Vanderbilt pegged to finish 6th in SEC East, Ralph Webb somehow only 3rd-team all-conference

Ralph Webb has run for more yards in his Vanderbilt career than any other player in school history — and he’s still got one final season in black and gold. In 2016, he carried Vanderbilt back to the postseason after rushing for 1,283 yards and 13 touchdowns.

And despite all that, he can’t even find a spot on the preseason All-SEC first or second teams.

Webb was relegated to a third-team selection, behind players like Derrius Guice, Nick Chubb, and Bo Scarborough. It’s a testament to how stacked the SEC’s running back corps are for 2017 — and how little the media cares about players with the Star-V on their helmets.

Vandy players earning preseason snubs is an SEC Media Days tradition. Zach Cunningham, coming off a season where he recorded 88 tackles (14.5 for loss) and forced three fumbles, was limited to a second-team selection last fall. He’d go on to prove reporters wrong with a breakout performance that earned him consensus All-American honors. You’d have to go back to 2013 to find the last time the media named a Commodore a preseason first-teamer (Jordan Matthews).

Oren Burks, who earned third-team recognition for his work at linebacker, was the only other Vanderbilt player to be recognized.

However, Derek Mason’s improvements in Nashville haven’t gone totally unnoticed. While the Commodores were picked to finish second-to-last in the SEC East this fall, they still managed to pick up a lone vote to win their division and another to win the SEC Championship Game. The latter choice was either a mistake or some kind of low-key protest — the voter didn’t have Vandy winning the SEC East, thus making a conference title game impossible — but still, it’s a rare positive to take back from the league’s summer dog and pony show.

Here are the full results from this year’s preseason media polls.

2017 PRESEASON MEDIA DAYS ALL-SEC TEAM

(Total points earned in parenthesis)

OFFENSE First-Team

QB Jalen Hurts, Alabama (196)

RB Derrius Guice, LSU (223)

RB Nick Chubb, Georgia (211)

WR Calvin Ridley, Alabama (232)

WR Christian Kirk, Texas A&M (197)

TE Isaac Nauta, Georgia (134)

OL Braden Smith, Auburn (201)

OL Martez Ivey, Florida (198)

OL Jonah Williams, Alabama (187)

OL Ross Pierschbacher, Alabama (174)

C Frank Ragnow, Arkansas (174)

Second-Team

QB Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State (121)

RB Bo Scarbrough, Alabama (151)

RB Kamryn Pettway, Auburn (141)

WR Antonio Callaway, Florida (152)

WR J'Mon Moore, Missouri (91)

TE Hayden Hurst, South Carolina (115)

OL Isaiah Wynn, Georgia (116)

OL Jashon Robertson, Tennessee (108)

OL K.J. Malone, LSU (101)

OL Martinas Rankin, Mississippi State (101)

C Bradley Bozeman, Alabama (155)

Third-Team

QB Austin Allen, Arkansas (102)

RB Ralph Webb, Vanderbilt (105)

RB Sony Michel, Georgia (30)

WR Deebo Samuel, South Carolina (64)

WR Jauan Jennings, Tennessee (42)

TE DeAndre Goolsby, Florida (76)

OL Lester Cotton, Alabama (96)

OL Greg Little, Ole Miss (94)

OL Javon Patterson, Ole Miss (87)

OL Koda Martin, Texas A&M (69)

C Will Clapp, LSU (66)

DEFENSE First-Team

DL Da'Ron Payne, Alabama (196)

DL Da'Shawn Hand, Alabama (180)

DL Trenton Thompson, Georgia (172)

DL Marquis Haynes, Ole Miss (159)

LB Arden Key, LSU (191)

LB Rashaan Evans, Alabama (180)

LB Roquan Smith, Georgia (157)

DB Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alabama (232)

DB Ronnie Harrison, Alabama (156)

DB Armani Watts, Texas A&M (137)

DB Duke Dawson, Florida (137)

Second-Team

DL Cece Jefferson, Florida (151)

DL Marlon Davidson, Auburn (120)

DL Christian LaCouture, LSU (107)

DL Denzil Ware, Kentucky (78)

LB Shaun Dion Hamilton, Alabama (156)

LB Skai Moore, South Carolina (128)

LB Tre' Williams, Auburn (103)

DB Tray Matthews, Auburn (126)

DB Donte Jackson, LSU (123)

DB Carlton Davis, Auburn (109)

DB Dominick Sanders, Georgia (109)

Third-Team

DL Marcell Frazier, Missouri (77)

DL Jabari Zuniga, Florida (76)

DL Dontavius Russell, Auburn (70)

DL Rashard Lawrence, LSU (54)

LB Jordan Jones, Kentucky (91)

LB Lorenzo Carter, Georgia (82)

LB Oren Burks, Vanderbilt (58)

DB Anthony Averett, Alabama (104)

DB Marcell Harris, Florida (83)

DB Mike Edwards, Kentucky (71)

DB Tony Brown, Alabama (62)

SPECIALISTS First-Team

P JK Scott, Alabama (222)

PK Daniel Carlson, Auburn (218)

RS Christian Kirk, Texas A&M (176)

AP Christian Kirk, Texas A&M (161)

Second-Team

P Johnny Townsend, Florida (99)

PK Eddy Piniero, Florida (106)

RS Evan Berry, Tennssee (117)

AP Derrius Guice, LSU (133)

Third-Team

P Trevor Daniel, Tennessee (58)

PK Gary Wunderlich, Ole Miss (94)

RS Antonio Callaway, Florida (84)

AP Kerryon Johnson, Auburn (66)