2010 Southeastern Conference football season
The 2010 Southeastern Conference football season began on Thursday, September 2, 2010 with South Carolina defeating Southern Miss on ESPN.
Preseason
head coach Lane Kiffin left after his first season in Knoxville for Southern Cal. Kiffin was replaced by Louisiana Tech head coach Derek Dooley. Dooley opened his first season on September 4 against University of Tennessee – Martin.Kentucky head coach Rich Brooks retired after seven seasons in Lexington, ending a coaching career that lasted over 40 years. As agreed on in 2008, Brooks was replaced by his offensive coordinator Joker Phillips, who began his first season as head coach on September 4 against archrival Louisville.
In July 2010, Vanderbilt head coach Bobby Johnson unexpectedly retired. He was replaced on an interim basis by Robbie Caldwell, who had the dual titles of Vanderbilt assistant head coach and offensive line coach in 2009. Caldwell made his Vanderbilt head coaching debut on September 4 against Northwestern.
2010 Pre-season Coaches All-SEC
Rankings
Kentucky, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Vanderbilt went unranked throughout the season in the rankings shown below.Regular season
All times Eastern time.Rankings reflect that of the AP poll for that week until week eight when the BCS rankings will be used.
Week One
Players of the WeekWeek Two
Players of the WeekWeek Three
Players of the WeekWeek Four
Players of the WeekWeek Five
Players of the WeekWeek Six
Players of the WeekWeek Seven
Players of the WeekWeek Eight
Players of the WeekWeek Nine
Players of the WeekWeek Ten
Players of the WeekWeek Eleven
Players of the WeekWeek Twelve
Players of the WeekWeek Thirteen
Players of the WeekWeek Fourteen (SEC Championship Game)
SEC vs. BCS conference opponents
NOTE:. Games with a * next to the home team represent a neutral site gameDate | Visitor | Home | Significance | Winning Team |
September 4 | Kentucky | Louisville | Governor's Cup | Kentucky |
September 4 | LSU | North Carolina* | Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta | LSU |
September 4 | Northwestern | Vanderbilt | Northwestern | |
September 11 | Penn State | Alabama | Alabama | |
September 11 | South Florida | Florida | Florida | |
September 11 | Oregon | Tennessee | Oregon | |
September 18 | Alabama | Duke | Alabama | |
September 18 | Clemson | Auburn | Auburn | |
September 25 | West Virginia | LSU | LSU | |
October 2 | Georgia | Colorado | Colorado | |
October 2 | Vanderbilt | Connecticut | Connecticut | |
October 9 | Arkansas | Texas A&M* | Southwest Classic in Arlington, Texas | Arkansas |
November 27 | Florida | Florida State | Florida–Florida State rivalry | Florida State |
November 27 | Georgia Tech | Georgia | Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate | Georgia |
November 27 | South Carolina | Clemson | Battle of the Palmetto State | South Carolina |
November 27 | Wake Forest | Vanderbilt | Wake Forest |
Bowl games
Post-season awards and honors
All-SEC
The following players were named by the AP All-SEC team:All-Americans
Quarterback- Cam Newton, Auburn
- Nick Fairley, Auburn
- Drake Nevis, LSU
- Alshon Jeffery, South Carolina
- Justin Houston, Georgia
- Lee Ziemba, Auburn
- Mark Barron, Alabama
- Ahmad Black, Florida
- Patrick Peterson, LSU
- Randall Cobb, Kentucky
- Chas Henry, Florida
- Josh Jasper LSU
National award winners
2010 Heisman Trophy Winner:
- Cameron Newton, Auburn
- Patrick Peterson, LSU
- Nick Fairley, Auburn
- Cameron Newton, Auburn
- Cameron Newton, Auburn
- DJ Williams, Arkansas
- Cameron Newton, Auburn
- Randall Cobb, Kentucky