The University of Tennessee once had the nickname, "Wide Receiver U."

The obvious question among younger fans: "Why?"

Answer: A long time ago, UT receivers not only caught the football, but they did something with it - such as eluding defenders, breaking tackles or outrunning everyone in the secondary; such as not fumbling, or deflecting the ball to a nearby defensive back.

The moniker has long been outdated. In fact, UT hasn't had an All-American wide receiver since Carl Pickens in 1991.

Now, if you want to give UT a position nickname, I would recommend "QB U." Never mind that it hasn't had an All-SEC quarterback since Tee Martin in 1999. It still has former All-American Peyton Manning starring at quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts. It also had offensive coordinator David Cutcliffe, who has had three quarterbacks - Peyton, Eli Manning, and Heath Shuler - as top-three NFL draft picks.

If you're looking for "Wide Receiver U." in the SEC, go to Florida. Since Pickens made All-American at UT, Florida has had five All-American wide receivers: Jack Jackson, Ike Hilliard, Reidel Anthony, Jacquez Green and Jabar Gaffney. And since 1993, 15 Florida wide receivers have been taken in the NFL draft.

Here's how I would match up SEC programs with other positions.

Running Back: Auburn received plenty of attention when running backs Carnell Williams and Ronnie Brown were top-five picks in the first round of the 2005 NFL draft. But the Tigers have been excelling at the position for years.

Before Brown and Williams, there was Rudi Johnson, who led the SEC with 1,567 yards rushing in 2000. Before Johnson, there were Stephen Davis and James Bostic, both of whom led the SEC in rushing.

In fact, Auburn often has not one, but two, outstanding running backs at the same time: Stacy Danley and James Joseph, Bo Jackson and Brent Fullwood, James Brooks and Lionel James.

Tight End: It's no surprise Georgia's Martrez Milner is a popular pick for preseason All-SEC even though he has never started a game. When in doubt, pick a Bulldog as your tight end.

Leonard Pope, who kept Milner on the bench, was a two-time All-SEC pick. Ben Watson, who preceded Pope, was a first-round draft pick of the New England Patriots. Before Watson, Georgia's Randy McMichael was a first-team, All-SEC tight end.

Offensive Line: It's Georgia again. The Bulldogs have had 14 offensive linemen make first- or second-team All-SEC in the last 10 years. Moreover, they have had four offensive linemen make All-American since 1996.

Defensive Line: Alabama, LSU, Florida, Tennessee and Georgia all have been well represented by defensive linemen on All-SEC teams in the last 10 years. LSU gets the nod because of its recent success.

Eight LSU defensive linemen have been taken in the last five NFL drafts, and three were picked last year; when LSU won the 2003 national championship, its defensive front was the strength of the team.

Linebackers: On second thought, maybe "Linebacker U." would be a more appropriate nickname for UT.

The star of UT's 1998 national championship was middle linebacker Al Wilson. The other starting linebackers, Raynoch Thompson and Eric Westmoreland, also reached the NFL.

In eight of the last nine years, UT has had at least one linebacker make first- or second-team All-SEC.

Secondary: Florida has placed 14 defensive backs on the All-SEC first or second teams in the last 10 years, and Georgia is second with 12. But the Bulldogs get the edge because they've had more great players in the secondary in recent years.

In the last four years, four different Georgia defensive backs - Greg Blue, Thomas Davis, Sean Jones and Champ Bailey - have made All-American.

Special Teams: Who says there's nothing special about Kentucky football?

Kentucky's Rafael Little, Derek Abney and Kendrick Shanklin have all led the SEC in punt returns since 1998. Abney also led the SEC in kickoff returns twice, and Kentucky's Craig Yeast did it once (in 1998).

Kentucky's Glenn Pakulak had the SEC's best punting average in 2001 and 2002.

Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.