We go around the SEC action this week, and some of the action was ugly. A lot of teams in the SEC did not look as good as they would have hoped. The offense, in particular, look to be way behind the SEC defenses, even some offenses that we would have thought would be pretty good.
I'm thinking the SEC is s step behind where it was last year at this time. Right now, I think that if there is a team capable of challenging on the national level in the SEC, it's probably Florida. They appear to be the best bet to have both an offense and a defense that can really play.
To the action:
Tennessee 35
UAB 3
This game went as expected, as Tennessee steadily poured on the points, and the game never appeared to be in doubt. UAB is a pretty bad team, and I'm not sure you can say that Tennessee was overly impressive in victory, but they clearly outclassed this team, which is all you can really ask of them.
Yes, they lost to UCLA, but they're one of the few teams in the conference that has not, to this point, looked very worrisome on offense.
Arian Foster and Jonathan Crompton led the way and Tennessee recorded over 500 yards of offense in easily putting UAB away.
Next Week: Florida at Tennessee, Saturday 2:30pm, CBS.
Georgia 14
South Carolina 7
T. Kyle King may think this game was never really in doubt, but I was watching it and I doubted it for quite some time. I doubted it until a holding penalty with 19 seconds left pushed the South Carolina offense back to the 28 yard line, needing a touchdown to tie the game.
South Carolina, whose offense was abysmal in their first two games, moved the ball through the air with relative ease, outgaining Georgia through the air 271-146. South Carolina could not run worth a damn, but they passed well, and actually outgained Georgia overall. They were able to do this because their offensive line was much-improved from the first two games, when they could not get a snap off without getting a penalty, and couldn't keep their quarterback upright. They were 10x better on Saturday, or perhaps even more than that. They couldn't run-block, but they were able to do some things, which is better than previously, when they weren't able to do any things.
Knowshon Moreno looked human in this game, as the South Carolina defense has not given up on this season, and held him to 79 yards on 20 carries, which is a very un-Moreno-like game. What's more, they held Moreno in check without letting Matthew Stafford skewer them with big plays throwing the ball.
Next Week: Wofford at South Carolina, 6:00pm; Georgia at Arizona State, 7:00pm, ABC.
Kentucky 20
Middle Tennessee State 14
Kentucky is 3-0, but they haven't played anyone yet, and they almost lost this game. They were behind 14-10 in the 4th quarter, and then almost gave up a last second Hail Mary touchdown, which would have won the game for MTSU.
If you're looking for how Kentucky almost lost, look no further than the pass defense, which gave up 352 yards, 2 touchdowns, and over a 9 yard per attempt average, including 3 pass plays of greater than 50 yards.
Next Week: Western Kentucky at Kentucky,
Ole Miss 34
Samford 10
Is it just me, or this not a particularly impressive score over a mediocre FCS team? Jevan Snead had good yardage, but also threw 2 interceptions. The running game was solid, as all 3 primary backs averaged more than 5 yards per carry, but the longest running play from scrimmage was 16 yards, and that was by a wide receiver. If your running game can't generate big plays against Samford, what will it do against LSU, Auburn, or even Vandy? Ole Miss was actually trailing in this game 7-3, and didn't take the lead until shortly before halftime.
The Snead-led passing game is dangerous, possibly one of the best in the conference.
Next Week: Vandy at Ole Miss, 6:00pm.