After five weeks, what exactly have we learned about the Southeastern Conference?

How about the old cliche, “We know how things looked on paper, but they don’t play the games on paper.”

In the preseason, on paper, Auburn was going to win the West. On paper, Georgia had a cakewalk through its season. We may have wanted to look on the other side of the paper to see the success of Florida, Texas A&M and LSU.

Who saw Kentucky playing well? Who saw South Carolina having trouble beating anybody? Who saw Arkansas and Tennessee playing this early in hopes of salvaging its season?

If anyone says they saw this, they are either lying or if they were gamblers, they would own the biggest mansion in Las Vegas.

Here is what we have learned so far:

VANDERBILT’S DEFENSE IS PRETTY GOOD: OK, the Commodores did play Middle Tennessee State last week, but keeping any team to 34 yards rushing is pretty impressive. Don’t forget the week before Vandy held Ole Miss in check.

MORE THAN FOURNETTE AND CHUBB: The SEC seems to be channeling its inner 1980s self when running backs ruled the gridiron. This year, LSU’s Leonard Fournette and Georgia’s Nick Chubb have paced a deep position, but other players have stepped up.

Derrick Henry of Alabama, Alex Collins of Arkansas, Tra Carson of Texas A&M, Peyton Barber of Auburn and Ralph Webb of Vanderbilt are pretty doggone good.

But Fournette leads the nation in rushing, Chubb is third.

As a conference, the SEC has rushed for 12,953 yards, only trailing the Big Ten by 23 yards for the NCAA lead.

AN SEC BLOCK PARTY: Missouri leads the nation with three blocked kicks. Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Ole Miss and Tennessee are all tied for fifth nationally with two.

On the other end of the spectrum Alabama, Auburn, Kentucky, LSU, Mississippi State, Missouri, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas A&M have yet to have a kick blocked.

POOR STATE: Wow, Mississippi State’s schedule maker must have been the Marquis de Sade. This year has already been brutal. The Bulldogs schedule is rated the third toughest in the nation, ranking only behind Western Michigan and Arizona State.

State has already lost to undefeated LSU and Texas A&M, and the SEC teams it has already played are 11-2.

It does get easier for MSU as its remaining opponents are 17-12.

PINKEL HAS A TOUCH: Saturday freshman Drew Lock started at quarterback for Missouri for the suspended Maty Mauk. The Tigers beat South Carolina and it continued a streak of every quarterback starting for the first time at Missouri for coach Gary Pinkel has won.

It makes one wonder why he doesn’t start a new quarterback each week.