Recap: Week 2

In an effort to cater to the ever-decreasing attention spans of our readers and the world at large, Mr. Hooch is going to experiment with breaking up the single weekly submission into a few component parts.  Today's blog is the recap of week 2, so we'll get to that in a moment, but first we'd like to introduce a good friend and new co-host for the House of Hooch blog, Professor D!

Danger!? Does the "D" stand for Danger??
It's Danger, isn't it!?

The Professor is someone who has impressed Mr. Hooch with his database-like brain filled with sports knowledge, and as Mr. Hooch has always enjoyed chatting about various sports with Professor D, he decided it was time to bring him on board and share The Professor with our faithful followers. (He apparently also decided it was time to start referring to himself in the third person...)

So, what does the "D" stand for you ask?  Good question... It could be many things. Doomsday? Dawg? Deceptively Devious Dude?  We're not spilling the beans just yet, so you can speculate all you like... hell, speculate until the next season of Breaking Bad for all we care!  But respect the man's opinions, because they're based firmly on reliable facts and solid observations... also if I can convince him to keep it up, he's keeping a spreadsheet of our weekly predictions, so I might throw that in a later post.

Keep in mind this would normally be out on Tuesday but it's been a rough week for Mr. Hooch so many things are behind schedule.  And so, without further ado, we give you Recap: Week 2.

(Note: Professor D's comments are in italics... my responses/comments will be in bold)


There were good and bad moments last week around the SEC in what I would grade as
a C for the nation’s best conference. We’ll go in order of excitement, from least to most.

LSU 41 v. Washington 3

I considered not even including a comment on game. It was interesting for about… well
no; if you have ever watched LSU play in Death Valley this game was never interesting. LSU didn’t show us anything we didn’t already expect (a beastly running game) and the technical King of the West won easily 41 – 3.

I agree with everything except the "technical King of the West" title, but that's honestly a toss up between LSU and Bama at this point, so not really worth arguing.

South Carolina 48 v. East Carolina 10

Any girl who wears this shirt is
alright in my book...

Yawn. Carolina did what any SEC team should do against a team like East Carolina (I’m looking at you Arkansas). The 48 points put up by S. Carolina’s offense is a good sign for the overall strength of the SEC, but doesn’t tell us much about how good this team is going to be through the year. We’ll have to see if they can compete with Georgia for the Eastern Division later.

This was a bigger spread than I imagined, but the Gamecocks did what needed to be done.  Go Cocks. (Hi, I'm twelve)

Alabama 35 v. Western Kentucky 0

In some people’s minds the true King of the West (and it’s hard to argue with them) also handled their non-conference opponent with ease (not a conference trait this week) but what makes this one a little more interesting is the goose egg where Western Kentucky’s score should be. Alabama will always have a fierce defense under Coach Saban, but a lot of teams in the West were counting on this being a “rebuilding” type season for Alabama’s D (It should be noted that Alabama’s last “rebuilding” season on defense still resulted in a 10 win season). The shut-out suggests the coaching staff is using the team’s slow start, with regard to scheduling, to effectively build up confidence and experience, a scary possibility for everyone with UA on the schedule.

Mr. Hooch agrees with the Professor, Bama's 'rebuilding' years would equate to conference winning seasons in most other conferences... all hail the SEC, baby!

Kentucky 47 v. Kent State 14

This game was a lot closer than the score makes it appear. At one point in the third
quarter Kentucky only led by 3, but an SEC style (except Arkansas) surge in the second half turned it into a beat down. Kentucky still has a ways to go to be considered a threat in the SEC East but Vanderbilt did a nice job pushing Kentucky up from the bottom of the barrel on Saturday.

This one had me worried on my prediction at one point, but the Wildcats stepped up...

Ole Miss 28 v. UTEP 10

Ole Miss is no Mississippi State, and UTEP is… well they might be as good as Auburn…
but anyway, the scores were the same. Ole Miss got off to a 2-0 start to the season, impressive considering how bad they’ve been in their openers the past couple of years. The quarterback play for Ole Miss, often questionable when it wasn’t abysmal recently, saw some improvement as arguably the worst team in the SEC was STILL able to beat its’ non-conference foe. (Really Arkansas…. REALLY?!?!?!?)

Ok, I'll eat my crow on this one... I'm still not sold on Ole Miss this season, but at least they took care of business with their OOC foes, unlike last season.  Gotta rep that SEC, son-ah!

Northwestern 23 v. Vanderbilt 13

Vanderbilt looked good last week against South Carolina. They looked like a team ready
to take a step out of the bottom of the barrel in the Eastern Division. Then Saturday happened. They looked awful against Northwestern. The run defense was non-existent in the 4th quarter and the offense failed to wear down Northwestern’s D. Hopefully Vandy can get it together and come out with a strong season under second year head coach James Franklin.

