Upon further review, maybe we should have been more concerned about Dan Mullen’s tenuous tenure than Ed Orgeron’s.

Poor coaching is just one of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 7 in and around the SEC.

(And remember, even if you don’t like these overreactions, please refrain from throwing water bottles and golf balls at your computer. Tennessee fans, that was embarrassing and marred what was an otherwise outstanding performance.)

10. Dan Mullen’s bad personnel decisions are crushing the Gators

There were plenty of Gators fans who blasted Mullen’s decision to retain Todd Grantham after last year’s defense cost Florida a shot at a national title.

This year, Gators fans have blasted Mullen’s decision to stand by erratic quarterback Emory Jones.

Saturday, his embattled defensive coordinator and mistake-prone quarterback were the scapegoats in the Gators’ bad loss to a depleted but proud LSU team.

LSU ran for 321 yards. That’s fine if this is 2015 and they’re handing off to Leonard Fournette.

But this particular LSU team had rushed for 291 yards in 4 games against Power 5 opponents.

Ty Davis-Price nearly matched that output by himself Saturday. He broke Fournette’s single-game rushing record and finished with 287 yards and 3 TDs. Those TDs exceeded LSU’s combined total in those 4 games against Power 5 opponents.

Florida’s defense is a mess. Its QB carousel isn’t working. It’s apparently obvious to everybody except Mullen that Anthony Richardson is the guy.

But Mullen hates change. If he doesn’t adapt, his address might change.

9. Scariest sentence a Gators fan could hear …

“I’m a Gator right now.”

That’s what Richardson told a Rivals reporter after Saturday’s loss.

I don’t blame the kid for being frustrated.

He’s the guy. He knows he’s better than his buddy, Emory Jones. He should have been given the keys as soon as he returned from his hamstring injury.

Georgia went through this with Justin Fields. The Dawgs chose the wrong guy.

Mullen, whose “QB guru” label is under scrutiny, cannot follow the Dawgs lead and let Richardson get away.

Florida has a bye next week. I fully expect Richardson to start the Cocktail Party against Georgia as the Gators attempt to ruin the Dawgs’ run at perfection. He’s the only reason they have a chance.

8. 8 quirky questions that popped into my head Saturday

  1. Why does Bo Nix ever throw on the run? He was near-flawless Saturday. He’s 100% better when he sets his feet, and 92.3% of the times he throws on the run, he could have set his feet.
  2. Are you as thrilled as I am that Missouri gets a bye week to prepare for its Halloween weekend showdown against Vanderbilt?
  3. How was Jordan Davis just a mid-tier 3-star recruit?
  4. It’s better than the alternative, and Zeb Noland is one of my favorite stories of the year, but can South Carolina really celebrate a last-minute comeback win over Vanderbilt?
  5. Was Dabo Swinney a better coach when he had fewer blue-chip athletes or more blue-collar overachievers?
  6. Remember 2018, when we wondered why Georgia couldn’t rush the QB? That team registered just 24 sacks. These Dawgs already have 25.0.
  7. Is Lane Kiffin the biggest Rebel-rouser in SEC history? And which did he enjoy more: Beating Tennessee or watching Vols fans lose their mind? Holding up the golf ball they threw at him was a next-level mic drop.
  8. Will Mike Leach’s Air Raid offense ever score a TD against Nick Saban? Alabama shut out Mississippi State last year and allowed just 3 field goals Saturday.

7. I told you Iowa was a pretender

Purdue saved us from 2 more months of exhaustive talk about how the Hawkeyes deserved to be part of the Playoff field.

No. 2 in the country? Iowa is not even No. 2 in the B1G.

Speaking of No. 2, this was hysterical and gets Tweet of the Week honors …

Iowa is what Iowa always is: Good, but not elite.

6. Georgia? Yeah, the Dawgs are elite

Georgia defeated its 4th ranked team Saturday. Of the quartet, only Clemson stayed within a TD — and the Tigers didn’t even score a TD.

Georgia is toying with people — with its backup skill players playing leading roles.

5. 5 SEC jerseys that should be retired, too

Louisville announced it is retiring Lamar Jackson’s No. 8. He’ll join Johnny Unitas as the only 2 Cardinals to have received that honor.

SEC teams don’t retire a lot of jerseys. Certainly, they could retire a lot more.

Here are 5 jerseys that should be retired but are not. I get flashbacks every time I see them worn:

  • Alabama: Derrick Henry’s No. 2
  • Arkansas: Darren McFadden’s No. 5
  • Florida: Tim Tebow’s No. 15
  • Mississippi State: Dak Prescott’s No. 15
  • Texas A&M: Johnny Manziel’s No. 2

4. The 4 Playoff teams are …

1. Georgia, 2. Cincinnati, 3. Ohio State, 4. Alabama

You’re interested in Oklahoma, which rolled TCU with new QB Caleb Williams (295 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs). I’m more interested in Oklahoma State. The Cowboys have never really been part of the Playoff conversation. One reason: They’ve lost 6 straight to the Sooners. They play during the final week of the regular season, so there’s plenty of time for chaos to ruin what would otherwise be the biggest meeting in the rivalry’s history since 1984, when No. 2 Oklahoma beat No. 3 OSU.

As for Cincy? Analysts talk to fill time, so of course a large part of Saturday was spent dissecting and discussing the Bearcats’ résumé and worthiness. Cincy won the 2 games it had to win — impressively beating Indiana and Notre Dame in back-to-back road games. As long as they go undefeated, they’re in.

3. Does anybody motivate better than Coach O?

LSU was without just about every recognizable player it has Saturday against Florida. OK, that’s a slight exaggeration, but they were without 3 All-American candidates. They were coming off back-to-back losses. They couldn’t run. Their lone win vs. a Power 5 opponent was a 3-point escape job against Mississippi State.

Oh, and their head coach seemingly was coaching for his job.

So of course the Tigers got right. They ran for a season-high 321 yards. Ty Davis-Price set a school record with 287 rushing yards.

How did they do it? The only way Coach O knows.

“They came to fight,” he said.

I always go back to that with Orgeron, to the money line in our epic story about Orgeron’s rise to LSU head coach: “He could motivate a statue.”

That’s more than half of the battle, especially for an 11 a.m. kickoff with nothing more than pride at stake.

2. Brock Bowers is who I thought Isaac Nauta would be

Bowers, a freshman, caught 2 more TD passes Saturday.

He leads Georgia with 6 TD catches. That’s already more than touted, 5-star TE Isaac Nauta ever had in a season. Heck, Bowers only needs 2 more TDs to match Nauta’s career output.

What Bowers is doing is as remarkable as it is unlikely. He already is halfway to matching Kyle Pitts’ 12 TD catches last season. Again, he’s just a freshman, playing with a backup QB, pressed into duty originally because of injuries.

He’s there to stay now. And he’s going to be a problem for SEC defenses for at least 2 more years.

1. Is it time to start believing in Stetson Bennett?

I’ll say this: He’s better than he was last year. And Georgia’s defense is so good, and the lack of championship-caliber quarterbacks is so real, that “better than last year” is probably all Bennett needs to be to lead Georgia to its first natty since Herschel.