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Sacks and Sacked: Ray, Garrett set sack records in Week 10 wins
By Ethan Levine
Published:
Texas A&M had more sacks than any other team in the SEC in Week 10, recording seven in a five-point home win over Louisiana-Monroe last weekend. Missouri and Florida tied with the most sacks by any team in a conference game, recording three sacks apiece in wins over Kentucky and Georgia, respectively.
A&M and Missouri pulled into a tie for first in the SEC in sacks this season with 29 on the year. Those two teams are also tied with No. 1 Mississippi State, which has played one fewer game than the Tigers or the Aggies to this point in the season. No other team in the conference has amassed more sack yardage than the 225 yards posted by MSU’s defense in 2014.
Florida rose from ninth to seventh in the conference in sacks following its win over the Bulldogs, and now sits at 20 sacks in seven games this season.
The SEC’s worst pass rushing defense, South Carolina, failed to record a sack once again in an SEC loss to Tennessee last week. The Gamecocks now have eight sacks in nine games, while no other team in the conference has fewer than 13 sacks on the year.
| Team | Sacks | Sack Yards | Tackles For Loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| T1. Missouri | 29 | 225 | 68 |
| T1. Mississippi State | 29 | 179 | 61 |
| T1. Texas A&M | 29 | 132 | 54 |
| 4. Tennessee | 24 | 128 | 69 |
| 5. Kentucky | 23 | 138 | 54 |
| 6. Alabama | 21 | 132 | 54 |
| 7. Florida | 20 | 158 | 53 |
| T8. Georgia | 18 | 166 | 50 |
| T8. Ole Miss | 18 | 158 | 61 |
| 10. Auburn | 16 | 98 | 56 |
| 11. LSU | 15 | 86 | 53 |
| 12. Vanderbilt | 14 | 95 | 46 |
| 13. Arkansas | 13 | 101 | 56 |
| 14. South Carolina | 8 | 74 | 30 |
Auburn has been the SEC’s best when it comes to protecting its quarterback, but in a run-heavy offense with the most athletic quarterback in the conference it should come as no surprise to see the Tigers atop this list week after week. Auburn has allowed just six sacks in eight games this season, one of only two teams in the SEC to have allowed fewer than 10 sacks on the year.
The other is Alabama, which has allowed eight sacks in eight games in 2014. Alabama was on a bye last week, while Auburn did not allow a single sack in a win over Ole Miss and its vaunted Landshark defense.
Tennessee has had the SEC’s worst offensive line this season, allowing 32 sacks and 70 tackles for loss in only nine games, but it did not allow a single sack in its win over South Carolina. The Vols have become much better at protecting their quarterback since dual-threat signal caller Joshua Dobbs took over the offense, allowing a total of just two sacks in their last two games combined.
| Team | Sacks Allowed | Sack Yards Allowed | Tackles For Loss Allowed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Auburn | 6 | 31 | 39 |
| 2. Alabama | 8 | 56 | 39 |
| T3. Florida | 10 | 66 | 41 |
| T3. Arkansas | 10 | 78 | 40 |
| 5. Georgia | 13 | 84 | 46 |
| T6. Mississippi State | 15 | 103 | 37 |
| T6. Missouri | 15 | 121 | 55 |
| T8. LSU | 16 | 116 | 41 |
| T8. Vanderbilt | 16 | 119 | 38 |
| T10. Texas A&M | 18 | 141 | 45 |
| T10. South Carolina | 18 | 150 | 41 |
| 12. Ole Miss | 23 | 113 | 69 |
| 13. Kentucky | 25 | 185 | 64 |
| 14. Tennessee | 32 | 232 | 70 |
Myles Garrett and Shane Ray both set sack records in leading their teams to victory in Week 10. Garrett broke Jadeveon Clowney’s record for sacks in a season by a freshman, raising his total to 11 in nine games this season by recording 3.5 in the win over Louisiana-Monroe. Ray broke Michael Sam and Aldon Smith’s school record for sacks in a season by recording his 11th and 12th sacks of the year in a win over Kentucky.
No other player in the SEC has more than seven sacks on the season, proving how much better Ray and Garrett have been compared to the rest of the conference. Derek Barnett returned to the top 5 in sack total by recording a whopping three sacks of Dylan Thompson in Tennessee’s win over South Carolina.
| Name | Team | Position | Sacks |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Shane Ray | Missouri | DL | 12.0 |
| 2. Myles Garrett | Texas A&M | DL | 11.0 |
| 3. Derek Barnett | Tennessee | DL | 7.0 |
| T4. Xzavier Dickson | Alabama | LB | 6.5 |
| T4. Marquis Haynes | Ole Miss | DL | 6.5 |
Ray, Barnet and Garrett also lead the SEC in tackles for loss, all having recorded at least 12.5 in 2014. The only other player in the SEC with at least 10 sacks is LSU’s Danielle Hunter, whose total stayed put at an even 10 as LSU enjoyed a week off last week.
Four players are tied with 9.5 tackles for loss on the season, including Ray’s teammate Markus Golden and a pair of Arkansas Razorbacks in Darius Philon and Trey Flowers. Rounding out the top 5 is Mississippi State’s Preston Smith, who also has 9.5 tackles for loss in addition to his three SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week awards this season.
Ray and Golden remain the SEC’s best defensive end tandem with 16.5 sacks and 25.5 tackles for loss combined. No other pair of linemen have combined for more than eight sacks or 19 tackles for loss.
| Name | Team | Position | Tackles For Loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Shane Ray | Missouri | DL | 16.0 |
| 2. Derek Barnett | Tennessee | DL | 14.0 |
| 3. Myles Garrett | Texas A&M | DL | 12.5 |
| 4. Danielle Hunter | LSU | DL | 10.0 |
| T5. Markus Golden | Missouri | DL | 9.5 |
| T5. Preston Smith | Mississippi State | DL | 9.5 |
| T5. Darius Philon | Arkansas | DL | 9.5 |
| T5. Trey Flowers | Arkansas | DL | 9.5 |
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.
