Instead, I hope you had 3 big screens going, caught Ohio State having fun in the snow, finally, at Michigan, and marveled at Miami mauling Pitt, Diego Pavia making more magic on Rocky Top and several SEC teams making a case for Playoff inclusion.

Those are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Rivalry Week in and around the SEC.

10. Sorry, Texas, but you don’t have a Playoff case

Like you, I listened to Steve Sarkisian‘s campaign speech after Texas’ impressive victory over Texas A&M.

In laying out Texas’ Playoff case, Sark dropped this nugget: Texas is the first team since 2019 national champion LSU to beat 3 top-10 teams in the regular season. Good stuff. Won’t help, but comparing yourself to the greatest team in college football history obviously was a direct message to the Selection Committee. How dare you leave out the only team to do what LSU did.

If only it were that simple, right?

Texas’ problem is the rest of its resume, most obviously those 3 losses. Playoff history is largely irrelevant when discussing 3-loss teams because this is just the 2nd year with 12 teams — so it’s really just the 2nd year a 3-loss team has seriously been in the mix.

Sark, of course, had an answer for that, too, saying if Texas had played, say, Old Dominion like Indiana did instead of at Ohio State in Week 1, the Longhorns would be 10-2 and there would be no debate.

Fair point, but the Ohio State loss isn’t the Longhorns’ problem, either. Nor is the blowout loss at Georgia.

Texas’ Playoff problem is that disastrous loss at Florida. Sark tried to explain that away, too. Without mentioning Notre Dame’s name, he casually reminded folks that last year’s national runner-up lost to Northern Illinois. What he failed to mention is the fact that was Notre Dame’s only loss last season.

Sarkisian closed by saying “it would be a disservice to college football” if Texas didn’t make the Playoff.

I disagree. It would be a disservice to pick and choose what games matter and what games don’t.

Texas had every opportunity to make the Playoff. It didn’t take advantage.

9. Disservice to college football? A broken replay review system

College football doesn’t need to “fix” its replay system.

It merely needs to adopt the ACC’s method of full transparency. If the Big Ten had it, we wouldn’t all be arguing — still — about whether Jeremiah Smith scored a touchdown or fumbled out of bounds for a touchback.

The replays made it fairly obvious that Smith lost control and stepped out of bounds. That’s how Joel Klatt saw it. That’s how FOX rules analyst Mike Pereira saw it. Heck, that’s how most of America outside of Columbus, Ohio, saw it.

That’s not how the Big Ten replay review officials saw it, however. They stayed with the call on the field, giving Smith a TD and Ohio State a lead. At the time, it was a key play not only in the game, but maybe the season.

The issue, again, isn’t the result. It’s the process. In the ACC, we would have heard the command center discuss the timing, the angles, the rule and, in unison, reaching a decision before relaying that to the umpire. In the B1G, all we got was Klatt and Pereira dissecting every angle of the play, zeroing in on Smith’s foot and coming to the conclusion that it was a touchback.

I hate that touchback rule, by the way. I think it’s the stupidest rule in college football — and the only time a fumble out of bounds results in a turnover. But I hate the lack of transparency from replay officials even more.

Playoff bids literally are at stake.

The fix is so simple, a basketball conference figured it out.

8. No, Lane, you can’t have it both ways

For the past month, I’ve gone back and forth on whether Ole Miss should allow Lane Kiffin to coach the Rebels if and when he decides to take the LSU job.

Probably a week or so ago, I had mostly settled on allowing the team captains to decide who they want leading the charge. It’s their team, their time, their opportunity to create history. Why should an adult decide their future?

Now? After watching this thing play out in real time for an entire week and overshadow a damn fine Rivalry Saturday, I’ve turned the page.

This has been terrible for everybody involved with Ole Miss football. Don’t blame the calendar, either. That’s a weak excuse. You’re either all-in or you’re not.

Clearly, Kiffin is not. Worse, he has known that for weeks. Reports swirled all day Saturday about long meetings in which Kiffin expressed his desire to coach the Rebels’ Playoff run. He wants to bask in the glory of a historic Playoff run with the team he built, and bolt the nano-second that dream run ends?

No.

Planes reportedly are landing Sunday, heading back to LSU with Kiffin on board. Team meetings reportedly are set for this morning.

If you’re an Ole Miss fan, I can’t blame if you say: good riddance.

Get out. And stay out.

7. Predicting the 7 at-large bids

Last season, 3 Power Conference runners-up made the Playoff. That’s probably not happening again. Here’s how I see the at-large bids being distributed after the regular season ended Saturday:

ACC: Miami.

Big Ten: Big Ten runner-up, Oregon.

Big 12: The Big 12 runner-up — but only if it’s Texas Tech.

SEC: SEC runner-up (see below), Texas A&M and Ole Miss.

Independent: Notre Dame.

Already, that’s 8 teams for 7 spots if Texas Tech loses the Big 12 Championship Game. If Tech wins, the Big 12 should be a 1-bid league.

This scenario gives the SEC 4 Playoff bids — and 3 angry fan bases from Vanderbilt, Oklahoma and Texas. (And possibly Alabama, should the Tide suffer their 3rd loss in the SEC title game.) Could the Committee choose 1 of those 3 over, say, Miami? Of course it could. But the Canes just picked up their 4th win of the season against a team ranked at kickoff, blasting Pitt by 31. The Canes’ resume, of course, includes a win against Notre Dame. They belong.

What about Alabama? The Tide already are behind Oklahoma in the Playoff rankings. They also lost to Oklahoma, at home. Beating Auburn was clutch, but they’re only in the SEC Championship Game because of a tiebreaker. If they lose the SEC title game, it’s absolutely fair for the Committee to give Oklahoma (or Vandy) that at-large bid and keep the 3-loss Tide team at home. It wouldn’t be popular, of course, but it would be fairer than, saying making the Tide the 5th Playoff team over a Miami with a better resume.

Vanderbilt is the team that deserves our support. In addition to being a great story, the ‘Dores delivered one of the strongest closing arguments of Rivalry Week, absolutely pounding Tennessee on Rocky Top.

I’ve said all season that the SEC deserves 5 Playoff teams, but I’ll be shocked if the Committee actually allows it.

Brace yourself: Somebody’s about to get hosed.

6. Call of the Week

I’ve overreacted plenty to Bad Kalen DeBoer, so it’s only fair to acknowledge and praise his gutsy 4th-and-2 call that won the Iron Bowl on Saturday night and sent Alabama to the SEC Championship Game.

Under normal circumstances, a call like that wouldn’t be considered all that daring. There was still plenty of time on the clock, so, worst-case scenario, a bad Auburn offense would have taken over at its 6-yard line and Bama likely would have forced a quick punt and had another chance to walk it off.

What made DeBoer’s call so daring is that, to that point, Ty Simpson had been downright dreadful. Nobody would have blinked or questioned DeBoer had he decided to kick a short field goal for a 23-20 lead and trust the defense to do its part.

“I figured it was 29 yards shorter than the last time we needed a touchdown here,” DeBoer quipped afterward, alluding to Jalen Milroe’s walk-off TD throw to Isaiah Bond to win the 2023 Iron Bowl.

DeBoer rolled the dice and Bama executed a perfect design against man coverage as Simpson hit Isaiah Horton on a short crossing route for a 6-yard TD. It was their 3rd TD connection of the night — a night Simpson finished just 19-for-35 for 122 yards. Yes, that’s an anemic, service academy level 3.5 yards per attempt.

Those details didn’t matter Saturday night and won’t matter years from now, when DeBoer’s decision no doubt is included when discussing the greatest moments in Iron Bowl history.

5. Predicting the 5 automatic bids

American: Tulane. Will Tulane allow Jon Sumrall to coach this run? Stay tuned.

ACC: Virginia. In case you missed it, SMU blew its chance to play for the title when it lost at Cal. Virginia is a great story, recovering from unthinkable tragedy to make a Playoff run and already has beaten Duke once. Funny thing, though: Miami still is the best team in the ACC — and might be the ACC’s only bid if Duke wins the title and JMU and the American champion are ranked higher. I don’t think Duke has a chance, but it would be hysterical if that scenario played out.

Big Ten: Ohio State. There’s just too much talent for Indiana to handle.

Big 12: Texas Tech. The Red Raiders have been the class of the league all season. For the SEC’s sake, they better hope it stays that way because the last thing the SEC needs is Texas Tech stealing an at-large bid. BYU will have an interesting case, though, if its only 2 losses are to Texas Tech.

SEC: Georgia. Sorry, Alabama. Nobody beats Kirby Smart 3 times in a row. Well, nobody except Nick Saban.

4. Florida, this search shows how far you’ve fallen

Despite the full-court press, I never saw Lane Kiffin going to Florida, but the Gators desperately pushed on, banking on their history to win the day.

I’m not sure who needs to hear this, but Florida hasn’t won the day with a coaching search since Urban Meyer left. Maybe with Dan Mullen, but even that ended poorly.

Maybe now, finally, when Florida’s search ends with another Group of 5 coach, the Gators can look inward and finally start to figure out why they aren’t seen as a destination job, any more than half a dozen other mid-level SEC programs.

That’s not me saying that, Gator Nation. That’s Power Conference coaches saying that by repeatedly saying no to the Gators.

3. Updating my Heisman ballot

I still believe Jeremiah Smith is the best college football player in 2025 — which he proved again the one time Michigan dared to cover him with 1 defender.

I still believe Diego Pavia is the Most Valuable Player in college football — which he proved again by ravaging Tennessee with his arm (268 yards, 1 TD), legs (165 yards, 1 TD) and heart. Saturday, he not only led Vandy’s blowout win for a historic 10th win this season, he broke Vandy’s single-season passing record in the process. Pavia has 3,192 yards and counting as Vandy enters the postseason.

And I still believe Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love is the best combination of both in the country. I’ve encouraged SEC fans to watch Love — who is the driving force for the Irish’s deserved Playoff push. I know you missed it, but Love was injured in Notre Dame’s romp at Stanford late Saturday night. Good news, though: He’s fine.

Indiana’s Fernando Mendoza continues to lead the Heisman race, but he was just so-so in the finale against Purdue and, honestly, the caliber of competition pales in comparison to every other contender.

Pavia clearly is the people’s choice, but Vandy will be idle when votes are cast following Championship Weekend. Love will be, too.

Smith will prove on the biggest stage that he’s the most unstoppable force in college football.

2. Guess which coach got fired?

I usually find Hiring/Firing SZN humorous, often without reason and completely lacking common standards.

What works at one place gets you fired early at another.

We saw that again this year in the SEC, where 4 coaches have been fired and several extended.

Care to guess which coach was fired and which coach was extended?

Coach A went 34-14, 20-11 in the SEC and was fired.

Coach B is 35-16, 18-14 in the SEC and was extended through 2031.

Coach A is Brian Kelly. Coach B is Eli Drinkwitz.

Make it make sense, because neither decision made any sense.

1. Long live Rivalry Week …

It might mean more in the SEC, but it means a lot there, too.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Rivalry Week in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC regular season is complete. Georgia and Alabama advanced to the SEC Championship on Dec. 6.

Here is every SEC box score from Week 14, plus final league standings and team stats from the 2025 regular season.

Ole Miss 38, Mississippi State 19

Trinidad Chambliss threw for 359 yards with 4 TDs, pushing him over 3,000 yards passing for the season as Ole Miss won its 3rd consecutive Egg Bowl.

Georgia 16, Georgia Tech 9

It wasn’t pretty, but Georgia beat Georgia Tech for the 8th consecutive time.

Texas 27, Texas A&M 17

Texas beat the Aggies for the 3rd consecutive time to extend its all-time series lead as Arch Manning inched closer to joining the 3,000-yard passer club.

Louisville 41, Kentucky 0

Clemson 28, South Carolina 14

Oklahoma 17, LSU 13

Vanderbilt 45, Tennessee 24

Diego Pavia helped his Heisman odds while breaking Vandy’s single-season passing record in a blowout win at Tennessee.

Missouri 31, Arkansas 17

Florida 40, Florida State 21

Florida running back Jadan Baugh ran for 266 yards — the most by a Gator against FSU — and became Florida’s latest 1,000-yard rusher.

Alabama 27, Auburn 20

Ty Simpson topped 3,000 passing yards for the season and made a winning throw on a 4th-and-goal TD pass to account for the final margin.

SEC Standings after Week 14

To find the SEC, use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 14

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive team stats.

The post Week 14 SEC scores, stats & final standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game. Follow here for all of the action in Week 14.

The action started Friday with 3 heated rivalry games.

Ole Miss 38, Mississippi State 19

Georgia 16, Georgia Tech 9

Texas 27, Texas A&M 17

Kentucky vs Louisville

South Carolina vs Clemson

LSU vs Oklahoma

Vanderbilt vs Tennessee

Missouri vs Arkansas

Florida vs Florida State

Alabama vs Auburn

The post Live updates: Week 14 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Ole Miss didn’t even play this week, and The Lane Train still dominated national headlines.

Is he staying? (He should.) Is he going? If he is going, where is he going?

TBD, but Ole Miss certainly is going to the Playoff. Just like Notre Dame and, sorry, Paul, the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion. Diego Pavia better be going to New York as a Heisman finalist.

The clock struck midnight, however, for “Arch sucks” takes, Stephen A. Smith’s SEC credibility and Alabama’s ground game, which, when not playing an FCS opponent, hasn’t been this bad since … 1955?

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Cupcake Week Week 13 in and around the SEC.

10. Assessing Lane Kiffin’s options

LSU reportedly has offered Lane Kiffin a 7-year, $90 million deal, with an annual salary of $13 million. Florida and Ole Miss reportedly have matched the annual offer and robust NIL investment.

To be honest, I’ve been more amused by the frantic, daily arm’s race than interested in who has the edge.

Why? At the risk of repeating myself, I think it’s a moot point. I can’t understand why Kiffin would leave everything he has built at Ole Miss, where every goal he could possibly entertain anywhere else already exists in Oxford.

If this were 2021, done deal. It’s not.

We are in the NIL/Portal/Parity Era. Coaches and players no longer need to go to a handful of programs to chase a championship. LSU probably will win another natty, with or without Kiffin, but it will never have another team as great as the 2019 team. That’s just the new and improved reality of college football.

There’s also the reputational risk of Kiffin leaving Ole Miss in the middle of a historic Playoff push, abandoning the place that allowed him to seemingly find peace, plant roots and start building a legacy that doesn’t begin with being fired on a tarmac.

For those reasons and others, I’ve written and still believe that Kiffin is better off staying at Ole Miss, where his name could soon be on the turf at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.

I don’t think there’s any chance Kiffin goes to Florida, where he’d never escape Steve Spurrier’s shadow and would have to win 3 national championships just to upstage Urban Meyer.

It’s more difficult to ignore LSU’s history and stranglehold on Louisiana’s best recruits — but it’s also impossible to ignore LSU’s current state of instability and penchant for firing coaches.

If Kiffin goes — again, he shouldn’t, and I’ll only believe it when I see it — it will be to LSU. If that happens, he better win a national title by Year 3 … or else.

9. Finebaum was absolutely right to call out Stephen A. Smith

In case you missed it, Stephen A. Smith believes Kiffin is gone and Ole Miss fans need to get over it. He said it’s easier to win national titles at LSU and Florida than Ole Miss. It used to be, sure, but not anymore.

Regardless of where you stand on that side issue, this is where Smith went off the rails:

In explaining to Paul Finebaum and others on ESPN why Kiffin will leave for LSU or Florida, Smith said this: “I’m going to bring it home, all right. He’s in Oxford, Mississippi, OK? Let’s get this out the way. Listen, ladies and gentlemen, you all can’t say it. Don’t you dare say it Paul, don’t you say it Doggie (Chris Russo), don’t you say it Shae (Cornette). Leave it to me, I’ll say it. The brothers ain’t trying to come to Oxford, Mississippi for the most part compared to Gainesville or Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Let’s just call it what it is, OK?”

Finebaum didn’t react in the moment, but he later addressed Smith’s characterization of Oxford on his show.

“I realize a lot of you did not see what Stephen A. said, but he clearly made it racial,” Finebaum told his audience. “He clearly said, in his words, ‘the brothers do not want to go to Oxford, Mississippi,’ which has been proven to be completely incorrect. I’ve been to Oxford a million times and I think it’s terribly unfair to bring up echoes of yesteryear, the ’60s, and try to portray Oxford as that type of place today. It’s not. The South has changed. You can make your own interpretation, but to dump on Oxford while saying Gainesville and Baton Rouge would be utopia was just baffling to me.”

National commentator Tim Brando also admonished Smith, writing on X that “his words were divisive, despicable and given his pedestal a true reflection of how the self proclaimed World Wide Leader views Mississippi and the South in general. I’ve respected Stephen A’s work ethic and intelligence and have stated such many times over. Words matter and his this morning were reprehensible and will never be forgotten.”

Brando has a daughter who went to Ole Miss and started his career at ESPN.

Media beefs frequently are ego-driven, occasionally staged and rarely matter. (See: Whitlock vs. Stephen A.)

This was different.

Two media heavyweights rightfully calling out arguably the biggest name in sports talk for feeding stereotypes was a meaningful moment. Last week, Smith was among the many (myself included) who called out the Texas state trooper who bumped into 2 South Carolina players. Smith said the Trooper should be suspended and never work another game.

Too bad ESPN stayed silent after Smith’s harmful commentary about Ole Miss.

8. … however, this Playoff take was horrible, Paaawwwl!

