At this point, there are only 3 SEC teams who have yet to face Power 5 competition. That’s Auburn, A&M and Ole Miss, all of whom have unsettled quarterback situations (Ole Miss is much less settled than the others), but something tells me facing a Power 5 foe for the first time this week will expedite that process.

In other words, by this time next week, we’ll have gotten to see each SEC team face some legitimate competition. I put a whole lot more stock in that than anything else. Like, I default to the struggles Alabama had against Texas more than the cakewalk it had against Utah State. Obviously. I’m not breaking any news by saying that.

I predict that we’ll soon have a pretty good feel for what to expect from SEC squads in 2022. Here’s what I expect to see from each of them in Week 3.

Georgia vs. South Carolina — Stetson Bennett IV vs. Spencer Rattler is a wild side-by-side

Who do you think will look like the more developed, pro-ready player? The 24-year-old former walk-on who won a national championship or the guy who was projected as the No. 1 overall pick 13 months ago? The fact that that’s now a legitimate question is wild.

Bennett’s poise is something that’ll benefit him in front of what should be a raucous environment at Williams-Brice. Rattler’s poise will be tested with that struggling South Carolina offensive line against a Georgia defensive line who lost a lot of talent, but still boasts projected top-5 pick Jalen Carter. Even with all that turnover, this will be the best defense Rattler has faced in his career. If he can get time to let plays develop and keep up with Bennett with some of those next-level throws, South Carolina will have a chance to at least stay on the field with the defending national champs.

Youngstown State vs. Kentucky — A defensive hangover?

I do wonder about that with how well Kentucky fired off the ball in that win in The Swamp. The Cats played like a team possessed, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Jordan Wright’s return paid dividends and a team loaded with talent in the front 7 looked like 2018 all over again. Against Youngstown State, it’d be easy for the Cats to take their foot off the gas after earning an AP top-10 ranking for the first time since 2007. Perhaps a sluggish start is in store, but that shouldn’t necessarily change the outcome against a 3-win FCS team.

Plus, Mark Stoops will have plenty of juice to face his hometown team.

Abilene Christian vs. Mizzou — It’d be nice to see Sam Horn

I get it. Ideally, Eli Drinkwitz would preserve the true freshman’s redshirt and he’d get a year to learn the system. If you turn to Horn to suddenly be the starter, you risk exposing him too early and perhaps dividing a locker room who might believe that Brady Cook can be a successful SEC quarterback. But it would be nice if we could see the baseball star get an opportunity to run the offense. This is Year 3 and Drinkwitz has yet to produce even just an average quarterback, which is a problem for an offensive-minded coach. Mizzou fans are desperate for any signs of offensive life after the Kansas State drubbing. Seeing the decorated blue-chip recruit behind center could provide a much-needed shot to the arm.

Ole Miss vs. Georgia Tech — I mean, Lane Kiffin has to name a starter … right?

Here we are in Week 3 and Kiffin continues to not tip his hand on the Ole Miss starting quarterback. One might’ve assumed that Luke Altmyer’s upper body injury opened the door for Dart. Maybe it did and we’ll see Dart start and finish the game against Georgia Tech. Alternatively, we could see Kiffin continue to roll out a 2-quarterback system of sorts as long as Altmyer is still healthy. Both have had their moments running the offense, but neither has been named the starter because they both have had their struggles, too. I’d expect a starter to emerge against a Georgia Tech squad who fell apart against a rather lackluster Clemson offense in Week 1.

Penn State vs. Auburn — Testing Joey Porter Jr. would be an easy way for TJ Finley to get benched

Just don’t do it. If you’re Bryan Harsin, you’d better make sure that Finley is aware of the Penn State corner at all times. He’s got Jaycee Horn vibes to him. As in, if you pick on him, he can take over a game. Finley has been a bit turnover-prone throughout his career. He already has 3 turnovers against a pair of non-Power 5 foes, and he averaged 1 interception for every 33.6 attempts in his career. We don’t really know how tight of a hold Finley has on the starting job. Sure, he won the job out of camp, but Robby Ashford has been impressive in flashes, and Zach Calzada would love to get another opportunity to run an SEC offense.

Finley cannot afford to make ill-advised throws against a defense like this, especially with Porter playing at such an elite level.

Vanderbilt vs. Northern Illinois — I don’t have much faith in the Vandy pass defense

Part of that is because we just watched the Commodores allow another 300-yard game, albeit to a high-powered Wake Forest attack. Allowing 343 yards to FCS Elon was the real head-scratcher. So no, against Michigan State transfer Rocky Lombardi, I don’t expect the Vandy pass defense to step up. The 5th year senior is coming off a MAC Championship, and he’s got an offense who ranks No. 15 in the country in percentage of returning production. He should go off against an unproven Vandy pass defense.