I agree with the Professor, I thought Vandy looked to be poised to take that next step but Northwestern proved to be a bit much for them.  This still didn't hurt as bad as Arkansas, though...

Tennessee 51 v. Georgia State 13

Tennessee took care of business against their non-conference opponent as well (I’m
STILL looking at you Arkansas). The Vol’s showed an impressive offense, passing for over 300 yards and rushing for 2 TD’s and a defense good enough to get the job done. I’m not saying that Tennessee deserves to be ranked ahead of Mississippi State, but I am saying they deserve to be ranked. It’ll take a tougher opponent to really see what this team is made of, but they are looking much improved from the past three seasons.

I was impressed with Tennessee's outing last weekend... they look to be much better than a lot of folks (myself included) were giving them credit for being.  I did not expect this landslide, but it sets up for a good game on Oct. 13th between the Vols and the Dawgs.

Missouri 20 v. Georgia 41

This is another case of the score making the game seem much more one sided than it was.
Missouri started off strong in their SEC debut with big plays and quick players, but
Georgia’s “old man” style of football was just too much for the undersized Tigers. Georgia’s
defense looked as good as expected, especially ESPN’s defensive player of the week Jarvis Jones, but the offense was slow to get moving. Georgia’s heavy hitting offense and defense just wore down the smaller tigers and really pulled ahead in the 4th quarter. Missouri, welcome to the SEC. You’re going to get hit hard, and you’re going to get hit often. It’s time to get a good strength and conditioning coach and learn to hit back.

Texas A&M 17 v. Florida 20

Wow. What a show. This was an impressive game in front of an impressive crowd. Texas
A&M had Florida’s number in the first half with a defense that was as physical as it was fast.
The offense looked impressive under red-shirt freshman quarterback Manziel and the defense was led by Demontrea Moore who seemed to spend more time in Florida’s backfield than Florida’s own running backs. It will take some time to see if Texas A&M’s second half woes are a hold-over from last year’s team, or if the fact that it was their first game finally caught up to them. The Aggies, however, did prove that they belong in the SEC West. To come out against a top 25 team (whether they deserve it or not) with a new coaching staff, new ideology on both sides of the ball, and a new quarterback without having played a game and put on the performance they did? Welcome to the SEC West. You’re going to love it here.

I have no idea why Florida moved up in the rankings this week. They looked like a team
of freshmen straight out of high school in the first half. The offensive line looks to be a real
question mark for this team. Florida had best enjoy the top 25 while it lasts, because in the brutal SEC, being overrated doesn’t last as long as it does out west (I’m looking at you USC).

I agree these were both amazing games, especially considering it was each team's first SEC bout... TAMU and Mizzou both had flashes of SEC-caliber brilliance, but Florida managed to pull out the 'W' in the end, and Georgia hunkered down and, as my man Zaboo would say, TCB'd.  And obviously the Professor and I agree that Florida is not the Florida of old.  It's entirely possible that Tennessee could knock them out of the rankings this weekend...

Arkansas 31 v. ULM 34 OT

Hm... I smell bacon.  That's not good...

If you were wondering why the SEC got a C this week, blame the Razorbacks. And Vanderbilt, but come on, they’re Vanderbilt. I’ll begin with Arkansas’ defense. Or at least I would if I could find them. But seriously Arkansas, ULM amassed 550 total yards of offense.

That isn’t a typo. Passing alone ULM was 42-68 for 412 yards (Auburn beware). All around this defense is not ready to play even Ole Miss, much less anyone else in the SEC. Gone are the days of Arkansas’ explosive offense. Knile Davis couldn’t manage to average 4 yards rushing against ULM and the passing game was only marginally better against even a sub-par defense. Arkansas deserved to drop from the top 25, and the head coach’s refusal to shake hands with ULM’s head coach was downright embarrassing. Have more respect for yourself, your program, and your conference than that. Be a man and shake your opponent’s hand, he sure as hell deserves it after the whooping he just gave you. Arkansas fans should be more ashamed of their coach than their team’s performance, and their performance was bad enough to go buy a paper bag.

Ouch.  The truth hurts, and this kills... I don't think you'd find many folks outside of Monroe, LA who were expecting the Warhawks to pull off the upset here, but they sacked up and did what needed to be done.  You'll never catch me rejoicing at an injury, but this definitely takes the Hogs down a notch in the competitive department.  It's going to be a looooong season in Fayetteville, and as Mr. Hooch has a plethora of friends in that neighborhood he must extend his heartfelt condolences... the injury bug can wreck a season in the blink of an eye.


