Florida places eight Gators on preseason All-SEC teams

Eight Florida Gators were voted to preseason All-SEC teams by the voters at SEC Media Days, the league announced Friday. All-American cornerback Jalen Tabor was the only first-team selection.

Tabor leads a defense that accounted for five of Florida's overall selections. He is joined by third-teamer Marcus Maye in the secondary, and has help up front from second-team defensive lineman Bryan Cox, Jr. and third-teamer Cece Jefferson and in the linebacking corps from second-teamer Jarrad Davis.

Davis, a projected first-round pick, was probably at least a bit slighted by being named to the second team, but defensive line produces the biggest shocks: Cox being named to a team, much less the second team, raises my eyebrows, and the lack of richly-talented Caleb Brantley on any defensive line list, when he too has some first-round buzz attached to his name, is odd.

And Quincy Wilson might have deserved some third-team votes at defensive back, but the SEC's depth is such that one can't really argue with any combination of 12 of 20 or so elite defensive backs.

Florida also had two offensive linemen named to the second team, in hulking David Sharpe and highly-touted Martez Ivey. Its eighth selection was punter Johnny Townsend, named to the second team on special teams.

Conspicuous by his absence from all of these teams is suspended wide receiver Antonio Callaway, who might have merited inclusion as a wideout or a returner under different circumstances.

Then again: These teams mean squat beyond being reflective of what scribes think at this point in the summer, so who really cares?