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As always, the SEC delivered some exciting moments over the weekend. But we aren’t here to discuss those, we are here to talk about the moments that weren’t so exciting.
These are the teams and players who failed to live up to expectations and left a lot to be desired.
Here’s who disappointed us the most in Week 7.
Georgia’s fourth-down play-calling: The Bulldogs should have never been in a close game against Vanderbilt between the hedges, but they were. Still, an ugly win is always better than a loss, and that’s what was one the line for Georgia as it drove down the field for a game-winning score.
The team faced a 4th-and-1 on its final drive, which proved problematic for the Bulldogs. After Georgia lined up Nick Chubb as a fullback and motioned receiver Isaiah McKenzie to tailback, Missouri called a timeout to rethink its defense. Following the timeout, Georgia lined up in the same exact formation and ran a sweep to McKenzie who was stopped short of the first down.
With a player like Chubb in the backfield, it was surprising to see the Bulldogs pitch the ball to one of their smallest players. The call didn’t work, and Georgia lost to Vanderbilt.
More problematic? After the game, Kirby Smart said they got exactly the look they wanted.
Mississippi State: Despite returning several starters, the Bulldogs have taken a big step back in 2016. Losing Dak Prescott, arguably the greatest Bulldog, obviously hurts, but Dan Mullen and his team no longer look like the threat they once were.
Mississippi State’s two victories this season have come against South Carolina and UMass. The Bulldogs lost their season opener against South Alabama and just dropped another out-of-conference game at BYU in overtime. This isn’t the type of season many were expecting as Mississippi State tried to turn the page on the Prescott era.
Missouri’s passing game: The Tigers entered Saturday’s game at Florida as the eighth-best passing offense in the nation. It looked to be a strength-on-strength matchup for Missouri and the Gators’ intimidating secondary. Instead, it was a completely one-sided affair.
The Tigers mustered only 98 passing yards, and Drew Lock threw a pair of interceptions that were returned for touchdowns. It was the second consecutive game in which Missouri’s offense was held in check, and the Tigers need to prove that they are capable of executing against more than overmatched opponents.
Tennessee’s run game: Another highly-anticipated matchup was Saturday afternoon’s showdown between Alabama and Tennessee. Although the Crimson Tide were favored, the Vols have showed incredible toughness throughout the season and many believed they would put up a great fight. Except, that never happened.
Tennessee’s offense is largely based around the ability to run the football. Whether it be Joshua Dobbs, Jalen Hurd or Alvin Kamara, the run game acts as a catalyst for the rest of the offense. Against Alabama, the Vols had almost no room to run the football. Tennessee ran the ball 32 times for 32 yards. That’s 1 yard per attempt.
Tennessee was without four starting offensive linemen, not exactly a recipe for success against Alabama’s front seven.
Alabama shut down Tennessee’s rushing attack like no other team this season, and proved to the nation that it is once again a favorite to win it all.