Mississippi State 28 v. Auburn 10

Boy did that feel good to type. Mississippi State played like they had something to prove.
Auburn played like they thought they were facing ULM this week instead of next. First we’ll
talk positive and act like this game was the result of a better than expected State team, and not an atrocious Auburn.

There were many a-smiling faces
in Bulldog country this weekend...

Mississippi State’s offense worked like a well oiled machine. Tyler Russell was efficient and deadly accurate on the move. The offensive line did a good job creating holes for the running game up the middle, something the running backs were quick to exploit, but struggled at times to contain Auburn’s pass rush off the edge. Too many times an Auburn player came unblocked against Russell’s blind side. State finally has a pocket passer, the line needs to step up and protect him a little better. State has a lot of experience at receiver and it shows. These guys have played together for years and with Russell at the helm, they were on display. Nine different receivers caught passes, and not one of them was named Joe Morrow. This is a corps that could be a lot of fun to watch and without one guy to key in on, should give defenses a lot of problems when designing coverage schemes. The running backs were impressive again this week; Perkins shouldered most of the load with ease, but got relief from a stable of young backs who are looking to establish themselves.

Agreed, the OL has to hold off the pass rush and protect Tyler if this offense is going to continue to produce the kind of performance we've seen the first two games.  JSU is one thing, a rebuilding Auburn team is another, but when MSU faces the likes of LSU, Bama and the other middle-tier SEC teams they will need to tighten up.  Tyler will need to get rid of the ball faster, which means receivers need to get open sooner.  Luckily this corps of receivers might be able to pull that off...

The Defense. Oh my what a defense this is, and it doesn’t start with the secondary. This defensive line is top to bottom the most talented line Mississippi State has fielded this century (millennia too by the way). They can put some serious pressure on opposing teams, but are disciplined enough to not let the run game get away from them. This can create some serious dilemma for opposing quarterbacks. Do I run and risk getting leveled by one of those ferocious line backers? Or do I try passing against Jonathon Banks and company? Best choice? Neither. Throw it in the dirt. State’s linebackers looked a little shaky covering short passes against Jackson State, not so against a one-dimensional Auburn. These guys may not be the most talented bunch in the SEC, but they know the game and they know their job. These guys are good, and they will only get better. Finally we come to the secondary, and Jonathon Banks. I separate the two because State fields an impressive secondary even without Banks on the field. That’s right, even without the pre-season All-American FBS interception leading top corner in the SEC, Mississippi State still has a secondary that, thanks to the likes of Slay, Broomfield, and Whitely, should make teams think twice about the pass. Jonathon Banks had two interceptions this weekend against Auburn, and if I remember correctly was only thrown against 3 times. That’s what I call impressive. He also made his presence known up-front, occasionally being called upon to blitz and stop the run.

I'll tell you what you can do with your "big play...."

To quote Harvey Keitel from Pulp Fiction, "Let's not start suckin each others dicks just yet, gentlemen."  The depth on this defense is legit.  The LB's are legit.  The line is legit.  The concern is gameplanning... even the best of defenses can be beaten with good play calling.  I feel good about our man coverage on opponent's wide receivers for the most part, but all it takes is that dreaded "big play" to turn things around.  Banks or Broomfield picking off a poorly thrown pass is huge, but it's equally huge when and if they get beat on man coverage, and a third and long situation turns into a 40+ yard run and 6 points on the board.  The "big play" WILL burn us once or twice this season, there's nothing you can do about that.  The question is will we be able to recover?  That being said I have full confidence in our coaching, so it will all be decided as it should... on the field.

Now that we’re all feeling nice and sunny, let’s face the truth. Auburn is bad, really bad. The only positive on this team is special teams, which really stuck it to Mississippi State on Saturday. The offense was at best one dimensional and at worst playing for the other team. It took three quarters for Auburn to exceed 100 total yards of offense, and by then State was in a semi-prevent defense just waiting for the clock to hit 0. State fans will enjoy this win, as they should, but if the bulldogs do roll into Tuscaloosa 7-0 (no easy task mind you) I caution you against over confidence. Tennessee, not Auburn, will be the only real win to brag about if that should happen, and Alabama looks as tough as ever.

Yes, Auburn is bad comparatively, but they still have SEC-caliber talent at almost every position.  This wasn't an exhibition game against the Sisters of the Poor, this was a legit SEC west foe, and one that has had our number for far too long.  State can and should relish this win for what it means to the fans and the program, but there's a game against a pesky Troy team on the road looming.  

So, there you have it... a bit rushed in an attempt to make an imaginary deadline, but there it is nonetheless.  In our next installment we will have the preview of the MSU/Troy game, as well as picks from both Professor D and yours truly on the rest of the SEC matchups this coming weekend.  Stay tuned, sports fans!