Evening star., 1961-08-27
AIabama,LSU,
0IeMissRated
Finest in SEC
By the Associated Press

ALABAMA, Louisiana s a
and Mississippi figure to hold
hands full of aces when foot
ball practice begins this week
at IL Southeastern Conference
schools.
Rated only slightly behind
those three are Auburn, Flor
ida and Tennessee, with fore
casters anticipating the most
unpredictable season since the
SEC was formed in 1888.
Ole Miss. Sugar Bowl cham
pion for the last two years,
finally was nudged out of the
preseason drivers seat by the
pollsterS, who rated LSU
slightly ahead of the Rebels.
Mississippi lost most of the
members of its great teams of
1859 and 1860. Such confidence
in LSU is rather surprising,
because the BengalS slipped be-
low the 500 level in conference
play last year with a 2-3-1
record.
Is Lettermen
When practice starts Friday,
LSU Coach Paul Dietzel will
welcome Is letter winners from
the 1860 group. He lost only
nine players, but they repre-
sented the hard core of LSU's
rugged defense and Dietzel
claims the rebuilding job there
will be fierce.
To ease his task, the 81
year-old Dietzel can call on
some of the most talented per-
formers in Dixie to fill the
gaps.
Alabama, restored ahead of
schedule to national promi-
nence by Paul Bryant, ought
to be a cinch for a tn ir d
straight bowl trip. Tide losses
were light, and even pessimist
Bryant admits he's loaded with
good football players.
I don't argue with the fact
they've rated us near the top
of the conference" Bryant
says. I'VE will have a good
football team. We have back
filed depth, for instance for
the first time since 1 have
been here (since 1889. Tackle
Billy Neighbors, Center Lee
Roy Jordan and Quarterback
Pat Trammell head the 'Bama
cast.
Good Requirements
Ole Miss, minus All-America
Jake Gibbs and a host of other
l959-60 aces, is we'll fixed with
personnel nevertheless. Senior
Quarterback Doug Elmore,
Gibbs 1860 underStudy, could
have played first string on
most SEC teams.
The Rebs have come up with
their usual fine crop of sopho-
moreS, headed by Quarterback
Perry Lee Dunn of NatcheZ,
who could oust Elmore early
in the season. End R al p h
Smith, Guards Bookie Bolin
and Billy Ray Jones and
Tackle Jim Dunaway are Rebel
line stars.
Behind the top six come
Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Geor-
gia, Vanderbilt, Tulane and
Mississippi State although not
necessarily in that order. Tech,
for instance, lost four confer
ence games last season by a
total of five points and is eX-
pected to have one of tn e
toughest lines in the country.
Georgia, under its new coach,
Johnny Griffith, will play de-
fense with dedication and tai
ent, too. Kentucky advances
its finest sophomore group in
many years topped by fabulous
Darrell Cox, a stumpy haf-
back speedster from Miami,
who could be the Sophomore
of the Year.
Auburn and Tennessee boast
ability in depth and an in
tense desire for a post-season
bowl bid. Auburn incidentally,
is eligible for bowl bids for
the first time in five years
having emerged from the
NCAA dog house, where the
Tigers spent several seasons
for recruiting violations.
Florida, surprise team of the
league last year under Coach
Ray Graves, owns an explosive
backfield and is working furi-
ously to shore up a defensive
midsection depleted by gradu-
alton.