Let me start with the North.

I think UNC-G will finish on top. The battle for second could come down to Elon and App. St. I think App. St. will be rebuilding and Elon will take a step up. Despite challengers at second, it will be a distant second behind UNC-G. I don't know much about Samford and only time will tell, but I believe they will fight it out for fourth with UT-Chattanooga. Chatt lost a lot, but still should be better than Western Carolina. Samford will be testy for their opponents, but will finish no better than third, no worse than 5th.

The South is the hardest to judge. I have a hard time picking someone other than Charleston, as they have done nothing but win as of late. To be honest, I thought Furman had the best team on paper last year, perhaps the last two years, but they always seem to fall short. Charleston has another good class coming in, but their senior class was a class above all other classes. That class has not been replaced.

I really like Davidson. Don't go by their record last year. First they started 4, sometimes 5 freshman, including their setter. On top of that, they had major injuries and weren't that deep off the bench. They may have been playing the best volleyball the last 2 weeks of the season. Their incoming class would probably start for virtually every team in the conference and they don't need all but one to start. Time will tell, but I like them to take a huge jump.

Charleston's class is strong again and coupled with their strong class the year before should contend again. I think where they stumble is that the kids that graduated just refused to lose. Will the new kids have the same mentality? That's the question. Furman lost a lot, including their setter. People underestimate how tough it is to win with a freshman or new setter. Ask Davidson last year. No matter how good they are, it's tough to win with a new setter. Georgia Southern will be improved only by the fact they have hired a good coach and will have stability. It will take them some time to rebuild.

It's tough to say where Wofford will be. Corey always has them playing well at home. The Citadel...well it's the Citadel. Tough place to recruit, to place to win.

Top to bottom, I think the South schools 1-4 are stronger than their northern counterparts, but 1-6 the north is stronger.

Here goes:

UNC-G
App. St.
Elon
UT-Chatt
Samford
Western Carolina

Charleston
Davidson
Furman
Georgia Southern
Wofford
Citadel