Week 6 brought chaos to the SEC and college football. It was a slate with just one top 25 matchup, but those are the days where the unexpected should be expected.
We saw three SEC teams ranked in the AP Poll top 10 go on the road and lose. Elsewhere, we saw No. 10 Michigan and No. 11 USC both fall to unranked opponents.
At one point, it looked like Miami would be joining the chaos, but the Hurricanes pulled off a late comeback to beat Cal.
It ended up being a day with major playoff and conference implications. For LSU fans, it was the perfect bye week. Tiger fans sat around and watched other teams break down without worrying about an LSU implosion. If something weird was in the air on Saturday, the Baton Rouge faithful are glad LSU wasn’t there to be a part of it.
Let’s look at the aftermath of an entertaining day of college football.
Alabama with the most roller coaster two weeks… ever?
Alabama’s last two games were a mix of emotions. That’s putting it lightly. The Tide followed up an electric win over No. 2 Georgia with a loss to Vanderbilt.
This is college football. Being on top of the world one week and at the bottom of it the next is nothing new. But the poles are rarely this drastic.
When looking at Bama, how do you balance a team that knocked off Georgia with a team that lost as a 23-point favorite to Vanderbilt? It’s hard to conceptualize.
Alabama’s offense played well. Jalen Milroe was one of the best-graded QBs in the SEC and the Tide were in the 97th and 98th percentile in EPA/play and success rate.
But it’s fair to ask questions about an Alabama defense that was carved up by Diego Pavia. The Vandy offense made the most of two poorly timed Bama turnovers and led this one wire-to-wire. How Kalen DeBoer gets Alabama to bounce back is the first real test of his Crimson Tide coaching career.
As for the SEC, Bama’s win over Georgia keeps them in control of their own destiny. If the Tide win out, they’ll be in the SEC title game.
Ole Miss doesn’t take part in the fun
Like so many top-25 teams did on Saturday, Ole Miss went on the road to face an unranked opponent. But unlike several of its ranked peers, Ole Miss took care of business.
The Ole Miss defense came to play. Ole Miss didn’t allow a touchdown and held South Carolina to 4.25 yards per play and a 34% success rate. Defensive tackle Walter Nolen got busy, leading all SEC defenders with seven pressures in week six.
The Ole Miss front seven is shaping up to be a real challenge for LSU next week. It’s an area Ole Miss made a point to address in the offseason and it’s paying off so far.
As for the Rebels offense, it wasn’t perfect against a stingy South Carolina defense. Ole Miss’ EPA/play and success rate didn’t cross the 30th percentile. That’s good news for an LSU defense looking to catch a few breaks.
What’s important for Ole Miss is that it got the win. With the chaos around the conference, Ole Miss is right back in the SEC title race.
Sam Pittman gets a much-needed win
Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman entered the year feeling pressure to win. It was a rough start to the year with the Razorbacks giving one away to Oklahoma State and struggling early against UAB. But Pittman’s group bounced back and the exclamation point came on Saturday night.
Arkansas upset No. 4 Tennessee thanks to a staunch defense and some clutch points late. Arkansas shut out Tennessee in the first half.
Early in the third quarter, the Vols looked ready to pull away after going up 14-3, but that’s when Arkansas found a response of its own. Arkansas cut the deficit to one, setting up a game-winning drive late in the fourth.
Arkansas’ Malachi Singleton ran it in from 11 yards out and the Razorbacks secured a 19-14 win.
On the Tennessee side, it raises questions about how ready this offense is for SEC play. The Vols got just enough to beat Oklahoma two weeks ago, but the firepower isn’t consistently there.
For Arkansas, the Razorbacks won’t threaten for a playoff spot, but they’ll be a tough out. The defense is aggressive and Taylen Green provides just enough juice on offense. That’s something to watch with LSU traveling there later this month.
Texas A&M is GOOD
It was complete dominance for A&M on Saturday as the Aggies dismantled No. 9 Missouri 41-10. Texas A&M controlled every phase of the game on both sides of the ball.
It can be easy to make this about how disappointing Missouri is, but I think it says more about the strength of A&M. You can see Mike Elko’s vision coming together, and it’s gelling fast.
The Aggies are now 3-0 in SEC play with wins over Florida, Arkansas, and Missouri. A&M of the past finds a way to drop one of those games, despite the talent. This group is different.
I’m still not sure what A&M will do against the top of the conference, or even a team like LSU in two weeks, but the Aggies are good. The remaining schedule isn’t that hard and A&M could enter rivalry week against Texas competing for a playoff spot.
The SEC QB crop continues to look stronger
It’s proving to be a great year for QBs in the SEC and the group looks stronger with each passing week. Diego Pavia and Taylen Green were the two best-graded QBs in the conference in week six, according to PFF. Both QBs felt pressure to rejuvenate their respective programs and both are delivering.
Jalen Milroe and Carson Beck continue to play well and could reenter the Heisman discussion at some point. LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier can’t be ruled out of that talk either, especially if he plays well against Ole Miss next week.
Texas A&M QB Connor Weigman looked sharp in his return yesterday and if he’s finally about to live up to the hype, the QB crop in the SEC is as deep as ever.
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