The SEC mostly took care of business this week, with only
one non-conference loss coming from a dismal Arkansas squad. Tennessee
struggled but pulled through against Akron and Mississippi State, Ole Miss,
Alabama, and Texas A&M all took care of business. I almost said South
Carolina but then I remembered Missouri is in the SEC, although you wouldn’t
know it from watching Saturday’s game, but I’ll get into that later. The SEC
gets an A this week since Arkansas non-conference losses aren’t really too
shocking to anyone anymore (except maybe Mr. Hooch. No I’m kidding, he did call
that being a close game, but hey I’ve got to take my chances where I can since
we more often than not pick the same teams).
Yeah, you got me there, Professor. I let myself fall prey to my own SEC bias... shame on me. Wait, no, what am I saying?? Shame on YOU, Arkansas!!! If we're gonna hold the new kids accountable then one of the 'regulars' shouldn't be imploding in such spectacular fashion!
"...shame on me." HA!
Alabama 40 v. FAU 7
That
happened. Alabama did what everyone expected, played mistake free football. FAU
put up a total of 110 yards of offense against Alabama’s ever-ferocious
defense. FAU’s only score came with just under three minutes left in the fourth
quarter with the game well in hand.
Oh, they're beatable though, right Cory Henry??? (That's gotta sting just a little...)
Florida 38 v. Kentucky 0
 |
| Excuse me, sir. You have some Wildcat stuck in your teeth. |
Well
Florida picked up the win and Kentucky only partially made me look like an
idiot (Thank you Rutgers for making up for that). I called Kentucky leading at
the half, which they not only failed to do, they didn’t even score in the first
half… or the second half. Florida’s defense pretty much kept Kentucky’s offense
off the field for most of the game, leading to Florida holding a fifteen and a
half minute time of possession advantage. Well alright, it was 15 minutes 22
seconds to be exact, but still, Kentucky got dominated by Florida’s defense,
which didn’t even need a half time speech this week to get going. This Florida
team has been improving every week, and they didn’t start out half bad.
I'll take my vindication where I can get it... I was within 3 points of the winning side of this score, but I gave the Wildcats' offense too much credit. Well, actually it's more like I didn't get the Gators' D enough credit. Sadly for Kentucky, I don't see any reason for this series to change in the next few years, so it's likely you'll see Florida having won 30 in a row before long. I'm sure there's a joke to be had here about nine lives and whatnot, but I'm not mathematically inclined enough to bother. Kentucky sucks.
Tulane 0 v. Ole Miss 39
Ole Miss’
impressive looking offense scored 26 points in the first quarter. It would have
been 28 except for some reason Hugh Freeze decided to go for two on the first
two touchdowns. He failed to convert both times. The offense would go on to
pile up 304 yards of rushing offense, an impressive number to be sure (I know
this isn’t the prediction, but I can’t help but go ahead and get on record my
prediction of Ole Miss not surpassing 80 yards rushing in 3 quarters against
Bama this weekend). Ole Miss’ defense, which was completely inept against Texas
two weeks ago, looked to rebound in this game, which they did. The shut out
would be more impressive if they weren’t playing Tulane, who is not only
Tulane, but a winless Tulane with a freshman quarterback. While they didn’t
allow Tulane to score this week, I would hesitate to call this unit improved,
and I still won’t hesitate to call them atrocious. The bright side is Ole Miss
seems to have this offense thing figured out, a step up from last year when
they had nothing figured out.
Kudos to you, OM, you handled your OOC opponent well, and on the road no less. OM's offense is starting to click, but the defense is still suspect, and will likely be even more so when the Rebels return to SEC play.
Texas A&M 70 v. South Carolina State 14
TAMU is
another team that is improving weekly. The Aggies looked impressive offensively
and the defense enjoyed its time against a softer opponent. This team could be
a real force in the SEC West this year with Auburn, Arkansas, and Ole Miss
down. The game at Mississippi State should be very telling for both teams.