It is absolutely incredible how fast the Playoff discussion has jumped the shark.

Fifteen years ago, I was on an island actually wanting a Playoff. As soon as it arrived, I began pleading for expansion while others broke out their bullhorn over concerns that we’d never find 4 quality teams! Now we’re at 12, with everybody in America having a shot … and the noise is growing louder every day about the intruder who crashed the Haves’ party.

This week, Finebaum, a friend of SDS, by the way, blasted the new system that “lets the Group of Whatever in” and “that division really has no business playing” in the Playoff. (He specifically called out the USF and the American Conference as unworthy, perhaps forgetting that USF beat Florida, Memphis beat Arkansas, North Texas beat Washington State, and Tulane beat Northwestern and Duke … this season.)

That’s his opinion. That’s fine.

Finebaum also said: “That’s like letting the Triple-A’s best team into the major league playoffs. It doesn’t happen in any other sport.”

That’s a fact error.

Finebaum knows that literally every other major sport, pro and college, has a path for underdogs to fight for the national championship.

The NCAA Tournament, the single greatest tournament in sports and the blueprint for how other playoffs are conducted, awards automatic bids to 31 conference champions — 31! More than 80% of those automatic bids go to smaller conference champions that, using Finebaum’s football logic, have no business being there?

That’s nonsense. Underdogs staging stunning upsets helped turn the NCAA Tournament into March Madness.

Finebaum specifically mentioned Major League Baseball and NFL as examples of leagues that only put the best teams in the playoff. Are you sure?

In 2025, 3 wild-card teams had a better record than 2 division winners. Does Finebaum believe that the AL Central and AL West champs shouldn’t have made the playoffs?

Last year in the NFL, 4 wild-card teams had a better record than 3 of the 6 division winners. Should those 3 division winners have stayed home?

Last year in the NBA, 5 teams with a losing record qualified for the playoffs.

I could go on, but you get the point. Those sports give everybody the same opportunity to make the postseason. Finebaum knows that. It’s his job to stir the pot. Again, fine.

College football finally has it right. The only way to improve this system is to add to it and expand to 16, not suddenly revoke access to Group of 5 conferences that have forever been on the outside looking in — as if reserving 1 spot out of 12 for an underdog is the worst thing in this sport’s history.

7. Save your Cupcake Week jokes, a’ight?

Was I impressed with Texas A&M’s 48-0 victory over FCS Samford?

You know I wasn’t.

Was it utterly unnecessary for Alabama to play (and subsequently beat the paw prints off) the FCS Eastern Illinois Panthers on Saturday?

You know it was.

But save your faux outrage, B1G Nation.

Last year, 2 Big Ten teams played Eastern Illinois.

This year, Indiana played FCS Indiana State, Ohio State played FCS Grambling, and Oregon played FCS Montana State. They just did it earlier.

If it’s OK for the B1G, it’s OK for the SEC — no matter how loud the B1G talking heads scream into your TV.

P.S.: That rugged B1G Week 13 schedule? Ohio State rested its 2 best receivers — including Heisman contender Jeremiah Smith — because it knew it didn’t need either to rip Rutgers.

6. No, I’m not mad about Alabama’s Playoff ranking

Have you replaced the big screen you broke after the Playoff committee dropped Alabama from No. 4 to No. 10 — behind 2-loss Notre Dame?

I understand being a fan, but I don’t get the outrage in this instance. Not after that Oklahoma game in Week 12, anyway.

Change Alabama’s team colors, peel off the iconic numbers and slap a logo on the helmets.

Now watch that team actually play. Or, rather, watch that team try to run the football.

The Tide can’t. Not against real competition, anyway.

Sure, they ran for 269 yards and 8 TDs against FCS Eastern Illinois, a glorified scrimmage that was less physical than the typical A-Day Game.

Against real competition, however, the Tide are more 1-dimensional this season — and especially in their previous 3 SEC games — than they ever were under Nick Saban. Even when Saban’s dynasty was at its run-the-ball best, its passing game was reliable and potent enough to consistently contribute. Even when Saban switched gears and went all-in on airing it out, the running game never teetered on the edge of irrelevancy quite like this.

Entering Week 13, Bama’s passing game was averaging 186.0 more yards per game than the rushing game. That’s the 2nd-largest yardage gap since Saban arrived — just behind the pass-happy 2021 group led by Heisman winner Bryce Young. But even that team featured a 1,300-yard rusher in Brian Robinson Jr.

Number can lie, sure. The yardage gap isn’t critical if both sides are producing; see 2021. That’s not happening in 2025. Jamarion Miller enters Week 14 with a team-high 410 yards, all but guaranteeing the Tide will fail to produce a 1,000-yard rusher for the 4th consecutive season — and 2nd consecutive under Kalen DeBoer.

Forget the 7 Bama teams under Saban that averaged north of 200 rushing yards per game. Every Bama team this century has averaged at least a modest 120 rushing yards per game. The last Bama team that failed to crack 110 rushing yards per game? The 0-10 1955 Tide.

The Tide haven’t topped 150 yards rushing yet this season against a Power conference team. They didn’t gain 100 in their previous 3 SEC games. They ran for 87 and 80 yards, respectively, in losses to FSU and Oklahoma — which, not surprisingly, were Ty Simpson’s 2 worst games of the season.

Translation: If Simpson doesn’t play like a Heisman Trophy winner every time out, the Tide are in serious trouble and look far more like a questionable bubble team than a Playoff lock fighting for a first-round bye.

I don’t know who needs to hear this, but Notre Dame would beat Alabama.

5. 5 ‘locks’ that might not even make their league title game

The greatest rivalry in college sports is Narrative vs. Results.

Entering the final week of the regular season, we still don’t know who is going to play in the most critical leagues’ championship game.

That’s exactly how the NFL draws it up.

It’s still possible that Week 13 league leaders Ohio State, Texas A&M, Texas Tech, Georgia Tech and Tulane don’t even make their league title game. Likely? Not in each case, but possible. (MRed has a fun tool to break down scenarios.)

Want chaos? The ACC has it, but it no longer owns exclusive rights.

Georgia Tech could have wrapped up an ACC title game spot in Week 13, but Pitt blasted the Yellow Jackets — and now the Yellow Jackets need help to reach the ACC title game. Suddenly, Miami is back in the picture, but only if, among other things, it beats Pitt AND Virginia Tech upsets Virginia in Week 14.

The Big Ten? Ohio State has been a wire-to-wire No. 1 and has the best odds to win the national title, but if the Buckeyes lose at Michigan next week — more than possible — they would then need help to reach the B1G title game. (Granted, OSU’s lose-and-still-make-it scenarios start with Indiana losing to Purdue, which isn’t happening … but the possibility exists.)

The Big 12? Texas Tech has led the race from the start, but if the Red Raiders lose to West Virginia, they’ll need help to reach the title game.

The SEC? There were so many title-game scenarios heading into Week 13, the SEC didn’t even address it beyond saying nobody can clinch or be eliminated. Week 14 will provide all of the answers. The most interesting possibility? If Texas A&M loses to Texas, the Aggies suddenly need upsets in the Egg Bowl and Iron Bowl to make it to Atlanta for the first time.

The American? There are at least 4 teams still in contention to reach its championship game. Tulane is in the driver’s seat, but nothing is set. This race is particularly interesting because, most likely, it will produce the Group of 5 automatic bid. Any chaos here brings presumed Southern Conference champion James Madison into the picture. If that happens, there will be no silencing the noise about eliminating automatic bids for conference champions.

4. Predicting the SEC’s 4 Playoff teams

The SEC’s math problem came into full focus in Week 13.

With 5 teams ranked in the top 10 of the Playoff rankings, of course the league has a case to get 5 teams in the Playoff. I’ve made that case all season while also noting the math — and politics — won’t allow it.

Let’s break it down.

There are 7 at-large Playoff bids.

Playoff No. 9 Notre Dame delivered the most impressive performance of Week 13, blowing out Syracuse as Jeremiyah Love added to his Heisman campaign with 171 yards and 3 TDs — against an ACC team, not an FCS team. The Irish are a Playoff lock assuming they handle Stanford in Week 14.

That leaves 6 at-large bids.

The B1G will grab 2 of those — the title game loser and Oregon, which handled USC in Week 13. That leaves 4 bids — and that’s not even considering what happens if Michigan beats Ohio State (again) to finish 10-2.

Miami is poised to pass lucky Week 13 winner Utah in the rankings and grab 1.

See the problem? That pretty straight-forward scenario leaves 3 at-large bids remaining — and that’s assuming the Big 12 only gets its automatic qualifier.

I’ll let y’all debate the resumes.

After Week 13, these 4 SEC teams are headed to the Playoff:

Texas A&M, Ole Miss, Georgia and … a fierce fight between Alabama or Oklahoma.

I’m giving the nod to Oklahoma, not only because the Sooners beat the Tide but also because Alabama’s season-opening loss to FSU might be the worst among Playoff contenders.

3. Six … Sevens? Have yourself a day, Arch

“Peyton never did that.” That was my immediate reaction after Arch Manning made the best play of his young career, on the greatest day of his young career, Saturday against Arkansas.

As a receiver.

Manning, showing athleticism that neither of his famous uncles possessed, adjusted his feet to a high pass on a trick play, flipped his hips and feet, jumped and came down with a TD, all part of Texas’ easy romp over the Hogs. We’ve seen 5-star receivers drop passes like that.

Manning’s best play was merely the highlight of his best day. In addition to the TD catch, he threw for 389 yards and 4 TDs and also rushed for a TD. (Yes, teenagers, Manning accounted for 6 … 7s.)

In doing so, he became the first player in Texas football history to throw for a TD, run for a TD and catch a pass for a TD.

He has now topped 300 yards passing in 4 consecutive games — all against SEC defenses.

The preseason Heisman hype was ridiculous. So, too, were the overreactions that he’s a bust.

He’s absolutely going to be a problem in 2026.

2. Diego Pavia, SEC Offensive Player of the Year

How fitting, on Senior Day, Heisman hopeful Diego Pavia delivered the single greatest offensive game in the history of Vanderbilt football.

Pavia was nearly perfect, completing 33-of-39 passes.

He set Vandy’s single-game record with 484 passing yards.

He tied Vandy’s single-game record with 5 TD passes … and ran for another. (So, like Manning, Pavia accounted for, all together, 6 … 7s. Promise, I’ll never write that again.)

Next week, he’ll become just the 4th Vandy QB to pass for 3,000 yards. Barring injury, he’ll break Kurt Page’s record of 3,178 yards, too. With 26 TD passes, he’s already tied Kyle Shurmur’s single-season record and is on pace to become the first Vandy QB to throw for 30+ TD passes in a season.

Along the way, he has led Vandy to the precipice of its first 10-win season.

Words are fine, but give the man the hardware he deserves: SEC Offensive Player of the Year.

Heisman? I still like Jeremiah Smith and Jeremiyah Love as the best players in America, but there’s no denying Pavia is the Most Valuable Player in the country.

1. Dear Shane, it’s a little early for Talkin’ SZN

I realize Shane Beamer has nothing left to play for — and now, not even a sentimental landing spot for his next gig — but this was a bit much.

“I do know next year at this time, we’re going to be sitting here on this Tuesday night, watching the Playoff rankings to see where we are in ranking show,” Beamer told reporters.

Know? There’s overreacting — and then there’s just wishful thinking.

Forget making it all the way to the National Championship Game on Jan. 19. Can we at least get through the SEC Championship Game before Talkin’ SZN begins?

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 13 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides complete box scores from every SEC game in Week 13, plus updated league standings and team stats.

No. 8 Oklahoma 17, Missouri 6

No. 3 Texas A&M 48, Samford 0

Heisman contender Marcel Reed threw 3 TD passes before calling it a day in a tune-up for Texas — a rivalry game the Aggies might have to win to make the SEC Championship.

No. 4 Georgia 35, Charlotte 3

No. 10 Alabama 56, E. Illinois 0

Alabama rolled, but Ty Simpson’s Heisman odds took a hit when he threw 2 interceptions against an FCS opponent.

Auburn 62, Mercer 17

No. 17 Texas 52, Arkansas 37

Arch Manning threw 4 TD passes, ran for 1 TD and caught a pass for another TD as Texas rolled rival Arkansas.

No. 12 Vanderbilt 45, Kentucky 17

On Senior Day, Diego Pavia threw for 484 yards and 5 TDs, setting the Vanderbilt single-game for yards and tying the single-game record for TD passes.

South Carolina 51, Coastal Carolina 7

No. 20 Tennessee 31, Florida 11

LSU 13, Western Kentucky 10

SEC Standings after Week 13

To find the SEC standings, use the dropdown menu on the right to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 13

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 13 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game. Follow here for all of the action in Week 13.

No. 8 Oklahoma vs Missouri

No. 3 Texas A&M vs Samford

No. 4 Georgia vs Charlotte

No. 10 Alabama vs E. Illinois

Auburn vs Mercer

No. 17 Texas vs Arkansas

No. 12 Vanderbilt vs Kentucky

South Carolina vs Coastal Carolina

No. 20 Tennessee vs Florida

LSU vs Western Kentucky

The post Live updates: Week 13 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Did LSU really just try to fire Brian Kelly … twice? At least no other coaches were fired this week. That was nice.

Not as nice as Kirby’s surprise, 2nd-half Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Ole Miss and Ahmad Hardy’s 300-yard rushing game looked Saturday, but certainly better than Alabama and that out-of-bounds Texas trooper. Dude, seriously?

Those are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after a wild Week 12 in and around the SEC.

10. Texas Agony & Misery, again? Not so fast, my friends

Texas A&M played the worst 30 minutes of football by any team this season. Not just any SEC team or any Playoff contending team. Any team.

It was so bad, so out of character, so consistently terrible it made you wonder all kinds of unscrupulous things. (For the record, I don’t think anything was awry, but that debacle of a first half is exactly how investigations and conspiracy theories start.)

Marcel Reed’s Heisman campaign? Oh, that appeared to end about 2/10ths of a second after he released a pass, um, directly into the arms of a South Carolina defender in the end zone, negating a Texas A&M interception that hinted that the Aggies might actually have an interest in playing football Saturday.

Worse, as horrific as the Aggies were in the first half against South Carolina, they weren’t even responsible for the most heinous act of the day. That belonged to the officer who intentionally banged into Nyck Harbor. (About the only thing the Texas side did right to that point was sending that officer home. Hopefully for good.)

To recap: That first half could not have gone any worse had Texas A&M tried to make it worse. (Again, not saying the Aggies did!)

But that’s why they play 4 quarters, Paaaawwwwl!

In the second half, Reed looked like a Heisman contender and the Aggies again looked like the best team in the country. ESPN noted that SEC teams that trailed by 27 or more points were 0-286 since 2004.

Make it 1-286 after the Aggies outscored the Gamecocks 28-0 in the 2nd half — their go-ahead TD coming on a season-defining, 10-play, 98-yard drive in the 4th quarter.

Reed finished with a career-high 439 yards passing. He offset the 2 INTs in the opening half by closing with 3 TD passes. He was as close to perfect as possible — when Texas A&M had no other choice but play a perfect half.

Bury the Ghosts of Agony & Misery already, the ones who reached the top 10 10 times from 2010-2024 — and finished unranked in 7 of those seasons. That’s not happening this year.

This is a new Texas A&M — the most explosive, complete contender in the country.

Oh, Texas. You’re in trouble.

9. Boomer, Sooner, baby!

Oklahoma arguably had the most treacherous path to the Playoff. Emphasis on had. It was the only reason I couldn’t go all-in on the Sooners’ Playoff bid.

Now? After shocking Alabama in Tuscaloosa, the Sooners are 8-2 and are in total control of their Playoff fate with only Mizzou (without its starting QB) and LSU remaining.

Gauntlet to gimme?

Well, as Week 12 showed in every time slot, nothing is a gimme in the NIL/Portal/Parity era.

No. 3 Texas A&M needed a historic comeback to beat South Carolina. No. 6 Ole Miss struggled to put away Florida, the team that covets Lane Kiffin most. No. 14 Georgia Tech needed a last-second field goal to overcome 1-9 Boston College. No. 18 Michigan needed a last-second field goal to take down Northwestern. Clemson ended No. 19 Louisville’s ACC Championship bid — ie, its only hope to make the Playoff.

Nothing came easy Saturday.

But few wins were as impressive as the one the Sooners delivered. Brent Venables‘ defense was better than advertised — harassing Heisman hopeful Ty Simpson all afternoon, sacking him 4 times and holding the Tide to 0-for-3 on trips inside the red zone. One of those trips ended when Oklahoma’s Eli Bowen returned an interception 87 yards for a TD and 10-0 lead.

Just like that, the Sooners and Tide traded places in the Playoff pecking order.

Oklahoma can finally exhale.

Now the 2-loss Tide suddenly are in must-win mode entering the Iron Bowl — needing that win to secure a tiebreaker-inspired spot in Atlanta.

8. Fire Kalen DeBoer!

I’m kidding, but some of y’all weren’t.

Twitter is a dangerous spot after losses, but goodness, the overreactions during and after Alabama’s loss to Oklahoma were something.

Venables might not own Texas, but he’s now 2-0 vs. Kalen DeBoer — and DeBoer’s offense has scored a grand total of 24 points — 3 TDs and a field goal — in 8 quarters.

Not that Bama fans noticed …

That is just a sampling — a carefully selected Safe for Sunday morning sampling.

