Week in and week out, players and teams surprise us with their performances. We saw several surprises this weekend with an incredible slate of conference games.
Who or what made our cut of the biggest surprises of Week 8?
Florida’s meltdown in the Swamp: It was an awful night to be a Florida fan. The Gators were embarrassed on their home field by a Missouri team that was coming off being shutout at home to Georgia. Will Muschamp has totally lost this team, and the talent is lacking at so many position groups. Tigers quarterback Maty Mauk completed just six of 16 passes for 20 yards, and his team won by nearly 30 points. We’ve seen a bad product on the field over the last season and a half, but Saturday night hit an all-time low.
Tuscaloosa throwdown: Who predicted a 59-0 shutout in Tuscaloosa? Alabama completely and utterly dominated Texas A&M. It was a performance of historic proportions. The Crimson Tide looked like the Crimson Tide of old, and this loss will likely set Kevin Sumlin’s progress in College Station back. Alabama fans ought not question this win; Nick Saban’s team responded to his early week rant and made a huge statement. This is the type of win that can set a program on a roll. It will be very interesting to see how this win springboards Alabama’s hopes of an SEC West title and College Football Playoff berth.
Nick Chubb is a star: Next man up must be a nice philosophy in the Georgia backfield. Everyone declared the Bulldogs’ season all but over two weeks ago when Todd Gurley was suspended indefinitely. Nick Chubb had something else to say about that, however. After a 38 carry, 143 yard performance in the 34-0 win over Missouri, Chubb followed that up with 28 carries for 202 yards against Arkansas. The amount of talent Georgia has at running back just isn’t fair.
Tennessee’s defensive performance: The Volunteers have the defense worthy of a top 10 team. Unfortunately Butch Jones’ team is totally inept on offense. Nevertheless, the Vols’ defensive effort on Saturday night in Oxford was impressive. A.J. Johnson and company forced Ole Miss to eight consecutive three and outs to begin the game. Despite the 34 points the Rebels put on the board, Tennessee’s defensive effort was better than that showed. It is impossible for the Volunteers to continue its strong play on defense with no help from the offensive side of the football.
After living in Birmingham, Ala., Jordan left the ground zero of SEC Nation to head south to Florida to tell the unique stories of the renowned tradition of SEC football. In his free time, his mission is to find the best locales around.
