In the blink of an eye, we’ve hit Halloween weekend and the turn to the homestretch of the college football season. The best regular season in sports is also the shortest, making the drama set to unfold over the season’s final weeks somewhat bittersweet.

There’s plenty of drama to come in the SEC.

Left for dead after an early season loss to Texas, Alabama has stormed back to life, finding an identity behind sensational defense and special teams and just enough from Jalen Milroe, who seems to make bigger plays each week.

 

The Crimson Tide are 7-1 and unbeaten in the league after rallying to beat Tennessee last Saturday, and they’ll be favored to all but wrap up an SEC West title when LSU visits Tuscaloosa in 2 weeks.

Alabama played beautifully to help heal the eyes of any SEC fans who witnessed the leather helmet carnage that was Miss State and Arkansas. How bad was it? Neither team had 100 yards passing. One quarterback (KJ Jefferson, who until he had to play behind this offensive line was quite good at football) had a 3.1 yard per attempt passer rating. Miss State managed 10 first downs and converted 1 3rd down … and won. Hobbes said life is nasty, brutish and short. Saturday’s game in Fayetteville was nasty and brutish. Unmercifully, it did not feel short.

For the second time this season, there was a brilliant game on The Plains that Auburn ended up losing. The biggest reason? A resurgent Quinshon Judkins, who went over the 100-yard mark for the 2nd time in 3 games and added at least 1 touchdown for the 3rd straight game.

 

The performance put Judkins back in the “List” this week, and a strong finish could will keep him there, which as we all know is the biggest individual goal of any player in the SEC outside of the Heisman Trophy. Or not.

Last week’s “List” is here. In keeping with injured player tradition, Brock Bowers, who has been No. 1 or 2 on this list for the past month, is off the list this week and will remain so until he returns from injury. That does not mean he’s forgotten, and we at SDS can’t wait to see the dominant tight end back soon.

As always, honorable mention first, limited to two per program.

Honorable Mention: Alabama: QB Jalen Milroe, K/P Will Reichard; Arkansas: LB Jaheim Thomas; Auburn: DB Jaylin Simpson, LB Eugene Asante; Florida: QB Graham Mertz, WR Ricky Pearsall; Georgia: C Sedrick Van Pran, QB Carson Beck; Kentucky: LB D’Eryk Jackson, DB Maxwell Hairston; LSU: LB Harold Perkins Jr., OL Garrett Dellinger; Missouri: QB Brady Cook; OT Javon Foster; MSU: S Shawn Preston Jr., LB Nathaniel Watson; Ole Miss: QB Jaxson Dart, RB Quinshon Judkins; SC: LB Debo Williams, WR Xavier Legette; Tennessee: LB Aaron Beasley, CB Kamal Hadden; Texas A&M: DB Josh DeBerry, DL Shemar Turner; Vanderbilt: S CJ Taylor, OL Bradley Ashmore.

10. James Pearce Jr., Edge (Tennessee)

The Vols’ defense was “as advertised” for a half at Alabama but fell apart in the second half, unable to deal with Alabama’s balance. Pearce Jr. didn’t play poorly: He had a sack and 3 quarterback pressures. He just wasn’t as impactful as he has been, a testament to Alabama bringing in extra help and Pearce generating 0 pressures when lined up with Crimson Tide tackle JC Latham. Pearce is still one of the conference’s best pass rushers on a defense that ranks an outstanding 19th nationally in SP+ defensive efficiency.

9. Quinshon Judkins, RB (Ole Miss)

Judkins has run for over 350 yards in Ole Miss’s past 3 games — all wins. He carried the ball for 124 yards at a season high 5.9 yards per carry in Saturday night’s win at Auburn, his 2nd 100-yard rushing performance in the past 3 contests. On the season, Judkins ranks 6th in the SEC in rushing yards, but he is top 5 in success rate, yards after contact and touchdowns (7). If Ole Miss is going to start running the ball effectively, it might still factor into who wins the SEC West, with a little help from LSU.

8. Malaki Starks, S (Georgia)

Starks grades out as college football’s best safety, per PFF. While he struggled on the road at Vanderbilt, giving up a rare touchdown catch and another deep pass play, Starks is the anchor and captain on the field for the SEC’s top defense, which enters the Florida game Saturday ranked 10th in the country in total defense, 8th in success rate defense and 7th in SP+ defensive efficiency.

