The 1996 All-SEC football team consists of American football players selected to the All- Southeastern Conference (SEC) chosen by various selectors for the

1996 NCAA Division I-A football season The 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with the Florida Gators being crowned National Champions after defeating rival Florida State in the Sugar Bowl, which was the season's designated Bowl Alliance national championship game. Florida ha ...

. The

Florida Gators The Florida Gators are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Florida, located in Gainesville. The University of Florida, its athletic program, its alumni and its sports fans are often collectively referred to as t ...

won the conference, beating the Alabama Crimson Tide 45 to 30 in the

SEC Championship The SEC Championship Game is an annual American football game that has determined the Southeastern Conference's season champion since 1992. The championship game pits the SEC East Division regular season champion against the West Division regu ...

game. The Gators then won the national championship, defeating the

Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level (Football Bowl Subdivis ...

52 to 20 in the

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

. Florida quarterback

Danny Wuerffel Daniel Carl Wuerffel (born May 27, 1974) is a former college and professional American football quarterback. Wuerffel attended the University of Florida, where he was a prolific passer for the Florida Gators under head coach Steve Spurrier. Wuerf ...

repeated as SEC Player of the Year.

Offensive selections

Quarterbacks

, Florida (AP-1, FN) *

Peyton Manning Peyton Williams Manning (born March 24, 1976) is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons. Nicknamed "the Sheriff", he spent 14 seasons with the Indianapolis Colts and four with th ...

, Tennessee (AP-2)

Running backs

* Kevin Faulk, LSU (AP-1) * Duce Staley, South Carolina (AP-1) *Dennis Riddle, Alabama (AP-2) *Robert Edwards, Georgia (AP-2)

Wide receivers

* Reidel Anthony, Florida (AP-1) * Joey Kent, Tennessee (AP-1) * Hines Ward, Georgia (AP-2) * Ike Hilliard, Florida (AP-2, FN)

Centers

* Jeff Mitchell, Florida (AP-1, FN) *John Causey, Alabama (AP-2)

Guards

* Alan Faneca, LSU (AP-1) *Donnie Young, Florida (AP-1, FN) *Victor Riley, Auburn (AP-2) *Will Friend, Alabama (AP-2)

Tackles

*Adam Meadows, Georgia (AP-1) *Brent Smith, Miss. St. (AP-1) *Jamar Nesbit, South Carolina (AP-1) *Randy Wheeler, South Carolina (AP-2) *Ben Bordelon, LSU (AP-2)

Tight ends

David LaFleur David Alan LaFleur (born January 29, 1974) is a former American football tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys. He played college football at Louisiana State University. Early years LaFleur attended Westlake Hi ...

, LSU (AP-1) *

Kris Mangum Kris Thomas Mangum (born August 15, 1973) is a former American football player who played tight end for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League throughout his entire NFL career. He attended the University of Mississippi. His f ...

, Ole Miss (AP-2)

Defensive selections

Defensive ends

* Leonard Little, Tennessee (AP-1) * Michael Myers, Alabama (AP-1) *Chris Hood, Alabama (AP-2) *Chris Ward, Kentucky (AP-2)

Defensive tackles

*Ed Chester, Florida (AP-1, FN) *

Chuck Wiley Samuel Charles "Chuck" Wiley Jr. (born March 6, 1975) is a former American football played who played defensive end in the National Football League for seven seasons. He was drafted in the third round of the 1998 NFL Draft. He played for four ...

, LSU (AP-1) *

Anthony McFarland Anthony McFarland Jr. (born March 4, 1998) is an American football running back for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Maryland, and was selected by the Steelers in the fourth round of th ...

, LSU (AP-2) * Jason Ferguson, Georgia (AP-2)

Linebackers

Dwayne Rudd Dwayne Rudd (born February 3, 1976) is a retired American football linebacker who played in the National Football League. He was drafted in the first round of the 1997 NFL Draft. During his career he played for the Minnesota Vikings, the Cl ...

, Alabama (AP-1) *

Takeo Spikes Takeo Gerard Spikes (; born December 17, 1976) is a former American football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for Auburn University. He was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals 13th overall in ...

, Auburn (AP-1) * Jamie Duncan, Vanderbilt (AP-1) *James Bates, Florida (AP-1) *Paul Lacoste, Miss. St. (AP-2) *Ralph Staten, Alabama (AP-2) *Greg Bright, Georgia (AP-2)

Cornerbacks

*Anthone Lott, Florida (AP-1, FN) *

Deshea Townsend Trevor Deshea Townsend (born September 8, 1975) is an American football coach and former cornerback who is the passing game coordinator and cornerbacks coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He previously serv ...

, Alabama (AP-1) * Terry Fair, Tennessee (AP-2) * Fred Weary, Florida (AP-2, FN)

Safeties

* Kevin Jackson, Alabama (AP-1) * Lawrence Wright, Florida (AP-1) *Van Hiles, Kentucky (AP-2) *

Arturo Freeman Arturo Freeman (born October 27, 1976) is a former American football player who played safety for the NFL's Miami Dolphins and New England Patriots. He attended the University of South Carolina for college. Freeman was drafted in the 5th round ...

, South Carolina (AP-2) *Corey Johnson, Georgia (AP-2)

Special teams

Kickers

*Jaret Holmes, Auburn (AP-1) *Jeff Hall, Tennessee (AP-2)

Punters

*Bill Marinangel, Vanderbilt (AP-1) *Andy Russ, Miss. St. (AP-2)

Return specialist

* Terry Fair, Tennessee (AP-1) *John Avery, Ole Miss (AP-2)

Key

AP = Associated Press FN = Football News

References

{{All-SEC football teams

All-Southeastern Conference The All-SEC football team is an annual Southeastern Conference (SEC) honor bestowed on the best players in the conference following every college football season. Seasons Following is a list of all-conference teams in the history of the SEC: * 1 ...

All-SEC football teams