By Brian Harbach

Nothing gets a discussion going better than ranking teams, players, mascots, tailgating… well SEC fans will pretty much fight about everything. Today will be a ranking of the leagues offensive positions. They will be listed in order of who is the best player at their respective position, followed by a player who might fall out of that Top 5 and a player that might surprise this season and move into the Top 5.

Also this is a list of the players at the college level, if you feel that Matthew Stafford is going to be a better pro quarterback than Tim Tebow that is fine, but this is ranking players on their abilities at the College level and in the SEC. Additionally no true freshmen will be listed and no players who were injured significantly last season will be listed either. These rankings will not include players such Jasper Brinkley of South Carolina or Enrique Davis of Ole Miss.

Quarterbacks

1) Tim Tebow, Florida
2) Matthew Stafford, Georgia
3) John Parker Wilson, Alabama
4) Jonathon Crompton, Tennessee
5) Chris Nickson, Vanderbilt

Most likely to move in: Jevan Snead (Ole Miss) Snead should fit very well into Houston Nutt’s offense. He should get a lot of yards with his feet similar to Matt Jones and he is a better passer than people think.

Most likely to move out: John Parker Wilson (Alabama) The main reason he is listed so high is because there really isn’t anyone else who has earned the spot ahead of him. If he plays the same he has the last 2 seasons, someone will take his spot and he will drop down the list.

Running Backs

1) Knowshon Moreno, Georgia
2) Arian Foster, Tennessee
3) Anthony Dixon, MSU
4) Keiland Williams, LSU
5) Ben Tate, Auburn

Most likely to move in: Florida running back to be determined (Florida) Florida will be a good running team this is the year and not just because of Tim Tebow. One of their running backs, Emmanuel Moody or Chris Rainey or Kestahn Moore, is going to have a really big year.

Most likely to move out: Keiland Williams (LSU) The reason why Williams is listed here is because LSU has 4 really great running backs and it is impossible to know which one will stand out this year. Williams is probably the most talented on the team, but with the depth they have at running back we might now see it.

Wide Receivers

1) Percy Harvin, Florida
2) Kenny McKinley, South Carolina
3) Lucas Taylor, Tennessee
4) Demetrius Byrd, LSU
5) Mohamed Massaquoi, Georgia

Most likely to move in: Mario Fannin (Auburn) Fannin is a freakish athlete who will be playing in the slot for Auburn’s spread offense this year. He looked great in the Peach Bowl and should get a lot of touches this year.

Most likely to move out: Massaquoi (Georgia) Mohamed has a lot of potential but he has a history of dropping the football and is very inconsistent. He could be a great receiver in the SEC; we just haven’t seen it week in and week out.

Tight Ends

1) Richard Dickson, LSU
2) Cornelius Ingram, Florida
3) Tripp Chandler, Georgia
4) Jared Cook, South Carolina
5) Nick Walker, Alabama

Most likely to move in: Tommy Trott (Auburn) Trott had a great spring practice and seems to be fitiing well into Auburn’s new spread offense. He will have plenty of balls thrown his way this fall.

Most likely to move out: Nick Walker (Alabama) Walker may get pushed down simply because of numbers. Other players will get more opportunities this fall at the TE position and that could cause him to fall from the top 5.

Offensive Tackles

1) Michael Oher, Ole Miss
2) Andre Smith, Alabama
3) Ciron Black, LSU
4) Lee Ziemba, Auburn
5) Trinton Sturdivant, Georgia

Most likely to move in: Ramon Foster (Tennessee) Foster was listed on some All SEC teams last year after his mover from Guard to Tackle. With another spring practice at that position under his belt he may be on all the All SEC lists in 2008.

Most likely to move out: Lee Ziemba (Auburn) The biggest reason that would move Ziemba out of the top 5 is that this is his first year playing on the left side. He did a great job as a right tackle last year, but will he be able to handle the left side?

Offensive Guards and Centers

1) Jonathon Luigs, Arkansas
2) Herman Johnson, LSU
3) Anthony Parker, Tennessee
4) Brett Helms, LSU
5) Tyrone Green, Auburn

Most likely to move in: Andre Caldwell (Alabama) Caldwell has excelled at numerous positions on the O-line and he is a very good center. He should have a good year and may end up being first or second team All-SEC.

Most likely to move out: Brett Helms (LSU) Helms is an outstanding center, but the other two LSU linemen may overshadow him. That may seem like a stretch and it likely is, this is a very strong top 5 and probably won’t change much at the end of the year.

What do you think? Are these lists accurate or do you have a better one? E-mail me Brian Harbach

Harbach's Top SEC Games, July 13, 2008
Championship Game Hurts SEC, July 6, 2008
Harbach's 2008 SEC Preview, June 30, 2008
Let's Get This Started, June 9, 2008