10 things I'm absolutely overreacting to after Week 3 in the SEC
Who’s angrier this morning?
Florida fans? LSU fans? Arkansas at SEC officials? Nick Saban at Pete Golding, knowing Georgia is looming next week?
Maybe the first two can settle it this coming weekend, when they meet in The Swamp in a game that, suddenly, somehow becomes the Gators’ most important in years. Lose to LSU, and the Cocktail Party becomes irrelevant.
Those meltdowns are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after another Saturday Down South in and around the SEC.
10. To- – Grantham, where’s the D?
Through 3 weeks, it’s fairly obvious defenses across the SEC have been more affected by the COVID disruptions than offenses.
Seven SEC teams allowed 40 points Saturday. That’s more than they had allowed in the first 2 weeks of play combined.
Nowhere among contenders is the difference more glaring and problematic than at Florida (though Alabama’s effort against Ole Miss will earn embattled DC Pete Golding a good old-fashioned Nick Saban “butt-chewing”).
The Gators’ offense is Playoff-worthy.
The Gators’ defense might not even be middling Big 12-worthy.
Ole Miss rang up absurd numbers in the opener, and it wasn’t a fluke. South Carolina scored 3 TDs in Week 2.
After 2 weeks, the Gators were allowing 471 yards per game — 13th in the SEC.
Saturday, Florida made Kellen Mond look like Johnny Manziel — a week after Alabama made Kellen Mond look like, well, Kellen Mond.
The Gators have well-documented problems on the back end — punctured and punctuated by the Mond-to-Caleb Chapman 51-yard TD bomb that tied the score late in the 4th — but Todd Grantham’s front 7 didn’t exactly dictate the action Saturday, either. They still allowed far too many big plays. Isaiah Spiller ran for 174 yards. Chapman had 151 yards receiving.
The countdown to the Cocktail Party never truly ends, but Grantham is running out of time to get his side of the ball right.
And if it’s not right against an LSU offense that also can score, nothing else about this season will matter. Florida’s season already is on the brink.
9. Even when you double team Kyle Pitts, it doesn’t work
I loathe silver linings, but I loved these 2 plays in the first half Saturday. One showed truly how unstoppable Kyle Pitts is. The other showed how valuable Pitts is.
First, the TD catch — his 7th of the season — to beat double coverage.
Kyle Pitts for president
— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 10, 2020
Florida had a similar red-zone situation on its next drive. This time, Pitts was a designed decoy who occupied 2 Aggies defenders underneath, which allowed Kadarius Toney to slip behind and find a soft spot for a TD.
https://twitter.com/TheCFBPylon/status/1314969133176545280
Trask made the throw. Toney made the catch. But Pitts made it possible.
8. That’s a $75 million man!
Twitter had fun with Texas A&M’s terrible clock management to end the first half.
Bygones.
The story Saturday is this: Texas A&M’s $75 million man got over on Florida once again. Jimbo Fisher is now 8-1 against the Gators.
Kellen Mond delivered a performance for the ages, becoming the Aggies’ all-time leader in passing yards in the process.
For 2+ years, Mond and Fisher have heard/read (or had to avoid reading and hearing) how they always come up short in the biggest moments.
Not this time.
7. Oklahoma benches Spencer Rattler
Rattler arrived last year as a 5-star recruit, the No. 1 QB prospect in the country and Lincoln Riley’s Next Big Thing.
He sat and watched plug-and-play transfer Jalen Hurts compete for the Heisman and lead the Sooners to another Playoff berth, but there was zero suspense about who would be the Sooners’ starter this year.
Now there is.
Riley pulled the plug after Rattler committed 2 more turnovers in the first half Saturday against rival Texas. Rattler’s turnovers — he had 4 INTs coming into the game, tied for the most in the Big 12 — were a primary reason the Sooners entered the Red River Showdown a shocking 1-2, out of the polls and the Playoff race.
I liked the decision. Nothing is given, especially at the level Riley wants to operate, especially when the most important player on the field is making careless decisions.
Kirby Smart has shown he’s not afraid to change quarterbacks. Nick Saban famously switched quarterbacks in mid-game, twice, with trophy-winning results.
We’ll see how long Rattler’s demotion lasts. He re-entered the game and led the Sooners to a closer-than-necessary victory in 4 overtimes. Maybe this was just more of a message to take care of the football, or a message to the Sooners to do more so that Rattler doesn’t feel like he has to be a savior.
6. Will Gus ever send that message to Bo Nix?
Nix was the No. 2-rated QB in the 2019 class, right behind Rattler. He won the starting job last year and, except for specific instances, hasn’t been removed since.
I firmly believe that Smart or Nick Saban would have changed quarterbacks at some point last season. Yes, Nix won SEC Freshman of the Year honors (somehow, over Derek Stingley), but his play was erratic enough, often enough to explore a switch.
He has basically been the same guy this season, too.
Nix attempted just 8 passes in the first half against Arkansas. Fortunately, Auburn’s rushing offense got right. After not gaining 100 yards in either game as a team, Auburn nearly had 2 running backs each reach triple digits Saturday. Tank Bigsby totaled 107 yards before the break and finished with 146.
