The college football season is just getting started and the November elections will soon be here. We here at Alabama Daily News want you to be ready for both.
Here’s a rundown of who’s who:
SEC WEST
Alabama – U.S. Sen. Richard Shelby – the unquestioned leader of the conference. Has a proven track record of success. Has visited the White House numerous times. Currently peaking and has everyone wondering how long the dynasty will last.
Auburn: House Speaker Mac McCutcheon – as powerful as anyone in the league when he wants to be, but has a gauntlet of a season in front him. At least 25 new House members makes for a tough strength of schedule.
Arkansas: House Minority Leader Anthony Daniels – doing things a little differently than the traditional in-conference powers but has enough moxie to pull off something big. Could be a threat to the big boys down the road.
Ole Miss: AEA – Suffering through some self-inflicted pain at the moment. Trying to climb back to relevance but that’s probably one more coaching change away.
Mississippi State: State Rep. Will Ainsworth – could make a lot of noise this year. Positioned for long-term success? Just maybe.
LSU: Congressman Bradley Byrne – big home-field advantage down South and trying to return to dominating the division.
Texas A&M: Congresswoman Martha Roby – unfailingly nice and everyone likes her. Scary to think how far she could go if she put her talent & resources to use.
SEC EAST
Florida: ALGOP – past success has created unrealistic expectations from an unwieldy fan base. Things got weird last year so most would just like to be normal.
Georgia: Gov. Kay Ivey – in just one year they turned the program around and dominated their division. Well-positioned for more success.
Kentucky: Walt Maddox – sneaky talent, but let’s be honest, we’re just waiting for November/basketball season to get here.
Missouri: – U.S. Sen. Doug Jones – newcomer on the scene who made a quick splash. Has steadied the ship after sputtering a little but you have to wonder how high the ceiling is.
South Carolina: Senate President Pro Tem Del Marsh – building momentum in the East. Everyone is watching to see if he takes the next step.
Tennessee: Alabama Democratic Party – it’s been almost painful to watch them slip from the top of the conference to just being happy to field a team. There’s some new blood on campus but they have a ways to go before regaining former glory.
Vanderbilt: Young Boozer – most likely the smartest in the group and helps keep the conference’s GPA up. Not sure what to do with him but we know we need him around.
Potpourri
SEC Commissioner: Tom Albritton/Alabama Ethics Commission – sets the rules by which everyone has to play. Has to deal with a lot of snitches.
Paul Finebaum – Steve Flowers – like to thing of himself as the conference’s de facto spokesman. Gets a lot of things wrong. The guy you love to hate or hate to love, depending on your perspective.
Verne and Gary – Roy Moore and Sassy – name a more iconic duo. I’ll wait.
Ga. Tech: Jeff Sessions – former conference member who is an upstanding institution, but for some reason has become somebody else’s whipping boy.