Tyler Bray, Tauren Poole & The SEC Leaderboard

We've spent the better part of fall camp trying to figure out exactly what Tennessee's offense is going to look like this fall, and of course, we're still just guessing.  In fact, if the Vols are able to go vanilla and beat Montana and Cincinnati, I'm fine with still not having a good idea what the offense looks like in mid-September, because that means Florida won't either.

We've looked at the need for balance, and tried to figure out whether the Vols will find it via the run game or a short passing game.  We're all assuming the Vols aren't going to just throw it deep every play, which is probably a safe assumption, but you never know...

Still, Tennessee has talent and experience in both the passing and running game that will have a chance to make some noise this fall, depending on how Jim Chaney wants to call it.  Both Tyler Bray and Tauren Poole were largely ignored on preseason All-SEC ballots...but is that a product of better talent on other SEC campuses, or are they genuinely underrated because they play for what's been a downtrodden Tennessee program?

How good can Bray and Poole be in this offense, whatever it looks like?  And could either make a push to lead the league in their respective categories?  After the jump, we'll take a look at the other candidates in the league, and then ask: 

(both lists are ranked in order of returning passing/rushing yards per game leaders from 2010)

Quarterbacks

• Aaron Murray, Georgia - 234.5 ypg.  Murray would probably be voted as the SEC quarterback most likely to succeed in the NFL.  He's got a full year of experience under his belt and had an amazing 24-8 TD-INT ratio as a true freshman.  An argument against Aaron Murray isn't based on what kind of player he is, but who the players are around him.  Last year the Dawgs didn't throw a ton - Murray only attempted more than 30 passes three times, including the overtime game with Florida - but even if you assume they're going to sling it more without Caleb King and Washaun Ealey around, who's going to catch it?  A.J. Green missed the first four games of the season and still caught 25 more passes than anyone else on the team and 30 more passes than anyone who returns this year.  The only returning players who averaged more than a catch per game are Tavarres King and Orson Charles.  Then again, they both caught more passes last year than anyone who will wear a Tennessee uniform this fall.
• Stephen Garcia, South Carolina - 218.5 ypg.  Garcia is always a wild card, but should be good to go in week one barring any additional off the field endeavors.  Garcia will also throw to the best receiver in the league.  His chances of winning the league's passing crown are hampered by the fact that he'll hand off to the league's leading returning rusher (now that Knile Davis is out) - more on him in a minute.  As you can see, Garcia's number isn't really that high to begin with, but last year only two SEC quarterbacks (Ryan Mallett and Mike Hartline) threw for more than 235 yards per game.
• John Brantley, Florida - 158.5 ypg.  There are certainly plenty of questions about this guy, but the answers at this point depend on how much you believe in Charlie Weis.  But even if Brantley is every bit of the great pro-style quarterback he was made out to be coming out of high school, and even if Weis has a huge positive impact on him as a player, the Gators will still be running an offense with personnel that aren't ideally suited for it.  Who's the go-to receiver on this team?