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A couple weeks ago, I brought you the talent ratings for the two-deep depth charts for every team in the SEC. Now that Auburn finally released its post-camp depth chart two days after the last of anyone else did, I can give you the updated figures for after fall practice.
A few notes first. These are based on recruiting star ratings from Rivals. The averages weight the backups 75% of what they do for starters. With starters who are expected to be out injured or suspended for just one game (or one half, as the case may be), I went ahead and put them in the starting lineup anyway. I want these figures to represent what these teams will have for the season as best we can tell right now. Finally, I docked a star from any player who has switched positions significantly, like Auburn backup safety Kiehl Frazier. For guys sliding around similar positions like on the lines, or from DE to OLB, I didn't hand out any such penalties.
Here's where things stand now:
| School | Offense | Defense | Team |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 3.75 | 3.97 | 3.86 |
| Florida | 3.53 | 4.17 | 3.85 |
| LSU | 3.71 | 3.61 | 3.66 |
| Auburn | 3.64 | 3.64 | 3.64 |
| Georgia | 3.45 | 3.81 | 3.63 |
| Tennessee | 3.38 | 3.25 | 3.31 |
| South Carolina | 3.22 | 3.36 | 3.29 |
| Texas A&M | 3.43 | 3.14 | 3.29 |
| Ole Miss | 3.21 | 3.23 | 3.22 |
| Miss State | 2.92 | 3.23 | 3.08 |
| Arkansas | 2.96 | 2.96 | 2.96 |
| Missouri | 3.09 | 2.82 | 2.95 |
| Vanderbilt | 2.84 | 2.60 | 2.79 |
| Kentucky | 2.56 | 2.84 | 2.70 |
So what changed? Well, not a whole lot. These numbers are, for the most part, pretty similar to what they were two weeks ago.
There were two notable changes at the top. One is that Florida fell behind Alabama, and that's entirely explained by the fact that I changed UF's offense from being a 3 WR/TE/RB set to a more realistically common 2 WR/TE/FB/RB set. Florida's fullbacks, especially considering that the backup is a three-star linebacker who lost a star due to being converted, aren't as highly rated as the receivers. The other change is that LSU edged past Auburn for third. AU had been ahead by .05; now LSU is ahead by .02 That move sums up a lot of the changes. It's mostly been people of similar star ratings shuffling around.
The only team that saw an overall rating change of greater than .06 in any direction was Ole Miss. It mostly came from the offensive side, where the average star rating rose by an impressive .42 stars. Adding in five-star freshmen Laquon Treadwell (starter) and Laremy Tunsil (backup) really made a difference, as did big improvements to star ratings at tight end. The defense budged up slightly in part thanks to another five-star freshman, Robert Nkemdiche. The team's overall average rose by about a quarter star, .28 to be exact.
Recruiting rankings aren't the end-all-be-all, of course. Guys like three-star Johnny Manziel, two-star Denzel Nkemdiche, three-star Travis Swanson, and Florida's mediocre four-star veteran receivers prove that fact. However they're pretty good in aggregate, and in aggregate, this is what the SEC's teams have for 2013.