SEC Studs and Duds: Week 12
Who made our list of SEC studs and duds in Week 12? Let’s find out.
STUDS
1. Todd Gurley/Nick Chubb: Georgia’s dynamic tailback tandem has likely played its last game together after Gurley suffered a season-ending knee injury that will likely close the book on his college career. Bulldogs fans can take solace in the fact that both backs played tremendous in their final game on the field together, combining to rush for 282 yards and three touchdowns in a 27-point win over Auburn. Both players rushed for more than 135 yards and at least one touchdown apiece, shining brightest in one of the most impressive wins of the weekend.
2. Russell Hansbrough: Missouri’s star tailback rushed for 199 yards at close to 10 yards a carry, scoring two touchdowns of 45 yards or more in a 34-27 win over Texas A&M. Hansbrough led all SEC rushers in yards in Week 12, and helped lead Mizzou to its greatest rushing output of the season in the victory. His two long touchdowns early in the second half gave Missouri a lead it would never give back, keeping the Tigers alive to win their second straight SEC East title.
3. Derek Barnett: Tennessee’s freshman phenomenon had one of the best games of his young career in UT’s win over Kentucky, recording four tackles for loss and two sacks on Saturday. He now has nine sacks on the season, making him the second SEC freshman this year to break Jadeveon Clowney’s freshman sack record, which stood at eight entering the year. Barnett ranks third in the conference in sacks and tied for first in tackles for loss, and his dominant performance Saturday only helped to pad those stats further.
DUDS
1. Dak Prescott: Mississippi State’s star quarterback threw for 290 yards against Alabama and ran for 82 more, but those numbers masked an otherwise terrible performance by Prescott on Saturday. He threw a season-worst three interceptions in the loss, and Mississippi State’s potent scoring offense failed to reach the end zone until the fourth quarter. Prescott recovered well in the final quarter, but he dug the team into too deep of a hole early in the game for MSU to recover in a hostile environment in Tuscaloosa.
2. Boom Williams: Kentucky’s star freshman has served as the driver of the Wildcats’ offense in recent weeks, but he was nowhere to be found in Saturday’s loss to Tennessee. Williams carried the ball five times for a net of one yard, and Kentucky’s offense managed just 94 yards at fewer than three yards per carry against the Vols. Without production from Williams out of the backfield, the offense was limited in its approach against a feisty Tennessee defense in Knoxville.
3. Kris Frost: To be fair, Frost played poorly in Saturday’s loss to Georgia but so did the rest of Auburn’s front seven. However, Frost has been one of Auburn’s most productive linebackers this season, yet Saturday he made just six hollow tackles without any other marks on his stat line. The Tigers allowed Georgia to run all over them, giving up 27 first downs and a five minute advantage in time of possession, and Frost and the rest of the defense appeared helpless as the Bulldogs lead grew larger and larger. Auburn suffered its worst loss since Gus Malzahn took over as the head coach, and Frost and the rest of the defensive front deserve a brunt of the blame.