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And we’re off.
Week 1 is in the books, which is a good thing for a handful of SEC teams that would rather forget it happened. Week 2 will present a chance to move on for the likes of Texas A&M, Florida and LSU. As for everyone else, well, 2-0 is on the table.
It’s quietly a solid slate of games with 6 “Core 4” nonconference matchups and the first SEC matchup of the year with South Carolina traveling to Kentucky.
Here are my early thoughts on each Week 2 game in the SEC:
USF vs. Alabama — Throw last year’s game into the Gulf of Mexico
Not to take away from anything that Alex Golesh’s squad did in a mess of a football game, but Alabama’s showing in Tampa last year should be ancient history. For starters, Jalen Milroe didn’t even play. USF’s defense turtled after that game while Alabama’s offense took off. Kalen DeBoer will have a different game plan than whatever Tommy Rees attempted to do. I’d expect the Tide to lean on that interior o-line with a healthy dose of Justice Haynes and Jam Miller. USF is No. 8 in FBS in percentage of returning production from a 7-win team — Byrum Brown is much better than he was when Alabama faced him last year — so don’t overlook a potential slow start. Just don’t bank on a repeat.
Arkansas vs. Oklahoma State — Containing Ollie Gordon II isn’t likely, but it’s not impossible
The nation’s leading rusher from 2023 is going to get a ton of work, and he’ll inevitably test Travis Williams’ defensive line. In all likelihood, he’ll hit the century mark by day’s end. But the better question for Landon Jackson and the Hogs’ front is if they can prevent Gordon from getting chunk plays. South Dakota State held Gordon to less than 4.0 yards per carry in the opener, and his longest run of the day was 12 yards. A repeat of that is the only way that Arkansas will make it a 60-minute game in Stillwater.
Cal vs. Auburn — Let’s see the Year 2 offensive transformation
Last year, I thought Eugene Asante won Auburn that game in Berkeley. Also, Jaydn Ott going down didn’t help Cal’s case down the stretch. This year, Auburn shouldn’t need anything other than a prepared Year 2 offense to beat Cal at Jordan-Hare. Payton Thorne certainly looked the part in the opener, albeit against FCS competition. Hugh Freeze will have more faith in Thorne to move the ball downfield this year compared to his 9-completion effort at Cal last year.
Samford vs. Florida — I’m assuming that DJ Lagway will get his first career start
Billy Napier said that Lagway will be getting the first-team reps with Graham Mertz in concussion protocol. While Mertz hopefully makes a full recovery, the only positive from him being banged up against Miami was that Lagway should get some valuable reps. The former Gatorade National Player of the Year will be tasked with jump-starting a Florida offense that struggled to do much of anything outside of Montrell Johnson Jr.’s long touchdown run in the second quarter. Lagway should get a favorable matchup to dazzle … and possibly make even more fans clamor for him to become QB1.
Tennessee Tech vs. Georgia — Will Trevor Etienne play?
Kirby Smart said didn’t insist that Etienne’s suspension for his offseason DUI arrest would end at 1 game. He instead left the door open for a multi-game suspension by saying it’s “not necessarily” 1 game. That’s significant because if Etienne misses more time, it opens up another opportunity for Nate Frazier, who was UGA’s leading rusher in his first college game. Frazier will get an even more favorable matchup to do some damage and perhaps earn more reps if and when Etienne does return to action for his UGA debut.
South Carolina vs. Kentucky — That UK -10 line is pretty telling
DraftKings Sportsbook has Kentucky as a 10-point favorite. That’s interesting because Shane Beamer has 2 consecutive victories against Mark Stoops. Why are the Cats heavy favorites? Well, the South Carolina offense didn’t exactly inspire a ton of confidence against Old Dominion. Yes, there were a lot of new pieces, but the experienced Gamecocks offensive line couldn’t take over in the way that Beamer and the Gamecocks hoped. Now, that group will face Deone Walker and that talented Kentucky front. Rocket Sanders and LaNorris Sellers will be relied on heavily, especially if South Carolina doesn’t want to test Maxwell Hairston and the UK secondary. It could be tough sledding for a Gamecocks offense that desperately needs to find an identity.
Nicholls vs. LSU — To quote Brent Key, run the baaaaawl
Brian Kelly said before the USC game that he needed his decorated offensive line to take over. He then watched that group pave the way for 3 rushing yards on 6 carries in the 4th quarter. Against an FCS foe Saturday, that group needs to get some positive vibes back. There weren’t enough of those outside of a few inspired John Emery runs. In a post-Jayden Daniels world, that traditional run game can’t be a non-factor if LSU is going to be in the 12-team Playoff conversation.
