After rewarding the winners from the first five SEC bowls in our first edition of the superlatives, we’ve got round two ready for you:
State with most disappointing bowl season, New Year’s Eve, Day (Like Ever): Mississippi
The state of Mississippi got crushed on New Year’s Eve. Ole Miss and Mississippi State combined for the most disappointing football played on a New Year’s Eve ever. It was so bad that I’m still not sure what exactly the consequences are going to be. There’s a decent chance that nobody shows up to work in Mississippi on Monday. Commerce might grind to a halt. In 2008, Wall Street led a global economic collapse. In 2015, Mississippi might lead a similar collapse.
In an attempt to avoid such a disaster, I’d like to offer some encouragement to the fine folks of the Magnolia State. Keep your head up, guys. While it might be tough to see clearly right now, 2014 was a very good year for your state. ESPN’s College GameDay in Ole Miss was so amazing that I’ve heard Katy Perry is STILL in Oxford partying. It was such a success that the GameDay production crew decided to just stay in-state and head to Starkville for the following week. Back to back GameDay broadcasts in the state of Mississippi! Moreover, at one point during the season, both Mississippi schools were two of the top three ranked teams in the AP poll! Mississippi State was ranked No. 1 in the first ever College Football Playoff Top 25 for weeks. Who would have predicted that back in August?
To sum up, you have plenty to live for. 2015 will be a good year. Unless Dak Prescott goes pro. Or, Chad Kelly lights up a crowd with an AK-47. Or, more Dan Mullen assistants bolt. Ahh, well, yeah… 2015 may be disappointing. Who can know these things?
Most Overrated Division: SEC West
Heading into the Sugar Bowl, I was convinced that the west was overrated. Auburn, LSU and both Mississippi schools had just lost their bowl games, and it wasn’t pretty. But, I figured Alabama would still beat Ohio State and help the SEC West save face.
And then the Sugar Bowl happened.
The SEC West is full of very good teams. I’m just not sure how many elite teams are in that division.
Hard to overstate just how bad the bowl season was for what everyone called the best division in college football all season.
Best Special Teams: Missouri Tigers
Taking a page out of the New Orleans Saints’ Super Bowl playbook, Gary Pinkel opened the second half of the Outback Bowl with a beautiful onside kick.
Making the day even better for the Missouri special teams, they ran a stellar fake punt earlier in the game where you saw a defensive lineman show off his wheels:
Most Bo Wallace Like Performance: Bo Wallace
It’s unfair to blame Bo completely for the Rebs’ offensive struggles, but he didn’t exactly help the cause. Bad Bo was in full effect against a dominant TCU Horned Frogs team.
The attempt of Wallace to avoid a safety which led into an interception in your own end zone basically summed up the entire game:
Biggest Opportunity to rename a famous play: Mississippi State
Mississippi State’s Hail Mary at the end of the first half was the biggest moment of the game for the Bulldogs. Other than this touchdown, the SEC West team got pretty much manhandled by Georgia Tech.
Of course the “Hail Mary” pass play has origins going back to the 1920s, but perhaps it’s time to re-christen the play as the Hail State.
Most Underrated Coach and Team: Gary Pinkel and Missouri
All Mizzou does is win.
Gary Pinkel and the Missouri Tigers are 23-5 over the last two seasons! You can’t say enough about the job he’s done with this squad.
Mizzou will likely finished with a top ten ranking in the polls.
And probably be unranked in the preseason polls…
Best Coach That Looks Like a Mechanic: Paul Johnson
When you look at this picture, you might think this guy changed your oil on your vehicle last month, but you’d be wrong. It’s Paul Johnson, head coach of Georgia Tech and triple option guru! All joking aside, Johnson is a darn good coach, and he had his team ready to rock and roll in the Peach Bowl.
Paul Johnson took a shot at the SEC after the win (it’s quite fashionable these days to do this) when he told ESPN’s Maria Taylor, “And for at least a week or two we don’t have to hear about the SEC.”
The college football world loved the comment of course. After all, GT went 2-0 against SEC teams in 2014. However, let’s not act like Johnson has been leading the charge against the nation’s best conference. His squad went 0-2 (Georgia, Ole Miss) last year against the SEC, and he’s lost to Georgia four straight times going into the season.
Toughest Athletic Director: Ross Bjork
After a rough Peach Bowl, Ross Bjork defended Ole Miss QB Bo Wallace on Twitter:
@MarshallRamsey Thought better of you than this. He's human & it wasn't our day but he doesn't deserve crude jokes.
— Ross Bjork (@RossBjorkAD) December 31, 2014
@MarshallRamsey you made a joke, @RossBjorkAD is seen defending his players, end it there and everyone wins.
— Patrick Worley (@p_worl) December 31, 2014
@p_worl @MarshallRamsey That's all is was. I've respected Marshall since I arrived. He's a good guy & I will always stand up for our teams
— Ross Bjork (@RossBjorkAD) December 31, 2014
Bjork is known for being vocal on social media in defense of his program. By the time the night was closing, Bjork and Ramsey were good friends again.
Best Mustache From Opposing Fan Base
Much respect to this guy:
Most Humiliating Bowl Season Job: Bloomin’ Onion Mascot Guy
I hope this guy earned free Bloomin’ Onions for life.
Best Fat Kicker From Brazil: Wisconsin’s Rafael Gaglianone
Wisconsin’s kicker had one too many bloomin’ onions or binges at the Brazilian steakhouse, but he did kick some nice field goals in the Outback Bowl.
Too bad Baylor showed him up with a touchdown pass to LaQuan McGowan, a 390-pound offensive guard. That’s gotta be a record for fat guy touchdown, no? I think Baylor just ruined Bret Bielema’s “in” with offensive line recruits looking to get in the end zone.
I’m also pleased that it’s considered acceptable to call football players fat. We’re awfully sensitive about a lot of things these days, but I think the Fat Guy Touchdown Movement has done wonders for our ability to call people fat on Twitter.
Lastly, the Baylor kicker could have used some of the extra weight that Gaglianone has around the waist on the blocked Baylor field goal in the Cotton Bowl… this guy may never line up for a field goal again after this hit:
Fan Base That Owns the Most Jerseys: Ohio State
We thoroughly enjoyed the shots of the Ohio State fan base at the Sugar Bowl… the jerseys were everywhere.
https://twitter.com/BenHereForYears/status/550834839658962944
Best Video From Bowl Season: Jameis RKO
This wasn’t an SEC bowl, but it’s just too funny not to mention once again:
Biggest SEC Killer: Urban Meyer
It took one of the SEC’s own to end the streak of eight straight years of an SEC team playing for a national title. Urban Meyer coached maybe the best game of his career against a heavily favored Alabama team. After getting into a hole early, Meyer’s Ohio State team made impressive adjustments and rattled off 28 straight unanswered points.
SEC fans better get used to an improved Big Ten. With Urban Meyer getting Ohio State into championship mode and Jim Harbaugh heading to Ann Arbor, the Big Ten is catching up to the SEC with regards to power coaches.
Good competition from the other power conferences will ultimately be good for the SEC. Coaches like Gary Patterson at TCU, Urban Meyer at Ohio State, Jim Harbaugh at Michigan and Mark Helfrich at Oregon will force the SEC to evolve and continue to get better. We all win when college football is competitive in all parts of the country.
A graduate of the University of Florida and founder of Saturday Down South, Kevin is a college football enthusiast.
