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TENNESEE PICKED NO. 2
IN SEC EAST
BY LEAGUE’S MEDIA
Six Vols Named Preseason
All-SEC
Tennessee has been picked to finish second in the Southeastern Conference's
Eastern Division in a poll by media members attending the league's annual Media Days event in
Birmingham, Ala. The Vols received 30 first-place votes, just behind defending champion
Georgia's 42 first-place ballots. Auburn was the media's overwhelming pick in the
SEC West. The Tigers garnered 60 first-place votes and are the scribes' choice to defeat Georgia
in the 2003 SEC Championship game Dec. 6 in Atlanta's Georgia Dome. Georgia (12), Tennessee
(10), LSU (6), Ole Miss (2), Florida (2) and Arkansas (1) also received votes as the overall
champion.
Rounding out the SEC East behind the Georgia and Tennessee, the media picks
Florida, South Carolina, Kentucky and Vanderbilt. In the SEC West, LSU is the choice for
second-place, followed by Arkansas, Alabama, Ole Miss and Mississippi
State.
Tennessee head coach said he discounts the importance of preseason
predictions. "They're fun to look and they kind of get the juices flowing for the season. You can
use them as a motivator and we have in the past. Certainly the players look at them and they are
young and impressionable. I'm sure other teams can use them against you, too if they want
to."
Voting on the league race was tabulated on a 1-2-3-4-5-6 scale with 78 voters
participating.
Six Vols were selected to the media's Preseason All-SEC Teams.Defensive back
and punter were named to the first-team, while offensive tackle , center , tailback and linebacker
were second-team selections.
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