Week 3 in the SEC is in the books and several teams, including Alabama and Arkansas are licking their wounds after fairly devastating losses. Missouri and Florida were able to grind out tough wins, while everyone else not named Auburn and South Carolina basically rolled to victory.
Here are the biggest takeaways from another Saturday Down South:
Ole Miss = Legit: We uploaded the Ole Miss football team onto Rent.com and J.B. Smoove rated the Rebels as “totally legit.” Ole Miss’ 43-37 win over Alabama in Tuscaloosa sent a message to the nation that Hugh Freeze’s squad might be the team to beat in the SEC. After averaging 74.5 points in its first two wins, quarterback Chad Kelly’s squad hung an impressive 433 yards of total offense, including 341 of them in the air, on the Crimson Tide defense as No. 15 upended the No. 2 team in the nation. Expect the Rebels were this week’s big climbers in the AP Poll and expect a bullseye to appear on their backs the rest of the season in the SEC, especially as their win total rises with upcoming games against Vanderbilt, Florida, New Mexico State and Memphis.
RELATED: New look Alabama nickel defense
Bottom falling out in SC: The Gamecocks’ offense is atrocious. It was a quick fall from grace for Steve Spurrier’s offense in Columbia. Backup quarterback Lorenzo Nunez (76 yards) led the Gamecocks in rushing, followed by wide receiver Pharoh Cooper (34) and running back Brandon Wilds (32), who left the game in the second quarter with a bruised left rib. All told, Perry Orth’s first career start yielded 84 yards in the air and no scores — although he did rush for a 4-yard touchdown. The offense appears to have no identity and a shortage of playmakers. Sure they’re young, but the calls for Spurrier’s head and the questions about his sanity are growing louder by the week.
RELATED: What Steve Spurrier said after South Carolina’s loss to Georgia
Georgia DOES have a QB: While South Carolina was reeling from its quarterback woes, on the opposing sideline the Georgia Bulldogs were discovering that they might have actually had a decent one all along. Greyson Lambert had his finest day of his career tossing for a career-high 330 yards. He also systematically shredded the Gamecocks secondary that he set a new NCAA record for accuracy with 24-of-25 passing. Lambert also completed 20 consecutive passes, good enough to eclipse former Bulldog, and current Colorado State head coach, Mike Bobo.
RELATED: Georgia gets resounding win at South Carolina
Texas A&M sacks QBs better than you: Myles Garrett (5.5) and Daeshon Hall (4) have combined for more sacks than every team in the SEC other than Florida (11 team sacks). The Aggies (15 team sacks) are the nation’s best at dropping signal callers with one more than Maryland. Texas A&M’s 15 team sacks are more than South Carolina, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Arkansas combined. The result is an unblemished 3-0 record as they enter conference play next week against Arkansas in Arlington, Texas.
RELATED: Texas A&M gears up for SEC play with win over Nevada
Coker is it!: Jake Coker passed for 201 yards and 3 touchdowns in Week 3. And while the No. 2 Crimson Tide lost and Coker wasn’t always crisp, the Florida State transfer provided Alabama with a gutsy performance and singlehandedly kept his offense fighting back. Cooper Bateman got the start over the junior, but expect Coker to be under center when Alabama plays host to Louisiana-Monroe in Week 4. Poor Warhawks, they don’t know what’s going to hit them next week.
RELATED: What Nick Saban said after Alabama’s loss to Ole Miss
SEC’s top WR is whom?: The conference that recently brought us elite wide receivers such as Amari Cooper and Odell Beckham Jr. is led after three weeks by none other than Vanderbilt’s Trent Sherfield? Insert confused Scooby-Doo head shake here. Sherfield has 347 yards, thanks in part to a whopping 240 yards and a touchdown against Austin Peay. Arkansas’ Cody Core (299 receiving yards), Christian Kirk (269) of Texas A&M and Ole Miss’ Quincy Adeboyejo (224) fall closely in line behind the Vandy sophomore. Expect one of them to take over the lead in the next week or so and the world will balance itself out.
RELATED: Vanderbilt earns first win of season
Chris Wuensch is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers South Carolina and Tennessee.