It was so bad that DeBoer’s unbeatable black hoodie now might need to be retired in disgrace after losing … checks notes … for the first time at home.

At least DeBoer knows what Ty Simpson felt like, being chased by angry men all night.

7. ‘We want Lane!’ You have Lane …

As Ole Miss was celebrating its “Lane Bowl” victory over Florida on Saturday night, Rebels fans began to serenade their coaching hero with chants of “We want Lane!”

You and everybody else not named Georgia.

As if Lane Kiffin needed any more reason to believe he has every chance to win it all at Ole Miss, his transfer running back Kewan Lacy absolutely went off against Florida on Saturday to keep every single goal the Rebels have had fully intact.

Kiffin doesn’t need Florida to make dreams come true.

The magic is alive and well in Oxford.

6. Kirby Smart is an assassin, Part 67

Georgia had just gone 73 yards in 10 plays for a TD to turn a dicey 14-10 lead into a 21-10 advantage early in the 4th quarter.

Kirby Smart wanted more. I know, when does he not.

Let’s just say the ensuing play-call and execution of what came next was … elite.

Georgia surprised the world — and most notably, Texas — by kicking and recovering an on-side kick.

Holy Justin Fields!

This worked out a whole lot better than that ill-fated special teams decision.

The Dawgs proceeded to march 53 more yards in 9 more plays for 7 more points.

Georgia 28 … Texas 0 chance of making the Playoff … en route to 21-point 4th quarter and a 35-10 win.

Kirby Smart, you are one bad man.

5. Predicting the 5 automatic bids

ACC: Georgia Tech, although needing a last-second field goal to beat 1-9 Boston College isn’t exactly a statement. I still think Miami is better, but you have a better chance of locking down Cam Coleman than the Canes do of even making the ACC Championship Game.

Big Ten: Ohio State. Indiana has been an entertaining story. At some point, talent trumps narrative. The Buckeyes have 5 times as much talent as the Hoosiers. That will play out in Indianapolis — especially if the Hoosiers get off to their customary slow start. Overcoming woeful Wisconsin is one thing. Running down Jeremiah Smith is quite another.

Big 12: I’ve been all-in on Texas Tech from the beginning. Not stopping now. Also, Utah deserves an at-large bid.

SEC: Texas A&M. Shout out to Lane Kiffin, obviously an avid Overreactions reader. Hours after I made the case last Sunday that Texas A&M should be No. 1 in the country, Kiffin stepped to the mic and said exactly the same thing.

Group of 5: James Madison. USF blew its last chance when it lost at Navy. JMU now becomes the Group of 5 team to watch — with the easiest remaining Playoff path, too. The Dukes’ schedule is laughably soft, but that won’t matter when other Group of 5 champions all have multiple losses and no offsetting ranked wins. The thought that Curt Cignetti could leave JMU for Indiana and 2 short years later both could make the Playoff is peak NIL/Portal Era Parity.

4. Sorry, SEC, but Notre Dame is Playoff-bound

I’ve consistently made the case that the SEC deserves 5 Playoff bids but will end up with 4.

Lots of reasons — but Notre Dame is the biggest culprit.

The Irish can only qualify for the Playoff as 1 of the 7 at-large teams, which leaves only 6 at-large bids left. To think the SEC would grab 4 of those 6 bids is wishful thinking — no matter how deserving its final team might be.

Notre Dame absolutely looked the part Saturday, physically dominating a ranked Pitt team, in Pittsburgh, with GameDay and Pitt legends Tony Dorsett and Aaron Donald on site.

Jeremiyah Love might not win the Heisman, but he’s proving every time he touches the ball that he deserves the Doak Walker Award. Love added to his highlight reel Saturday, making a Pitt safety miss with a Walter Payton-like spin move to set up a 56-yard TD run. Love finished with 147 yards and another rushing TD — his 14th this season.

I’ve poked holes in the Irish’s resume, but no more. As long as they run the table and finish 10-2, there’s no denying their Playoff-worthiness.

3. My (unofficial) Heisman ballot after Week 12

Heisman voters pick 3 names, in order.

For the 2nd year in a row, the winner and runner-up will not be quarterbacks — and the SEC is shut out again? Say it ain’t so …

1. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State: Nobody in the country forces more schematic adjustments than Smith. When he’s not beating double teams and actively showing you how he’s the best player in America, he’s capitalizing on his ability to draw multiple defenders and be the best decoy in America. Nobody creates more winnable matchups for his teammates. He left early in OSU’s Week 12 win. Hopefully he’s just saving himself for Michigan.

2. Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame: If all you know are the stats — which are really good — you’re missing the magic. Watch Love play — and then tell me who has a more electric running back?

3. Fernando Mendoza, Indiana: In addition to rewriting Indiana’s record book, Mendoza will finish with the best QB numbers on a Playoff contender that will be ranked No. 2 when the votes are due.

2. In the case of Brian Kelly v LSU …

Oh, LSU.

You fired Brian Kelly, but not really? Because the guy who fired him, you know, the AD you also got rid of, didn’t have the authority to do so? So this time you’re really, really firing him — with cause. That’s what you want us to believe?

I’m sure I left out some details, but this lame attempt to save money is so far-fetched I lost interest midway through the second sentence.

This saga is so far off the rails that Kelly’s attempt at a Southern accent sounds more authentic than LSU’s “case” against him.

Pay the man, already.

1. Fernando Mendoza, No. 1 overall?

Imagine telling somebody in August of 2023 that a kid named Fernando Mendoza would be picked ahead of Arch Manning in the 2026 NFL Draft.

Then imagine doubling down and predicting that Mendoza would be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft.

To that point, Mendoza had not taken a college snap after redshirting his freshman season at Cal. At that point, Arch Manning had just settled in at Texas for his true freshman season, full of the hype that follows the most decorated 5-star recruit in rankings history. Before his first snap, Manning already was being projected as the No. 1 pick in the 2026 draft.

Fast forward to Week 12 of the 2025 season: Manning has been nothing more than OK at Texas and certainly won’t even consider entering this draft early. Mendoza, meanwhile, has raced to the top of the Heisman race and draft boards while leading undefeated Indiana to a No. 2 national ranking. Saturday, he threw his 30th TD pass of the season, not only setting the program record but also becoming the first Hoosier QB to reach 30.

It’s hard to find a comp for what Mendoza is accomplishing. Despite his projectable measurables — 6-4, 205 pounds — he was an overlooked low 3-star recruit from Miami — the No. 134-ranked quarterback in his class — who originally committed to Yale. (Hometown Miami only saw him as a preferred walk-on.) He signed with Cal and spent 3 years there, graduated and transferred to IU. He had zero interest from any of Florida’s power conference programs. In fact, Cal was the only power conference program that offered him a scholarship.

True, other low stars have developed into NFL first-rounders. Josh Allen comes to mind. Allen didn’t even have a recruiting ranking and started his career at Reedley Community College before transferring to Wyoming. Allen had individual success, sure, but obviously Wyoming was never in the Playoff mix. Daniel Jones was a tall, athletic, 2-star recruit who developed into a No. 6 overall pick, but he never even won 9 games at Duke. There are other examples of recruiting rags to riches.

But No. 134 QB in his class … to all of this?

It’s historic, which invites skepticism. Now 6-5 and 225 pounds, Mendoza looks the part. But so did Ryan Leaf and Mitch Trubisky and Blaine Gabbert and JaMarcus Russell and so many others. So many others.

Will the bubble burst? That’s what everybody is wondering.

Me? I’m still wondering how every SEC and ACC school let this South Florida kid get away … twice?

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 12 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides complete box scores from every SEC game in Week 12, plus updated league standings and team stats.

No. 3 Texas A&M 31, South Carolina 30

Texas A&M trailed 30-3 at halftime before completing the greatest comeback in program history. ESPN noted that, since 2004, SEC teams that trailed by 27 or more points were 0-286. Make it 1-286.

LSU 23, Arkansas 22

LSU interim coach Frank Wilson picked up his first victory as LSU beat Arkansas for the 4th consecutive year.

Kentucky 42, Tennessee Tech 10

Kentucky has won 3 in a row as Mark Stoops tries to get back to a bowl game for the 9th time after missing out last season.

No. 11 Oklahoma 23, No. 4 Alabama 21

No. 21 Tennessee 42, New Mexico State 9

No. 6 Ole Miss 34, Florida 24

Kewan Lacy joined Ole Miss’ 1,000-yard rusher club as the Rebels kept their postseason hopes alive.

No. 5 Georgia 35, No. 10 Texas 10

Georgia hands Texas its 3rd loss, severely damaging the Longhorns’ Playoff hopes.

Missouri 49, Mississippi State 27

Ahmad Hardy ran for 300 yards — 2nd-most in Mizzou history — to lead the Tigers.

SEC Standings after Week 12

To find the SEC standings, use the dropdown menu and select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 12

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive team stats.

The post Week 12 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game in Week 12. Follow here for all of the stats and scores:

No. 3 Texas A&M vs South Carolina

LSU vs Arkansas

Kentucky vs Tennessee Tech

No. 4 Alabama vs No. 11 Oklahoma

No. 21 Tennessee vs New Mexico State

No. 6 Ole Miss vs Florida

No. 5 Georgia vs No. 10 Texas

Missouri vs Mississippi State

The post Live updates: Week 12 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

That was my reaction to Tuesday’s initial set of Playoff rankings, well aware that last year, 3 teams in the initial top 11 didn’t make the Playoff — and 2 teams ranked outside that initial top 20 did.

So, just like a team that got hosed by a bad call (too many to list), shake it off and move on.

Kind of like what Auburn did last week with Hugh Freeze. Like what Dabo Swinney needs to do at Clemson. Like what Texas A&M needs to do in the polls … and Florida needs to do on this season (and maybe with DJ Lagway). And, most of all, what the SEC absolutely must do from this ridiculous suggestion that the Playoff would be better without automatic bids. Move as far away from that idea as fast as possible. Please.

Those are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 11 in and around the SEC.

10. Texas A&M deserves to be No. 1

It doesn’t matter who’s No. 1 and probably won’t matter until we get to the Playoff semifinals, but if the Playoff Selection Committee truly is living in the moment and starting anew each week, there’s zero debate about which contender was the most impressive in Week 11.

The Aggies improved to 3-0 against ranked teams with an emphatic beatdown at No. 19 Mizzou — and all 3 of those wins were on the road.

Nobody else in the country has a resume even remotely close to that. No. 1 Ohio State is 2-0 vs. ranked teams — but only 1-0 on the road. Ditto No. 2 Indiana, which was fortunate to survive Week 11 unscathed.

The Aggies again were without Le’Veon Moss, and it didn’t matter. Backup-turned-emerging-threat Rueben Owens ripped off a 100-yard game and scored twice, once on a 57-yard sprint through the heart of Mizzou’s line. Marcel Reed did Marcel Reed things (221 yards passing and 2 TDs, just enough rushing to keep safeties peeking). KC Concepcion continues to pad his case as the SEC’s MVT: Most Valuable Transfer.

At minimum, Texas A&M deserves to move up to No. 2 in Sunday’s AP Poll — and in Tuesday’s Round 2 of the Playoff rankings. They haven’t been No. 2 in the AP Poll since 1975. They haven’t been No. 1 since 1957 with Bear Bryant. They haven’t finished No. 1 since 1939.

This team has the pieces to write its own history.

I don’t need to convince Mike Elko.

“I think they know what they want, and we got great leadership,” Elko told reporters. “We got great players out here and we are going to go finish things the right way.”

9. 11 weeks in, and I still have no idea how good Alabama is

I was hoping the LSU game would trigger confidence — one way or another.

Instead, I found myself wavering, more convinced than ever that Alabama and Georgia are the same team.

One week, they look unbeatable. The next week, fortunate to win. Other weeks, good enough to go through the motions and win.

I keep reminding myself that college football is all-in on the Parity/Portal Era … the gap between good and great has never been closer, and to expect Dynasty performances each week is fruitless.

I still believe Ty Simpson is the most capable SEC QB to pull off the SEC Triple Crown of Heisman/SEC title/national championship … but that doesn’t mean I trust Simpson and the Tide to actually get it done. He’s a better quarterback than Marcel Reed, but give me the Aggies all day if they ever meet.

In fact, I trust Simpson more than I trust his teammates. Bama’s running game is non-existent — a sentence never written in the Saban era. They entered the LSU game ranked 14th in the SEC at 118.8 rushing yards per game. Just 9 rushing touchdowns in 8 games.

Alabama ran for 56 yards against LSU. Save the Derrick Henry jokes; Jalen Hurts would outrush this Tide team. When it needed to run to eat clock Saturday, the Tide turned to a trick pass play to convert 4th-and-3.

That can’t bode well for what lies ahead.

8. Making sense of the B1G scramble

It was a tough week for the Big Ten.

It didn’t start that way, of course. The Playoff Selection committee wedged 4 Big Ten teams into the final 6 teams it ranked. Why? Saying 7 Big Ten teams were ranked sounds a lot better than the 5 it should have had. No SEC bias here, boys!

I’m not falling for it.

I’ve said since Week 3 that the Big Ten only deserves 3 Playoff teams and the rest of the league stinks. The first Playoff ranking, however, set up the opportunity for late-season quality wins over “ranked” teams to create a narrative for 4 teams.

About that … No. 20 Iowa (which shouldn’t have been ranked) suffered its 3rd loss of the season. No. 23 Washington (which shouldn’t have been ranked) suffered its 3rd loss of the season, this one to woeful Wisconsin. No. 21 Michigan was idle.

But the B1G is top-heavy, remember?

OK. No. 1 Ohio State looked good in dominating Purdue. Jeremiah Smith showed why he’s a Heisman contender and my pick to win the award.

No. 2 Indiana got pushed around but ultimately responded against a Penn State squad that fired its coach and now has lost 6 consecutive games. Credit the Hoosiers’ resiliency, however. They are the Big Ten’s version of Vandy.

No. 9 Oregon is lucky to still be in the Playoff race, needing a last-minute field goal to knock off Iowa. The Ducks scored just 1 touchdown. Ultimately, I think Oregon loses again, probably to USC.

Is it possible that the B1G only gets 2 teams in the Playoff?

7. Notre Dame is the ultimate Playoff X-factor

I was only interested in 1 team’s Playoff ranking Tuesday: Notre Dame’s.

The Irish control the math. If they make the Playoff, it’s going to be all but impossible for the SEC to get 5 teams, no matter how deserving that 5th team might be.

The committee slotted the Irish at No. 10. Not good for SEC purists.

The Irish started 0-2 — both losses to top-20 teams, by a combined total of 4 points.

Now? They just whipped Playoff-hopeful Navy (yes, I realize how crazy that sounds; welcome to 2025) in Week 11 for their 7th consecutive victory. All 7, by the way, by double digits. That includes a 10-point, Week 8 victory against ranked and sudden-Playoff hopeful USC.

The Irish are rolling into a must-win showdown at ranked Pitt in Week 12.

The Irish can’t lose again and make the Playoff, but they probably won’t lose again. That’s terrible news for SEC bubble teams.

6. In 2025, the SEC will break the record for most coaches fired

The record for coaching changes is 5 — set after the 2017 season. That deserves an asterisk, however, because Dan Mullen voluntarily left Mississippi State to go to Florida, which fired Jim McElwain.

So only 4 SEC coaches were actually fired.

Four SEC coaches already have been fired this season. That matches the record for most firings in 1 season, set in 2017, then matched 2019 and 2020 when Nick Saban was getting everybody fired. (We’re not counting 2012, which also had 4 changes, because John L. Smith wasn’t fired; he was Arkansas’ interim coach and subsequently replaced.)

So, who are the next to go? In Week 6 — in response to Arkansas firing Sam Pittman and pouring fuel onto Firing SZN — I named the next 5 Power Conference coaches to go. Because ADs are such avid readers of Overreactions and take everything written here as gospel, 3 already are gone: Billy Napier, James Franklin and Freeze. Dave Doeren and Mark Stoops are hanging on.

Focusing on the SEC and its never-ending quest to live up to its “just means more” moniker, here’s the updated Hot Seat list after Week 11 as the league closes in on the record. I’ll be shocked if either coach is back in 2026.

1. Shane Beamer, South Carolina: I should have included him in the initial list. We all make mistakes. Kind of like Beamer’s choices in offensive coordinators.

2. (Still) Stoops: The $37 million buyout is ridiculous, but so are empty seats and growing negativity. Negotiate a settlement and let him walk away knowing he built Kentucky football to the point where Wildcats fans couldn’t wait to fire the winningest coach in program history. (Celebrate his 5th victory over Florida — before Stoops, Bear Bryant was the only Kentucky coach to accomplish that feat — and the fact that if he leaves this year, he’ll leave with a winning record. That was in danger had he not beaten Florida again. Nobody wants to be on the list of teams whose winningest coach had a losing record, right Indiana?)

5. Predicting the SEC’s 5 Playoff teams after Week 11

I’ll play along. The Playoff committee put 6 SEC teams in the top 12 and had 7 in the top 16. I’ve made the case for weeks that the SEC deserves 5 Playoff bids, but will probably get 4 because I’m not convinced the politics will allow for a 3-loss SEC team to make the final field over, say, a 10-2 Notre Dame squad or a 10-2 ACC/Big 12 runner-up.

No matter. Here are the 5 SEC teams that deserve to make the Playoff after Week 11 (and only after Week 11):

1. Texas A&M: I’ve had the Aggies as the SEC’s best team for weeks. Others are just now catching on. Grab a seat in the back.

