Well, we’ve made it into the stage of the season when non-conference games are pretty much completed and what we have left is SEC team vs. SEC team; mano a mano, if you will.
Six games highlight the SEC schedule on Saturday. Here’s a look at each one with one key matchup that could make the difference.
Georgia (5-0, 2-0) at Vanderbilt (3-2, 0-2)
Noon
Vanderbilt’s OL vs. Georgia’s defensive onslaught: What happened to the Commodores’ run game? Last time we checked, school all-time leading rusher Ralph Webb, a two-time 1,000-yard back, is still in the backfield. Yet the Commodores rank 13th in the SEC, averaging 79.2 rushing yards over five games. Over that span, Webb has managed just 198 yards, less than 40 per game. A reworked offensive line has its hands full against a Bulldogs’ defense that ranks third in the SEC against the run, allowing 90.4 yards per game.
Ole Miss (2-2, 0-1) at Auburn (4-1, 2-0)
Noon
Auburn’s 1-2 RB punch vs. Rebels’ porous run defense: Pardon me, make that Auburn’s 1-2-3 RB punch. As Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham continues to fit into the Tigers’ offense, it’s still a bruising run game that moves the team. Fifth in the SEC, the Tigers rush for 208.4 yards per game. Whether or not Kerryon Johnson is 100 percent won’t stop the Tigers from pounding the ball with Kamryn Pettway and Kam Martin. Ranked 13th in the SEC against the run (229.25 average), Ole Miss has to tighten up on that side of the ball or a second consecutive lopsided loss stares them in the face.
LSU (3-2, 0-1) at Florida (3-1, 3-0)
3:30 p.m.
Tigers’ run game vs. Gators’ defensive front: Stop me if you’ve heard this before. The Gators will load the box and make LSU beat them with the arm of QB Danny Etling. It’s a formula teams have used for years against the Tigers, some with more success than others. The Gators used it to their advantage last season and have no reason to abandon the strategy. Meaningful passing yardage has come rarely in recent seasons at LSU, and a struggling offensive line has to get its act together if it plans on producing running lanes for whomever OC Matt Canada decides to employ in the backfield.
Arkansas (2-2, 0-1) at South Carolina (3-2, 1-2)
4 p.m.
South Carolina OL vs Arkansas pass rush: Ranked 13th in the SEC in sacks allowed with five per game, the Gamecocks’ offensive line will need to provide better protection against an Arkansas pass rush ranked 13th in the SEC in sacks, with only seven. If South Carolina can give time for QB Jake Bentley to do his thing, he will pick apart an Arkansas defense that’s been giving up more than 200 passing yards per game and ranks 12th in the conference (one spot above South Carolina) in opponent third-down conversions (44.4 percent).
Alabama (5-0, 2-0) at Texas A&M (4-1, 2-0)
7:15 p.m.
Alabama’s vaunted run game vs. Texas A&M’s improving run defense: Leading the SEC and fourth in the nation in rushing with 315 yards per game, the Tide want to pound on you and take away your will to go on. But the Aggies’ run defense showed signs of life last week, holding South Carolina to 23 yards on the ground. Still, Alabama isn’t South Carolina, and the Aggies yielded 226 rushing yards to Arkansas the week before, so continuing to improve against the run is critical for the Aggies to hang with the nation’s No. 1 team.
Missouri (1-3, 0-2) at Kentucky (4-1, 1-1)
7:30 p.m.
Kentucky’s struggling offense vs. Missouri’s non-existent third-down defense: If Missouri could just stop the Wildcats, or anybody for that matter, on third down, it might stay in the game and give the offense a chance to win it. The Tigers are last in the SEC and 121st nationally in third-down stops, allowing the opposition to convert 49.21 percent of the time. That should give hope to a Wildcats offense that ranks 13th in the SEC and 112th in the nation.
Glenn Sattell is an award-winning freelance writer for Saturday Down South.
