Let’s take a quick tour of the SEC to see what the head coaches were talking about Saturday following their Week 13 games:

NICK SABAN, ALABAMA

On his team’s performance down the stretch to win Iron Bowl and SEC West: “I couldn’t be more proud of the guys than I am of this team. Ever since the Ole Miss game they’ve had their backs against the wall and responded every possible way that you could ask them to. From a competitive standpoint, we did a great job of improving all season long. This was a tough game today, a really tough game today, and we expected it to be a tough game. I’ve got to give the Auburn players a lot of credit. They played hard. It was really a battle, and a tough one. Fortunately, we only gave up the one big play in the second half and were able to control the ball pretty well when we needed to at the end of the game.”

BRET BIELEMA, ARKANSAS

On bouncing back from loss to Mississippi State to beat Missouri on Friday: “I thought our guys turned the page from last Saturday night, which was a gut wrencher, as well as they could. … They really came out of it. I just really didn’t want Mississippi State to beat us twice.”

GUS MALZAHN, AUBURN

On team’s effort during the Iron Bowl loss: “First of all, our kids fought their guts out. I really appreciate their effort. Our fans were unbelievable. They helped us get to the fourth quarter, and they were there the whole time for us. We had opportunities in the fourth quarter. We talked all week about getting in the game and into the fourth quarter, and finding a way to win. We were right there and just didn’t make the plays to win the game, and they did. That’s a good football team. Things that really stand out to me offensively is that we were 3-for-15 on third downs. You aren’t going to beat many people at all when you are 3-for-15 on third downs.”

JIM MCELWAIN, FLORIDA

On losing to Florida State 27-2:“Obviously, that was very disappointing. They made plays and we didn’t. Plain and simple. We had opportunities and didn’t feel like we took advantage of them. That’s something we’ve got to learn from.”

MARK RICHT, GEORGIA

On finishing the regular season 9-3 with win against Georgia Tech: “We came up short of our goal to get to Atlanta and try to go beyond. We all know that. That’s the standard here, to win the SEC. But when you also look at a team that was in the position we were in, everybody came together. It certainly could have gone one way or the other. It was that moment of truth where you ask, ‘What are you going to do?’ Lay down and die, or lock arms and get after it. They did.”

MARK STOOPS, KENTUCKY

On blowing 21-point lead to lose to Louisville: “We need to execute better on both sides of the ball, in particular we’ve got to move the ball and get some first downs when we have field position and score some points. Defensively again, tale of two halves. We played well the first half, created some points, got some momentum and field position. In the second half, they got us off balance with the quarterback change, and we’ve got to do a better job. We’ve got to adjust to that. We had guys in position and they made us look foolish at times. We’ve got to do a better job coaching that up and playing technique and executing our assignments. There’s enough blame to go around. We all need to do a better job. We’re not very pleased with the way we finished again. I know the fans are not happy. And I’m not happy. It’s disappointing. It’s tough.”

LES MILES, LSU

On putting aside all of the distractions to beat Texas A&M: “I’m motivated by my team and my family. I have very little trouble putting the distraction of perimeter away.”

DAN MULLEN, MISSISSIPPI STATE

On how turnovers led to a loss to Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl: “Obviously I’m fairly disappointed in this game. We made some mistakes out there. Turnovers, minus-two turnover ratio, and you aren’t going to win many games like that. I thought we had some opportunities to create some turnovers, but we missed two interceptions. There was a fumble that went through our hands. They picked it up and ran and scored the next play. Those turnovers led to 14 points. That was a huge difference in the game.”

GARY PINKEL, MISSOURI

On losing to Arkansas in his final game as Missouri coach: “I didn’t want it to end this way. I also knew my players weren’t focused like they needed to be … which can’t be prevented.”

HUGH FREEZE, OLE MISS

On the legacy of his 2015 team following Egg Bowl win: “I think in time we will certainly be able to know, but I want to say that I think that this group has made us nationally relevant. I don’t think we have a losing record against anybody in the SEC West. To come from where we did four years ago, I think this group made us relevant and it is hard for anyone to argue that. I think we are getting close to being beyond that and playing a significant role in who decides this conference. Every year is different. Who knows what next year holds. You see that all the time with teams, so we have to find a way to be consistent.”

SHAWN ELLIOTT, SOUTH CAROLINA

On what he sees for the future of the South Carolina program: “Well, considering we just played the No. 1 team in the country to 37-32 and saw the fight and effort in their eyes today, I would say they’re in pretty good shape. We all understand there are some needs to be addressed, but the foundation has been set. It’s not as far off as you think. No matter what happens, it will move forward. It will bounce back. I can assure you that.”

BUTCH JONES, TENNESSEE

On finishing the season on a five-game winning streak to get to 8-4: “This football team has been mentally ready to play for 12 games. That is very difficult to do, and you do that with great leadership, great competitive character, and great character in your football program. We have that. We have something that we’re building very, very special here. As we all know, it takes time to build, but you’re starting to see it manifest within the confines of the Anderson Training Center. I’m proud of our players’ continuous improvement.”

KEVIN SUMLIN, TEXAS A&M

On the items he didn’t like during a 19-7 loss at LSU: “There were some things that were uncharacteristic of us. We had 11 penalties, which is uncharacteristic of us. We had some composure issues out of some guys that were concerning, that we just talked about in the locker room about going forward.”

DEREK MASON, VANDERBILT

On his 2015 season, which ended at 4-8 following a 53-28 loss to Tennesse: “Some ground gained. I can’t let everything about the game tonight jade what things have happened this year. I thought defensively, guys grew up. I believe Vanderbilt has found a quarterback in Kyle Shurmur. Some young guys have had a chance to get experience and grow. We understand where we our deficient. We have to address that through recruiting. That means making sure you get the talent in your program that you need to infuse it and compete in this conference. It’s an every week, everyday challenge for our guys in practice; to take it from the class to the grass on gameday and be efficient. I truly believe that these kids have done a great job of growing through the season. It hasn’t necessarily shown in the win column, but there were enough close games this year, where I can look at it and say, `we’re not that far away.’ We need to shore up some things, make sure that we can continue to recruit talent and we will be fine.”