This article was originally published with The Red & Black on July 21, 2015 and can be found here.

There are always winners and losers in college football, and the Southeastern Conference Media Days is no different. Here’s a look at which coaches impressed during the four-day event in Hoover, Alabama, and which coaches may need to take a public speaking class in the near future.

1. Bret Bielema, Arkansas – Bielema played the role of the villain in February 2014 when he basically blamed the death of a Cal football player on the high-paced offenses of today. He sounded much more down to earth when he spoke at Media Days this year.

 

Bielema opened his discussion with talk about his players, which left the former Wisconsin head coach emotional for several moments. He lightened the mood by showing off a pair of Nike shoes and challenging what Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen had done the day before.

“I saw a coach walk in here yesterday with adidas on,” Bielema said. “We’re a Nike school. First thing I said was, ‘Hell, let’s start a little Nike-adidas war.’ I love Dan Mullen and everything he is, but we’re a Nike school.”

Bielema wasn’t done with the other coaches in the conference. He took aim at a comment South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier made about people in Fayetteville, Arkansas, celebrating last year’s 7-6 season with cartwheels. While he joked about respecting his elders, he also poked fun at himself by saying he didn’t think he could pull off any celebratory cartwheels.

Bielema later discussed the importance of his players and recruits having the right image for Arkansas. He also shared advice about player discipline from former Iowa head coach Hayden Fry, who told Bielema, “You recruit your problems.”

Arkansas is riding high after a strong finish to last season, and Bielema kept the momentum going with his words in Hoover. He was funny, compassionate and motivated for the year to come, characteristics any fan base would support. In short, Bielema did everything right at SEC Media Days and didn’t seem like the same person who made such awful comments 17 months ago.

2. Gus Malzahn, Auburn – Malzahn was in a bad mood at last year’s Media Days, but few could blame him. The team had just lost defensive end Carl Lawson for the year, and overcoming a loss in the national championship game was still fresh on his mind. Malzahn seemed to be counting down the time until he could leave.

Thecase was completely different in 2015. Malzahn was upbeat and happy in front of the press. He even made a point to allow the Arkansas Democratic-Gazette’s Bob Holt a chance to ask the first question, which Holt happily obliged.

Why was Malzahn so engaging this time around? It probably had a lot to do with junior quarterback Jeremy Johnson. Johnson has been Malzahn’s guy going back to Johnson’s ninth-grade year, when Malzahn began recruiting him. His talent is no secret, and Malzahn sounded very excited about his new quarterback’s potential.

“His coaches and his teammates have a lot of confidence in him, and he’s earned that,” Malzahn said.” “I really appreciate the way that he responded to not being the starter the last couple of years when he could have started for the majority of the teams. The

way he’s really responded is really something special.”

Malzahn is part of the younger generation of coaches in the conference. It behooves him to have a good showing at events like Media Days.

3. Steve Spurrier, South Carolina – Anytime the Head Ball Coach steps behind the mic, you better sit down and listen. Spurrier’s opening statement sounded like a stand-up bit, as he poked fun at the older sports writers in attendance. The Gamecocks head coach also wasted no time in ruffling feathers among his fellow coaches.

“There are people in Knoxville and Fayetteville still doing cartwheels over going 7-6,” Spurrier said, referring to Tennessee and Arkansas.

Spurrier made plenty of jokes, but he also discussed how close he came to walking away. While he assured those in attendance he was never on the edge of retirement, he brought up his abrupt departure from the postgame news conference following South Carolina’s loss to Tennessee.

“After we sort of blew a game, yeah, I felt like getting away a minute,” Spurrier said. “Hopefully, people can understand some losses are tougher than others, but we’re rejuvenated with the end [of last season].”

He lamented later on how he wouldn’t be very good at retirement. If the fans and sports writers have their say, that won’t be an issue worth addressing any time soon.

