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Boom or Bust: Week 11 a great week to be an SEC tailback
By Ethan Levine
Published:
Here are this week’s candidates to “boom” and to “bust” around the SEC (excluding Ole Miss and Mississippi State, which play non-FBS opponents in Week 11):
BOOM
1. Cameron Artis-Payne: Auburn possesses one of the most dangerous rushing attacks in the nation, and it’ll have a chance to face one of the SEC’s worst rushing defenses in Texas A&M this weekend. The Tigers lead the SEC in rushing, and Artis-Payne leads all individuals in the conference in yards this season. A&M, meanwhile, has allowed three of its last four SEC opponents to rush for more than 200 yards, which does not bode well for the Aggies. Expect Artis-Payne and Nick Marshall to both have huge games in Week 11.
2. Nick Chubb: Chubb is entering the same kind of favorable matchup as Artis-Payne this weekend in Georgia’s showdown with Kentucky. The Cats have allowed three of their last four SEC foes to rush for more than 280 yards, and Chubb has rushed for at least 140 yards in three straight games as Todd Gurley’s replacement. The Bulldogs should play angry in this game after last week’s embarrassing loss to Florida, and Chubb should have another huge day in his last start before Gurley’s return.
3. Matt Jones/Kelvin Taylor: Jones and Taylor were fantastic in last week’s win over Georgia, and they should both get a healthy workload in Week 11 against a Vanderbilt defense ranked in the bottom 5 in the SEC in run defense. Florida is still easing Treon Harris into the offense, and the Commodores have allowed 180 yards or more on the ground in all five of their SEC games this year. Jones and Taylor normally keep a pretty good balance, and both should have a second straight fantastic game on Saturday.
BUST
1. Anthony Jennings: LSU beat Ole Miss in its last game thanks to a ferocious defense and powerful rushing attack, but Jennings didn’t do much to contribute to the win. The Alabama offense is much more capable than the Rebels’, and if LSU needs to score more than 10 points to win, which it likely will, Jennings could be exposed. Playing at night in Death Valley helps, but Alabama has no margin for error and will try and give Jennings nightmares Saturday night.
2. Patrick Towles: Towles followed a stellar performance against Mississippi State with a clunker of a game against Missouri last week. This week he faces a Georgia defense ranked third in the SEC in pass defense, meaning Kentucky will likely lean on its deep stable of tailbacks to carry the offense. If the backs don’t have a productive day, however, Towles could be exposed in a similar fashion to Jennings. Chubb and the Georgia offense should score plenty of points, meaning Towles will be asked to do a lot in Kentucky’s home finale Saturday.
3. The entire Texas A&M defense: We touched on this above with Artis-Payne, but A&M is in some serious trouble Saturday against one of the SEC’s fastest and most athletic offenses. The Tigers will come at the Aggies from all directions with a number of different looks, and A&M will be forced to make tackles in space, which is not one of its strong suits. Nick Marshall has made tremendous strides as a passer, which only makes the Aggies’ task more difficult Saturday afternoon. Auburn has a great chance to score 40 or more points at home this weekend.
A former newspaper reporter who has roamed the southeastern United States for years covering football and eating way too many barbecue ribs, if there is such a thing.