Nix had a bigger impact in the 2nd half, but he was outplayed by Feleipe Franks, who threw for 300+ yards and 4 TDs.
And then Nix nearly made the bone-headed play of the year when he mishandled the snap and spiked the ball backward while trying to kill the clock. That’s a fumble. Except officials blew the whistle, rendering the play dead.
It should have been Arkansas’ ball, which would have ensured an Arkansas victory. Instead, Auburn maintained possession and kicked the winning field goal in the final seconds.
And Nix got credit for another game-winning comeback.
Unbelievable.
5. Bottom 5 of Power 5
1. Mississippi State’s offense: KJ Costello threw 4 more interceptions Saturday, including a) a pick-6, b) a near-pick-6 and c) a drive-killer in the end zone. He has thrown 9 picks in 3 games. Miss State threw 10 interceptions last season. They’ve already exceeded that total this year. Mike Leach knows more about quarterbacks than anybody. There’s a reason he picked Costello, but you have to wonder how much longer he’ll stick with him. He eventually switched to true freshman Will Rogers late in the 3rd quarter Saturday. Rogers threw 2 interceptions, including a drive-killer in the end zone. Stay tuned.
2. Tennessee’s offensive line: It was billed as arguably the best in the country. Georgia’s front 7 toyed with it during a 2nd-half man-handling.
3. Alabama’s defense: Ole Miss’ offense is good, a’ight? Lane Kiffin is even better. That’s a fun and enviable combination. But, goodness, the Tide defense gave up 48 points and 647 yards and looked every bit as vulnerable as last year’s banged-up unit. And here comes Georgia ….
4. Dan Mullen’s stadium capacity request: Mullen wants The Swamp packed for Saturday’s home date with LSU. Fortunately, for everybody’s safety, Gators AD Scott Stricklin seemed to politely dismiss the idea. “We continue to follow UF Health and campus safety guidelines,” Stricklin told ESPN.
5. LSU’s defense: Where to start? If you’re a fan, it’s by wondering why in the world Ed Orgeron hired Bo Pelini. I mean, how in the world does this happen?
Someone should probably consider covering that guy. #LSU 31, Missouri 31. pic.twitter.com/HdMl15EhCt
— Jeff Nowak (@Jeff_Nowak) October 10, 2020
4. The 4 Playoff teams are …
No. 1 Georgia, No. 2 Clemson, No. 3 Alabama, No. 4 Ohio State.
Can’t remember the last time I thought Georgia was better than Alabama (Herschel era?), but I’ve switched my pick for next week’s game. The Bulldogs are rolling on offense and stifling on defense.
Florida has a top-5 offense and bottom-5 defense. No way this version beats Georgia, and the Gators have to beat Georgia to get to Atlanta, which is their only path to the Playoff.
3. Lane Kiffin vs. Saban? More, please
In case you missed it, ESPN interviewed Kiffin in a piece for GameDay.
Kiffin was honest, funny, forthcoming, original and sincere, all the traits we like about him.
Of course there were Saban questions, lots of them. Kiffin sidestepped any hint of controversy about his former boss.
When asked what would it mean to beat Saban, Kiffin corrected the question. It’s not beating Saban, he said. It’s beating Alabama.
“We’d have a lot better chance if I were playing him. He just had hip surgery.” Kiffin laughed, then continued, “he’d struggle covering me.”
Turns out, Alabama had all kinds of trouble covering Kiffin’s Rebels, too.
Alabama 63, Ole Miss 48? Yes, please.
Let’s hope we get 5 more of these before Saban eventually retires.
2. Nobody knows the rule? How?
As soon as Bo Nix botched the snap, turned and spiked a pass backward into the ground to kill the clock, I yelled at the TV, “That’s a fumble!”
Down one w/ seconds left., Auburn’s Bo Nix fumbles the snap then tries to spike it by throwing it behind him.
But the call was ruled intentional grounding rather than a fumble. Auburn then kicked a FG w/ :07 left to win 30-28 #ARKvsAUB pic.twitter.com/f0AD54BriE
— Bad Sports Refs (@BadSportsRefs) October 10, 2020
I have no idea how Nix didn’t realize his attempted backward spike was not legal, but it’s clear he didn’t. He didn’t chase after the ball. He chased after an official.
I have no idea why officials flagged Nix for intentional grounding and eventually whistled the play dead as players pursued the pigskin.
I have no idea why the TV announcers needed 3 minutes to figure all of this out, either, and only after the play was reviewed and Sam Pittman was screaming at officials that it should be Arkansas ball. Why were they so slow to explain the situation? They were busy wondering what the review was about.
Here’s the problem, which the announcers never got around to explaining, either: The ball was never recovered and officials blew the play dead with players still somewhat contending for the ball. Under that scenario, there was no clear-path choice to give possession to Arkansas.
This is a backwards pass and a fumble. If you want to have a discussion about who recovered it (it was Arkansas) because the play was blown dead, then sure. But to rule this anything but a fumble is bull pic.twitter.com/N15xWCAt3E
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) October 10, 2020
So what was obviously a fumble and could have been an Arkansas fumble recovery ended up being a game-winning kick in the stomach.
