Media picks Alabama to beat Georgia for SEC championship

Posted July 23, 2021 7:00 am

The Associated Press

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (AP) - Alabama is the favorite to repeat as Southeastern Conference champion while Georgia is the pick to win the Eastern Division in the media's annual preseason poll.

In voting by media covering SEC media days released Friday, the defending national champion Crimson Tide received 84 votes to win the league while Georgia was second with 45 votes.

The Bulldogs were selected to win the SEC East with 923 points, including 124 first-place votes. Defending division champ Florida was second with 784 points and seven first-place votes. Kentucky was third with 624 points.

In the SEC West, Alabama received 130 first-place votes among the 134 ballots. Texas A&M received 760 points and LSU 633.

The Tide also led the way with 16 players making the preseason All-SEC teams, with six of the team's eight predicted first-teamers playing on defense.

Georgia and Auburn had 10 preseason All-SEC picks and Texas A&M had seven.

The media has correctly predicted the SEC champion eight times since 1992.

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More AP college football: http://collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Georgia head coach Kirby Smart speaks to reporters during the NCAA college football Southeastern Conference Media Days, Tuesday, July 20, 2021, in Hoover, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill) The Associated Press

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