2. Ole Miss: Make fun of a cupcake win all you want. Just don’t tell me how impressed you were that Oregon rallied to knock off Iowa in the last second of a field-goal fest or that Indiana rallied to beat a now 3-6/0-5 Penn State squad in the final minute. (Now, Omar Cooper Jr.’s game-winning TD catch? Absolutely. That was the most impressive play I’ve seen all year.)

3. Alabama: Alabama owns the series with Texas A&M, but history don’t make plays, Pawwwwl!

4. Georgia: The Dawgs finally unleashed their ground game. They ran for a season-high 303 yards — after averaging 170.3 in 6 previous SEC games. And, yes, it came against a Mississippi State defense that ranked No. 15 in rushing defense — but nobody ran on them like Georgia did. The Dawgs are at their best when Gunner Stockton gets to manage the game instead of being required to win it.

5. Vanderbilt: Call me stubborn for not selecting Texas over Vandy when Texas has the head-to-head win, but I love a great story. Vanderbilt’s rise is the SEC’s Story of the Year. Down again in the 2nd half Saturday, the ‘Dores rallied again, this time all the way back to knock off Auburn. I know that doesn’t sound terribly impressive — unless you watched it unfold. Diego Pavia threw for 377 yards and 3 TDs — and added another 112 yards rushing and a TD. That’s almost 500 yards of total offense and 4 TDs. That’s Manziel-level wizardry from college football’s Most Valuable Player.

4. Ranking the SEC-led Interim teams

The interim coaches went 0-3 with a bye in Week 11. Bygones.

Great news! Even in a terrible season, somebody’s about to be crowned No. 1!

1. Auburn (DJ Durkin): Who knew the only thing holding back Auburn’s offense was alleged offensive guru Hugh Freeze? The Tigers scoring an SEC-best 38 points in their first game without Freeze — on the road against a ranked Vandy team with Playoff hopes — tells you everything you need to know about Freeze as a play-caller in 2025. The Iron Bowl just got a whole lot more interesting. Now, about that defense … Durkin, weren’t you the defensive coordinator?

2. LSU (Frank Wilson): Alabama could have beaten LSU 83-0 instead of 20-9 Saturday and it wouldn’t change this ranking. However, I’m not a fan of benching Garrett Nussmeier. Want to give Michael Van Buren an occasional series? Fine. But don’t pin this mess on Nuss.

3. Florida (Billy Gonzales): Chin up, Gators. Mark Stoops claimed his 4th victory in 5 years against the Gators — against 3 different coaches. If Stoops could play Florida every game, he’d be the Curt Cignetti of the SEC. As for Gonzales, has an interim ever been fired? If so, did he get a buyout, too? Benching DJ Lagway was certainly a choice — even if, in the moment, after 3 INTs, it was the correct one.

4. Arkansas (Bobby Petrino): Arkansas was idle in Week 11 but is 0-4 with Petrino. Maybe it wasn’t all Sam Pittman‘s fault?

3. 3 teams in the initial top 11 that won’t make the Playoff

One year isn’t a large sample size in terms of precedent, but it’s all we have in relation to the 12-team Playoff.

Last year, 3 teams in the initial top 11 Playoff rankings didn’t make the Playoff.

This year, these 3 teams won’t, either.

No. 7 BYU: The Selection Committee ranked BYU ahead of No. 8 Texas Tech. Whatever. I’ve had Texas Tech winning the Big 12 all season. Saturday’s 29-7 beatdown over BYU merely confirmed I should chair the committee. I still think the Big 12 deserves 2 Playoff bids, but I don’t think BYU is the second-best team in the league.

No. 9 Oregon: The Ducks already have 1 loss and were fortunate to squeak out a win at Iowa on Saturday. That wasn’t a Playoff statement. That was a warning alarm. We should have seen this coming after Oregon barely survived at Penn State. Oregon still has to play USC and at rival Washington. If Oregon finishes 11-1, the Ducks are in. If they finish 10-2, with their best win being against … Penn State or Washington? We’ll find out exactly how much the committee values strength of schedule.

No. 11 Texas: The Longhorns already have 2 losses and travel to No. 5 Georgia in Week 12 before hosting No. 3 Texas A&M in the regular-season finale. They are far more likely to get swept than sweep — and they must sweep to stay in the Playoff race.

P.S.: No. 10 Notre Dame joins this list if they lose, but as noted, I think they run the table to finish 10-2.

2. Fastest way to destroy the Playoff? Eliminate automatic bids

Mississippi State President and Playoff board chairman Mark Keenum took a stance this week that should terrify college football fans across the country.

He said the SEC favors a system that eliminates automatic bids.

“I’m not a big fan of automatic qualifiers,” Keenum told Paul Finebaum. “I think the best teams ought to play in our nation’s national tournament to determine who our national champion in college football is going to be and not have automatic bids. That’s the position of the Southeastern Conference — presidents and chancellors, our commissioner, and probably most of the conferences that are part of the CFP.”

Are you kidding me?

Last year, for the first and only time in this sport’s history, college football finally crowned a legitimate national champion. Everybody in the country opened fall practice in 2024 with a path to the Playoff — including every Group of 5 hopeful. Boise State made it. Unheralded power conference schools had a chance, too. Arizona State, unranked most of the season, overcame early setbacks to win the Big 12 and make it. Indiana got in over Alabama. Heck, for the first time, every power conference champion made it. Which means, for the first time in history, those conference championship games actually did mean more.

And you want to blow up that system, the one that made it happen?

What?

We know why: Keenum said only the best teams should make the Playoff. What he means is: The SEC is the best conference in the country, produces the most NFL players and should have 6 or 7 teams in the Playoff every year.

Here’s the rub: Every other sport, D-I to professional, gives everybody a path to their tournament. Professional leagues have divisions — and every division champ makes the playoffs, sometimes with a record that’s worse than teams in other divisions that didn’t make the playoffs.

The NCAA Tournament has been the model event. It provided the blueprint for how to crown a champion — and it only gained that status after it expanded and gave automatic bids to smaller conferences. Gonzaga never becomes Gonzaga without automatic bids. UMBC never upsets No. 1-seed Virginia without an automatic bid into the tournament.

If Keenum ran college basketball, we never would have witnessed Jimmy V and the Cardiac Pack. Or Steph. Or Sister Jean. Automatic bids created so much more than One Shining Moment; they made the NCAA Tournament everything it has become.

Automatic bids set up college football for its most meaningful regular season and best postseason ever — knowing it will only get better. Expand to 16 — but keep the automatic bids.

If eliminating automatic bids is truly what the SEC wants, maybe it is time for the conference to just break away and conduct its own tournament.

1. If it’s not Dabo, please, Auburn, hire Jon Gruden

The noise is growing louder that Dabo Swinney is interested in Auburn. It makes sense on a lot of levels, right down to the mascot. The fact that Swinney played at Alabama gives a runaway narrative even more fuel.

Acknowledged and curious.

But the “Grumors” also are back — and I’m here for it.

Jon Gruden’s energy. Auburn’s fan base.

Enough electricity to power The Plains and fuel a run to the top of the SEC.

Do it, already.

It won’t end well, but it never does. Getting there, though, will be more fun than Auburn fans have had since Alabama decided to attempt that 57-yard field goal.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 11 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Here’s the box score from every SEC game in Week 11, plus updated league standings and team stats.

No. 5 Georgia 41, Mississippi State 21

No. 7 Ole Miss 49, Citadel 0

No. 3 Texas A&M 38, No. 19 Missouri 17

No. 15 Vanderbilt 45, Auburn 38 (OT)

No. 4 Alabama 20, LSU 9

Kentucky 38, Florida 7

SEC Standings after Week 11

To find the SEC, use the dropdown menu on the right to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 11

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 11 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Each week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC football game.

Follow here for all of the action, updated in real-time, from Week 11:

No. 5 Georgia vs Mississippi State

No. 7 Ole Miss vs Citadel

No. 3 Texas A&M vs No. 19 Missouri

No. 15 Vanderbilt vs Auburn

No. 4 Alabama vs LSU

Florida vs Kentucky

The post Live updates: Week 11 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Another week, another coach fired. Who’s next? When will the madness end? I mean, LSU fired a coach whose only crime this year was losing to teams currently ranked No. 3, No. 7 and No. 9. What?

The entire college football universe has gone mad chasing what you’ve created in Bloomington, Basketball, Indiana.

Well, not quite everybody. Jeremiah Smith and Ole Miss looked pretty darned good again. Texas and Georgia looked good enough. Hugh Freeze, Vanderbilt’s mojo, Miami and Scott Woodward’s reputation? Not so much.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 10 in and around the SEC.

10. Will the real Georgia please show up?

One week, the Dawgs are done.

The next week, Gunner Stockton looks like he’ll become the first SEC QB to sweep the Heisman, SEC title and national title.

Saturday in the Cocktail Party?

Eh, … they won? Considering 3 top-10 teams lost Saturday, that’s something, but I give up trying to figure out who Georgia is, exactly. Other than the most resilient team in America.

Down again, the Dawgs rallied again — winning their 4th game this season in which they trailed in the second half.

Only Alabama has been able to cage them and keep them down.

Tennessee couldn’t. Auburn couldn’t. Ole Miss couldn’t. And Florida couldn’t Saturday, despite an inspired effort and improved play-calling in the wake of Billy Napier‘s firing.

Stockton didn’t do a lot Saturday, but he did enough. He threw 2 TD passes, but his best play might have been the late adjustment he made that set up Chauncy Bowens’ go-ahead 36-yard touchdown run in the final minutes.

The Dawgs still have to play Texas in Week 12 and Georgia Tech in the regular-season finale.

They’re good enough to win both, but inconsistent enough to slip up at least once and put their Playoff fate in the committee’s hands.

It’s never wise to doubt the Dawgs, but I’m betting on the latter.

9. The SEC replay system is broken. The fix is obvious

This was a catch — potentially a game-changing catch, which means potentially a season-changing catch … and that’s not even the point.

The point is: We have no idea — only conspiracy theories — about how the SEC replay booth came to this decision that this wasn’t a catch.

Why are we still doing this?

There were 3 potentially game-changing reviews in the Cocktail Party and we’re just yelling at the TV hoping that everything is on the up and up.

Greg Sankey, please: With 1 email, you could erase every pretense that anything could be awry and make the replay review process public already.

It’s not like you’d be setting precedent. The ACC already does this. And they barely play football!

The SEC has to follow the ACC’s lead and let everybody in on the review, every word, every angle, every decision.

Half of the folks still will disagree with the decision, because, fandom, but at least we’ll all know why those dang refs still can’t get it right.

8. Well, Vandy, it was a great run …

Vanderbilt has 3 wins this season over teams ranked No. 10, No. 11 and No. 15 at kickoff.

There won’t be 7 at-large Playoff teams with more wins over ranked teams. Heck, there won’t be any at-large teams from the Big Ten … or ACC … or Big 12 that have 3 regular-season wins over ranked teams. Playoff hopeful Notre Dame will end the regular season 1-2 vs. the Top 25.

The ‘Dores have a Playoff-worthy resume.

None of that will matter now.

Not after the Commodores suffered their second loss Saturday — albeit at another ranked team. Vandy trailed Texas 34-10 but finished with a furious, 21-point 4th quarter to pull within 34-31. The ‘Dores nearly capped the comeback with an onside kick recovery that would have given them a chance to force OT. Unfortunately, those details won’t matter.

That’s too bad.

Give Vandy Indiana’s schedule, and we’re not having this conversation. The ‘Dores would have rolled to an 11-1 regular season and be considered a Playoff lock.

The expanded Playoff has enabled contenders stay in the race, but it hasn’t completely solved the unbalanced schedule situation. I think 16 teams is a fair, responsible number that we’ll eventually get to, but that won’t help Diego Pavia and this Vandy team unless the Playoff committee actually does select 5 SEC teams this season.

The SEC was always going to eat its own, and Saturday, Vanderbilt paid the price.

The grind is real. It was a heck of a run. Thanks for the memories, Vandy.

Long live King Pavia.

You’re a Playoff team in my book.

7. Y’all know what Curt Cignetti is doing can’t be replicated, right?

By the time you read this Sunday (and thank you for reading, by the way), another Power 4 conference coach might have lost his job. (Hugh Freeze is next. What was that? The only thing you are “close” to is a buyout. UPDATE! Auburn did, in fact, fire Freeze on Sunday. Don’t blame me. I didn’t go 6-16 in the SEC. Shane Beamer is on stand-by. And if you’re a Michigan Man, there is no way you’re excited about Sherrone Moore returning in 2026.)

The 2025 cycle has been absolutely insane and recklessly expensive.

After Indiana started 6-0 last year, I started writing that Curt Cignetti was going to get a lot of coaches fired because boosters were going to start asking their athletic director: How can this guy walk into a program that was 200 games under .500 and have them in the Playoff mix in 6 months … and we can’t?

I never anticipated this, though.

This surpassed fiscally irresponsible 5 coaches ago. This is unsustainable and nonsensical.

In the past 12 months alone — Halloween to Halloween — 15 Power 4 coaches have been fired. Last Sunday, Brian Kelly became the 3rd SEC coach fired during the 2025 season. The buyout total for those 3 SEC coaches alone is nearly $80 million. Overall, the buyout total is approximately $160 million — and yet schools want to eliminate Olympic sports because of funding.

It’s time to pump the brakes, take a step back and understand, while, yes, it’s absolutely amusing that Curt Cignetti has replaced Nick Saban as the ultimate coach killer, what Cignetti has accomplished in 18 months at Indiana isn’t a plug-and-play model that can be replicated everywhere else. Maybe not anywhere else.

This was the perfect storm of a coach walking into a program with zero expectations, next-to-no national media noise, being given carte blanche to build it however he wants through new rules and then reaping the benefits against one of the softest schedules in the country.

I’m not discrediting anything Cignetti has done, but I’m also not interested in listening to folks try to explain that he would have the same record if he played Florida’s schedule, or Oklahoma’s schedule or LSU’s schedule. Or that B1G football, top to bottom, is on the same level as SEC football. All of that is nonsense.

I am no Brian Kelly apologist, but in the past 2 1/2 seasons, the man’s only losses were to teams ranked at kickoff: No. 8, No. 20, No. 8, No. 23, No. 14, No. 11, unranked, No. 13, No. 17 and, finally, No. 3. (Those final 3 teams are now ranked No. 3, No. 7 and No. 9.) He also beat teams ranked No. 4, No. 9, No. 21. In Year 1, he beat teams ranked No. 7 and No. 6.

To date, in 2 seasons, Cignetti’s Hoosiers have played just 4 games against ranked opponents — they were 0-2 against those teams last year. They are 2-0 this year, with 1 of those wins coming against an overrated and now-unranked Illinois team that just lost for the 3rd time.

Indiana blew out hapless Maryland on Saturday to move to 9-0. With nothing but pastry items left before the Big Ten Championship Game, Cignetti will end the regular season with just 1 win in 2 years against a ranked team.

That’s not a gauntlet. That’s a gimme.

Cignetti absolutely has made the most of an amazing opportunity — but let’s stop pretending like that opportunity exists anywhere in the SEC.

In the Big 12? ACC? Maybe.

6. Let’s talk about Eli Drinkwitz …

We’ve all seen the wish-lists and the top-5 candidates for this opening or that opening.

Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz has been mentioned in the Florida and LSU search.

Why?

Nothing against Drinkwitz, either: He’s a perfectly fine SEC football coach, but the reality is, after 4 1/2 years at Mizzou, he’s 24-22 in the league without the hint of a Playoff appearance.

Is he a better coach than Billy Napier? I mean, who isn’t? Interim Billy Gonzales had never coached a game at any level and he almost beat Georgia on Saturday. That’s not the point.

If Florida really think it’s a top-tier job (and I don’t), it has to hire somebody better than a guy who is 24-22 in the SEC. The funny thing is, Mizzou fans already think its program is better than the Gators. In their current state, they might be right.

LSU? Brian Kelly is a better coach than Eli Drinkwitz. Even if you disagree, there’s no way you spend close to $60 million to replace a coaching staff and end up with Drinkwitz — a modest upgrade, at best.

LSU has to land a proven winner, not just another guy who occasionally wins a big game.

If there’s a school and situation that could pull Lane Kiffin out of Oxford, it’s LSU, not Florida.

5. The SEC’s 5 Playoff teams are …

The first Playoff ranking will be revealed Tuesday night. Don’t be fooled into wishful thinking when 5 SEC teams are ranked among the top 11 teams.

It’s all part of the show. I’m not going to get worked up about the possibility of 5 SEC teams actually making the field, even though it becomes more obvious every week they should.

But Tuesday night, here are the 5 SEC teams that will be included among the top 11 teams. (Remember, the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion ultimately will grab 1 of the 12 spots, so being ranked No. 12 is of no use.)

1. Texas A&M: The Aggies were idle in Week 10 ahead of next week’s trip to Missouri.

2. Alabama: The Tide were idle in Week 10 ahead of next week’s visit from LSU.

3. Georgia: The Dawgs are the most inconsistent Playoff team in America, but that’s better than being the most consistent bowl team in America. Florida had the Dawgs on the ropes Saturday, but Georgia escaped again.

4. Ole Miss: The Rebels did what you’d expect a Playoff team to do against a team that should be looking for a new coach in December.