4. Kevin Sumlin, Texas A&M – Sumlin is slowly becoming one of the most-watchable coaches at Media Days. He joked about his abrasive attitude at least year’s meetings and said his wife told him to play nice this go around. He tackled a number of topics in his segment, including the year’s expectations, new offensive line coach Dave Christensen, team leadership and A&M’s recent success at offensive line

He was also candid when a reporter asked if hiring John Chavis’ hire fit the strategy of “If you can’t beat them, join them”.

“That’s exactly what I did,” Sumlin said. “There’s really nothing more to the answer than that. It’s a great fit for us and a great fit for him. We were in the market, obviously, and here’s a guy who’s got a tremendous track record in the SEC and recently in the SEC West.”

In a conference filled with coaches who couldn’t care less about giving reporters material to work with, Sumlin is becoming one of the more media-friendly men.

5. Mark Richt, Georgia – This isn’t Richt’s first rodeo. The longtime Georgia head coach didn’t have much to say at Media Days, but he didn’t really have to. The talk of the offseason has surrounded sophomore Nick Chubb, and Richt was quick to praise is young tailback.

“He doesn’t care about [attention],” Richt said. “He cares about working hard, playing hard, and helping Georgia win. I really appreciate that about him.”

Richt also fielded questions about the quarterback battle. He was sure not to show his hand when the topic was brought up.

“I have no idea who the starter is going to be,” Richt said. “We have 29 practice opportunities before the first game, and we’re going to get a rotation where we can see the guys that we want to see compete and then make a decision.”

He also talked about the criticism he receives, jokingly saying he was unaware of it. He went on to discuss how disagreements and critiques are part of any leadership position. Richt showed how he’s been able to stay in Athens for so long while avoiding problems from outside pressure.

6. Les Miles, LSU – Miles never fails to entertain. His opening statement read like a filibuster mixed with a letter from camp; he talked about new SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, his children’s future, coaching changes and a number of players on his squad. He also joined the shoe skirmish between Mullen, Bielema and Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze with some Converse Weapons he presented beside him on stage.

“I did not bring tennis shoes,” Miles said. “That is a product of a sports information director who knows that I have an attachment to those shoes. I’m wearing regular shoes and regular socks.”

Miles had a number of good quips once the press had their chance to ask questions. Among them was talk about suspended players and their futures. Miles answered earnestly but did so in a comedic way.

“Some guys are no longer with the team,” Miles said. “That would be Tra Valentine and Trey Lealaimataf, whose name I can’t pronounce. I’ve tried for a year, I swear.”

7. Butch Jones, Tennessee – Jones is usually formulaic in his conversations, and that remained the case in Hoover. He talked highly of junior quarterback Joshua Dobbs, deeming him a “CEO quarterback” and praising his arrival as the team leader.

While he is usually careful with his words, Jones couldn’t help but take a shot back at Spurrier for his words about Tennessee.

“Now I want to make one thing clear,” Jones said. “Contrary to reports, there were no back flips, and there were no somersaults. You’re judged by wins and loss, but also you’re judged by does your team overachieve or underachieve. I thought last year’s football team overachieved.”

Jones also told reporters away from the main room he didn’t look like a cheerleader, hence there were no somersaults. The Volunteers head coach has shown this fire on the sidelines before, and it’s always worthwhile to see when it shows.

8. Hugh Freeze, Ole Miss – Freeze always appears like a humble Southerner who relishes the chance to coach, and this personality was on display when he had his chance to speak.

When asked about his shoes after Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen showed off his the day before, Freeze didn’t have much to offer up.

“I’m a pretty simple guy,” Freeze said. “I’m going to wear my Johnston Murphys from Williams Brothers store, the general store down in Philadelphia, Mississippi. You should try the baloney and bacon there for sure, too. It’s quite fine.”

Freeze’s down-home attitude makes him a hit among the Rebels fans. After all, doesn’t he have more things to worry about besides his shoes? It seemed like he beat out his rival’s coach just by keeping it simple.