That entire sequence was just 2020 levels of bad. Including this admission that officials blew it.
Statement on play at :30 to go in fourth quarter of Arkansas-Auburn game. pic.twitter.com/L1UQRlFx2M
— SEC Officiating (@SECOfficiating) October 11, 2020
So … was that an apology to Arkansas?
1. Georgia is king of the SEC East … or SEC?
Very few teams can withstand Georgia’s physicality. Jeremy Pruitt’s first two Tennessee teams certainly couldn’t. Just 12 months ago, with many of the same players in his 2-deep, the Vols were mauled 43-14.
Saturday was supposed to be different. Pruitt had his heralded o-line. He had emerging playmakers in the backfield and a red-hot veteran quarterback leading the way.
Tennessee looked great for a half. But just when you started to think “next year” really only seems a year away and not just a loser’s lament, the old Vols resurfaced. Mental mistakes compounded physical mistakes and a 1-point lead quickly turned into another blowout loss as Georgia won the 2nd half 27-0.
Coupled with Florida’s continued defensive meltdowns, Saturday showed, emphatically, that the SEC East still runs through Athens.
Next week in Tuscaloosa, the Dawgs just might prove that the entire league does now, too.
Spurrier didn’t give Bob Pruett a third season as defensive coordinator and won the national championship the next season. Mullen gave Grantham a third season as defensive coordinator and blew UF’s legitimate run for the national championship. Mullen ain’t Spurrier.
No one is Spurrier. It’s an unfair comparison. Spurrier went up against the Alabama recruiting machine and won more than he lost. I rank Spurrier as the best SEC head coach I’ve seen.
Alabama wasn’t near as good then as now. Not close.
I won’t argue with that, except to say that Alabama would have dominated the SEC in the early to mid-90s, if not for Spurrier.
I don’t…
Yup to the Georgia comments above. That D is so strong and kirby called a great game. Absolutely dismantled our offense in the second half. Thought we would play better. G made some mistakes reminiscent of last season but it wouldn’t have mattered. Now Vols have to shake off that ugly loss and get ready for ky. A good season can still be had.
What a crazy sec this year too. So much offense and so little defense. Whoda thunk it.
Take pride fuzz, That was a different mentality your Vols had out there last night. HBC JPruitt has certainly changed the culture in RockyTop. In this age of Big12 football fluff, I must confess Our defense is something special and a pleasure to watch…old school or not. Good luck yo your BlueTickers moving forward. Win em all
fuzzyvol01, It’s been a crazy season so far. Georgia looks to have a historically good defense, maybe even better than any fielded by Saban. But that’s still to be determined.
I thought UT looked like an improved team. They have a good defense, and the stats back that up. The Vols rank better than Alabama, LSU and Auburn. Who could’ve predicted that?
The offense is likely much better than they showed against GA.
I won’t be surprised if they don’t upset somebody before this season is over. Pruitt has it going in the right direction.
But but but… best o-line in the country!
Pruitt has them boys playing so hard!
What were the other reasons Tennessee was gonna beat us, fuzzy? I forgot. Oh, I’m sorry, let me put it in Pruitt-speak, “I done forgot.”
Also, how does it feel to have an illiterate redneck coach so stupid that he doesn’t even know how to wear a mask??? LOL!!!
Bruh take the win and move on
Uh…love my Dawgs, but don’t crown us kings of anything yet. We aren’t there yet.
You may not be king yet but I want to step forward and say this; my hot air about Florida beating Georgia at TWLOCP this year was enough to lift a balloon over any mountain in north Georgia. The Florida D is way behind several units in the SEC, not just Georgia’s. The Bulldogs, of course, have a game vs Bama this weekend but with a D and SB IV, the Dogs have bite! Kirby may have turned the corner against his mentor.
57939names, we will see. I still give the advantage to Alabama. They get the Dawgs at home and it looks like Georgia’s offense has at least as many holes as the Bama defense. I think it will be another classic between Saban and Kirby.
The drop-off of Grantham’s defense is surprising. But with that offense, I wouldn’t be so quick to write them off just yet.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Bama is the king of the SEC until someone dethrones them on the field and I’m not so sure we can do it next Saturday. It will be fun to hope and then watch but their receivers look like they’re from another planet and Mac drops dimes. We will have to find ways to get to him without blowing coverage for big plays.
Exactly, Bama is on a historic run and until they are beaten, no one in the SEC should crow about how they are the best in the SEC (are you listening Florida?)
10. To- – Grantham, where’s the D?
I’ve been calling Grantham the weak link for UF for two years.
8. That’s a $75 million man!
That felt like a UF – FSU game.
2. Nobody knows the rule? How?
Weird things happen at Jordan-Hare. Voodoo magic?
1. Georgia is king of the SEC East … or SEC?
Let’s stick with the East. Alabama is king of the hill until someone knocks them off.
Bama was beaten twice last season. Why would they be the king? Why are UGA fans playing modest now? Some talk all kinds of trash, so now’s not the time to play the underdog role. Man up.
Y’all had your season (and an awesome season it was) but check out the Saban/Bama era and tell me they aren’t king, any rational person with no SEC ties would say that they are.
