SEC Media Days 2026
by GEORGE SOMERVILLE
THE TOUCHDOWN’s SEC CORRESPONDENT
Key Questions heading into Media Days
As much as we would like to think that football programs are well-oiled machines, there’s a huge amount of work and preparation that goes into getting the program ready for the season beginning.
Add in study time, transfer portal ins & outs, recruitment, even the constant noise around NIL, and you can see that there are a lot of distractions around a football program even before training camps have begun.
But Media Days are upon us already, and this signals the start of the clock ticking down to that first game of the season.
Each program knows what they need to do to become competition-ready. So with a summer of hard work ahead for each school, here are what I think are the key questions which each team needs to answer heading into the new season.
Day One
Kentucky wildcats
At Kentucky, the Mark Stoops era is over. When we saw Stoops at last Media Days, he had become the longest tenured Head Coach in the SEC. But that counts for little these days.
After a disappointing season for the Wildcats, Kentucky moved to bring Will Stein from Oregon to take over the program, beginning a new era in Lexington.
Stein, 36, is a native of Kentucky, having attended and played football at the University of Louisville. His coaching career started at Louisville, featured stops at Texas, UTSA and most recently as Offensive Co-ordinator at Oregon.
So the biggest question surrounding the Wildcats program is around their first-year head coach. In what is a relatively short coaching career of 13 years, Stein finds his first Head Coach role in the SEC. To put this in perspective, Stein is the joint-2nd-youngest Head Coach in the history of the conference. Mike Archer was only 34 when he was appointed Head Coach at LSU. Zach Arnett, like Stein, was 36 when he started as Head Coach at Mississippi State.
Big Blue Nation has got behind their new coach, and there is much excitement in Lexington about the way that Stein has tackled recruitment. Folks are especially excited about next year’s recruiting class, so this season is seen very much as a rebuilding year for the Wildcats.
Missouri Tigers
In the past three seasons, the Missouri Tigers have gone quietly about their business, becoming one of the SEC’s most consistent yet underrated teams. Well, as quiet as an Eli Drinkwitz team can be. Over the course of the last three seasons, this Drinkwitz Tigers team is 29-10, recording an 11-win season in 2023/24 and a 10-win season in 2024/25. Last year’s 8-win season seemed to be something of a letdown, which shows how high the bar has been set by Drinkwitz and his coaching staff.
So the question is…can Mizzou break through to the College Football Playoff?
Mizzou’s stingy defense of last year has been depleted with those moving on to the NFL. The Tigers’ coaching staff has replaced the now-departed experience with transfer portal additions. Five players are transferring in on the secondary alone. Drinkwitz, like Kiffin, has consistently proven that he can mould teams year on year. He needs to continue this trend.
Oklahoma Sooners
This time last year, there was a lot of noise around Oklahoma having a breakout season in the SEC. A slow start to their debut in the conference the year before was put down to a transitional year on the back of the move to the BIGXII. The recruitment of quarterback John Mateer was, we were told, the final piece in head Coach Venables’ grand plan. Granted, last year wasn’t a bad season for the Sooners. A late rally in the season ensured a College Football Playoff place. A 10-3 (6-2 in conference) winning record is not to be sniffed at and signalled a successful season for the Sooners. However, Sooners fans must have felt so much more could have been achieved.
This season, Mateer is still in Oklahoma and is fit. A hand injury sidelined the Sooners’ main man for a significant part of the season and can rightfully be the reason the Sooners didn’t have a more successful 2025.
Schedule woes
This year’s schedule isn’t kind to Brent Venables. Michigan, Georgia and Texas are all opponents in the first half of the Sooners’ season. Escape unscathed from that, and we are looking at National Champion contenders. Two or three defeats and Venables finds himself under extreme pressure.
Spring and Summer headlines highlight the help the Sooners have given Mateer to get him ready for the new season. Head Coach Venables has been spending time with Mateer, providing a defensive lens for Mateer to consider. Sooners legend and Heisman-winning quarterback Sam Bradford has also been spending time with Mateer in the film room.
But surprisingly for a Brent Venables-led team, there are areas of defense where questions are being asked. Don’t get me wrong, Oklahoma’s defense last year was very good. However, the secondary didn’t record an interception until week 5 of the season, and Venables wants to see improvement in that area.
Tennessee Vols
Many commentators are high on Tennessee this season. However, rightly or wrongly, life in Knoxville revolves around the quarterback. Given the issues experienced last year with QB Nico Iamaleava suddenly and belatedly announcing his transfer to UCLA, Vols fans are keen to understand what is happening with the QB position.
This season, the Vols have a battle at QB with Redshirt Freshman George MacIntyre and five-star true freshman Faizon Brandon looking to duke it out during training camps.
This has got Vol Nation very excited about the season ahead. While MacIntyre has impressed early on, Brandon’s physicality has many people excited for what he can bring to the team. We have, however, been here before with Joe Milton, so caution should be exercised.
Of less good news is that Chaz Coleman has left the Vols program. Impressive Edge rusher, Coleman had arrived in Knoxville along with the defensive coordinator from Penn State. However, it would appear that Coleman had been experiencing some personal issues and has since left the program on medical grounds. This is a significant blow on the defensive side of the ball.
So again, Tennessee finds itself battling some key personnel decisions close to the start of the season.
GEORGE SOMERVILLE
COLLEGE FOOTBALL WRITER
GEORGE IS A LONG STANDING FANATIC OF LIFE AND FOOTBALL IN THE DEEP SOUTH AND WRITES HIS WEEKLY COLUMN CALLED “IT’S ONLY SEC” FOR THE TOUCHDOWN. HE IS ALSO CO-HOST AND ONE THIRD OF THE COLLEGE CHAPS PODCAST, THE UK’S FIRST PODCAST DEDICATED TO THE COLLEGE GAME.