9. Dan Mullen, Mississippi State – Mullen kicked off the SEC West shoe battle with a pair of Adidas Yeezy Boost 350s.

“I try to be swagged up in footwear,” Mullen said. “I’ve got a little sock game going today, too. With the sock game and the shoe wear, I try to have some swag on any time I do that stuff.”

Mullen wasn’t the smoothest-sounding coach with his “swagged up” shoes, but he didn’t leave his foot in his mouth. He talked convincingly about turning last year’s success into a trend, something Starkville hasn’t seen in quite some time. With quarterback Dak Prescott in tow, Mullen sounded like a coach ready to lead the underdogs to some more upset wins in the coming year. When the shoe fits, sometimes you just have to wear it.

10. Jim McElwain, Florida – McElwain could have let the pressure get to him. After all, it was his first experience in Hoover as the Gators head coach, and there is a lot expected out of his rebuilding job. Instead, McElwain displayed his noted humor and did a good job of being personable.

He undoubtedly won over some fans by referring to his position as “the head ball coach with the University of Florida”, a tribute to former Gators head coach Steve Spurrier. He also embraced the high goals of the fans for the next few years of Florida football.

“It’s kind of great to have the expectations,” McElwain said. “That’s something that we look forward to and we embrace. We’re in an area that I think we can probably attract some explosive playmakers along the way, and yet it all starts up front on both sides of the ball.”

11. Mark Stoops, Kentucky – Kentucky football sits behind its basketball program, leaving Stoops with a tough job in selling the program. The Wildcats are coming off a promising year but are now expected to take the next step in relevancy. Stoops isn’t the flashiest of coaches, but his words should excite Wildcats fans.

“I think most of our fan base knows where we had to come from,” Stoops said. “They expect to see a blue collar, hard working, fun football team out there. That’s what we intend to deliver.”

For Stoops to gain recognition in the conference, he has to do one thing: win.

12. Nick Saban, Alabama – Saban isn’t one to embrace the media with open arms, and Media Days was no different. However, the four-time national champion caught a lot of flack for his talk on the NFL Draft.

Saban pointed at perceived flaws in the grading process for players. The NFL usually releases grades for the draft around Christmas, which occurs when most teams are preparing for bowls. Saban had a valid point, but a major part of his argument centered around the Crimson Tide’s last defeat.

“We’re trying to get ready for a game, and all of a sudden, a guy finds out he’s a first round draft pick or a guy that thought he was a first round draft pick finds out he’s not a first round draft pick,” Saban said. “We’re trying to get ready to play a playoff game.”

Many took Saban as making excuses for Alabama’s 42-35 loss to Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl. Saban’s reasoning was correct; his word choice needed a little work.

13. Derek Mason, Vanderbilt – Derek Mason’s first season as Commodores head coach was nothing short of a disaster. The Commodores went 3-9 and were lucky to get those three victories, barely inching by UMass and Charleston Southern. A good talk at Media Days would have been helpful, but, alas, that did not happen.

Mason sounded re-energized and was quick to blame himself for last year’s mishaps. However, he slipped up and made one of the worst comments of the entire four-day session when he discussed 2014.

“I assumed that just because we were in the SEC that we play like an SEC team,” Mason said. “We didn’t.”

The problem is it’s his job is to ensure Vanderbilt played like an SEC team. The Commodores didn’t, and that’s why he already finds himself on the hot seat.

14. Gary Pinkel, Missouri – Pinkel seemed disinterested when it was his turn to speak in Hoover. You can’t really blame him; the media in attendance have repeatedly overlooked his Tigers, slotting them sixth and fourth in the last two seasons. Pinkel made his thoughts on sports writers clear when he said, “I don’t ever read newspapers, ever. If you picked us first or third or fourth or fifth, it would have no impact on me at all.”

Pinkel is entering his 15th season with Missouri, which is to say he knows what he’s doing. He knows better than to give the media quotes to run with, although he never was one to do that. It came off as boring, but maybe that’s why Missouri continues to succeed in the SEC.