Burning questions for every SEC team as we head into Week 12

Here are some burning questions for every team in the SEC as we head into a Week 12 filled with several interesting matchups – and a lot of clunkers:

Alabama:  Will anyone suffer an injury in the walk-over with Charleston Southern? That’s all that matters with the Iron Bowl the following week. The Tide is just a win over Auburn away from clinching the SEC West and returning to Atlanta.

Arkansas: Will running the table against Mississippi State and Missouri be enough to get an invite to a New Year’s Six bowl game, preferably the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans? It better be.

Auburn: Will the Tigers right the ship enough to get past Idaho this weekend and earn the all-important sixth victory of the season that secures a bowl bid? The Vandals are awful, so it shouldn’t be a problem.

Florida: Will getting the chance to play against Florida Atlantic’s defense be the elixir that cures the ills of the Gators’ offense? Florida State and likely Alabama follow, so it better be.

Georgia: Can close-out wins against Georgia Southern and Georgia Tech be enough for Mark Richt to keep his job in Athens? Or better yet, does Richt want to keep it?

Kentucky: Two wins to secure a bowl bid seemed like a lock five weeks ago. Five losses later, can the Wildcats beat Charlotte and Louisville to salvage their season?

LSU: Can the Tigers look deep within and figure out that there’s still plenty to play for this season? For psyche alone, Saturday’s game at Ole Miss is huge.

Mississippi State: Can Dak Prescott and the guys bounce back from the Alabama loss better than LSU did in the same spot last week?

Missouri: Can that surprising win over BYU be the springboard the Tigers needed to finish the season strong? A bowl bid is still possible, but Tennessee and Texas A&M stand in the way for the 5-5 Tigers as Gary Pinkel ends his great career.

Ole Miss: Has the bye week gotten the Rebels rested and ready enough to dispatch LSU on Saturday? A 10-win season (with a bowl win) is still a possibility.

South Carolina: Will a win against The Citadel at least be a feel-good moment for interim coach Shawn Elliott, who’s put his heart and soul into this season after Steve Spurrier abruptly resigned?

Tennessee: Will the goal of winning the final five games of the season stay on track with a tough road game at suddenly confident Missouri?  This seemed like a lock a few weeks ago; now maybe not so much.

Texas A&M: How is this quarterback situation going to play out in the long run now that Kyler Murray and Kyle Allen have proven a little something?

Vanderbilt: A second SEC win was huge for the Commodores going forward, now can they build on that in the final two weeks against Texas A&M and Tennessee?

Tom Brew

Tom Brew is an award-winning journalist and author who is covering SEC football for Saturday Down South.