Missouri picked to finish fourth in SEC East
Winning the Southeastern Conference’s Eastern Division last year gave Missouri a small spike in respect.
Coming off a 5-7 season, Missouri was picked sixth in the division for the 2013 season and had one player: cornerback E.J. Gaines as a third-team defensive back: picked for the SEC Media Days preseason All-SEC football team.
So, the Tigers garnered more respect this summer after going 12-2, reaching the SEC championship game and capturing a Cotton Bowl title; just not much more.
Missouri was picked fourth in the SEC East behind South Carolina, Georgia and Florida and had four players selected for individual honors, but no first-team picks.
Senior defensive end Markus Golden was a second-team selection, receiving 125 first-place votes from a record 293 total votes.
Senior running back Marcus Murphy was a third-team pick at return specialist, while junior center Evan Boehm and junior kicker Andrew Baggett also made the third team.
Alabama, which had a record-tying nine first-team selections and topped the West Division poll, was the predicted SEC champion on 154 ballots followed by Auburn (75), South Carolina (32) and Georgia (19).
Missouri didn’t receive any votes as SEC champion, but Mississippi received two votes, while Arkansas, which went winless in conference last season, and Mississippi State each received one vote.
2014 SEC Media Days preseason poll
Eastern Division
Team | 2013 record | Points |
1. South Carolina | 11-2 | 1,895 |
2. Georgia | 8-5 | 1,777 |
3. Florida | 4-8 | 1,362 |
4. Missouri | 12-2 | 1,263 |
5. Tennessee | 5-7 | 893 |
6. Vanderbilt | 9-4 | 619 |
7. Kentucky | 2-10 | 395 |
Western Division
Team | 2013 record | Points |
1. Alabama | 11-2 | 1,915 |
2. Auburn | 12-2 | 1,735 |
3. LSU | 10-3 | 1,453 |
4. Mississippi | 8-5 | 1,069 |
5. Mississippi State | 7-6 | 890 |
6. Texas A&M | 9-4 | 791 |
7. Arkansas | 3-9 | 351 |
SEC Champion (votes): Alabama (154), Auburn (75), South Carolina (32), Georgia (19), LSU (nine), Mississippi (two), Arkansas (one), Mississippi State (one).
To reach Tod Palmer, call 816-234-4389 or send email to tpalmer@kcstar.com. Follow him on Twitter at @todpalmer.
SEC Media Days Preseason All-SEC Team
First-team votes in parentheses
OFFENSE
FIRST TEAM
Quarterback: Nick Marshall, Auburn (241)
Running backs: T. J. Yeldon, Alabama (281); Todd Gurley, Georgia (280)
Wide receivers: Amari Cooper, Alabama (282); Sammie Coates, Auburn (207)
Tight end: O.J. Howard, Alabama (188)
Guards/tackles: La’el Collins, LSU (231); Arie Kouandjio, Alabama (188); Laremy Tunsil, Mississippi (183); Cedric Ogbuehi, Texas A&M (174)
Center: Reese Dismukes, Auburn (226)
Defensive line: Robert Nkemdiche, Mississippi (239); Dante Fowler Jr., Florida (212); A’Shawn Robinson, Alabama (208); Gabe Wright, Auburn (192)
Linebackers: Trey DePriest, Alabama (253); A.J. Johnson, Tennessee (186); Ramik Wilson, Georgia (147)
Defensive backs: Landon Collins, Alabama (274); Vernon Hargreaves III, Florida (243); Cody Prewitt, Mississippi (210); Deshazor Everett, Texas A&M (183)
Punter: Drew Kaser, Texas A&M (221)
Kicker: Marshall Morgan, Georgia (224)
Returner: Christion Jones, Alabama (262)
All-purpose: Christion Jones, Alabama (130)
SECOND TEAM
Quarterback: Dak Prescott, Mississippi State (118)
Running backs: Mike Davis, South Carolina (240); Alex Collins, Arkansas (126)
Wide receivers: Laquon Treadwell, Mississippi (182); Malcom Mitchell, Georgia (71)
Tight end: C.J. Uzomah, Auburn (141)
Guards/tackles: A.J. Cann, South Carolina (166); Vadal Alexander, LSU (112); Alex Kozan, Auburn (112), Corey Robinson, South Carolina (107)
Center: Ryan Kelly, Alabama (126)
Defensive line: Trey Flowers, Arkansas (181); Chris Jones, Mississippi State (150); Alvin “Bud” Dupree, Kentucky (134); Markus Golden, Missouri (125)
Linebackers: Bendardrick McKinney, Mississippi State (143); Jordan Jenkins, Georgia (137); Denzel Nkemdiche, Mississippi (116)
Defensive backs: Robenson Therezie, Auburn (144); Tre-Davious White, LSU (141); Damian Swann, Georgia (127); Tony Conner, Mississippi (116)
Punter: Sam Irwin-Hill, Arkansas (136)
Kicker: Colby Delahoussaye, LSU (142)
Returner: Andre Debose, Florida (97)
All-purpose: Terrence Magee, LSU (111)
THIRD TEAM
Quarterback: Bo Wallace, Mississippi (94)
Running backs: Corey Grant, Auburn (52); Keith Marshall, Georgia (44)
Wide receivers: Jameon Lewis, Mississippi State (67); Marquez North, Tennessee (66)
Tight end: Hunter Henry, Arkansas (72)
Guards/tackles: Austin Shepherd, Alabama (106); Chad Slade, Auburn (101); John Theus, Georgia (96); Chaz Green, Florida (94)
Center: Evan Boehm, Missouri (77)
Defensive line: Ray Drew, Georgia (102); Montravius Adams, Auburn (94); Carl Lawson, Auburn (87); Jermauria Rasco, LSU (79)
Linebackers: Kwon Alexander, LSU (112); Cassanova McKinzy, Auburn (82); Serderius Bryant, Mississippi (76)
Defensive backs: Jon Mincy, Auburn (99); Corey Thompson, LSU (86); Rashard Robinson, LSU (84); Brison Williams, South Carolina (81)
Punter: Jamie Keehn, LSU (81)
Kicker: Andrew Baggett, Missouri (103)
Returner: Marcus Murphy, Missouri (72)
All-purpose: Trey Williams, Texas A&M (89)
This story was originally published July 17, 2014 at 10:21 AM with the headline "Missouri picked to finish fourth in SEC East."