New kids on the block: How coaching in the SEC East turned over
To say the SEC’s Eastern division saw its share of coaching upheaval this offseason would be putting it mildly. A total of 41 years of tenure departed. Without Steve Spurrier at South Carolina, Mark Richt at Georgia and Gary Pinkel at Missouri, things are shaken up.
(Listed by length of tenure)
Butch Jones, Tennessee
Seasons (record): Three (20-17)
The situation: His teams have improved steadily through the first three years and have upgraded the talent level considerably. This season, his end-of-game management was questioned, and the team posted an odd sort of profile. The Vols lost one-score games to a pair of playoff teams (Alabama, Oklahoma), a division champion (Florida) and a tough Arkansas team, then looked less than dominant winning the final five games of the year.
Mark Stoops, Kentucky
Seasons: Three (12-24)
The situation: Another coach who has upgraded his team’s roster considerably, Stoops is still searching for a breakthrough season. He saw a three-win bump from year one to year two, but the Wildcats went 5-7 in back-to-back years and settled in as a team that can put a scare into better teams but not quite get past them.
Derek Mason, Vanderbilt
Seasons: Two (7-17)
The situation: After an opening season that had some wondering if he would survive to year two, Mason did enough to make it to year three. He did it with defense, his calling card as a coach, overseeing a jump from the No. 107-ranked team in scoring defense to No. 25. The offense was still anemic and the ceiling will always be lower at Vandy, but Mason is now the one of the more seasoned coaches in the division.
Jim McElwain, Florida
Seasons: One (10-3)
The situation: McElwain took home SEC coach of the year for the turnaround he staged with the talent Will Muschamp left. He inherited a strong defense. On offense the used every tweak available to wring something from the uneven group. His offense was passable with Will Grier for half a season, and that was enough to get in the driver's seat of the division. He’s recruited well through nearly a cycle and a half, and Florida always has talent available.
Will Muschamp, South Carolina
Seasons: New hire
The situation: His tenure will rest on the question, what has been learned and what can change? Muschamp should be able to bring some of his patented high-level recruiting and has a habit of building defenses that played hard. He’ll take on a heavy load building that, as he’s already said much of his staff focuses on recruiting first. His hire of Kurt Roper is an interesting one as Roper is well-respected, but he really hasn’t fielded a top flight unit since coaching Eli Manning in 2003.
Kirby Smart, Georgia
Seasons: New hire
The situation: He’s been a rumored top candidate for so long, it’s almost weird to remember he’s only 39. His resume is unbalanced as he’s a dyed in the wool Saban disciple with no head coaching experience. He’s a respected defensive mind and tireless recruiter, but he’s almost exclusively done both alongside Saban, a mastermind behind both. His tenure got a boost with the hiring of Jim Chaney, a versatile and experienced offensive coordinator who has run Bret Bielema’s power ball and Drew Brees’ basketball on grass.
Barry Odom, Missouri
Seasons: New hire
The situation: Odom was well-liked by the Tigers, a strong candidate for the Memphis job and brings the combo of tough defense and energetic recruiting (there’s a pattern here). Another young guy, he’ll provide a measure of continuity for a program that overachieved in winning back-to-back division titles. A reported hire of Josh Heupel is a departure from some of the offenses Gary Pinkel ran, and losing renowned line coach Craig Kuligowski is a blow.