That’s not all on the secondary. Vandy is tied for dead last in FBS in sacks per game (0.75). If the Commodores can’t get a pass rush Lombardi will pick that secondary apart.

UL Monroe vs. Alabama — Now would be a good time for Jermaine Burton to become a focal point

I wasn’t someone who thought Burton was ready to become the next great Alabama receiver. Why? He had that opportunity at Georgia when George Pickens went down with a torn ACL in the spring, and Burton was held to 27 catches in 15 games. At Alabama, that can’t fly. Not with the turnover that the Tide had at receiver, as well as the early-season injuries to JoJo Earle and Tyler Harrell. Burton had a rough showing against Texas. He was nearly invisible on an afternoon in which Bryce Young needed help. It was great that Burton got into the end zone twice in the opener, but he needs to start helping the Alabama offense move the chains.

He played in the slot a lot more than usual, which was probably a byproduct of the aforementioned Earle injury. Wherever Burton lines up, he’s gotta start getting separation and making plays between the 20s.

MSU vs. LSU — If I’m an LSU fan, I’m worried about Jayden Daniels vs. Zach Arnett’s defense

I get that the opener wasn’t necessarily a fair thing to judge Daniels on. It was Game No. 1 in a new system. Up until those final 2 drives, he looked overwhelmed by FSU’s pressure. If you’ve seen MSU this year, you’ve seen how quickly they pursue and how well they rush the quarterback out of Arnett’s 3-3-5. Tyrus Wheat has been a man on a mission, and if you don’t know the name “Jett Johnson,” you will by game’s end. This is a daunting matchup for Daniels because of the experience he’s up against. MSU had the SEC’s No. 3 run defense last year, and this year, 17 of its 22 players on the defensive 2-deep are in Year 3 in Arnett’s defense. It shows, and it could show in a big way on Saturday in Baton Rouge.

Missouri State vs. Arkansas — A Bobby Petrino reunion! And a chance for more Malik Hornsby

Ah, yes. The return of the neckbrace. My, how time has flown the last decade. We’re blessed that we get to go down memory lane leading up to this one.

As far as the game, yeah, Missouri State is a top-5 FCS team. It’s also not a team that Arkansas should struggle with. I’d be surprised if the ground game didn’t go to work early and often, but KJ Jefferson and Rocket Sanders need to preserve their bodies for the meat of SEC play. This is the perfect opportunity to let Hornsby get some significant reps and maybe even show some more wrinkles of him at receiver. Hornsby has only been on the field for 5 passing plays so far this year. Now might be a good time to get Jefferson and Sanders some early rest while showcasing the guy Jefferson likened to Tyreek Hill.

Akron vs. Tennessee — The Vols are catching Akron at the right time

Because in 2-3 years, my guy Joe Moorhead will have the Zips rollin’. Book it. But yes, this matchup did come at a nice time for Tennessee because Akron in Year 1 with Moorhead doesn’t have the firepower to keep up with this high-powered Tennessee offense. To be fair, very few will. But after winning a hard-fought game at Pitt, Josh Heupel would probably prefer to give his starters a game with fewer than the 79 snaps many of them played this past weekend. Why? Look what awaits after Akron:

  • vs. Florida
  • Bye
  • at LSU
  • vs. Alabama

Yep, now is a good time for a comfortable win.

South Florida vs. Florida — This is an important juncture in the Billy Napier-Anthony Richardson relationship

It’s no secret that the duo grew incredibly close in their first offseason together. After a humbling showing against Kentucky, Richardson and Napier now have a get-right matchup with USF. Like, the team that Richardson torched in Tampa last year. Richardson doesn’t need to make viral plays. He does, however, need to find his throwing rhythm. Todd McShay pointed out on the ESPN broadcast that too many of Richardson’s throws were on the same line. He’s still working to develop that touch, especially when things aren’t going his way. The efficiency has to improve if Florida is going to go blow-for-blow with the high-powered Tennessee offense in Knoxville next week.

Better days are ahead for Richardson. One of those better days will be on Saturday.

Miami (FL) vs. Texas A&M — How tight is the Haynes King leash?

When you gain 9 first downs in a loss to Appalachian State, you’d better believe your job is on the line. The question is what would Jimbo Fisher need to see to actually pull the plug on King against Miami? Remember, this is still Kevin Steele on the other side of that Canes defense. He frustrated many an SEC quarterback during his time at Auburn. He could perplex King all the way to the sidelines if some major adjustments aren’t made.

Fisher said afterwards that he had hoped to give Johnson some reps if they had more possessions in the 2nd half. The irony, of course, is that A&M couldn’t get more possessions in large part because King’s performance. Fisher said all offseason that the battle between King and Johnson was extremely close. If A&M is staring at a 1-2 start with a halftime deficit after more offensive struggles, Fisher’s only move will be to bring in the LSU transfer. At least it better be.