Hotel workers began to tear down the stage not long after the final SEC Media Days interviews concluded Friday, giving some not-so-subtle signs for us to get out by cutting the power and noisily collapsing the rows of tables.

But Panera Bread has Internet and, despite its legal right to, has never kicked me out. Let's run through some highlights from the final day:

(Hey, look, a plug for Twitter! Follow along to join the revolution.)

Most impressive debut

This one's cheating, since the only new coach to the festivities on this day was Tennessee's Derek Dooley. But he was affable and charming on the stage, inserting a few jokes and basically doing everything Gene Chizik doesn't. Here's a sampling:

• On following in the footsteps of his coaching legend father, Vince: "Sometimes I felt like I was that 11-year-old boy playing little league whose dad was right on him. But I think it's because he understands the nature of this job."

• On his dad testing him about Tennessee football history: "I will say the first couple of weeks on the job, he'd call me and he'd say, 'Do you know who so-and-so is?' I'd say, No, 'I don't know who that is.' 'What do you mean you don't know who that is? He was all conference in 1962.' He said, 'Dad, I don't even know who my defensive end is, give me a chance.'"

• One reporter started a question by saying he left a secure job as a lawyer. Dooley's quick response: "Secure job? You are out of your mind if you think it's secure."

• On how his law background helps him as a coach: "I can't really put a handle on specifically how it helps me, other than I am able to read the NCAA manual and understand it the first time, because it was clearly written by lawyers when you read the language."

• On if any of his fellow SEC coaches have thanked him for replacing the reviled Lane Kiffin: "No, no. I mean, how do you answer a question like that? (smiling) Y'all are just waiting for me to say something, I guess. Let's go on to the next one."

Most interesting things about the polls

There were a couple, and I never pass on an opportunity to use bullet points on the blog:

• Ole Miss was picked last in the West, behind Mississippi State.
• LSU was picked fourth in the SEC West, behind Alabama, Arkansas and Auburn.
  
• Auburn had the third-most votes to win the SEC but was still third in the West behind Alabama and Arkansas.
• Someone picked Vanderbilt to win the East. Very bold. No, bold's not the word. Insane, that's it.

Most ridiculous All-SEC pick

Alabama running backs Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson took up both spots on the media's preseason All-SEC teams. I think the Crimson Tide will be good at running the ball, but two first-teamers? I don't think there are enough carries to go around for that to happen.

Personally, I think Kentucky's Derrick Locke, a second-teamer who ran for 907 yards last year, got screwed here.

Best name we haven't heard in a minute

Raymond Cotton, a former Auburn commit who signed with Ole Miss after Tommy Tuberville resigned, is thinking about transferring after sitting on the bench for a year with the Rebels.

Cotton was Ole Miss' most-prized recruit in 2009 but redshirted last year and had battled a sore shoulder since last spring. He went 5-for-7 for 178 yards and two touchdowns in the Red-Blue game last spring, but spent the summer telling teammates he intended to transfer. He finished the spring No. 2 on the depth chart behind Nathan Stanley, although coach Houston Nutt has said the gap isn't that wide.

"As a former quarterback myself, you know, as a freshman, sometimes they get what I call 'freshmanitis,' where they feel like the walls are caving in on them, I should be doing this, doing that," Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt said Friday. "Then they get to listening to some of their buddies, somebody maybe texting, a blog, all this information about what you should be doing, where you should be playing.

"The bottom line is, he's just been there a very, very short time. You're a freshman now. You have a chance to compete for a job. So there's no need to make one of these rash, bad decisions. So hopefully, his mom and dad are totally behind me. They're pushing him hard to stay. Hopefully we'll get it all corrected and he'll get back on board and we'll go from there."

Best retroactive analysis

Nutt addressed how an early-season Thursday night loss to South Carolina had a big effect on his team not living up to lofty expectations last season. He said it popped the Rebels' bubble.

"When that bubble popped, that's where you better have some Dr. Phil in ya," he said. "You better be ready to go, to help your team, because expectations are so high. Fans have this vision that you're going straight to Atlanta. You got to be ready to adjust. We all want to go there."

Ole Miss finished 9-4 overall and won the Cotton Bowl, but it finished a disappointing 4-4 in the conference.

Nutt's not against high expectations, though. He offered this advice, so take heed Arkansas and Auburn: "I would just say, 'Hey, embrace it. It's awesome.' But you got to get ready, though, in case there's a little detour along the way."

The 'Yup, you should work on that' Award

Goes to LSU coach Les Miles, who said the team has re-evaluated how it handles the two-minute drill. Maybe this had something to do with it.

Miles said the Tigers will put more emphasis on the two-minute drill in practice this year, adding, "It's never been given that kind of emphasis certainly at our place." (You don't say.) "It's not just lip service. You know, we've changed."

I'll believe it when I see it. It's not like Miles hasn't mishandled a situation like this before. Last year was just the first time it came back to bite him.