When I speak about Alabama, I do so in terms of its current iteration with Nick Saban. Since Saban took over they’ve won the SECCG 6 times and played in another. That’s dominance. I don’t view it in terms of 1 game or 1 year.
Modesty? Not sure where that came from. Other than the 2007 meeting, the Tide has had UGA’s number. They’ve beaten us 5 times in a row.
5? That’s nothing. We almost doubled that.
LSU is really excited about not having to play UGA this year. Trust me.
We’re just not very good so far this year. None of us are thinking about UGA. That’s just all in your head.
That’s what I fear when we reach the summit again, that we’ll fall into the portolet with you guys the following year(s)
Little salty there.
KJ Costello-10 turnovers, 3 pick 6s in as many games. Guy is an absolute turnover factory; but can’t even one receiver manage to get open for him downfield…even once? IDK, but something very wrong is going on with those offensive players on the field.
For this year, Mike Leach is working with what he inherited (except for KJ). Let’s see how things are after a couple of recruiting cycles.
Yep, it’ll take a little time. I expect play to be much more solid a couple years from now. Biggest thing last two weeks though is how underneath it’s potential the offense is playing-especially the line. I mean, they cant even protect the QB that well with only three defenders coming at them.
I’ll trade you Guarantano for Costello…
You sure about that?
Kirby Smart hiring Charlton Warren is looking like a stroke of genius.
Georgia ranks No.1 SEC in Passing defense while Florida is No. 12.
I’m not sure if hiring Warren away from Florida helped UGA more or hurt Florida more. Either way this looks like an absolute Coup by Kirby Smart.
You boys in the Media are getting way ahead of yourselves with that Georgia is better than Alabama rat poison. No! Also, I seriously doubt the betting line will favor the Dawgs.
Ric Flair – To be the man, you gotta beat the man! It will be a very interesting game, but Georgia also has issues to resolve. We’ll see how it plays out soon enough.
The SEC officials just helped decide another close game with a bad call. Auburn just got lucky again. Seems some things never change.
I wonder, are most Auburn fans glad they got the gift or would they have rather seen Auburn lose that game. It could help keep Malzahn around for another year or three.
LOL! You hit the nail on the head, all the Aubie fans I know are officially OFF the Gus Bus. That W might cost them another season of cussing at their TV….
It’s funny to me how Bama and Florida look like identical teams right now. Lethal offense and terrible defense. Bama’s given up 1097 yards and 72 pts the last 2 weeks and Florida 872 yards and 65 pts, yet the media is getting way ahead of themselves with the Georgia is better than Bama “rat poison”, but Florida having no chance is spot on? I’m just trying to understand this rationale. I would think if both teams have the same issues, then neither would have a chance.
Joe, good point. It’s going to be interesting to see which one can improve their defense the most by the end of the season.
Both Alabama and Florida have stats comparable to LSU of 2019. Although both will have to maintain that for the rest of the season to keep that pace.
If Georgia, Alabama and Florida don’t get their weaknesses fixed, I don’t see any of them beating Clemson and likely Ohio St this year.
if you look beyond the stats, as you posted, you’ll see it goes beyond that. of same opponents, bama is 2-0 to uf’s 1-1. further, bama [saban] has earned the right of less scrutiny…until there’s an “L” next to their w/l record.
But there really isn’t that much difference. Florida fumbled, that’s the difference in the win loss column. A&M certainly didn’t stop the offense up to that point. I would think Dawg fans would be more confident facing Bama without much time to correct their defensive issues.
Joe, you want to play the “if not for the fumble” game? I can play that too. If not for the Aggie fumble and a couple of stupid penalties, Aggies win by double digits.
Joe, the reason UGA fans aren’t confident in facing Bama is because we’ve had great teams these past few years and had a lot of hope of finally winning another championship but Bama has been the reason why it didn’t happen. Yes, LSU last year destroyed us in the SECCG but that was a historic team that even Bama couldn’t overcome. Saban and Bama is the thorn in Kirby and UGA’s side that has stopped the best UGA teams I’ve seen from getting over the hump and winning a championship
Agree. Bama is the best team in CFB right now. I said it, Clemson.
I honestly still expect us to lose in Tuscaloosa on Saturday. If we win, it would be amazing, but our offense isn’t ready yet.
On December 19th our offense may just be ready then.
I have a few concerns about replacing Gus, and if they were to be alleviated then I’d be all for replacing him.
1) can we keep Kevin Steele? He’s been the best defensive coordinator we’ve had in my lifetime, at least that I can remember. It’s worth noting how thin our defense was yesterday. We were out alot of our key starters on defense or else the game wouldn’t have come down to a fumble controversy.
2) Can we actually get a great head coach that’s not just going to give us the same fits gus does?
Sometimes the devil you know is better than the one you don’t, but if the answer to my questions is yes then I’m all for it.
I completely agree. My biggest concern about getting rid of Malzahn is losing Steele. And also, who out there is available that would absolutely be better than Malzahn.
Auburn seems to like keeping it in the family. Malzahn replaced Chizik, and it worked for a while.
Why not replace Malzahn with Kevin Steele as the HC.
