Georgia football is easily predicted to make Atlanta in way too early 2022 SEC Rankings

Missouri and Vanderbilt round out the East’s bottom tier

Missouri Tigers: 4-8 (1-7)

After a disappointing end to the 2021 season, Mizzou fans don’t have much more to look forward to in 2022.

Missouri was not a good football team this past season. Defensively, the Tigers ranked second to last in the SEC ahead of only Vanderbilt, surrendering over 430 yards and nearly 34 points per game.

Offensively, the lone bright spot on the team was running back Tyler Badie. The ground attack proved the only viable option for the Missouri offense. Badie set a school record for rushing yards in a single season with 1,612. It wasn’t purely volume-based, as he accomplished, averaging an impressive six yards per carry.

Unfortunately for the Tigers, that production will be gone in 2022. Replacing Badie doesn’t seem like a realistic possibility.

With starting quarterback Connor Bazelak entering the transfer portal after a shaky 2021 season, head coach Eli Drinkwitz will look to have a quarterback competition on his hands.

The fan favorite will likely be Sam Horn, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see him sit as a true freshman for a season.

The Tigers’ receiving corps has some solid options, but with a significant question mark at quarterback, their involvement will be dependent on who is under center.

Drinkwitz has recruited well, as Missouri has a top 15 class for the 2022 cycle. Big recruits such as wide receiver Luther Burden, running back Tavorus Jones, and previously mentioned quarterback Sam Horn are all potential key contributors in future seasons.

With that being said, though, considering how much production Missouri will have to replace, 2022 looks to be a down year for the Tigers. Fans should hope to see some of the young talent get reps throughout the season and provide a glimpse into what future seasons could hold.

Vanderbilt Commodores: 1-11 (0-8)

The Commodores will once again be heavily disappointing in 2022.

Coming off of a 2021 campaign in which the offense and defense both ranked dead last in the SEC in total yards, head coach Clark Lea has a mountain to climb to make this program competitive again.

Since Vandy isn’t exactly known for its football success, Lea will have to adopt a different approach than most teams in the SEC. Top-end talent doesn’t make its way to Vanderbilt, so nailing down plenty of depth in the lower-ranked recruits is key to building the foundation needed for rebuilding.

Beyond recruiting, developing the talent brought in will be of much more importance for Lea than for other coaches. That isn’t to say that coaches who recruit well don’t have to worry about development, just that there’s more of a luxury in recruiting the highest talent right out of high school.

The Commodores will be far from competitive once again in 2022. In his second season as head coach, Lea’s task will be to develop young players and establish a foundation that the program can build.

Gaining respect is a significant key for Vanderbilt, and competitiveness won’t come until that respect is there.