TAMU is definitely making some noise in their debut SEC season, and that bodes well for their future. Every highschool footballer in Texas is watching A&M to see how they do, and to try to get an idea what this whole 'SEC thing' is all about, and the Aggies are putting on quite the show. If this continues it will translate into some strong recruiting classes in the next few years, and that could have conference-wide repercussions.
Georgia 48 v. Vanderbilt 3
 |
| Believe it or not, this is actually the line for the bathroom at The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party... the Gator fans are just happy their line is moving. |
Vanderbilt
seems to take two steps back for every three steps forward, granted they are
playing a top 5 team. Georgia flexed some defensive muscles against the
Commodores and really dominated the entire game. Their performance in this game
really solidifies them as the SEC East frontrunner (A much more impressive
title this year than it has been recently), especially with Alabama, LSU, and
Mississippi State (The three-way 1st place tie from the SEC West)
missing from this year’s schedule.
Georgia and Florida appear to be returning to their storied dominance over the SEC East, but Tennessee and South Carolina would like a piece of that pie as well. It will be interesting to see how this all shakes out, and I personally can't wait to see The Game Formerly Known as "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party."
South Carolina 31 v. Missouri 10
Well what
did you really expect? As predicted, Missouri is just not up to par with the
SEC just yet, what we didn’t count on was just how far behind the Tigers really
are. South Carolina pushed an undersized Mizzou around the entire game, falling
forward on almost every play and gaining at least three yards after contact
(contact with the player who would actually make the tackle that is) every
play. Missouri’s offense on the other hand was man handled by South Carolina’s
defense. Before the game Mizzou Nation tweeted something along the lines of
“The SEC really wanted to welcome us, 3 of our first 4 conference games versus
Georgia, South Carolina, and Alabama”. Get over it. Ask TAMU how they feel
about their schedule. This is life in the SEC, you’re going to played ranked
teams week in and week out. The next lesson you’re going to have to learn is to
not overlook that 1 game that isn’t against an unranked team. Even Vanderbilt
will make you pay very dearly for that mistake. On the flip side South Carolina
looked good on defense and offense, playing a nearly complete game. This team
looks to be dangerous down the road.
Woe is you, Mizzou. Look, think of the SEC football as highschool... you've got the popular jocks (LSU, Bama, Florida, Georgia), the geeks (Kentucky, Ole Miss, Vanderbilt) the basket cases (Arkansas, Auburn) and everyone else somewhere in between. Now the geeks would love to have you, because misery loves company, but you gotta ask yourself, where do you want to end up? Keep whining and making excuses and you'll always be a wallflower. Man up and handle your business and maybe you'll get a shot at the prom queen...
 |
| You see us as you want to see us... In the simplest terms, in the most convenient definitions. But what we found out is that each one of us is a brain... ...and an athlete... ...and a basket case... ...a princess... ...and a criminal... Does that answer your question?... Sincerely yours, the Breakfast Club. |
Tennessee 47 v. Akron 26
The score
makes this one seem a lot closer than it was. This game almost made me look a
prophet as the Zip’s gave Tennessee everything they could handle through almost
three quarters. The Volunteers couldn’t be held back in the second half though,
scoring 24 points to Akron’s 3. I like Dooley, and it is good to see him get a
win. Hopefully Tennessee can get back on track and continue dominating
non-conference opponents.
This was much more high scoring than I thought it would be, but the end result is the same. The Vols tuned up on both sides of the ball and got it done when it mattered. That MSU/Tenn game in a few weeks is getting more and more interesting as it's implications start to unfold...
Arkansas 26 v. Rutgers 35
 |
| Miss me yet? |
I would be
more happy to say “I told you so” if it didn’t mean that the SEC took a serious
hit here. Arkansas has some serious issues. I don’t think anyone expected the
Razorbacks to enter a rebuilding stage so abruptly, but this looks to be a
multi-season process of recovery. Give Rutgers credit though, these guys are
playing well on the road, and teamwork trumps talent a lot more often than
talent is comfortable admitting (see Mississippi State Men’s Basketball for
examples A – MMM).