That’s who a good many people want. My only reservation there is his only prior HC job was at Baylor. And I think he only won 1 game in 2 years there, before being fired and replaced by Art Briles. Not that Steele can’t be a great HC, but I just feel like Auburn, while not a blue blood that could get a coach like Urban Meyer, is still a good enough program that we could get a HC that’s a proven winner. I thought Matt Rhule would have been a good fit, but he’s obviously not leaving the NFL to come to Auburn.
If UF loses to LSU the Cocktail Party could still be relevant if, as expected, Bama beats UGA.
Spencer Rattler….
Is Oklahoma in the SEC now?
Exactly. Chris, just by inserting the name Jalen Hurts in your comments about the Sooners it does not negate the title to your article. Read it again; it says SEC.
IF, big if, UGA is favored, I wonder how far back you would have to go to see the last time that Bama wasn’t favored at home.
I think last time they were an underdog at home would be 2007 against LSU….
Been a minute, that’s for sure.
I’ll believe UGA can beat Bama when they actually do it. Our D is special, but so is Bama’s offense. I suspect this will be a 4th quarter game between two superbly deep teams.
My sentiment exactly. We’re not exactly in prime position right now playing our 4th string QB and with an offense that’s had some terrible slow starts.
4th string? You guys are going to be a riot this week.
Having trouble with numbers & counting LSUSMC?
1) Jamie Newman, 2) Dwan Mathis, 3) JT Daniels, 4) Stetson Bennett IV
Neither Newman or Daniels have taken a snap. Newman jumped ship and Daniels still isn’t cleared. Turns out, Mathis isn’t very good. Why was he ahead of Bennett? Is Daniels still not cleared? Bennett is your starting QB.
I’d slow that roll on Mathis not being very good. The half he played was plagued by errors and penalties by people around him. He was moving the offense but flags were flying left and right. He needs more experience, but he has a cannon and a nice set of wheels. His first 25 minutes of live action following brain surgery is not the best barometer to judge him by.
I won’t argue that what Nix did was a fumble but how exactly do you claim Arkansas recovered the fumble. At no point in the scramble, after the fumble before the play was blown dead, did either side of possession or control of the ball. I also contend that had the whistle been held for a few more seconds, Auburn would have recovered it anyway (when the play blew dead 2 Auburn players and no one else were standing over the ball but just didn’t fall on it) and probably would have done so in better field position for the kick than the IG penalty that backed them up.
So yes, the refs literally blew this by blowing the play dead. I just think it’s the same result either way.
You obviously didn’t pay close enough attention. Joe Fouche, #7 for Arkansas, clearly recovered it. Hell, just watch the video above buddy.
That clip only shows the play up until the whistle was blown from an alternate angle. Find the full clip from the rear angle and you’ll see Fouche never had full control of the ball and it continued to be battled over for a few seconds after that clip you’re talking about with Auburn in position to fall on it for control.
I’ve watched it over and over again. He clearly has the ball. That’s probably the reason that EVERYONE is saying Arkansas got hosed. NFL officials, college officials, etc. Arkansas was the better to team. Y’all enjoy Chad Morris running y’all into the ground!
It is a hard thing to take knowing that if the officials had not botched it that the Hogs would have held on for the win. Even harder when an Arkansas player has the ball in his grasp as the official looks at him with the ball.
The ball was placed at the point of the foul. Maybe 2 yrds back. The fumble went a good 10-12 yards back. Pretty big difference.
Yes, Arky recovered, but the Auburn players stopped at the whistle.
And I think that’s why the rule exists for an inadvertent whistle. I actually think Arkansas would have recovered it anyway, but the rule isn’t written in a way the allows the ball to be given to the team most likely to recover it. This was one of those unfortunate situations that you can never really plan for until it actually happens. I expect some type of rule change to come from this. And I’m not goin to complain about it, but it never feels great to win on a “technicality.”
I agree (it really is a crazy year when I agree with an Auburn fan!) The rule should be changed to allow play to continue (assuming no safety issue), then sort everything out after the whistle.
The ruling makes no sense. The explanation was a fumble (as explained in the SEC press release), but because the whistle was blown early, no possession could be determined. However, the penalty assessed was intentional grounding. How can there be a fumble if it was intentional grounding (and vice versa?) Are dealing with quantum football where all possibilities can exist and the same time? Maybe Schrodinger’s cat is really a tiger
“I actually think Arkansas would have recovered it anyway, but the rule isn’t written in a way the allows the ball to be given to the team most likely to recover it.”
Umm, Arkansas did recover it. There’s no “Arkansas would have recovered it” or was “the team most likely to recover it.” Joe Foucha (#7) in white (that’s Arkansas) recovered the loose ball. No if’s and’s or but’s about it. Are you and AUtrueTigers the only 2 on this site who didn’t see it? If so, watch the the clip above from Geoff Schwartz. That’s Joe on the ground at the Refs feet with the ball in his possession. He even got up and gave the ball to the ref.
Now, if Arkansas doesn’t chase points with the two 2-pt conversions, that FG only ties the game. Or, if we don’t give up the TD on the blocked punt, maybe we win. Sad reality is, Auburn needed the refs help to beat Arkansas.