5. Texas: You can thank Oklahoma for eliminating Tennessee and putting you back in the Playoff hunt. Texas’ remaining schedule is far too difficult, however, so its inclusion is short-lived.

Next out: Vanderbilt and Oklahoma. A 2-loss SEC team deserves to make the Playoff over any other at-large. The problem is: There will be too many 2-loss SEC teams. Several are gonna get left out.

4. Arch ain’t done just yet …

We all buried Arch Manning and Texas. I’ve done it several times, but I’m paid to overreact.

A funny thing happened in Week 10.

Arch Manning played the best ball of his college life (328 yards, 3 TD throws, 0 turnovers), Texas all but ended Vanderbilt’s Cinderella story and … most important … the Longhorns got all the help they needed to get back in the Playoff hunt courtesy of a hated rival.

Oklahoma eliminated Tennessee. And even though Oklahoma has been ranked ahead of Texas in the unimportant AP poll, we all remember that the Longhorns blasted the Sooners in the Red River Showdown.

Do I think Texas will make the Playoff? Not a chance. The Longhorns still travel to Georgia and host Texas A&M. They have to sweep to survive. Not happening.

But if Manning plays like he did Saturday, he might spoil one of those team’s dreams as a consolation prize.

3. Heisman ballot after Week 10

Quarterbacks continue to lead the Heisman race. I’m not sure why, especially given how relatively mediocre this collection of college QBs is. But scan the latest Heisman odds, and you have to keep scrolling to find the best football player in America. (Also, invest today.)

Here’s how I’d vote after Week 10, a week that Ohio State star Jeremiah Smith clearly distanced himself from the competition.

1. Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State: He’s the only cheat code in college football. And now Ohio State is lining him up in the slot? Smith caught 2 more TD passes in Ohio State’s cruise-control victory over Penn State. Smith has 9 TD catches in 8 games, 24 TD catches in 23 career games.

2. Julian Sayin, Ohio State: Sayin is making the most of having the most advantageous situation in the country. When Smith isn’t beating double-coverages, he’s creating easy 1-on-1s for Ohio State’s other NFL-ready receivers. Credit Sayin for playin’ catch at an 81% clip. Bo Nix holds the NCAA record, by the say, completing 77.5% of his passes in 2023 for Oregon (sorry for the reminder, Auburn fans). Sayin added 4 more TD passes Saturday, giving him 23 for the season.

3. Ty Simpson, Alabama: Simpson has thrown 20 TD passes against just 1 INT — in the SEC. He’s engineered comebacks and already defeated 4 ranked teams. He’s trying to become the first QB since Joe Burrow in 2019 to win the Heisman while also sweeping the SEC championship and national championship.

2. Miami puts The U in Underachieving … again

The droUght continues.

Miami, which joined the ACC in 2004, still hasn’t won the ACC Championship — and it won’t this year, either.

Saturday, the No. 10-ranked Canes coughed up another golden opportunity, blowing a 4th-quarter lead at SMU before losing in overtime. Of course a personal foul on 4th-and-9 played a huge role in SMU’s tying drive, but Carson Beck’s 2 interceptions didn’t help, either. SMU scored TDs after both interceptions, including the final one in overtime.

Miami dropped to 2-2 in the ACC, and there is such a logjam at the top, it would require 3 sheets of college-ruled paper to figure out a possible path to Charlotte. And none of those would be plausible.

Two Sundays ago, the Canes were No. 2 in the country, 5-0 after beating Florida State and Beck had some of the best Heisman odds in the country.

All too predictably, The Unraveling began.

This will be the 6th consecutive year that Miami rose into the top 20 but failed to reach the Playoff. It will be the 6th time in the past 10 seasons that they reached the top 10 — and still didn’t make the Playoff. Yes, I’m fully aware the Playoff was 4 teams from 2014-2023. I’m also aware that, even if you wanted to expand to 12 teams, Miami has only finished in the top 10 of the final Playoff poll 1 time.

I take back everything I wrote about the Canes in Week 6. Fool me once, shame on The U. Fool me every time? Well, turns out Nick Saban isn’t the only dumb—.

What is Mario Cristobal’s buyout?

Speaking of buyouts …

1. Please, let this signal the beginning of the end of the Buyout Era …

I can’t promise you that Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry saw my tweet about $10+ million buyouts being the worst development in college sports history, but I can say I’ve never heard anybody in power say enough is enough as emphatically as he did Wednesday, when he benched AD Scott Woodward from participating in LSU’s hiring process. (Woodward and LSU then parted ways Thursday.)

“We are not going down a failed path. … This is a pattern. The guy that’s here now that wrote that contract, He cost Texas A&M $70-something million. We’ve got a $53 million liability. We are not doing that again. … I’m tired of rewarding failure.”

Wow. Finally, somebody publicly admonished these outrageous buyouts and placed the blame where it belongs: on the athletic director who allowed this to happen.

The only thing missing was the Governor suggesting that Woodward should pay the buyout.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 10 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Here is the complete box score from every Week 10 SEC game, plus updated league standings and team stats:

No. 20 Texas 34, No. 9 Vanderbilt 31

Arch Manning isn’t going to get back in the Heisman race, but he was near-flawless as Texas kept its slim Playoff hopes alive.

No. 5 Georgia 24, Florida 20

Georgia won its 5th consecutive game in the Cocktail Party.

Mississippi State 38, Arkansas 35

The Bulldogs ended their 16-game SEC losing streak Saturday, giving Jeff Lebby his first win in the SEC.

No. 7 Ole Miss 30, South Carolina 14

Ole Miss is 8-1 for the 3rd time in the past 4 seasons. Can they finish the deal?

No. 18 Oklahoma 33, No. 14 Tennessee 27

Oklahoma ended Tennessee its 3rd loss, unofficially ending the Vols’ Playoff hopes.

Kentucky 10, Auburn 3

Kentucky turns up the heat on Hugh Freeze‘s hot seat after holding the Tigers to a single field goal.

SEC Standings after Week 10

Use the dropdown menu on the right and select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 10

Use the dropdown menu on the right and select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive team stats.

The post Week 10 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides live stats for every Week 10 SEC football game. Follow here for all of the action, updated in real-time.

No. 9 Vanderbilt vs No. 20 Texas

No. 5 Georgia vs Florida

Mississippi State vs Arkansas

No. 7 Ole Miss vs South Carolina

No. 14 Tennessee vs No. 18 Oklahoma

Kentucky vs Auburn

The post Live updates: Week 10 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Now what? They’ve taken away Option A, and I’m scrambling for answers like Texas, coaches who go for it on 4th down, athletic directors with openings/potential openings, and Desmond Howard, who delivered the most ridiculous take of the weekend.

In these trying times, I need reliable mentors like Texas A&M, Alabama, Clark Lea or Vandy-loving Nick Saban. They’ve got it all figured out.

Those are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after a ridiculously wild Week 9 in and around the SEC.

10. You wanted A&M to prove it? The Aggies just did

You know the history. I’ve written the history (See: No. 5).

We were all sitting around Saturday night waiting for the The Big Choke at Death Valley.

Instead, we got The Big Chokehold on a Playoff Spot.

No more questions. No more worrying. Texas A&M has the most dangerous, diverse offense in the SEC. Its defense is just as terrifying.

A&M’s best running back, Le’Veon Moss, didn’t play at LSU and it didn’t matter. LSU might as well have been La. Tech.

Marcel Reed dominated with his arm (2 TDs) and legs (2 TDs), and KC Concepcion, the best transfer in college football, made plays no matter whether he caught a pass for a TD or a punt for a TD. Ashton Bethel-Roman made the most ridiculous 1-handed catch of the season.

These Aggies are explosive, confident and on the verge of erasing the ghosts of flameouts past.

I’m not saying plan the parade, but I’m not rolling my eyes if you plan a 3-day trip to Miami in late January, either.

9. Ole Miss bails out Lane Kiffin in his biggest win

First things first: Ole Miss earned a split in its 2 biggest games of the season: rebounding from last week’s loss at No. 9 Georgia by earning a gutsy road win at No. 13 Oklahoma on Saturday.

Ole Miss had to earn the split to keep its Playoff hopes intact.

The good news: It did. Emphatically.

Except for one big play, Ole Miss contained Oklahoma’s offense, and the Rebels had more than their fair share of success against Brent Venables‘ propped-up defense. Heisman hopeful Trinidad Chambliss made plays: 314 yards passing, a clutch TD throw and just enough rushing (53 yards including sacks) to extend drives and play keep-away from the Sooners.

With just a bit of help, reaching Atlanta is as realistic as it ever has been.

Still … there’s the nagging takeaway of whether chronic jokester Lane Kiffin is the guy you want making critical decisions in a Playoff-type game.

Saturday, Kiffin made an unbelievably poor/irresponsible decision that almost cost Ole Miss, well, everything.

Ole Miss led 22-10 and just forced a quick 3-and-out on Oklahoma’s opening possession of the 3rd quarter.

Ole Miss quickly found itself in a 4th-and-1 from its own 25-yard line. Forget the analytics on 4th-and-1. Embrace the situation. Have a feel for the game. Punt. The. Ball.

Kiffin decided to go for it. This isn’t a hindsight is 20/20 criticism. I (and others) tweeted in real time that this decision made zero sense.

Kiffin is a brilliant schemer and timely play-caller. Dangerously so. He’s Brett Favre with a headset. Few, if any, are able to spot and exploit certain looks better than he can. But this? Even if it worked, the decision was reckless. The risk outweighed the reward 100-1. Not only did the play not work, at all, the Rebels lost 9 yards.

Oklahoma had a chance to score a TD, gain momentum and reignite the home crowd. Kiffin is fortunate that the Rebels’ D limited the Sooners to a field goal.

Look, Ole Miss won, and it was impressive, exactly the kind of game that aspiring Playoff teams must win.

I’ve had Ole Miss as 1 of the SEC’s 4 Playoff teams most weeks, but not last week.

It’s decisions like this that make me question whether I can go all-in and fully trust Kiffin in tense times.

9b. You’re not off the hook either, Drinkwitz, Golesh …

The situations were different, but the results were even more costly.

In a tied game, 3-3 early in the 3rd quarter at Vandy, Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz decided to go for it on 4th-and-goal. Mizzou QB Beau Pribula was stuffed and left with an air cast on his leg. Disastrous result, but why wouldn’t a go-ahead field goal been good enough in that situation? That decision didn’t necessarily cost Mizzou in a Playoff-or-bust game, but it didn’t help, either.

USF coach Alex Golesh might have cost his Bulls a Playoff shot, when he chose going for it on 4th down over kicking a field goal to extend USF’s lead at Memphis to 27-17. The 4th-down play failed (basically a go route to a freshman that had no chance) and Memphis eventually scored 17 consecutive points in the 4th quarter to win 34-31. Crushing. USF now needs help to reach the American Conference Championship Game — the winner of which likely will be ranked high enough to secure an automatic bid to the Playoff.

8. The Manning family must really hate Mississippi State

Archie and Eli Manning starred at Ole Miss, so it makes sense that “Mississippi State” would be a phrase uttered only with disdain. Arch went 1-1-1 during his time; Eli was 3-1 in the Egg Bowl.

Peyton Manning only faced the Bulldogs once, and he hung 52 on them in a blowout win.

Texas QB Arch Manning improved to 2-0 vs. Mississippi State, throwing for 346 yards and accounting for 4 TDs as Texas rallied from an unthinkable deficit to win 45-38 in OT. (Yes, he left with an injury before the game-winning toss, status TBD. No, the win most certainly did not keep alive the Longhorns’ Playoff hopes. Those perished weeks ago.)

You don’t need a Vandy degree to realize the Mannings are now 7-2-1 against Mississippi State.

Let the rest of the world focus on why and how Texas ever found itself in a 31-14 hole entering the 4th quarter against a team mired in a 15-game SEC losing streak.

I’m focusing on the more amusing aspect: The Mannings’ mastery of Mississippi State.

7. Hugh Freeze? Win’s a win, but you didn’t exactly earn a vote of confidence …

There are some games you just have to win. Or they will find somebody else who can.

Saturday was that day for Auburn coach Hugh Freeze, whose seat already was so hot that last week he publicly pleaded for a vote of confidence from his AD.

Yeah, that’s not happening. Credit Auburn for a 17-0 4th-quarter blitz that allowed the Tigers to escape with a 33-24 win, but it’s difficult to say the Tigers were impressive. However, they did enough, behind backup QB Ashton Daniels no less, to get to 4-4 and reignite their bowl hopes. Auburn still has Kentucky and Mercer remaining, so 6 wins is all but a lock. Anything less and the conversation about Freeze’s future ends really quick.

However … will 6-6 be enough to save Freeze?

For weeks, I’ve said Freeze was 1 of the next 5 head coaches who would be fired. Last week, I said I wouldn’t fire him but still believed Auburn would. I falsely assumed that Auburn would hammer Arkansas in Week 9.

Yeah, that didn’t happen, either, despite the final 9-point margin.

Arkansas was 0-3 in the SEC, had lost 5 in a row and obviously already fired its head coach earlier this season.

There are some games that spell out the T-H-E E-N-D so simply that a 2nd-grader would get it. Auburn fans turned the page weeks ago and might not have even watched the final 15 minutes Saturday. They’re in Napier Watch mode now, just waiting for the press release.

If you were on the fence, waiting for the sign, Saturday might have been it. Certainly at the end of the 3rd quarter, you were ready to cut the buyout check for $15.437 million and move on.

If you’re an eternal optimist, maybe you saw that comeback, on the road, with the backup QB all but securing bowl eligibility and thought the worm is turning. The Iron Bowl is at Jordan-Hare, where the Tide have seen ghosts. Forget settling for 6-6, when 7-5 is possible.

I admire your optimism. But I doubt AD John Cohen shares it.

6. No, Desmond, the B1G doesn’t run college football

This is what happens when a conference wins back-to-back national championships. You get wild overreactions like this one, from Desmond Howard.

The only thing he got right was saying the Big Ten will only get 3 teams in the Playoff. I’ve been saying that for weeks, while the masses just assume it’s automatic that the B1G deserves 4.

5. Ranking the Power Conference jobs

Seven Power conference coaches have been fired this season — with more to come, possibly as soon as later today. (Dave Doeren, what was that? Brian Kelly, bet you wish you were still up North.)

Using a completely made up metric of history/athletic director/likelihood of making the Playoff with 2 years/toxicity of fan base/where you’d actually want to live, here’s how I would rank the openings:

1. Penn State: No-brainer at No. 1. This is one of the top jobs in the country — among current openings, potential openings, future openings. Just don’t ask Nick Saban. He’s not interested.

2. Florida: Please do not mistake this as me saying this is the 2nd-best gig in the country. We are 20 years removed from that honor. It’s the 2nd-best of these 7 current openings. (Overall, it’s no better than the 8th-best gig in the SEC. Before you start screaming: 1. Alabama, 2. Georgia, 3. Texas, 4. LSU, 5. Texas A&M, 6. Oklahoma, 7. Tennessee, T8. Florida/Ole Miss/Missouri/Auburn, then South Carolina, Arkansas, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Vanderbilt).

3. Oklahoma State: OK State should have been poised to pounce the second Texas and Oklahoma bolted for the SEC. Instead, the Cowboys tanked. The new Big 12 is there for the taking — with the right coach.

4. UCLA: The Miami of the West Coast? Sounds harsh — to both programs, actually — but there is no realistic reason that the Bruins have had just 1 top-10 finish since 1998. This should be a destination job for coaches and landing spot for recruits.

5. Virginia Tech: Blacksburg ain’t for everybody, I get it. But it’s one of the few, true college football towns in the ACC. It’s Football Country.

6. Arkansas: Put Arkansas in the ACC or Big 12, and everything about this gig sounds significantly better than the reality of having to survive in the SEC. Money won’t change that.

7. Oregon State: Nothing against the program itself, but it’s on an island. Yes, the Pac-12 is reinventing itself, but it will be years before anybody takes that league seriously. Any successful Group of 5 coach would be wise to stay put.

4. The SEC’s 4 Playoff teams are …

We are 2 weeks from the first Playoff ranking. After 9 weeks of evidence, I’m even more convinced that the SEC absolutely deserves 5 teams in the Playoff. (If we’re being completely honest, the SEC has 6 of the 12 best teams in the country, easily.) But the politics won’t allow that to happen, so we’ll stick to projecting the 4 that will make the Playoff after the wildest week in recent SEC memory:

1. Texas A&M: Among contenders, A&M had the most impressive victory in Week 9. Obviously, if A&M runs the table — borderline likely, especially given Mizzou’s QB situation in light of Beau Pribula’s injury — the Aggies are a Playoff lock. I live for chaos, though. The only problem is, any loss forces a thorough examination of the Aggies’ schedule, which is solid, but not quite as strong as other potential 11-1 contenders.

2. Alabama: I mean, if Kalen DeBoer is going to start beating unranked teams regularly, too? We already know what he does to ranked teams.

3. Georgia: Another title fight with Alabama in Atlanta? It’s possible, with help. No way DeBoer beats Kirby Smart for a 3rd consecutive time, right?

4. Vanderbilt: Major caveat — Vandy has to run the table and finish 11-1, including a resume-sealing win at ranked rival Tennessee. At 11-1, the Commodores would have defeated 5 ranked SEC teams. That’s the only way they stay in the mix. Am I caught up in the moment? I’d wear the King Pavia costume while writing this if I had one. If Nick Saban is all-in on Vandy, who am I to disagree?