Mississippi State vs. Arizona State — This is a nice early-season test for a new-look MSU defense
I didn’t enter 2024 with much confidence in the Mississippi State defense. The turnover on that side of the ball had me skeptical, especially playing alongside an offensive style that doesn’t yield complementary football. But if the Bulldogs can travel across the country and look the part against a Kenny Dillingham-led Arizona State offense, that’ll make me feel better about their chances of competing for a bowl berth. Containing Michigan State transfer Sam Leavitt would be a welcome sight for the Bulldogs, who are touchdown underdogs on the road, via FanDuel Sportsbook.
Buffalo vs. Mizzou — Let’s see Brady Cook get that deep ball going
It’s not that I’m saying Cook struggled in the opener. But there were some throws that you could tell he wanted back. Overthrowing that talented group of pass-catchers — he even sailed an easy throw in the flat to tight end Brett Norfleet — could’ve just been the byproduct of playing in a season-opening game as a preseason No. 11 team in front of a sellout home crowd that wasn’t booing him. The guy was fired up. But in another favorable matchup, I’d like to see Kirby Moore incorporate some shot plays to get some of those Week 1 deep-ball issues ironed out.
Houston vs. Oklahoma — OU’s 3rd-down issues have to turn around
Oklahoma’s first-team offense was 0-for-10 on 3rd down in the blowout win against Temple. That was the bizarre stat of the night for a Sooners offense that showed promise with Jackson Arnold, but left plenty of opportunities on the board. A depleted group of receivers could’ve played a part in that, but against a defensive-minded coach in Willie Fritz, Oklahoma isn’t guaranteed to figure that out just because the Cougars couldn’t stop UNLV. Oklahoma OC Seth Littrell would like to find that identity before the gauntlet really begins.
Middle Tennessee vs. Ole Miss — Is Walker Howard really the third-string QB?
I’ll be honest. Lost in the shuffle of everything that happened in Week 1 was the fact that not only was freshman 2-sport athlete Austin Simmons listed as QB2 ahead of Howard, but he played significantly more reps than the former LSU transfer. That’s a noteworthy development because Howard was viewed as the quarterback of the future after he left LSU for Ole Miss last year. Simmons played nearly the entire second half while Howard didn’t get in until the final 2 minutes of a 76-0 game. Yikes. Maybe Lane Kiffin has a true battle for the QB2 spot and the roles will be reversed this week, but it looks like there’s a pretty clear pecking order behind Jaxson Dart.
NC State vs. Tennessee (in Charlotte) — The NC State defense has its work cut out, but not just because of Nico Iamaleava
NC State is eager to show that it was more than just 2023 Butkus Award winner Payton Wilson, who’ll be playing on Sundays this fall. In the opener against Western Carolina, that looked like it was easier said than done. Against Tennessee, the Wolfpack could have an uphill climb all day, even if Iamaleava does experience some growing pains in his third career start (but I wouldn’t bank on that). Why? Tennessee running back Dylan Sampson is a weapon. His burst was evident last year, and with RB1 duties this year, early signs are that he’ll get a full opportunity to run Josh Heupel’s ever-potent ground attack. Sampson’s presence as a 3-down back could be the difference in the neutral-site matchup.
Texas vs. Michigan — This is where Texas needs that WR depth to show up and show out
Steve Sarkisian said that as much as Texas will miss Xavier Worthy and AD Mitchell, this group of Texas pass-catchers should be deeper than any group he’s had. It better be because you know that Michigan All-American cornerback Will Johnson is winning that battle on the outside more times than not. Sarkisian typically likes to move his outside guys around a bit, so he could have transfers Isaiah Bond (Alabama) and Matthew Golden (Houston) lined up in the slot to create some of those mismatches. In a game in which I’m not sure Texas would prefer to run the ball at Mason Graham and that Michigan defensive front, Quinn Ewers’ trust in his new-look pass-catchers will be vital on the road in a top-10 matchup.
McNeese vs. Texas A&M — Good offensive vibes are needed
Conner Weigman looked sick to his stomach in the second half. Oh … that’s because he literally was sick to his stomach (not sure why the ABC cameras felt the need to show us that, but sure). Weigman needs to have a real game in which the Collin Klein concepts have success. Against Notre Dame, there was none of that. McNeese won’t be able to pressure Weigman as the Irish did. There should be some easier situations for the passing game against an FCS foe. And if not, then it’s officially time to worry about the 2024 A&M offense.
Alcorn State vs. Vanderbilt — Let’s see the encore from Diego Pavia
The Co-SEC Offensive Player of the Week played the underdog role well in a statement win against Virginia Tech in his debut. Let’s see how the New Mexico State transfer handles a week in the spotlight with an FCS foe coming to town. Also, will Tim Beck run Pavia as much? I hope not. Vandy needed every bit of his 26-carry performance to knock off the Hokies. That shouldn’t be the case against Alcorn State.
Then again, who are we kidding? The more Pavia, the better.
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Connor O'Gara is the senior national columnist for Saturday Down South. He's a member of the Football Writers Association of America. After spending his entire life living in B1G country, he moved to the South in 2015.