It’s obvious they shouldn’t have blown it dead. But when you put yourself in the officials shoes, it’s easier to see how easily they can mess a situation like this up. How many times have these refs seen someone spike the ball? Too many to count I’m sure. But I’m sure none of them have ever seen what happened yesterday happen. Even when it’s clear what they SHOULD have done, they’re all used to a QB spiking the ball and then blowing the play dead. I’m sure blowing the whistle was more out of habit in that situation, and then once it had already been blown, they probably all realized pretty quickly what had happened. But with that said, at that point they have to apply the rule for an “inadvertent whistle” since that’s what the rules state. This goes back to the saying that “you can’t prepare for something that’s never happened.”
UGA should have been ahead at the half 20-14 and that still includes Pickens dumb penalty allowing a scoring drive.
UGA handed UT a TD on the second snap and was chasing points and not kicking a FG in the 2nd quarter.
Neither of those boneheaded moves had anything to do with the other Orange team even being on the field.
I don’t think the going for the TD with the clock expiring as boneheaded…field goals aren’t going to beat Bama…
Alabama gained 94.6% of possible yardage in that game. That has to be a record and is truly amazing.
And needed every single but of it. It was such an embarrassing defensive performance. Worst I’ve ever seen from a Saban coached team. They looked like an overmatched FCS squad. Poor angles and tackling. The linebackers and safeties could’ve just sat the game out and had the same result. How does Pete see his defense get shredded by TEs in the middle of the field and RBs out of the backfield and make no adjustments whatsoever? He knew it was an issue after the 1st two games. He knows opposing OCs can see that weakness and exploit it but has done nothing about it. Dylan Moses looks unsure of himself and is costing himself money. And the DL? I’m at a lost. The DL has zero game changers. They got no push and very little pressure. Then to add insult to injury, they got gashed on the ground. Alabama’s DL has always had at least one player making a name for himself. If I were just a casual fan, I wouldn’t know who any of those guys are on the DL. This rambling went on longer than I intended. Point is, that performance was embarrassing, the coaches get an F, and my expectations for this season have been tempered. Alabama’s offense might be unstoppable but the defense is a liability, which is an understatement.
“Lose to LSU, and the Cocktail Party becomes irrelevant”
Huh?!?
If Alabama beats UGA, and UF beats UGA, UF wins the East even with a loss to LSU.
I can draw you a chart if it helps you understand.
I’m assuming he meant in the playoff picture. I don’t think chasing SEC Championship appearances is what Mullen is trying to do.
“Can’t remember the last time I thought Georgia was better than Alabama (Herschel era?),”
Considering Georgia beat them in 2002, 2003, and 2007, I’d say Georgia was probably better in those years.
You give yourself so much credit for recognizing the backwards snap, but you think UF can’t win the East if they lose to LSU?
So stupid.
And you think UGA hasn’t been better than Alabama since Herschel, despite UGA winning three SEC championships this century?
You don’t know as much about this sport as you give yourself credit for, dude.
Do the names “Dennis Franchione” and “Mike Shula” mean anything to you, or do you think Saban started coaching there in 1983?
This website is free and worth every penny.
I wish I had never heard the name “Dennis Franchione”. Ugh..
But I thought you were rooting for “the better story” which is Sideshow Dan the Clown finally triumphant in the East, Chris?
Why give up on “the better story” so soon?
Maybe because you know you were full of crap then and full of crap now?
There is a very noticeable lack of Tennessee fans on the site now. Blowing them out yet again is like spraying a can of Raid on the comment section of this site.
Fly fisher you have an excellent grasp of the obvious. I don’t know about all the new posters that seemed to cone out if the woodwork A week before the game but many posted congrats on other articles. I suppose we could keep posting about that a$$ kicking in the second half but wouldn’t that be pretty dumb. Give it a rest. You win handily. Georgia is the better team and we acknowledge that. You and cousin Corch need to move on as we will.
The blowout is over with. Now everyone is back to putting all the blame on J.G and wanting the coaches fired. SMH!
Bleedsvols, I actually think J G played pretty well considering. That second half looked a lot like the Bo Nix lead offense. The first half, especially with no running game was pretty good.
I think the second half results were more about the defenses second half adjustments and then throw in all that defensive depth rotating in and out and that was the predictable result.
Y’all are all too quick to blame JG. This isn’t all on JG. Someone needs to hold y’all’s o line coach accountable. You can’t have that much talent and rush for -1. No excuses.
UGAFlyfisherman, Tennessee need to think about making adjustments. Scheming should be done better too. Look what Missouri did! Made some good scheming on offense against LSU. That is what needed to be done. Look at Auburn Scheming on offense! That was high school scheming on offense!
10. Grantham, where’s the D?
Yes, defenses across the SEC have been more affected by the COVID disruptions than offenses. There’s a reason why. Summer camp was shortened this year and players weren’t able to work in their on-campus S&C programs since March. The big guys are out of shape. This probably affects 280-pound-plus interior defensive linemen the most. And that’s why Georgia’s quality front 7 depth is such a big deal this year.