7. Cody Schrader, RB (Missouri)

What an incredible story Shrader has been at Missouri. It’s truly stranger than a Hollywood script.

With 0 — yes 0 — Division I offers out of high school, Schrader became a star at Division II Truman State, where he ran for over 2,000 yards and earned Great Lakes Valley Conference Player of the Year honors in 2021. That’s a great story by itself for most of us mere mortals, but Schrader bet on himself and a bet by Eli Drinkwitz that he could help Missouri win, even if he just played special teams. Less than 2 years later, Schrader now leads the SEC — yes, the SEC — in rushing yards, which he seized with 159 yards in Missouri’s rout of South Carolina on Saturday in CoMo.

 

A powerful runner who ranks in the top 5 in the SEC in yards after contact, Schrader now has 807 yards rushing this season, good for 9th in the country. He also leads the SEC in rushing touchdowns, with 9.

On an offense that is piling up points thanks to marvelous balance, Schrader is the yin to Luther Burden III’s yang — and a huge reason Missouri has given itself a chance down the stretch to stun the college football universe and play for the SEC Championship this season.

6. Connor Tollison, C (Missouri)

The Tigers center handled Missouri’s Joe Moore Award semifinalist snub (the award honors the nation’s best offensive line) about like you’d expect, with 3 pancake blocks and key blocks like this one on Cody Schrader touchdown runs.

 

Tollison grades out as college football’s best run blocking center on a Tigers offense that ranks in the top 25 nationally in success rate offense, 30th in total offense and 18th in SP+ offensive efficiency.

5. Edgerrin Cooper, LB (Texas A&M)

Cooper ranks 2nd in the SEC in quarterback pressures (35), 5th in sacks and No. 1 in tackles for loss (13.5).

It’s been another disappointing season overall for Texas A&M, but the defense has held its end of the bargain, ranking 2nd in the SEC in total defense and success rate defense. Cooper grades out as the best player on that outstanding defense, per PFF.

4. Luther Burden III, WR (Missouri)

If you double cover Luther Burden III, it might not matter. That’s what I learned about the star wide receiver last weekend in Missouri’s big win over the Gamecocks.

 

Burden’s 61 receptions lead the SEC, and he ranks 2nd in yards and 4th in touchdowns as Missouri readies for a date with top-ranked Georgia on Nov. 4.

3. Dallas Turner, LB (Alabama)

The Crimson Tide junior has 8 sacks, 2 forced fumbles and a SEC-leading 37 quarterback pressures. He’s the most disruptive player on a defense full of playmakers, and he does it from a variety of spots on the field, with snaps taken at linebacker and on the edge of the defensive line. Turner was sensational in Saturday’s win over rival Tennessee, collecting 5 tackles (2 for loss, including a sack).

2. Malik Nabers, WR (LSU)

Nabers continues to score touchdowns and rip off chunk plays at a prolific rate. Yes, the opponent last weekend was just Army, but he caught 4 passes at a 30-yard per reception clip with 2 touchdowns to bring his season total to 9. Nabers grades out as the nation’s best wide receiver, per PFF, and would earn my vote for the Biletnikoff Award if the season ended tomorrow. Fortunately for LSU fans, it does not, and Nabers can still help LSU push for a return trip to Atlanta with a strong November.

1. Jayden Daniels, QB (LSU)

The LSU senior continued his Heisman Trophy push with a 4 touchdown performance (3 passing, 1 rushing) against Army in a 62-0 win. Daniels’ dominance statistically is Burrow-like: He leads the SEC in yards, yards per attempt, touchdown passes, quarterback rating and touchdown-to-interception ratio (25-3). The Tigers’ star has added 551 yards rushing and 5 touchdowns on the ground for good measure, and his Heisman buzz is rightfully picking up, especially as candidates like last year’s winner, USC quarterback Caleb Williams, fade from the spotlight. It may be hard to catch Michael Penix Jr. and win the award, but the LSU star should be at the ceremony come December, and has a month of football left to make his case.