I think Vince McMahon gave him a call this past weekend and offered him millions to be in wrestlemania 27.
Take a look at the schedule and opinions might change. It is BRUTAL. Oregon (Dallas) @Miss State - They are getting better and I will always worry about this game because we have a long streak on them. @West Virginia - We struggled at home with them. Florida @Tennessee - They gave us a lot of trouble at home. Auburn @Bama @Ole Miss Arkansas I am VERY concerned about next year. While at least two of those teams I listed will end up being under .500 at the end of the year, I still find them to be dangerous games.
Brantley was also supposed to be the second coming according to Florida fans at the start of the season. Everyone's got talent, but with rare exceptions, all that talent at QB needs significant SEC experience before becoming consistently successful. That plays into our hands for the 2011 season, which is what the OP is asking about.
Unless we pick up key injuries OOC games have no bearing on an SEC championship. I'd rather have kept Vandy as the other East opponent, but I'd rather Tennessee next year than Georgia or South Carolina. The rest are on the schedule every year, and we never get Bama, Auburn, Arky, and Florida all at home in the same year, but we get 3/4 in TS next season and that is HUGE. It's about the right combination of schedule and personnel, and 2011 is as good a year as any to make a run IMO. Very, very tough OOC slate, but 2-0 or 1-1 against Oregon and WVU is an extremely good resume enhancer for a BCSNC shot. After the AD is done grabbing TV money on these one-off games in neutral sites, I hope we settle into a schedule with just one big OOC game a year to pad the resume.
That, my friend, is not a problem - that is an opportunity! That is precisely why 2011 is so friggin' interesting. Plus the fact that LSU has a ton of seniors next year.
Yep ... if we do well in that schedule, there will be no question about our being in the NC. ... heck .. for that matter, they should just hand it to us. FL will be good next year. Oregon will still be good next year. Bama will be strong. Arky will be stronger next year than they are this year. Ol Lady will likely have ironed out some kinks. Tenn is going to be tough next year .. .just wait and see. If Miss State continues on the current trend, they will be a booger as well. I expect AU to be our fluff game if Cam Newton leaves. That's SEVEN potentially top 25 ranked teams.