I only have myself to blame for not pulling the trigger on this one. I really thought Arky would pull it together and scrap their way through this one. And even though I said it would be a close one, I gave the Razorbacks some (apparently) undue credit. At this point I'm not sure what else I could call a potential win besides Tulsa. It's going to be a long season in Fayetteville...
LSU 12 v. Auburn 10
Way to make
me look bad LSU. The Tigers (of the swampy variety) played well on offense,
totaling 351 yards of offense, but hamstrung by two fumbles and a 6-18
performance on third down. The defense played spectacular, forcing an early
safety and shutting out Auburn in the second half. They also generated three
turnovers (2 INT) and held Auburn to an abysmal 2-12 on third down (just to
throw salt on the wound Auburn was also 0-1 on fourth down). I’m looking for LSU
to use this as a learning experience (Missouri should also take note of what
happens when you overlook opponents) and improve going down the road. Auburn is
kicking itself after letting what would be a season saving win slip through
their fingers. This team not only is struggling to put itself in position to
win games, but can’t finish when they find themselves in sight of a victory.
I’m going to continue to blame coaching until Chizik decides to prove me wrong.
This game was just ugly. I pretty much concur with my esteemed colleague, Auburn had their chances and couldn't monopolize, but oh what could have been if they had. LSU will coast into their game in the Swamp undefeated, but the Gators can smell blood in the water now...
Mississippi State 30 v. USA 10
I hope this
is the last time I have to type this. Well it wasn’t pretty but Mississippi
State got the win again. South Alabama came out playing hard; you’ve got to
give them that. They never gave up, and they fought tooth and nail on defense.
I would like to think Mississippi State is a team with some grit. So far this
year, they have just refused to lose, no matter how hard they try and get beat.
The offense was hampered by an off night by Tyler Russell, who was making bad
reads, bad throws, and taking too much time doing both; time the offensive line
couldn’t provide. The line was playing without starting right guard Tobias
Smith for the second straight week, and that was the position that gave Russell
fits all night. It was a good thing Dak Prescott got in on the action because I
just don’t know if Russell could have handled being hit like that all night.
Speaking of Dak, he looked good Saturday. All of his throws were on the money,
and his legs were as effective as State fans have been lead to believe they
would be.
The defense
looked good against South Alabama’s offense. Whitely got himself an
interception (I believe the first by a Mississippi State safety this year) as
well as Jonathon Banks (The All-American who does NOT currently lead the NCAA’s
interception leading secondary in picks) whose over the back interception near
the goal line and subsequent fifty yard return was just dazzling. The Bulldogs
didn’t show too many defense looks this game, but did shuffle in and out a lot
of players, occasionally only rushing three linemen. Speaking of linemen, Josh
Boyd and Denico Autry practically lived in South Alabama’s backfield, with
Autry stopping the run and Boyd pressuring the quarterback these two could
become a potent duo for State’s uncharacteristically deep defensive line. I’m
looking forward to seeing this unit take on Kentucky (provided the linebackers
do a better job of covering the center of the field).
Devon Bell
was 3 for 3 Saturday including two 42 yarders, and added on three touchbacks in
the kickoff game. Two years from now that should be a routing day for this
talented kicker, but right now as a freshman it is a sigh of relief for the
bulldogs, who are looking at just about the toughest end to the season
imaginable in the SEC West this year. The only missed field goal of the night
came from back up kicker Charllie Granfield (also number 40) in the fourth
quarter (I guess Bell’s leg got tired?). The return game was also the best it
has been in a long while. If special teams can get it together that is just one
more dynamic to add to an already dangerously balanced team.
As much as I want to agree with the Professor I will do so with a caveat... This was another Sun Belt school. Granted we didn't show a lot of different looks on D, but Russell having a bad night against what should essentially be an exhibition team is cause for some small concern. It could be that he was sporting an undisclosed injury as we all know Dan Mullen doesn't talk about injuries. All I know is if that's the case this bye week couldn't come at a better time. It will be great to get all our guys back and healthy before we step in to the second half of this season... a half which takes MSU down a murderer's row of opponents including the current #1 and #2 teams in the nation. Still lots of good football left to be played, so make sure you tune in Friday for the SEC Weekend Preview!
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