Week in and week out, players and teams surprise us with their performances. We saw several surprises this weekend with an incredible slate of conference games.

Who or what made our cut of the biggest surprises of Week 7?

Georgia’s performance without Gurley: Who saw that coming? What the Georgia Bulldogs did in Columbia on Saturday afternoon without its best player was beyond impressive. Hutson Mason played his best game of the season, and Nick Chubb did a fine job handling the bulk of the carries. But it was the defense, who forced five Missouri turnovers, that impressed. The front seven gave Maty Mauk absolutely no time and Marcus Murphy had no success running the football. After hearing how Gurley’s loss would impact the ‘Dawgs in a big SEC East game, they put forth their best effort. This team is now in the driver’s seat to win the division.

The first three minutes in Starkville: It was a matchup of two of the SEC’s most experienced teams. But on Saturday afternoon inside Davis-Wade Stadium, it was a mismatch. Three and a half minutes into the game and two turnovers later, Auburn found itself down 21-0, only fueling a record crowd that was rabid all day long. The Tigers looked shell-shocked and rattled by what had happened. With the confidence Mississippi State is playing with and how electric that environment was, no team in the country would’ve gone to Starkville and won.

Jeff Driskel’s performance: It wasn’t a great performance, but it wasn’t his worst. Driskel completed 14 of 25 passes for 183 yards and one touchdown. He also ran it 21 times for 71 yards and a touchdown. Driskel made some really nice throws throughout the game that it seems like he hadn’t made in a couple years. He kept his team in the game, and the Gators had a chance to win if not for the wacky series of events in the final seconds.

Kentucky’s one win away from bowl eligibility: Mark Stoops, along with the two Mississippi coaches, has to be in contention for SEC Coach of the Year. For the first time in a long time, Wildcat fans still care about Kentucky football midway through October. The Wildcats sit at 5-1 and could be 6-0, if not for a few calls that went the way of the Florida Gators last month in Gainesville. But if you had asked any Kentucky fan about the ‘Cats needing just one more win to become bowl eligible just eight weeks into the season, I don’t know that anyone would’ve believed you.