NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- University of Arkansas tailback Raheim Sanders earned first-team preseason All-SEC honors Friday, while quarterback KJ Jefferson, offensive lineman Brady Latham and cornerback Dwight McGlothern picked up second-team recognition.
The Razorbacks were picked to finish fifth in the SEC West in balloting conducted at SEC media days with 291 media respondents.
Two-time defending College Football Playoff national champion Georgia was the overwhelming choice to win the SEC championship and the Eastern Division, while Alabama narrowly edged out LSU as the media pick to win the SEC West.
The media has correctly predicted the SEC champion nine times in 31 years of voting since 1992. Ten teams received votes to win the SEC championship, including two for Arkansas.
Georgia and Alabama led with 16 players selected to the three all-conference teams.
LSU had 10 selections, including first-team quarterback Jayden Daniels, who edged out Jefferson for the top marquee spot on the team.
Sanders joined Ole Miss sophomore Quinshon Judkins as the first-team running backs. Judkins led the SEC with 1,567 rushing yards with Sanders second at 1,443 yards. Sanders led the SEC with 1,714 all-purpose yards, while Judkins was second with 1,697 yards.
Sanders is the first Arkansas running back to earn first-team preseason All-SEC honors since Knile Davis in 2012.
Jefferson ranked second behind Tennessee's Hendon Hooker with 298.9 total yards per game last season, while Daniels was seventh with 271.3. Jefferson is the first Arkansas quarterback to earn preseason All-SEC recognition since Tyler Wilson in 2012.
Latham, a third-team All-SEC pick by Pro Football Focus last season, has a team-high 36 consecutive starts dating to 2020. He led the Razorbacks with 983 offensive snaps in 2022, allowing just two sacks and committing two penalties.
McGlothern, a second-team All-SEC choice by league coaches last season, is the leading returner in the SEC with four interceptions. A first-year transfer from LSU last season, McGlothern ranked second in that category behind Mississippi State's Emmanuel Forbes, who had six interceptions.
Georgia received 265 points to win the East with 265 first-place votes. The Bulldogs were followed by Tennessee (14 first-place votes), South Carolina (3), Kentucky (1), Florida, Missouri and Vanderbilt.
Alabama (165) out-pointed LSU (117) by 61 points in the balloting for the SEC West champ, followed by Texas A&M (1), Ole Miss, Arkansas (3), Auburn (4) and Mississippi State (1).
Georgia nabbed 181 votes to win the conference, followed by Alabama (62), LSU (31), Tennessee (5), Vanderbilt (5), Arkansas (2), Auburn (2), Texas A&M (1), Mississippi State (1) and South Carolina (1).
Arkansas, which is coming off a 7-6 season and a fifth-place finish in the SEC West, opens the season on Sept. 2 against Western Carolina at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock. The Razorbacks open conference play at LSU on Sept. 23
All-SEC teams
OFFENSE
FIRST TEAM
QB Jayden Daniels, LSU
RB Quinshon Judkins, Ole Miss
RB Raheim Sanders, Arkansas
WR Malik Nabers, LSU
WR Ladd McConkey, Georgia
TE Brock Bowers, Georgia
OL JC Latham, Alabama
OL Amarius Mims, Georgia
OL Tate Ratledge, Georgia
OL Will Campbell, LSU
C Sedrick Van Pran, Georgia
SECOND TEAM
QB KJ Jefferson, Arkansas
RB Jase McClellan, Alabama
RB Kendall Milton, Georgia
WR Antwane Wells, South Carolina
*WR Bru McCoy, Tennessee
*WR Ja’Corey Brooks, Alabama
TE Mason Taylor, LSU
OL Tyler Booker, Alabama
OL Brady Latham, Arkansas
OL Javon Foster, Missouri
OL Xavier Truss, Georgia
C Seth McLaughlin, Alabama
THIRD TEAM
*QB Joe Milton III, Tennessee
*QB Will Rogers, Mississippi State
RB Jarquez Hunter, Auburn
RB Trevor Etienne, Florida
WR Ainias Smith, Texas A&M
WR Jermaine Burton, Alabama
TE Trey Knox, South Carolina
OL Emery Jones, LSU
OL Eli Cox, Kentucky
OL Javontez Spraggins, Tennessee
OL Layden Robinson, Texas A&M
C Cooper Mays, Tennessee
DEFENSE
FIRST TEAM
DL Mekhi Wingo, LSU
DL Mykel Williams, Georgia
DL Maason Smith, LSU
DL Nazir Stackhouse, Georgia
LB Dallas Turner, Alabama
LB Harold Perkins, LSU
LB Jamon Dumas-Johnson, Georgia
DB Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama
DB Malaki Starks, Georgia
DB Kamari Lassiter, Georgia
DB Javon Bullard, Georgia
SECOND TEAM
DL Jaheim Oatis, Alabama
DL McKinnley Jackson, Texas A&M
DL Justin Eboigbe, Alabama
DL Deone Walker, Kentucky
LB Smael Mondon, Georgia
LB Nathaniel Watson, Mississippi State
LB Ty’Ron Hopper, Missouri
DB Malachi Moore, Alabama
DB Dwight McGlothern, Arkansas
DB Demani Richardson, Texas A&M
DB Kris Abrams-Draine, Missouri
THIRD TEAM
DL Princely Umanmielen, Florida
DL Tonka Hemingway, South Carolina
DL Tim Smith, Alabama
DL Darius Robinson, Missouri
LB Chris Braswell, Alabama
LB Jalon Walker, Georgia
LB JJ Weaver, Kentucky
DB Major Burns, LSU
DB D.J. James, Auburn
DB Nehemiah Pritchett, Auburn
DB Jason Marshall Jr., Florida
SPECIALISTS
FIRST TEAM
P Kai Kroeger, South Carolina
PK Will Reichard, Alabama
LS Kneeland Hibbett, Alabama
KS Brian Battie, Auburn
RS Kool-Aid McKinstry, Alabama
AP Ainias Smith, Texas A&M
SECOND TEAM
P Nik Constantinou, Texas A&M
PK Harrison Mevis, Missouri
LS Slade Roy, LSU
KS Barion Brown, Kentucky
RS Ainias Smith, Texas A&M
AP Tulu Griffin, Mississippi State
THIRD TEAM
P Oscar Chapman, Auburn
PK Alex McPherson, Auburn
LS William Mote, Georgia
KS Mitch Jeter, South Carolina
RS Tulu Griffin, Mississippi State
AP Dakereon Joyner, South Carolina
*Indicates a tie
SEC championship picks
As voted by media members attending SEC media days:
TEAM VOTES
Georgia..............................................181
Alabama..............................................62
LSU......................................................31
Tennessee..............................................5
Vanderbilt..............................................5
Arkansas..................................2
Auburn..................................................2
Mississippi State...................................1
South Carolina......................................1
SEC divisions poll
First-place votes in parentheses, total points awarded on 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale.
SEC WEST
PL. TEAM (1ST) POINTS
1. Alabama (165)...........................1,899
2. LSU (117)..................................1,838
3. Texas A&M (1)...........................1,144
4. Ole Miss.....................................1,128
5. Arkansas (3)........................958
6. Auburn (4)....................................685
7. Mississippi State (1).....................496
Arkansas quarterback KJ Jefferson (right) was a second-team All-SEC preseason selection this week at the SEC football media days in Nashville, Tenn. Jefferson is the first Razorbacks quarterback to earn preseason All-SEC recognition since Tyler Wilson in 2012. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Charlie Kaijo)