But breaking news: The Ole Miss offense that put up 613 yards of total offense against Florida put up 647 on Alabama’s defense last night. In regulation. Incidentally, I’ve been trying to figure out who Matt Corral reminds me of. Last night I realized: Will Grier, only with better wheels.
But yes, Florida’s defense has problems. Conditioning aside, players are often out of position. I think Dexter and Carter need to be on the field at the same time.
However, Florida still has issues. Marco Wilson, who looked elite as a true freshman, is looking bad. He’s been getting beat consistently. True freshman Marco Wilson would have intercepted Mond’s last bomb to Chapman.
9. Even when you double team Kyle Pitts, it doesn’t work.
True. Hope he didn’t come down with turf toe yesterday. He was limping late in the game.
8. That’s a $75 million man!
Kellen Mond was superbly accurate yesterday, with a 69% CMP ratio. He’s usually closer to 57% when he throws 35+ passes. Why? Pretty much no pass rush pressure. If he plays a team that can get to the quarterback, he’ll revert back. It was a night and day difference watching the creativity of the Georgia blitzes yesterday versus the Florida blitzes.
7. Oklahoma benches Spencer Rattler.
I’m starting to think of a new rule for judging quarterbacks: If a kid is a prissy jerk on Netflix’ QB1, he’s probably going to have a checkered college career.
6. Will Gus ever send that message to Bo Nix?
Matt Jones, Kyle Trask and Matt Corral are true 5-star quarterbacks. Bo Nix is a 3-star development project with good size and a strong arm. Evaluators need to stop giving 5 stars to high school quarterbacks who put up numbers against their high school competition… who happen to be coaches’ sons. The developmental edge is a myth.
5. Bottom 5 of Power 5
(1) Mississippi State’s offense. K.J. Costello continues to remind us that most quarterback transfers are the result of losing their job to a better quarterback at their previous school.
(2) Georgia’s “front 7 toyed with [Tennessee’s offensive line] during a 2nd-half man-handling.” Don’t you mean Georgia’s front 14? That was the problem, although Tennessee’s offensive line didn’t appear to get much push even in the first half.
(3) Alabama’s defense: Ole Miss’ offense is good, right? Alabama’s secondary had several busted coverages last night against Ole Miss’ tight end. I suspect that will get fixed. And I suspect Stetson is going to be sacked a time or three this Saturday.
(4) Dan Mullen’s stadium capacity request. Mullen was venting. It was a bad look.
(5) LSU’s defense. Florida should be able to outscore LSU this week.
4. The 4 Playoff teams are…
If you think Georgia is better than Alabama, you weren’t watching Alabama’s offense last night. Or Georgia’s. Georgia’s offense won on turnovers and short fields. Give Stetson Bennett all the credit in the world as a scrambler with his wits about him (save for one play near the end of the game, after which I’m pretty sure he didn’t know which state he was in). But his shortcomings as a passer were apparent last night.
As for “Florida has a top-5 offense and bottom-5 defense. No way this version beats Georgia…” True about the first part, but I’m not so sure about the second part. I can see Florida winning an Alabama-Ole Miss type shootout with Georgia.
2. Nobody knows the rule?
The refs were confused because they’ve probably never seen a quarterback spike the ball backwards. The NCAA rule is that a ball thrown directly into the ground to conserve time after the ball has already touched the ground is an illegal forward pass. But of course, Nix effectively threw a backward pass. The refs should have let play continue, regardless of Auburn players standing around.
1. Georgia is king of the SEC East or SEC?
Surprise! Tennessee’s defensive line is better than its offensive line. Who knew? Unfortunately though, Tennessee was not immune to the conditioning issues affecting defensive big men this year.
Georgia was. As for “very few teams can withstand Georgia’s physicality,” the more correct statement would be “very few teams can overcome Georgia’s quality defensive line depth.” Georgia’s defense is both good and deep, but Alabama’s offense will outscore Georgia’s offense. I’m not sure it will be close.
Man, even when your team loses, Georgia wins in dominating fashion (albeit the second half) you still refuse to give credit to Georgia.
Christ.
“And that’s why Georgia’s quality front 7 depth is such a big deal this year.”
“Don’t you mean Georgia’s front 14? That was the problem, although Tennessee’s offensive line didn’t appear to get much push even in the first half.”
“Tennessee was not immune to the conditioning issues affecting defensive big men this year. Georgia was.”
“… very few teams can overcome Georgia’s quality defensive line depth.”
Those aren’t credits to how Georgia has been playing on the field.
You’re saying “Georgia only wins because they have depth.”
You didn’t talk about the adjustments made at half that made the secondary stick to the corners like glue. You didn’t mention anything about how Georgia’s defense always seems to make the right play and stick to their assignments. You never spoke once about how physical the front 7 was, just that they’re conditioned and have depth.
Say it with me…that Georgia defense is nasty…that’s all you have to say.
You do realize I’m a Gator, right? I prefer to leave the fawning comments about Georgia’s defense to others.
But yes, Georgia plays great assignment football. And Guarantano’s turnovers were forced by pressure from Georgia’s defense. Ojulari and Herring are elite pass rushers. Georgia’s defense dominated in the second half and gave Georgia’s offense short fields.