First out: Ole Miss: Statement win for Kiffin and the Rebels, no matter the details. The Rebels are staring at 11-1 with a possible trip to the SEC Championship Game. They won’t see another ranked team until the postseason. Their SOS/resume isn’t as strong as other contenders, but 11-1 in the SEC with 2 wins over ranked teams is 11-1 in the SEC with 2 wins over ranked teams. It holds up against the rest of the country — but will it hold up if 5 SEC teams finish 11-1 or better? That’s entirely possible. If A&M, Vandy and Ole Miss all finish 11-1, I’d probably pick A&M and Vandy over Ole Miss, based on quality wins, but who knows what the committee will do.

Bottom line: All 5 deserve to go.

3. Oh, Jimbo …

So, another year, another dozen tributes to Jimbo Fisher, who says he still wants to coach again.

This time, Yahoo wrote the piece, spending time with Fisher in Tallahassee. Standard stuff, a nice attempt to paint Fisher as, you know, a humble, good ol’ ball coach trying to get back in the game.

“I never got into coaching for money,” he told Yahoo. “Well, I’m not going to get out of it because I’ve got money.”

That’s the rub. In real-time, as his Texas A&M saga was dragging toward its inevitable end, I wrote that Fisher needed negotiate a reduced buyout. It was the only shot he had of salvaging his sinking reputation. Negotiate, and you don’t come off as a billboard lawyer with a whistle, chasing every last penny. Consider this: Sam Pittman looked like a hero who actually loved Arkansas when he accepted a lower buyout. Fisher wouldn’t be the butt of every buyout joke had he settled for, say, $60 million instead of the record-setting $77 million he’s still being paid for not winning nearly enough at Texas A&M.

He chose to make that about himself.

“When you’re away from something, it makes you reflect,” Fisher told Yahoo. “I’m back to watching film and have those feelings. I miss the players and those relationships. I miss practice. I miss the grind. I live to coach. I love to do what I did.”

It’s nice that he wants to coach again. I’m sure he does. Maybe Arkansas, Oklahoma State or Oregon State offer to make him the lowest-paid coach in their conference. Virginia Tech makes the most sense. Until then?

There are high schools in and around Tally with openings.

2. If I’m Florida, I’m making 1 phone call …

And it’s to the active USC head coach, not the former one y’all want who was fired on the tarmac.

I’m calling Lincoln Riley, and even if it takes me 39 days instead of the 38 days Alabama needed to land Nick Saban, I’m not allowing him to say no. It’s what they should have done before hiring Napier.

Florida has been looking for the next Steve Spurrier since the HBC left. Yes, Urban Meyer won, but never with Spurrier’s personality, style or quick wit.

It’s fine to pine for and pursue Lane Kiffin. I just don’t understand why he’d want to leave what he’s building at Ole Miss, where everything that’s on the table at Florida also is available in Oxford. Minus the headaches and revolving door of coaches.

Whatever modern football history Ole Miss has, Kiffin is the one building it. He’s on the verge of a 4th 10-win season at Ole Miss. From 1963-2019, Ole Miss won 10 games 3 times. Only 1 Ole Miss coach has won 10 games 4 times — and his name is on the stadium.

He is Ole Miss’ Spurrier.

Riley is in a different situation. He has so many more reasons to leave. And, given his ties to Oklahoma, the storylines write themselves.

College football needs the Gators to be great again. Among the gettable candidates, Riley is the most likely to make that happen.

1. Don’t bother calling Nick Saban. He’s having too much fun …

As soon as GameDay announced it was coming to Nashville, I — along with many others — pleaded for SEC Shorts’ most famous character, Vandy’s “King Pavia,” to be the guest picker. That didn’t happen.

But this did … and this is even more unbelievable than anything that happened on the field Saturday.

Nick Saban, in costume?

I don’t know what y’all did with the old Nick Saban, but I love it.

Now, the only question is: Will King Saban dress up like this on his birthday, which happens to be on Halloween?

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 9 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Week 9 is complete. Saturday Down South has every box score from every SEC game, plus updated league standings and team stats.

No. 8 Ole Miss 34, No. 13 Oklahoma 26

Auburn 33, Arkansas 24

No. 4 Alabama 29, South Carolina 22

No. 10 Vanderbilt 17, No. 15 Mizzou 10

No. 22 Texas 45, Mississippi State 38 (OT)

No. 3 Texas A&M 49, No. 20 LSU 25

No. 17 Tennessee 56, Kentucky 34

SEC Standings after Week 9

Use the dropdown menu on the right to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 9

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Every week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC football game.

Follow here for all of the action in Week 9.

No. 8 Ole Miss vs No. 13 Oklahoma

Auburn vs Arkansas

No. 4 Alabama vs South Carolina

No. 10 Vanderbilt vs No. 15 Mizzou

No. 22 Texas vs Mississippi State

No. 3 Texas A&M vs No. 20 LSU

No. 17 Tennessee vs Kentucky

The post Live updates: Week 9 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

How did SEC teams fare in Week 8? Here’s every box score, plus updated SEC standings and team stats.

No. 17 Vanderbilt 31, No. 10 LSU 24

No. 14 Oklahoma 26, South Carolina 7

No. 4 Texas A&M 45, Arkansas 42

No. 9 Georgia 43, No. 5 Ole Miss 35

Florida 23, Mississippi State 21

No. 21 Texas 16, Kentucky 13 (OT)

No. 6 Alabama 37, No. 11 Tennessee 20

No. 16 Mizzou 23, Auburn 17 (2 OT)

SEC Standings after Week 8

Use the dropdown menu on the right and select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 8

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The post Week 8 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Celebrate the inevitable end of the whole Billy Napier saga, whenever that is, but when the search lingers and the rejections start piling up, remember that the Magic Kingdom is in Orlando, not Gainesville.

Speaking of magic, Diego Pavia and Gunner Stockton made some Saturday, while LSU, Miami, Ole Miss and common sense disappeared, again.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 8 in and around the SEC.

10. Does Florida even care about football anymore?

That was my immediate reaction after Penn State fired James Franklin last Sunday. No, I wasn’t surprised. I wrote in Week 6 that Franklin would be 1 of the next 5 Power conference coaches to go, his $50 million buyout be damned.

That buyout, by the way, is $30 million more than what Florida will pay Billy Napier, whenever they decide to get back in the game. Matt Hayes reported this week that Florida could fire Napier as soon as today. Others disputed that timing. So, we wait.

At this point, Florida’s willingness to wallow in sub-mediocrity has called into question its desire to compete. Napier is 22-23 after Saturday’s dramatic win over Mississippi State — which was secured only because 375-pound big-man Michai Boireau’s interception eliminated MSU’s chance to kick a walk-off, game-winning field goal. You know, just like they drew it up.

Do the Gators even care anymore? I mean, even Sam Pittman won 9 games once as Arkansas’ coach. Napier hasn’t done that yet — and he won’t this year, either.

Nine wins. Think about that: That’s not even a Playoff ceiling. That’s an invite to the Gasparilla Bowl, maybe.

You have to go all the way back to Ron Zook to find a Gators coach who didn’t win 9 games in a season at least 1 time — and even Zook won 8 games in 2 of his 3 seasons. Scan back farther: Since 1960, Zook and Napier are the only Gators coaches who didn’t win 9 games at least 1 time in their tenure.

Florida fans already have turned the page. Wish lists have been created and tweeted, as if it’s a certainty that Florida will walk in and poach Marcus Freeman from Notre Dame, Brent Key from Georgia Tech or Lane Kiffin from Ole Miss.

Of that trio, Kiffin is the most gettable, but he has every possible thing he could want at Ole Miss — including peace of mind after losing a game he shouldn’t.

Freeman? Thanks to the revamped Playoff format that no longer guarantees conference champions the top 4 seeds, he has the best, most repeatable Playoff path in the country. Notre Dame has unlimited financial support. It has the ability to shape its schedule. In the current landscape, it’s difficult to excuse Notre Dame not finishing a season ranked in the top 10.

In the past 10 seasons, Notre Dame has won 10 or more games 8 times. The Irish, who beat USC on Saturday, are headed for another 10+ win season in 2025, too. Florida has 3 10-win seasons in that span — and fired both coaches shortly after.

How do I put this kindly? As current programs, Florida is closer to Missouri than it is to Notre Dame.

Freeman already has a better job. I firmly believe he remains at Notre Dame until the Dallas Cowboys or Ohio State come calling.

Key? He’s a Georgia Tech alum who has just now begun to tap into all that Atlanta recruiting offers. Last year, Key signed 6 4-star recruits — all from Georgia. Tech’s class ranked No. 21 nationally — its highest since 2007. With Clemson slipping, FSU still recovering and Miami a perpetual threat to Miami at any moment, Key has Georgia Tech in prime position to take over the ACC. Sunday, Tech should climb into the top 10 for the first time since 2014. Why would he leave one of the easier annual opportunities to reach the Playoff to jump into the meat-grinder at Florida?

Me? I’d lock in on Option D … as in Dabo, Drinkwitz or Deion.

All I know is, the Gators would have been much better off just keeping the OG D — Dan Mullen — than they are now, stuck solving the expensive mess they created by firing him.

P.S.: South Carolina, I’m seriously wondering about your care level, too.

9. Vols fans, I feel your pain …

Joey Aguilar, welcome to Tennessee football.

Then. Now. Probably forever.

Vols Nation, I’m not going to rub it in. But the circumstances and results are painfully familiar.

8. Brian Kelly and James Franklin are the same coach

Last week, I picked LSU as 1 of the 3 teams ranked in the top 11 that wouldn’t make the Playoff.

Saturday, Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt unofficially (but really officially) ended any lingering hope the Tigers had — while simultaneously announcing themselves as legitimate Playoff contenders.

LSU is now 5-2, and its next 2 games are against Texas A&M and at Alabama. This team isn’t anywhere near good enough to sweep both. It’s challenging to understand why, though.

Metrics insist LSU has everything it needs to make the Playoff — ranked No. 6 in overall team talent, NFL Draft prospects on both sides and a veteran QB who threw for 4,000+ yards last season — but the Tigers are coming up short yet again.

This isn’t an anomaly, either.

LSU has lost at least 3 games every year after 2019, when Joe Burrow authored the greatest season in college football history.

Brian Kelly is responsible for the past 3 seasons — and nothing short of other teams just not showing up on game day will prevent his streak from reaching 4 seasons.

They’re the biggest tease in the SEC, a title that Auburn held forever.

Kelly doesn’t have a catchy, unflattering nickname like “Little Game” James, but that’s about the only thing he doesn’t have in common with James Franklin.

8b. Oh, no, not the Heisman pose …

Diego Pavia gets credit for delivering the overreaction of the week:

Great run, great game, but Diego, please, put this in the closet, right beside the pregame victory formation.

7. Georgia just refuses to go away

Ole Miss’ drive chart looked like a Madden script for 3 quarters at Georgia:

• 14 plays, 65 yards, Touchdown
• 10 plays, 65 yards, Touchdown
• 11 plays, 75 yards, Touchdown
• 2 plays, 75 yards, Touchdown
• 12 plays, 75 yards, Touchdown

Five drives, 5 TDs, 355 total yards … and a 35-26 lead at No. 9 Georgia.

Then, the 4th quarter arrived, and Kirby Smart and Georgia reminded everybody that the best conference in all the land still runs through Athens.

Ole Miss’ lead disappeared faster than the 467 perfectly selected words I’d written about Kirby’s demise.

The Dawgs promptly ripped off 17 unanswered points and held Ole Miss 13 yards on its final 3 possessions to rally for a 43-35 thriller that flipped the script on Georgia’s Playoff hopes.

Doomed to dominant, just like that. All thanks to … Gunner Stockton?

Stockton had a career-day, throwing for 289 yards with 4 TDs and 0 interceptions. Who saw that coming? Not I.

Who saw Georgia outgaining Lane Kiffin’s offense by a staggering margin of 510-351 yards. Not I.

Who saw Georgia hitting the express lane to Atlanta (an oxymoron, I know) … for a likely rematch with Alabama? Not I.

Georgia answered, Ole Miss wilted.

Now comes the biggest test of the Kiffin era: A trip to No. 14 Oklahoma, a game the Rebels absolutely must win to have any chance to make the Playoff. This league isn’t for the faint of heart.

6. Would I fire Hugh Freeze? No

I get it. Just about everything I have written for 2+ years about Napier could be applied to Auburn coach Hugh Freeze. Saturday’s double-overtime loss to Mizzou was typically brutal. The final 2 play-calls were puzzling. Auburn dropped to 3-4 overall, 0-4 (again) in the SEC. Freeze is staring at the prospect of a 3rd consecutive losing season on The Plains

For perspective: Earl Brown is the the only Auburn coach who suffered 3 consecutive losing seasons — and that was from 1948-1950. Since Brown, Doug Barfield is the only Auburn coach to suffer back-to-back losing seasons — and he did it in 1976-1977. (Auburn fired Bryan Harsin, who was in the middle of his second consecutive losing season.)

Obviously, no coach wants his name mentioned in those conversations. And, in fairness and transparency, I also included Freeze as 1 of the next 5 coaches to get fired, but only because I believe Auburn will fire him, not because I would fire him.

Unlike Napier’s situation at Florida, I’d argue Auburn is better with Freeze than it was before him. The record doesn’t reflect an uptick. And I’m not going to excuse it by pointing to the brutal schedule because Napier hasn’t gotten a break there, either. Playing 18-on-11 (against the refs) hasn’t helped matters, either. Auburn has been hosed at least twice in close SEC losses, with receipts and flowers from the SEC to prove it.

Finally, there’s just this: I firmly believe Freeze is a better head coach than Napier. He’s certainly more proven in the SEC.

If Auburn wants to move on — and it probably will — I get it: There’s no denying Freeze’s ceiling is 10 wins — and in 8 seasons as an SEC coach, he’s only hit that once.

But ask yourself this, WDE Nation: Who are you going to get that’s better?

Auburn will never escape Alabama’s shadow for more than a minute. That alone makes it the most difficult job in the SEC, which makes it the most difficult in America.

5. Miami Miami-ed …

Turns out, Carson Beck isn’t Cam Ward … or is he?

Beck entered Week 8 as a Heisman favorite. He then threw 4 interceptions as No. 2 and undefeated Miami piled up miscue after miscue in a strange-but-predictable loss to unranked Louisville. One bad game won’t entirely entirely wreck his Heisman campaign, but it certainly called into question his ability to carry the Canes moving forward.

The bigger problem? Six of Mario Cristobal’s past 10 losses now have come against unranked teams — and his Canes were ranked in 5 of them.

Last season, Ward and the Canes were 9-0 when disaster struck. He was on his way to winning the Heisman, and the Canes were on their way to winning their first ACC title and making their first Playoff appearance. None of that happened. Miami lost 2 of 3 to unranked teams to close the regular season, missed out on the ACC title game and the Playoff.

The country is eagerly awaiting the next Canes Collapse.

That’s a bit of history Beck hopes he doesn’t repeat. But, you know, Miami …

4. The SEC’s 4 Playoff teams will be …

Week 8 brought more confusion than confirmation. I can convincingly make the case that 5 SEC teams should make the Playoff, but, again, that’s not happening in a 12-team format. So we’ll stick with 4 — these 4.

Alabama: Oh, no: The defense is scoring TDs again, and Ty Simpson just took another big step toward winning the Heisman/SEC/Natty Triple Crown. They won’t be No. 1 in the AP poll, but with 4 consecutive wins over ranked teams, they’re the most dangerous team in the country.

Georgia: It’s unrealistic to ask Gunner Stockton to play that well every weekend, but the closer he looks to the Week 8 version, the higher the Dawgs’ title chances rise.

Texas A&M: Everybody has close calls like the Aggies’ 45-42 escape at Arkansas. Contenders win them. This might actually be the team, and the coach, that doesn’t crash in November.

Vanderbilt: Forget Indiana. Vanderbilt making the Playoff would be the most shocking accomplishment in college football history. And it’s never been closer to happening. To think Tennessee vs. Vandy could decide a Playoff spot is everything that’s right with Playoff expansion.

First Out: Ole Miss (because now I think the Rebels also lose at Oklahoma); Tennessee (let’s revisit only if they beat Vandy to finish 10-2); Oklahoma (schedule), Missouri (schedule), LSU (schedule); Texas (check back when they expand to 32).

3. Why only 3 B1G teams deserve to make the Playoff

I’m not here to debate the B1G’s strength of schedule. We all know it’s beyond weak. That’s what happens when you expand a top-heavy league to 18 teams; already unbalanced schedules become ridiculously unbalanced.

The SOS won’t impact Ohio State or Indiana. Both are Playoff locks heading toward their only matchup of the year in the Big Ten Championship Game.

Beyond that? The B1G is so mediocre that it doesn’t deserve 4 Playoff teams. Nor does it deserve to have a 3-loss team in the Playoff mix. That means only 1 of these 3 teams will emerge as the 3rd Playoff participant — but only 1.

Oregon: Maybe only beating a bad Penn State team by a touchdown in double overtime should have raised more flags. Getting blasted at home by Indiana was a cause for concern, but the Ducks don’t face another quality team until they host USC in Week 13. Depending on what happens in the meantime, that game could eliminate the loser from the Playoff race. A 2-loss Oregon team has a Playoff case. No 3-loss B1G team does.

USC: The Trojans lost at Notre Dame on Saturday to fall to 5-2. They remain the B1G’s most intriguing Playoff prospect, but they also have the steepest hill to climb. The Trojans pounded Michigan, but still have to play at Nebraska and at Oregon. They cannot suffer a 3rd loss.

