Arkansas picked to finish last in division; no Razorbacks on preseason All-SEC first team

Arkansas head coach Chad Morris speaks during the NCAA college football Southeastern Conference media days at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. (AP Photo/John Amis)
Arkansas head coach Chad Morris speaks during the NCAA college football Southeastern Conference media days at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Tuesday, July 17, 2018. (AP Photo/John Amis)

— Arkansas has been picked to finish last in the SEC West in the coming football season by league media.

The Razorbacks finished with 412 voting points, well behind sixth-place Ole Miss' 578 points. The points are awarded based on order of finish on each ballot, where a first-place vote is worth seven points and a seventh-place vote is worth one point.

"Whether we're picked to finish first or finish last is irrelevant at this point in time," Arkansas coach Chad Morris said Tuesday. "The way I look at it, nobody's played a snap yet. There's a lot to prove."

Arkansas' predicted finish is based on a number of variables, including a first-year coach, a 1-7 league record a year ago and an unknown starting quarterback.

"I understand media will want to say we picked you last, and I don't blame you guys," offensive lineman Hjalte Froholdt said. "We went 4-8, and we ... had a complete coaching change. Of course people would rank us as being lower."

Alabama received 263 of 284 first-place votes to win the division and was an overwhelming favorite to defeat Georgia for the SEC championship. Auburn was predicted to finish second in the West, followed by Mississippi State, Texas A&M and LSU.

Auburn received 19 first-place votes and Mississippi State received two votes to win the division.

In the SEC East, Georgia received 271 of 285 first-place votes. South Carolina was predicted to finish runner-up, followed by Florida, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt.

Arkansas is scheduled to play the media's sixth-place SEC West team, Ole Miss, in Little Rock on Oct. 13 and last-place East pick Vanderbilt in Fayetteville on Oct. 27.

The Razorbacks had no players on the preseason All-SEC first team. Offensive lineman Hjalte Froholdt was chosen to the second team, and linebacker De'Jon Harris and safety Santos Ramirez were picked for the third team.

Only Tennessee (1) and Vanderbilt (0) had fewer players on the All-SEC teams.

Alabama led all teams with 13 players on the All-SEC teams, including seven on the first team. Georgia had 12.

Predicted Orders of Finish

(First-Place Votes)

SEC West

Alabama 1971 (263)

Auburn 1664 (19)

Mississippi State 1239 (2)

Texas A&M 1091

LSU 1025

Ole Miss 578

Arkansas 412

SEC East

Georgia 1977 (271)

South Carolina 1535 (8)

Florida 1441 (4)

Missouri 1057

Kentucky 874 (1)

Tennessee 704 (1)

Vanderbilt 392

All-SEC First Team

Offense

QB Drew Lock, Missouri

RB Damien Harris, Alabama

RB Benny Snell Jr., Kentucky

WR A.J. Brown, Ole Miss

WR Deebo Samuel, South Carolin

TE Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri

OL Jonah Williams, Alabama

OL Greg Little, Ole Miss

OL Martez Ivey, Florida

OL Trey Smith, Tennessee

C Ross Pierschbacher, Alabama

Defense

DL Raekwon Davis, Alabama

DL Cece Jefferson, Florida

DL Montez Sweat, Mississippi State

DL Jeffery Simmons, Mississippi State

LB Devin White, LSU

LB Anfernee Jennings, Alabama

LB Mack Wilson, Alabama

DB Deandre Baker, Georgia

DB Greedy Williams, LSU

DB J.R. Reed, Georgia

DB Deionte Thompson, Alabama

Upcoming Events