And I think I should get bonus points for commenting on a Florida article that Georgia’s blitzes are more creative than Florida’s.
As for your “say it with me…” I am a Gator. Just can’t do it.
Nash,
I think Bama has the offensive firepower and the talent on defense to be capable of beating UGA. Bama’s D will use this past weekend as motivation. I think UF has offensive firepower but their talent on defense combined with the coaching – just isn’t there. I don’t see how UF wins that one. I don’t think the UGA defense would allow UF to push them into a Big XII style shootout, and unfortunately for the Gators that’s the only way that UF could win.
You may be right. I only said I could see it happening. As of right now, I think Georgia would slow down Florida’s offense enough to get the win in Jax.
I think Alabama’s offense is better than Florida’s.
Nash, there were a number of reasons Mond looked better. I saw plenty of plays where Mond made completions with pressure in his face. That O-line is starting to give him that extra half a second that can make a big difference. The inexperienced receivers are actually winning more battles for contested passes (as in your Chapman reference). The o-lone getting that push in the run game. All of that combines to make any QB look better and have more confidence (which was sorely lacking in most of Mond’s other high stake games).
NashvilleGator, “Dan Mullen’s stadium capacity request. Mullen was venting. It was a bad look.”
I don’t believe that. Do you really think Mullen would deny such an advantage? No Mullen is lobbying for an unfair advantage plain and simple.
South Carolina’s offensive explosion against bottom feeder Vandy should not move Muschamp’s buns off the hot seat. If he follows this win up with another against Auburn then I’ll be more willing to cut him some slack. Otherwise it’s #FireMuschamp.
Wait! Texas A&M offense was bad against Vandy!
While the Stetson Bennett thing is nice he is not going into Alabama and pulling off a victory. Not to mention while Georgia’s defense is very good they haven’t faced a complete offense like they will see Saturday. Uga 24 Alabama 37
I don’t think Georgia beats bama with Stetson. I just don’t think he has the arm talent to really take advantage of that Bama secondary. He seems to always make the right decision on the long ball, just never has the arm strength.
There were several balls, a couple that were bailed out by penalties, that should have been long gains or touchdowns, that ended up being neither because of under throws. He has been playing excellent, but I worry that we get too far behind and need those plays. We left way too many points on the field yesterday.
I wonder if we’re behind if we see Dwan Or JT, or maybe even see Mathis earlier to mix it up.
I’m not as worried about the WLOCP as much as I was, not that because I think it is suddenly an easy win for Georgia, but because I think Georgia’s defense can make the stops necessary, and play keep away from Florida.
You may be right.
Didn’t mean to post that on your comment, but it’s not entirely irrelevant to your OP so it’s fine.
Just a PSA to get people to go sign the petition to “force the Ncaa and SEC to correct the score of the Arkansas-Auburn game.” That is all.
When I got up this morning and the headlines did not say Todd Grantham Fired I knew right then that while Dan Mullen is a good offensive mind he is not a good head coach. If it wasn’t a sin to wish someone was dead I’d be wishing that on Grantham I absolutely despise the piece of trash. He by himself has destroyed a good football team so here’s to hoping what he did to this team happens to his family.
Ole Miss had more total offense against Alabama than they did against Florida. I didn’t see any “Pete Golding Fired” headlines this morning.
Is Saban not a good head coach?
The difference is Alabama has not been like this 3 years running and they also won. Grantham goes to places that have good defenses and trashes them hence the reason he gets fired consistently. Like I said he is trash and I cannot wait until Mullen finally grows a pair and tells him good riddance.
There really should’ve been some “Fire Pete Golding” headlines. No excuse for last night’s performance. I’ve never seen an Alabama defense, under Saban, looked so unprepared and out of sorts.
Missouri game when Bazelak took over wasn’t a telling sign that the defense wasn’t as good as advertised?
One things for sure, “SEC Shorts” should be really, really good this week. They’ve easily got enough ammo to make one of the best (if not THE best) episode ever.
True.
Why did you doubt? The East has always run through Athens in the Smart era. Y’all just wanted to crown UF kings cause of Potts and Trask! Me thinks it might take a running game and defense too. We shall see.
*Pitts.
Credit to Georgia, their D-line gave us fits all game. What I’m wondering is if Georgia can get the same pressure on Mac Jones or if the defense can cover the deep balls. Also the run game for Georgia will be a massive determinant in this game. If they get held to 3 yards a carry for the majority of the game like we were able to it’ll be tough for the dawgs. I think Georgia should be favored though watching bama’s defense last week.
That is my concern as well.
OK. How ’bout we stop the chatter about the Big 12 plays no defense.
Have you checked out the ACC and SEC scores the last couple of years?
Yesterday. Bama 53 Ole Miss 46.
There are a lot of high powered offenses. VERY few defense powers.
Let’s be fair on the narrative. Thanks.
Since it’s such a unique season, can each Power 4 conference (sorry Pac-12) just send a super team to the playoffs? Who would stop an SEC team that had Alabama’s offense and Georgia’s defense? I don’t see two other units from any other team that are better.
Lol you could say that about several sec teams. Shoot ole miss O and UGA D would be unstoppable.