Michigan: The Wolverines already have 2 losses — to the only 2 Playoff-caliber teams (Oklahoma, USC) they’ll face until the annual finale against Ohio State. Even a 2-loss Michigan team that beats Ohio State for its only quality win of the season would be borderline Playoff-worthy.

2. Fact-check of the Week

OK, so credit the Big 12 for fact-checking Brent Venables into the boards this week.

It was the perfect putdown … zero curse words needed.

However, Big 12, we must also point out that Venables already has lost 7 SEC games in not even 2 full seasons in this league. You know, in case you want to continue keeping score.

1. Miss me with the ‘Poor James Franklin’ takes, a’ight?

I had to change the channel. That’s how over-the-top nauseating GameDay’s soliloquy/tribute to fired Penn State coach James Franklin was Saturday. The only element missing was Tom Rinaldi’s voiceover, recapping Penn State’s dramatic 2014 comeback at mighty Rutgers to win 13-10 and give Franklin his first Big Ten win.

“From that moment on, belief returned to Happy Valley …”

GameDay seriously tried to paint Franklin as a victim, suddenly unemployed with nowhere to turn, lives ruined and changed forever in the wake of the most unfair decision in the history of college sports. Franklin, who just picked up the 2nd-largest buyout in college sports history, played right along, too, even lamenting the impact on those left behind in the program.

Please, people.

Where was this level of concern when Franklin willingly left Vanderbilt after just 3 years — not even a full graduating class! — for Penn State? Do those poor Vandy kids not count? What about all the other players from all of the other programs Franklin left after short stays to chase bigger and better? (Bio don’t lie, folks.) Do those kids not count, either?

Instead of playing the victim, Franklin should have thanked every player, at every level, who helped him create multi-generational wealth and achieve his dreams of coaching 15+ years in the 2 best conferences in America.

Will he coach again? Of course. Maybe even in the SEC. Maybe as soon as next season. Arkansas and Florida could do much, much worse. South Carolina soon should be shopping. He’s a good coach with a proven track record.

What he is not is a victim. Stop it, already. It’s insulting to everybody who is experiencing true hardship.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 8 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South provides live scores and stats for every SEC game.

Follow here for all of the updates in Week 8.

No. 10 LSU vs No. 17 Vanderbilt

No. 14 Oklahoma vs South Carolina

No. 4 Texas A&M vs Arkansas

No. 5 Ole Miss vs No. 9 Georgia

Mississippi State vs Florida

No. 21 Texas vs Kentucky

No. 6 Alabama vs No. 11 Tennessee

No. 16 Mizzou vs Auburn

The post Live Updates: Week 8 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Good thing Cooper from Chipotle is just a phone call away.

Know who else could use a hand? Defenses trying to stop Kadyn “Refrigerator” Proctor, soon-to-be former Penn State coach James Franklin, anybody in Indiana’s way, TV announcer Sean McDonough, poor Auburn … and Eli Drinkwitz, whose Mizzou team disappeared in another show-me situation.

Those are some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after a wild Week 7 in and around the SEC.

10. Texas isn’t back … but Oklahoma is all but done

Dabo has “Tyler from Spartanburg.”

Oklahoma has “Cooper from Chipotle,” the tortilla presser who broke the news that Sooners QB John Mateer would, in fact, play in the Red River Showdown — a day after coach Brent Venables said he had no idea about Mateer’s status or recovery from thumb surgery on his throwing hand.

Unfortunately for Oklahoma fans, Cooper never promised that Mateer would play well.

And he most certainly did not.

The desire was there, but the execution was sorely lacking. Hardly a surprise considering the time off and, you know, the thumb being a critical part of the throwing process.

Texas limited the Sooners to just 2 explosive plays — the long being a 23-yard reception. A healthy Mateer had 22 such completions in the first 4 games.

Texas also pressured Mateer into a career-worst 3 interceptions. Fortunately for Oklahoma, Texas couldn’t capitalize on any of them. The Longhorns twice missed field goals, and the other interception came just before halftime.

Venables wasted a prime opportunity to get back on even terms in the rivalry. Instead, he’s now 1-3 vs. Texas and staring directly at the toughest remaining schedule in college football. It’s too bad, because with a normal slate, Oklahoma would be Playoff-bound.

As for Texas? Arch Manning played well enough — nothing more. The O-line neutralized Venables’ red-hot defense and kept Manning upright — and Manning made enough plays with his legs to keep the pass rush honest. If you were looking for a light-bulb moment, Saturday wasn’t it. But it was a step in the right direction.

Enjoy the victory over a hated rival, but don’t read anything more into it. Texas isn’t a Playoff team.

9. Refrigerator Proctor …

Forget the Tush Push. Giving the ball to 6-7, 366-pound Kadyn “Refrigerator” Proctor is the most unstoppable short-yardage play in football. It’s by far the most entertaining, too. No idea why Alabama only unleashed its beast 1 time in a gutsy win at Mizzou.

Also, fun fact: Alabama’s O-line combined for more total yards on the Tide’s 66-yard, go-ahead drive in the 3rd quarter than Ryan Williams did in the entire game. Before Proctor’s 2-yard run on 3rd-and-1 that set up first-and-goal, Bama OL Parker Brailsford caught a tipped pass for a 2-yard gain.

Zero clue about what’s going on with Williams, by the way. Maybe old age is catching up with him? I mean, he is 18 this season.

Ty Simpson connected with 8 receivers Saturday — plus Brailsford — but never Williams.

Big picture? I liked Alabama’s national championship odds before their trip to CoMo, and given the manner in which they tamed a hot Tigers team in a rowdy atmosphere — overcoming key injuries along the way, zero contribution from Williams, and making Heisman throws and timely, critical plays on defense — you could argue that was Kalen DeBoer‘s most impressive win yet.

On the flip side, given the stakes and what a win would have meant, it probably was one of Eli Drinkwitz‘s more crushing losses. Mizzou’s Playoff hopes are dimmed, not done. But its ability to actually beat top-10 teams is questionable if Beau Pribula can’t generate more chunk plays through the air. Pribula didn’t connect on a single 30-yard pass Saturday, and through 6 games, he remains last among SEC starting QBs with just 4. That’s a glaring issue — especially if Drinkwitz strangely abandons the run again. Star RB Ahmad Hardy, the nation’s leading rusher coming in, had just 12 carries against Bama — even though the scoreboard never dictated panic.

At least Hardy didn’t throw a tantrum like Marquis Johnson did — twice — during Mizzou’s ill-fated final drive.

8. That’s a fumble, Sean!

It’s perfectly fine that ABC play-by-play man Sean McDonough disagreed vehemently with the key fumble that changed the Auburn-Georgia game.

Repeating his explanation was baffling, however.

McDonough kept insisting that Auburn QB Jackson Arnold still had possession of the ball when it crossed the plane for an apparent touchdown.

The problem? Arnold, clearly, already was in the process of losing the football when it crossed the goal-line.

By rule, if a player is in the process of losing control, even if the ball is still touching his arm or hand, that’s a fumble. We see plays like that every week, with the same definition of when a fumble becomes a fumble.

That’s what happened here. Georgia linebacker CJ Allen punched the ball loose as Arnold began to dive.

Auburn fans can be angry, and Hugh Freeze can submit it to the SEC for review, but there won’t be an apology this time. The referees on the field — and in the review booth — got this one, well, mostly right.

If we’re being technical, it was even more obvious that Georgia’s Kyron Jones never was down after he recovered the fumble. Wilson climbed off the pile and ran for what should have been a Georgia TD.

If anybody got hosed on the play, it was Georgia. But the Dawgs aren’t too upset: Instead of going down 17-0, they reeled off 20 consecutive points after causing the fumble that changed everything and won the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry for the 9th consecutive time.

7. It’s always something with Ole Miss

Was Ole Miss looking ahead to next week’s showdown at Georgia?

Does Lane Kiffin like to have fun on Twitter?

Yes and (expletive) yes.

Anytime a top-5 team that’s favored by 32.5 points fails to even score that many, you know somebody’s going through the motions.

The good news: These Rebels survived Washington State’s upset scare, whereas previous Rebels outfits suffered puzzling upset losses to unranked teams. (See: Kentucky and Florida 2024; Arkansas and Mississippi State in 2022; Auburn in 2021, etc.)

I want to believe in the Rebels, and I do believe in Trinidad Chambliss, who was outstanding again Saturday — and had to be. But there’s just too much evidence of them underperforming to lean on blind faith carrying them to Atlanta and beyond.

The next 2 weeks — at Georgia, at Oklahoma — are the most telling in Kiffin’s tenure. Pretenders get swept. Contenders split. Championship teams? They sweep.

We’re about to find out where Ole Miss belongs.

6. OK, Indiana, you win. Again …

This Indiana team not only is better than last year’s Playoff team, these Hoosiers are good enough to win it … all?

That’s the craziest thought in the history of modern college football, but there’s no denying the Hoosiers belong in the championship conversation after watching them physically dominate Oregon in Week 7.

Nothing about what Curt Cignetti is doing in Bloomington makes sense. The math certainly doesn’t.

Indiana had never won 10 games in a season until Cignetti won 11 last year. Now, he’s a lock to win 10+ games in back-to-back seasons.

How? No idea. IU ranks 18th in the Big Ten — not the country, the Big Ten — in 247Sports’ talent rankings. Overall, they are No. 74 in the country. They don’t have a single 5-star. They only have 7 4-stars. They also don’t care if you believe in them — and I certainly haven’t — because they have enough belief for everybody.

The Hoosiers traveled across the country and toyed with an Oregon squad that features a Heisman favorite, 6 5-stars, 52 4-stars and 7,467 uniform combinations.

They won 30-20, limiting Oregon to 2.7 yards per rush and intercepting Dante Moore twice. They returned home with the program’s first road win over a top-5 team in program history.

Sunday, the Hoosiers will move into the top 5 of the AP poll — reaching that level for the second consecutive season and just the 4th season in program history. They’ve never been higher than No. 4.

They’re not done, either. There’s nothing remotely close to a challenge left on their schedule. Four of their 6 remaining B1G games are against teams that haven’t won a conference game. That includes once-ranked Penn State, which just lost its 3rd consecutive game — this time to Northwestern! — and lost starting QB Drew Allar to a season-ending injury in the process.

Indiana’s 1975-76 basketball team, famously, is the most recent NCAA Tournament men’s champion to finish a season with a perfect record. Those Hoosiers went 32-0.

Could these Hoosiers become the first college football team to go 16-0?

5. Predicting the 5 automatic bids after Week 7

The 5 highest-ranked conference champions receive an automatic bid into the Playoff. Here’s how I see it after Week 7:

ACC: Miami. Fun fact: 5 ACC teams still are undefeated in league play: Miami, Duke, Georgia Tech, SMU and Virginia. The schedules are so unbalanced, it’s still possible that an undefeated team doesn’t make the ACC title game. Here’s how 3 teams could finish 8-0 in the ACC: The Miami-SMU winner runs the table. Georgia Tech and Virginia beat Duke and also run the table. In that scenario, Miami/SMU, Virginia and Georgia Tech would finish 8-0 in the ACC. Coastal Chaos wasn’t this much fun.

Big Ten: Logic says Ohio State, but Indiana just KO-ed Oregon and Heisman favorite Dante Moore in Eugene. I’m still taking Ohio State, but nothing Indiana does this year will surprise me.

Big 12: I liked Texas Tech when most of the country was still ignoring the Red Raiders.

SEC: Ty Simpson is the SEC QB I trust most to make a throw to beat a quality team in a championship game. He showed that time and again Saturday at Mizzou, including the critical 29-yard completion on 4th-and-8 that helped Bama eventually score and extend its lead to 10. Roll Tide. (But watch out for Texas A&M.)

Group of 5: Memphis — primarily because the Tigers have the easiest path to the American Conference championship game; they host USF and Navy. Navy’s path also includes a road trip to North Texas and visit from USF. USF has the far superior nonconference resume — 2-0 vs. Top 25 — and just destroyed previously-undefeated North Texas on the road, but the Bulls still have to go to Memphis and Navy. The Bulls have to survive that slate just to get to the title game.

4. Joey Aguilar wins DETMER Bowl Showdown

Are you familiar with the DETMER award?

It’s an entertaining and completely made up metric, devised by the maniacs at Sickos, that measures and rewards high-risk/high-reward quarterbacks. Per Sickos: “DETMER — Downfield Efficiency Throwing Metric Encouraging Rippin’ it — seeks to identify the most highlight-generating quarterback in the sport.”

DETMER doesn’t care which team catches the ball, either, just as long as it’s being thrown around the yard at a prolific rate. Safe, reliable game-managers who average 20 attempts per game might win a lot of games for Kirby Smart, but those guys won’t sniff a DETMER title.

This is purely for fearless spiral-slingers like Stephen Garcia and Matt Corral. Or Jevan Snead — the only SEC QB to throw 20 TD passes and 20 INTs in the same season. (John Reaves and Jared Lorenzen both just missed joining the 20 TD/20 INT club, by the way.)

Without looking at this week’s DETMER rankings, I guessed, based purely on style and aesthetics, that Tennessee QB Joey Aguilar had to lead the SEC. In fact, he did. Arkansas’ Taylen Green was next … which made Saturday’s Tennessee-Arkansas tilt unofficially the DETMER Bowl.

True to the acronym, both QBs flashed the traits that make them DETMER darlings.

Green threw it more often (31 times to Aguilar’s 25) and did more damage on said throws (2 TD passes to Aguilar’s 1), but Joey Football earned the victory to keep Tennessee’s SEC and Playoff goals intact.

DETMER doesn’t care about that, of course, but Josh Heupel sure does.

3. 3 Top-11 teams that won’t make the Playoff

In last week’s Overreactions, I noted that the Week 7 AP Top 25 poll last season included 4 teams ranked in the top 11 that didn’t make the Playoff. (Blame the voters, or the teams. Up to you.)

Last year is a fair comp because it was the first year of the 12-team Playoff.

As such, here are 3 teams in the top 11 of this season’s Week 7 poll that won’t make the Playoff:

No. 6 Oklahoma: This isn’t an overreaction to getting thumped by Texas in the Red River Showdown. It’s reality, given the Sooners’ schedule. Oklahoma didn’t need an Express Lane to the Playoff setup, like several other Playoff contenders have (hello, Miami, Ohio State, Indiana, etc., etc.), but something easier than still having to face 5 teams currently ranked in the top 12.

No. 10 Georgia: Do we really need to explain why? Gunner Stockton doesn’t have the talent around him to offset his modest play. They got away with it Saturday night at Auburn, but this might be the least imposing team Kirby Smart has had.

No. 11 LSU: Why? The Tigers’ remaining schedule is only slightly less brutal than Oklahoma’s. Give LSU Indiana’s or Oregon’s remaining schedule, and start scouting Playoff opponents. As it stands, the Tigers still have play at No. 20 Vanderbilt, at No. 8 Alabama and at No. 6 Oklahoma. Obviously those rankings will change by kickoff, but … At least they get to host No. 5 Texas A&M, right?

2. 2 … as in Cam

There’s a fierce debate about which player authored the greatest season in SEC history.

Keep in mind that current SEC teams have produced 25 Heisman winners. But generally, the debate revolves around 2010 Cam Newton vs. 2019 Joe Burrow.

There’s no debate on The Plains. Saturday, Auburn honored Newton by retiring his famed jersey No. 2. He’s the 4th Tiger to be so honored, joining fellow Heisman winners Pat Sullivan (No. 7) and Bo Jackson (No. 34), and 2-time All-American Terry Beasley (No. 88).

Newton, of course, led Auburn to the 2010 national championship, a 14-0 march to perfection that included the iconic “Cam-back” to win the Iron Bowl. Newton passed for 2,854 yards and 30 TDs and rushed for 1,473 yards and 20 more TDs. Newton easily cleared the 1,000-yard rushing bar and still holds the SEC record for most rushing yards by a quarterback.

Hugh Freeze could have used a few of those highlight-reel plays Saturday night in the 20-10 loss to Georgia.

1. PSA: The Snitch Line is open for business …

I’m here to help the people. As such, I feel compelled the share some Earth-shattering, foolproof news that’s going to restore the purity in college athletics: Something called the College Sports Commission wants your help in cleaning up college football.

The CSC has created an anonymous tip line where anybody — anybody, including fans who start tailgating on Wednesday for an 8 pm Saturday kick — can “confidentially report potential violations of the rules governing third-party NIL deals and revenue sharing in college sports” to the CSC.

Of course the notion that crowd-sourcing will end corruption and root out offenders is ridiculous, but this is not a joke. Still, I can’t stop laughing, picturing the absurdity and volume of complaints some poor soul soon will be charged with sorting through. Seriously, this sounds like an SEC Shorts skit. I’m wondering: Will accusers rat on their rival? Or their underachieving head coach with the $20.4 million buyout? (Too specific, Florida fans? Sorry.)

In real life, this will look like Finebaum callers reporting allegations to Barney Fife.

My only wish? Leak the complaints. Nothing will be funnier.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 7 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South has complete box scores from every SEC game in Week 7, plus updated standings and team stats.

