SEC 2016 Season Awards and All-Conference Team

The 2016 season was an interesting year for the SEC. Alabama enters the College Football Playoff as the No. 1 overall team but every team in the SEC outside of the Crimson Tide had at least four losses.

 

While the 2016 campaign was largely a down year for most of the SEC, the league’s 14 teams still produced plenty of talent. Alabama led the way on Athlon Sports’ All-SEC team with 17 overall selections, with LSU and Florida tied for second with nine. Auburn was third with eight picks, while Texas A&M was next with six selections.

 

With the regular season completed and bowl season starting on Dec. 17, it’s time to recap and look back at the 2016 campaign. Athlon Sports offers its awards and honors the best players in the league with the first, second and third all-conference teams for the SEC:

 

SEC 2016 Season Awards

 

Offensive Player of the Year: Joshua Dobbs, QB, Tennessee

Dobbs led all players in conference action this year, averaging 316.9 total yards per game in SEC contests. 

Runner Up: Jalen Hurts, QB, Alabama

 

Defensive Player of the Year: Jonathan Allen, DL, Alabama

Allen led the way in the trenches for Alabama's dominant defense this season. In addition to anchoring the top run defense in the nation, Allen accumulated 13 tackles for a loss and 8.5 sacks in 13 contests.

Runner Up: Zach Cunningham, LB, Vanderbilt

 

Coach of the Year: Nick Saban, Alabama

Another year, another dominant Alabama team. While winning at a high level is nothing new for Saban, he's done it in 2016 with a true freshman quarterback (Jalen Hurts) and enters the playoff as the clear favorite to win it all.

Runner Up: Mark Stoops, Kentucky

 

Freshman of the Year (Offense): Jalen Hurts, QB, Alabama

A strong case could be made for Hurts as first-team All-SEC quarterback. The true freshman started 12 games for the Crimson Tide and averaged 264.1 total yards per contest.

Runner Up: Jonah Williams, OL, Alabama

 

Freshman of the Year (Defense): Leo Lewis, LB, Mississippi State

Lewis started all 12 games and was a key cog in Mississippi State's defense. The redshirt freshman ranked second on the team with 72 tackles (4.5 for a loss) and also recorded one pass breakup.

Runner Up: Marlon Davidson, DL, Auburn

 

Offensive Coordinator of the Year: Lane Kiffin, Alabama

Since arriving in Tuscaloosa, Kiffin has successfully blended the up-tempo and spread looks with Alabama's physical ground game. Despite the loss of running back Derrick Henry and a true freshman (Jalen Hurts) under center, the Crimson Tide averaged 39.8 points a game in SEC contests this year - up from 31.2 in 2015.

Runner Up: Eddie Gran, Kentucky

 

Defensive Coordinator of the Year: Jeremy Pruitt, Alabama

Pruitt returned to Tuscaloosa after Kirby Smart left for Georgia and helped Nick Saban mold the nation's best defense. The Crimson Tide allowed only 11.8 points per game and just 3.94 yards per play.

Runner Up: Dave Aranda, LSU

 

Newcomer of the Year: Trevor Knight, QB, Texas A&M

In addition to his on-field production, Knight was a stabilizing force and a leader for an offense that ended 2015 with uncertainty about its quarterback position after two players left College Station. In 10 games, Knight accounted for 2,716 total yards and 26 touchdowns.

Runner Up: Darius James, OL, Auburn

 

Breakout Player: Kamryn Pettway, RB, Auburn

A late-season injury slowed Pettway in November, but the sophomore still finished with 1,123 yards and seven touchdowns.

Runner Up: Nick Fitzgerald, QB, Mississippi State

 

SEC 2016 Postseason All-Conference Team

	First-Team Offense	Second-Team Offense	Third-Team Offense
QB	Joshua Dobbs Tennessee	Jalen Hurts Alabama	Chad Kelly Ole Miss
RB	Rawleigh Williams Arkansas	Ralph Webb Vanderbilt	Leonard Fournette LSU
RB	Kamryn Pettway Auburn	Derrius Guice LSU	Boom Williams Kentucky
AP	Christian Kirk Texas A&M	Alvin Kamara Tennessee	Calvin Ridley (WR) Alabama
WR	Josh Reynolds Texas A&M	Fred Ross Miss. State	Antonio Callaway Florida
WR	ArDarius Stewart Alabama	J'Mon Moore Missouri	Josh Malone Tennessee
TE	Evan Engram Ole Miss	O.J. Howard Alabama	Jeremy Sprinkle Arkansas
C	Frank Ragnow Arkansas	Bradley Bozeman  Alabama	Martez Ivey (OL) Florida
OL	Cam Robinson Alabama	Josh Boutte LSU	Will Clapp LSU
OL	Ethan Pocic (C) LSU	Jon Toth (C) Kentucky	Paul Adams Missouri
OL	Braden Smith Auburn	Justin Senior Miss. State	Alex Kozan Auburn
OL	Jonah Williams Alabama	Robert Leff Auburn	Will Holden Vanderbilt
	First-Team Defense	Second-Team Defense	Third-Team Defense
DL	Derek Barnett Tennessee	Charles Harris Missouri	Dalvin Tomlinson Alabama
DL	Myles Garrett Texas A&M	Caleb Brantley Florida	Darius English South Carolina
DL	Jonathan Allen Alabama	Carl Lawson Auburn	Trent Thompson Georgia
DL	Arden Key LSU	Montravius Adams Auburn	Marquis Haynes Ole Miss
LB	Zach Cunningham Vanderbilt	Ryan Anderson Alabama	Shaan Washington Texas A&M
LB	Tim Williams Alabama	Kendell Beckwith LSU	Jordan Jones Kentucky
LB	Reuben Foster Alabama	Jarrad Davis Florida	Roquan Smith Georgia
CB	Tre'Davious White LSU	Quincy Wilson Florida	Carlton Davis Auburn
CB	Jalen Tabor Florida	Aarion Penton Missouri	Marlon Humphrey Alabama
S	Minkah Fitzpatrick  Alabama	Justin Evans Texas A&M	Eddie Jackson Alabama
S	Jamal Adams LSU	Marcus Maye Florida	Mike Edwards Kentucky
	First-Team Specialists	Second-Team Specialists	Third-Team Specialists
K	Daniel Carlson Auburn	Eddy Pineiro Florida	Gary Wunderlich Ole Miss
P	JK Scott Alabama	Johnny Townsend Florida	Toby Baker Arkansas
KR	Darrius Sims Vanderbilt	Evan Berry Tennessee	Carlos Davis Ole Miss
PR	Christian Kirk Texas A&M	Eddie Jackson Alabama	Isaiah McKenzie Georgia