SEC Coaches Pre-Season All-SEC Team

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The Auburn Tigers led all teams with 14 players selected to the 2006 Southeastern Conference Coaches Pre-Season All-SEC Football Team, announced today.

Defending SEC champion Georgia had 12 players selected as well as Arkansas and LSU. Florida was the only other SEC team with double figure selections with ten. There were first, second and third-teams selected for this year's coaches pre-season squad.

Kentucky had seven players selected to the three squads followed by Alabama with six and Tennessee had five. Mississippi State and Vanderbilt each had three selections and Ole Miss and South Carolina had two each.

Auburn led all schools with seven first-team selections followed by Georgia with five while Arkansas and Florida had three each. LSU and Tennessee each had two players selected to the first-team while Alabama, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Vanderbilt each had one first-team selection.

Ten of the 12 SEC teams had first-team selections and every conference school has representatives on the All-SEC squad.

Ole Miss senior linebacker Patrick Willis was the only unanimous choice for first-team pre-season All-SEC by the league's coaches. Since coaches cannot vote for their own players, the Decatur, Ga. native was listed on 11 of the 12 ballots.

Of the 88 student-athletes named to the first, second and third teams, nine are sophomores, 26 are juniors and 53 are seniors.

South Carolina wide receiver Sidney Rice, Vanderbilt wide receiver Earl Bennett, Arkansas running back Darren McFadden and Arkansas return specialist Felix Jones were sophomores named to the first team. LSU offensive lineman Will Arnold, Auburn defensive lineman Quentin Groves, Florida linebacker Brandon Siler, Florida defensive back Reggie Nelson and Georgia placekicker Brandon Coutu were juniors named to the first team.

Tennessee offensive lineman Arron Sears, LSU defensive back LaRon Landry and Auburn punter Kody Bliss were repeat first-team selections from the 2005 Coaches Pre-Season All-SEC Team.

This is the third year of the SEC Coaches Pre-Season All-SEC Football Team. It is released in advance of the 2006 SEC Football Media Days, which will be held July 26-28, at the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover, Ala. Media in attendance at SEC Football Media Days will vote on the All-SEC Team and a predicted order of finish for the league.

The entire listing of the 2006 SEC Coaches Pre-Season All-SEC Football Team is below:

2006 SEC COACHES PRE-SEASON ALL-SEC FOOTBALL TEAM

(*-Ties / #-Unanimous Selection)

(Coaches could not vote for themselves or their own players)