SEC Pre-Season Men's Tennis Poll Released

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. --  The Southeastern Conference announced the men's tennis coaches preseason poll, Thursday.  Many of the teams begin action this weekend as dual season began, the official ITA kick-off weekend begins on January 25. The Aggies open on the road against SMU and Nicholls State in Frisco, Texas.

Texas A&M under the direction of head coach Steve Denton was picked third in the Western Division and the Aggies will be looking to qualify for their 20^th consecutive NCAA Championship in 2013. The Aggies advanced to the second round of the 2012 NCAA Championships defeating SEC foe South Carolina in the opening round and then dropping the second round match to eventual national champion USC on the Trojans' home courts.

The Ole Miss Rebels were picked as the overall champion.  Last season, the Rebels went 15-9, 7-4 in the SEC.    They are currently ranked 13th in the ITA rankings.

Ole Miss was also voted as Western Division Champion with 74 points.   Mississippi State was second with 63 points, while Texas A&M was third with 53 points.  The remainder of the West was: 4. Auburn (46 points), 5. LSU (34 points), 6. Alabama (22 points), and Arkansas (16 points).

In the East, Georgia was voted as Division Champion with 65 points.  The rest of the East was: 2. Tennessee (47 points), 3. Florida (42 points), 4. Kentucky (37 points), 5. Vanderbilt (27 points), 6. South Carolina (13 points).

The preseason poll is voted on by the men's tennis head coach at each institution and is based on a 6-5-4-3-2-1 count in the East division and 7-6-5-4-3-2-1 in the West division. They also vote for the overall champion, with each vote counting as one point.  Two coaches did not return ballots.

The complete tally for the poll is below.             

Eastern Division - Points                  

1. Georgia - 65

2. Tennessee - 47

3. Florida - 42

4. Kentucky - 37

5. Vanderbilt - 27

6. South Carolina - 13

Western Division - Points

1. Ole Miss - 74

2. Mississippi State - 63

3. Texas A&M - 53

4. Auburn - 46

5. LSU - 34

6. Alabama - 22

7. Arkansas - 16