It’s all about the D.

Although high-powered offenses keep fans hungering for more pigskin delight, it’s the defense that keeps teams in the game.

Earlier this week, junior cornerback Trevard Lindley and his peers proved that the South is home to pass defenses that don’t give up many big plays downfield to go along with the Southeastern Conference’s reputation of having stonewall lines that clog the lanes and gobble up opponents.

SEC supremacy was on display when the semi-finalists for the Jim Thorpe Award were unveiled earlier this week.

Of the 13 semi-finalists in the annual nationwide hunt for college football’s best defensive back, five are from SEC schools — Asher Allen of Georgia, Eric Berry of Tennessee, Emanuel Cook of South Carolina, D. J. Moore of Vanderbilt and Lindley.

Secondary units in the SEC are anchored by some of the best athletes in the nation, which means zero nights off, whether the game is played in Lexington, Athens, Ga., or any town in the South.

A glance around the league shows that the strength in the secondary doesn’t stop with the five semi-finalists. Rashad Johnson, a senior defensive back Alabama, is second in the SEC for passes defended behind Lindley and Berry. Moore and Justin Woodall, of Alabama, round out the top five.

The crowd at the top of the list comes as no surprise.

Although Johnson is not a semi-finalist, he was included on the initial watch list that was released in July. Of the 40 players on the watch list, eight came from the SEC.

But with all the depth the SEC has, the conference has yet to cash in big on awards night. Only three players from the SEC have walked off stage with the iron in hand since the award’s beginning in 1986; most recently was Auburn’s Carlos Rogers in 2004.

Now, the conference has its best chance of landing another Jim Thorpe Award for one of its athletes. But first there must be the finalists invite.

Lindley has as good a chance as any.

What works in Lindley’s favor is what matters the most — his numbers. He is leading the nation’s toughest football conference in passes defended, and tied for sixth nationally. His career 32 pass breakups is a record at UK, and he is one of only two players to intercept Florida’s Tim Tebow this season.

If the Cats’ finish the season strong and find a way to win two of their last three games with strong defense, then Lindley may have a chance to shine amongst his peers.

J.D. Williams is a journalism senior. E-mail  jwilliams@kykernel.com