Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team RB: Jalen Hurd, Tennessee
Hurd (6-4, 240, Jr.) was the leading rusher in a talented Tennessee backfield as a sophomore in 2015. He ran for 1,288 yards and 12 touchdowns, and added 22 receptions and 2 more TDs. (AP photo by John Raoux)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team RB: Stanley "Boom" Williams, Kentucky
Williams (5-9, 196, Soph.) possesses not only one of the great nicknames in the SEC, but became one of the league's top running backs as a freshman in 2015. He ran for 924 yards and 6 touchdowns, and added 13 receptions. (AP photo by David Stephenson)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team WR: Fred Ross, Mississippi State
Ross (6-2, 207, Jr.) had a breakout season in his sophomore year at Mississippi State. He led the Bulldogs with 88 receptions for 1,007 yards, in addition to 5 touchdowns. (AP Photo by Rogelio V. Solis)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team WR: Malachi Dupre, LSU
Dupre (6-3, 193, Jr.) emerged as a big-play threat in his sophomore season in Baton Rouge. He led the Tigers in receptions (43), yards (698) and touchdowns (6) and averaged 16.9 yards per catch. (AP Photo by Jonathan Bachman)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team TE: Evan Engram, Ole Miss
Engram (6-3, 227, Sr.) has been a key weapon in Ole Miss' passing attack since his freshman year. He caught 38 passes for 464 yards and 2 touchdowns in 2015, earning second-team All-SEC honors. (AP Photo by Michael Thomas)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team OT: Avery Gennesy, Texas A&M
Gennesy (6-5, 305, Sr.) is the latest in a long line of star left tackles for the Aggies. The junior-college transfer redshirted in 2014, but started 12 games for the Aggies in 2015. (Texas A&M athletic department photo)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team OT: Mason Zandi, South Carolina
The massive Zandi (6-9, 313, Sr.) started 10 games for the Gamecocks at right tackle in 2015 before a sprained ankle caused him to sit out the final two games of the season. The former high school tight end has also seen time at that position in his college career. (South Carolina athletics photo)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team OG: Braden Smith, Auburn
Smith (6-6, 286, Jr.) started all 13 games for the Tigers in 2015, 12 at right guard and one at right tackle. He was a second-team All-SEC pick last season, and a freshman All-SEC selection in 2014. (AL.com photo by Julie Bennett/jbennett@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team OG: Alphonse Taylor, Alabama
Taylor (6-5, 345, Sr.) started all 15 games for the Crimson Tide in 2015, his first as a starter. Known as "Shank," Taylor helped clear the way for Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry. (AL.com photo by Vasha Hunt/vhunt@al.com)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team OC: Ethan Pocic, LSU
Pocic (6-7, 309, Sr.) is one of 17 returning starters for the Tigers, a number that includes nine on offense. He has started 23 straight games at LSU, including 11 at center in 2015, when he was a second-team All-SEC pick. (Photo by LSU athletics)
Creg Stephenson | cstephenson@al.com
Second-team P: Johnny Townsend, Florida
Townsend (6-1, 210, Jr.) was a second-team All-SEC pick and was a Ray Guy Award finalist in 2015. He averaged a league-best 45.4 yards per punt, a total that ranked third in the country and first in the SEC. (AP photo by John Rauox)
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