2010 SEC Power Poll: The Final Ballot

I’m not going to lie to you; after staying up too late watching the national championship game and compiling my BlogPoll ballot, then spending a second snow day at home trying to figure out how to get my car to the top of my driveway, I completely forgot about putting together my postseason SEC Power Poll ballot until I saw that Senator Blutarsky had posted his. I then sat down and assembled the following rankings for the twelve teams of the Southeastern Conference:

1. Auburn Tigers (14-0): If you win the national championship, you’re the No. 1 team in the SEC. No, seriously, that’s how the BCS works, isn’t it?

2. LSU Tigers (11-2): Double-digit wins with two losses? Check. January bowl victory? Check. Les Miles declining the Michigan job? Check. Just a typical season in Baton Rouge.

3. Alabama Crimson Tide (10-3): The 2010 Tide basically had the same season as the 2008 Bulldogs, only with a much more convincing bowl win over Michigan State.

4. Arkansas Razorbacks (10-3): A ten-win season and a Sugar Bowl berth cannot erase the Hogs’ shame and ignominy over becoming the first SEC team ever to lose a bowl game to Ohio State.

5. Mississippi St. Bulldogs (9-4): Rich Rodriguez was fired, Urban Meyer resigned, and Mark Richt is on the hot seat. Is there now such a thing as being "Mullened"?

6. South Carolina Gamecocks (9-5): The Palmetto State Poultry ended the autumn with two chances to make 2010 the best season in school history, but they came up short in the Georgia Dome both times.

7. Florida Gators (8-5): The Sunshine State Saurians endured a season that threatened to reduce Urban Legend to Urban Myth. Now we’ll have to spend our Saturdays watching Urban Renewal on ESPN.

8. Georgia Bulldogs (6-7): How down was the SEC this year? There are four teams in the league worse than the ‘Dawgs, and the ‘Dawgs stunk.

9. Tennessee Volunteers (6-7): The first season of Derek Dooley’s rebuilding project in Knoxville showed some promise. Next year, the Vols’ goal is to win every game in which they hold a lead when time expires.

10. Kentucky Wildcats (6-7): All right, so it was a disappointing football season in Lexington. At least the ‘Cats are undefeated in conference play in basketball! Oh, . . . wait.

11. Mississippi Rebels (4-8): It turns out that the mascot fiasco was the least embarrassing disaster for Ole Miss athletics in 2010.

12. Vanderbilt Commodores (2-10): No new head coach ever more completely "won the press conference" than Robbie Caldwell at SEC Media Days. It’s been downhill for the Music City Mariners ever since.

With that, we close out an uncommonly discouraging season of Southeastern Conference football. As always, your thoughts are welcome in the comments below.

Go ‘Dawgs!