No. 8 Alabama 27, No. 14 Missouri 24

No. 4 Ole Miss 24, Washington State 21

Texas 23, No. 6 Oklahoma 6

No. 12 Tennessee 34, Arkansas 31

No. 5 Texas A&M 34, Florida 17

No. 10 Georgia 20, Auburn 10

No. 11 LSU 20, South Carolina 10

SEC Standings after Week 7

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 7

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 7 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Georgia defeated Auburn 20-10 on Saturday night on the Plains, picking up its 9th consecutive win in the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry.

The Bulldogs mounted a second-half comeback to secure this victory. They took advantage of a massive momentum shift late in the first half. Auburn appeared to take a 17-0 lead on a Jackson Arnold QB sneak, but it was ruled he fumbled before crossing the plane and replay officials upheld that call.

Instead of taking a 17-0 lead into the break, Georgia managed a field goal before the end of the first half to make it 14-3. From there, it was all Bulldogs as Auburn never came close to scoring again in this game.

The Tigers managed just 40 total yards of offense in the second half on 17 plays. Arnold threw for 30 yards on 12 pass attempts in the second half as the Tigers went 0-for-6 on third downs.

Georgia’s offense was dominant, too. The Bulldogs had possession of the ball for more than 22 minutes of game time in the second half. The Bulldogs managed just 4.7 yards per play in the second half, but managed to stay on the field thanks to timely late-down conversions and Auburn penalties.

Georgia 20, Auburn 10

Here’s the Georgia-Auburn box score (use the dropdown menu to select team or player stats), followed by the complete play-by-play:

Gunner Stockton vs Jackson Arnold

A statistical breakdown of how Gunner Stockton’s performance compared to that of Jackson Arnold:

The post Rapid Reaction: Georgia shuts out Auburn in 2nd half to claim rivalry win appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game in Week 7. Follow here for all of the action, updated in real time.

Alabama vs Missouri

Ole Miss vs Washington State

Oklahoma vs Texas

Tennessee vs Arkansas

Texas A&M vs Florida

Georgia vs Auburn

LSU vs South Carolina

The post Live Updates: Week 7 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Sign me up! While we’re at it, with Sam Pittman’s exit, how about we ID some coaches who shouldn’t be coaching again? Let’s start with you, Bill Belichick. And your kids.

You know what else I want? More Kadyn Proctor highlights … and, in honor of Toby Keith and all things Nashville, a little less talk, a lot more action from Vanderbilt.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 6 in and around the SEC.

10. Ty Simpson might sweep Heisman, SEC and natty

It’s been a minute since an SEC QB swept the Heisman, SEC championship and national championship in the same season.

Joe Burrow pulled off the hat trick in LSU’s magical 2019 season.

In 2025, the Year of the Meh Quarterback, it didn’t look like anybody might challenge that feat, either.

Alabama’s Ty Simpson is beginning to change that narrative.

Saturday, Simpson absolutely looked the part: Poised in the pocket, eyes downfield, ripping big-time throws like Nick Saban’s quarterbacks used to do.

Simpson threw for 340 yards and 2 TDs in a comfortable win over Vanderbilt, but it was more than that. Fifteen of his completions went for at least 10 yards. In one series, Simpson had completions of 13 yards, 10 yards, 17 yards, 13 yards and a 27-yard TD pass. He connected with re-engaged Ryan Williams on a 54-yard catch-and-run. Germie Bernard and Lotzeir Brooks each had a 30-yard reception. Even on his misses, Simpson gave his talented receivers a chance to make a play.

It’s been awhile since Alabama’s passing game looked this explosive against an SEC defense.

Saturday afternoon … it look like Saturday afternoons used to look like.

That’s a scary development for everybody in college football.

Except The U — which has a former SEC QB who might just sweep the Heisman, ACC and natty (more in a minute).

9. Chin up, Diego … nobody beats Alabama twice in a row

Matthew Stafford. Drew Weatherford. Matt Flynn. Wesley Carroll. Kinsmon Lancaster. Brandon Cox. Tim Tebow. Brian Johnson. Stephen Garcia. Jordan Jefferson. Cam Newton. Jarrett Lee. Johnny Manziel. Nick Marshall. Trevor Knight. Bo Wallace. Cardale Jones. Chad Kelly. Deshaun Watson. Jarrett Stidham. Trevor Lawrence. Joe Burrow. Bo Nix. Zach Calzada. Stetson Bennett. Hendon Hooker. Jayden Daniels. Quinn Ewers. JJ McCarthy. Diego Pavia. Nico Iamaleava. Jackson Arnold. Davis Warren. Tommy Castellanos.

Those are the 34 starting quarterbacks who beat Alabama 1 time from Nick Saban’s arrival in 2007 through Week 6 of 2025. There are 4 Heisman winners and 8 national championship winners in that group — and none of those guys beat beat Alabama twice in that span. (Yes, LSU fans, I’m aware; Jefferson and Lee beat Bama in back-to-back seasons, but they alternated starts.)

Diego Pavia was the latest to try — and it didn’t end nearly as well as he promised.

Next up? Jackson Arnold, now at Auburn, in the Iron Bowl.

(If you’re into winning bar bets, this might earn you a free Snake Handler at Good People Brewing in BHam: Auburn’s Brandon Cox remains the most recent QB to beat Alabama in back-to-back seasons — and he actually won the Iron Bowl 3 times in a row: in 2005 and 2006 Before Saban, and 2007 Against Saban. Which also means, Brandon Cox is probably the reason Alabama went all-in on the 38-day pursuit to hire Saban in the first place.)

8. Miami is for real this time (I promise)

The rappers are back on the sidelines. Michael Irvin is doing his thing.

At this point, I firmly expect Warren Sapp to skip a Colorado game and show up at The U.

It’s been forever — but Miami is the most complete, most dominant team in college football.

They have a proven, Playoff-experienced quarterback in Carson Beck. They have a defense that makes Kirby Smart reminisce about his championship groups of years past. They have a breakout freshman wide receiver (Malachi Toney) who was 17 when the season started.

They have everything any SEC title contender would want — and the Canes also have this: As the ACC front-runner, the easiest remaining path imaginable to the Playoff.

I know, I know. Miami has never even won the ACC Championship, Paaawwwllll!

Their dress down of FSU on Saturday night all but guarantees that changes in 2025.

Care to guess where the 2025 national championship game is?

Plan the yacht parade, already.

7. Why does Steve Sarkisian think Arch Manning is a pocket passer?

If you’re a Texas fan, you have to be furious with the manner in which alleged QB Whisperer Steve Sarkisian is using Arch Manning.

Let’s be honest: The only thing “pro-style” about Manning’s game is his last name.

But time and again, Texas has him drop back behind a leaky line, diagnose and dodge a collapsing pocket and then try to make a throw. That’s not his game. Can he make plays from the pocket? He wouldn’t be an NFL Draft prospect if he couldn’t.

However, time and again, Manning looks like a completely different quarterback when he’s on a designed rollout. There’s a reason for that: He is!

Manning has the speed to challenge rushers and outside linebackers on the edge, and he’s shifty enough to cause some to miss. The bonus, of course, is that running threat draws the secondary’s attention and allows for more 1-on-1s.

Everything about that play looked natural and easy. And that’s with a short field, which automatically means a more compressed defense. That was Manning’s only TD pass until late in the 3rd quarter, when he sidestepped 2 rushing defenders and delivered a 38-yard dime under duress to Ryan Wingo.

Big picture? I was out on Texas as a Playoff team after Week 1 — so Saturday’s loss at The Swamp wasn’t a revelation.

But now I’m wondering: Given the lack of progress 5-star Quinn Ewers made in 3 seasons with Sark, are we sure he is the best person to develop Manning into the NFL QB he was groomed to be? I’m not.

6. Sorry, Dawgs. I don’t trust Gunner Stockton

Creating explosive plays isn’t solely on the quarterback, but it’s typically telling when an offense can’t generate them.

This just in: Georgia can’t generate them.

This isn’t a late overreaction to the offensive flop last week vs. Alabama. This a realization of who Gunner Stockton is — a serviceable dual-threat — and who he is not — a legitimate gun-slinger capable of throwing the Dawgs into the title hunt.

Stetson Bennett won 2 national titles without having a strong arm. Jake Fromm didn’t remind anybody of Jacob Eason, either. But both were among the SEC leaders in creating explosive passing plays (30+ yards) because they were able to hit playmakers on time, in rhythm and allow them to do the rest.

Stockton? Against Kentucky on Saturday, Dawgs fans no doubt held their breath every time he dropped back.

Which was poorer? The decision to throw into double coverage? Or the execution? Sure, QBs with Eason’s arm strength rip that throw and beat defenders to the spot. Stockton doesn’t have that kind of arm.

And, as others noted, Georgia’s lack of explosive plays is not for a lack of trying, either.

Georgia still might make it the Playoff — probably will, in fact — but it will be in spite of Stockton’s explosiveness through the air, not because of it.

To be honest, if DJ Lagway is healthy, I’m not sure the Dawgs beat Florida in the Cocktail Party, either.

5. The next 5 coaches to go …

The Curt Cignetti Effect already is in full force — and we’re not even halfway through the 2025 regular season.

Last Sunday, obviously in response to reading Week 5 SEC Overreactions, Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek fired Sam Pittman. The former Boss Hog became the 4th Power 4 coach to lose his job this season, joining DeShaun Foster (UCLA), Brent Pry (Virginia Tech) and Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State).

My theory? ADs watched Curt Cignetti walk into Bloomington Basketball Indiana and immediately turn a football program that was 200 games below .500 when he arrived into a Playoff team. In Year 1. In the Big Ten. Taking down defending national champion Michigan along the way.

Overnight, 5-year plans became as obsolete as last year’s iPhone.

Nobody has an excuse … and the clock is ticking for everybody not named Kirby Smart, Marcus Freeman and Ryan Day (probably, but Buckeyes fans live in their own world).

Foster lasted 15 games. Pry got 40. Pittman, with a better record than those 2, couldn’t get through Year 6. Gundy, the winningest coach in OK State history, was canned just 3 games into his 21st season. So much for loyalty, right?

Nothing matters anymore except getting to the Playoff.

As such, these 5 Power 4 coaches will be the next to go, primarily for falling well short of what Cignetti accomplished in 1 year and is on the verge of replicating in Year 2:

Billy Napier, Florida: Credit Napier for a really nice win against Texas on Saturday. Upshot? Napier improved to 21-22 midway through Year 4 and hasn’t sniffed Atlanta, much less the Playoff. Moving along. …

Dave Doeren, NC State: Like Gundy, Doeren also is the winningest coach in program history. Doeren also beats North Carolina, which is outstanding and the driving force behind his extended stay, but in 13 seasons as NC State’s head coach, he’s never won 10 games once and never led the Wolfpack to the ACC Championship Game. In fairness, the ACC hosed the Pack by putting them in the same division as Clemson and Florida State. Also: Wake Forest also was in that division and managed to make it to the ACC title game in 2021. Will this finally be the year the 8-5, 9-4 cycle ends?

Hugh Freeze, Auburn: It’s not just that Auburn isn’t contending, it’s why the Tigers aren’t contending. Freeze has a reputation as a offensive guru, but his Auburn offenses have been downright offensive. Auburn hasn’t cracked the SEC’s top 10 in scoring average since Freeze arrived. The Tigers have scored 3 TDs in 2 SEC games this year.

Mark Stoops, Kentucky: Like Gundy and Doeren, Stoops also is the winningest coach in his program’s history. Like Doeren, Stoops also is in his 13th season. There are not enough bourbon gift certificates in Kentucky to properly thank Stoops for the miracle makeover he performed at Kentucky — but the reality is the Cats haven’t sniffed 10 wins since 2021 — and Stoops’ career record at Kentucky is nearing .500. The fact that hated border rival Indiana appears to be heading to the Playoff for the 2nd consecutive season only adds to the sense of urgency to move on.

James Franklin, Penn State: Nobody is firing a coach who gets to the Playoff, but Penn State isn’t going to the Playoff in 2025 — not after that ridiculous loss at winless UCLA. (Shoutout to Nico Iamaleava, VF … 2 years?!) Just like that, James Franklin’s seat became the hottest in the country, overnight. Penn State already has 2 losses and still has to play Ohio State and Indiana in back-to-back weeks. His buyout is north of $50 million, but that won’t save him.

I mean, when Gary Danielson is anticipating and coaching the game better than you are …

P.S.: I would not be surprised, at all, if Bill Belichick and UNC mutually decide he’s 1-and-done as a college coach. UNC wouldn’t dare “fire” him after this season, but that alone doesn’t guarantee he’ll be back in Chapel Hill in 2026. As for Belichick’s kids? Yeah, Steve (DC) and Brian (DBs) should not make it to next week.

4. Dabo vs. Belichick? Round 1 KO

Think Dabo Swinney was looking forward to this opportunity to match Xs and Os with Bill Belichick?

This was Clemson’s first play from scrimmage Saturday at UNC — so, Dabo’s first chance to outscheme arguably the greatest defensive mind in football history.

Check. Mate.

It didn’t end there, either.

Clemson threw 4 TD passes on its first 4 possessions in the first quarter — setting a season-high for TD throws in the process. The Tigers finished the opening half with 5 TD passes — including a season-high 4 from former Heisman betting favorite Cade Klubnik.

Unreal.

Before the game, Belichick had a comical exchange on GameDay in which he praised Nick Saban and said he learned more about defense from him than anybody else. Saban shot that down as only he could.

My first thought after watching the first quarter? Clearly, Belichick didn’t learn enough.

3. Coach O wants to coach? Yes, please

There could be as many as 10 Power 4 openings during the 2025-26 carousel.

Ed Orgeron could motivate several of them into a Playoff team in 2026 — just like he built the 2019 LSU Tigers into the greatest team in college football history.

Let’s face it: College football is just more fun when Coach O is growling through halftime and postgame pressers.

Florida and Auburn are proud, championship-winning programs in dire need of a makeover, places where 1 proven leader would galvanize the fan base and make all the difference between contending and pretending.

Other programs probably would be interested in Orgeron, too, but Auburn and Florida make the most sense.

Go Tiguhs. … Or Gatuhs.

2. Chaos is here. Buckle up …

This isn’t to pick on the AP Poll (again), I promise.

Saturday, No. 7 Penn State lost to a winless UCLA team, No. 9 Texas lost, No. 14 Iowa State lost.

It’s shocking in real time, sure, but not so much in retrospect.

It’s worth noting that Week 6 of the 2024 AP Top 25 featured 4 eventual Playoff teams that didn’t crack the top 20 that week. SMU was the 37th team listed and only received 4 votes. Arizona State didn’t receive any. Further, 4 teams in the top 10 that week — and 7 teams in the top 13 — didn’t make the Playoff.

The Week 7 poll featured 4 teams in the top 11 that didn’t make the Playoff. Even the Week 10 AP Poll included 4 teams in the top 11 that didn’t make the Playoff. Arizona State didn’t crack the Top 25 until Week 12, etc. You get the point. The AP Poll is a talking point, not a closing statement.

Keep that in mind after the Week 7 poll drops later today. There’s plenty of time for your team to recover — and your buddy’s team to fall flat on its face. Nothing is more fun than seeing that.

1. Dear Vandy, a little less talk, a lot more action …

We all remember former Vandy DL Nifae Lealao looking into the camera and shouting, “Alabama, you’re next!”

That didn’t end well for the ‘Dores in 2017.

The second verse didn’t go any better Saturday.

Diego Pavia is Mr. Entertainment — and a darn fine college quarterback. All week he talked the talk, about how upstart Vandy was about to walk into T-Town and shock the Tide again.

How sure was Pavia? He practiced Victory Formation in pregame.

Oops. Admire the moxie, but apparently, you don’t poke DeBoer …

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 6 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC schedule featured 5 conference games in Week 6.

Here is every box score, plus updated SEC standings and team stats.

Georgia 35, Kentucky 14

Georgia extended its winning streak to 16 consecutive games vs. Kentucky in the all-time series.

Florida 29, Texas 21

Alabama 30, Vanderbilt 14

Oklahoma 44, Kent State 0

Texas A&M 31, Mississippi State 9

SEC Standings after Week 6

The standings update after each game. Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 6

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 6 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game.

Stay here for updated scores and stats from every Week 6 SEC game:

Georgia vs Kentucky

Texas vs Florida

Alabama vs Vanderbilt

Oklahoma vs Kent State

Texas A&M vs Mississippi State

The post Live Updates: Week 6 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Here is the complete box score from every Week 5 SEC game, highlighted by Alabama’s 24-21 victory at Georgia:

Notre Dame 56, Arkansas 13

Vanderbilt 55, Utah State 35

Ole Miss 24, LSU 19

Texas A&M 16, Auburn 10

Tennessee 41, Mississippi State 34 (OT)

Alabama 24, Georgia 21

Missouri 42, UMass 6

South Carolina 35, Kentucky 13

SEC Standings after Week 5

To find SEC standings, use the dropdown menu on the right and select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 5

To find the SEC, use the dropdown menu and select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive team stats.

The post Week 5 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

You know what else was revealed? Kalen DeBoer owns Kirby Smart. Also: Ole Miss doesn’t have a QB controversy; it has The Answer. Running backs deserve Heisman love, and the business side of college football is as brutal as transparent officiating is beautiful.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 5 in and around the SEC.

10. Kirby has a new Kryptonite … and his name is Kalen DeBoer

Until Saturday, only 2 college football coaches had defeated Kirby Smart 2 or more times in a row: Nick Saban and Coach O. Both won national championships during those streaks, by the way.

Kalen DeBoer joined the list Saturday night in Athens, defying the odds and logic, as Alabama stuffed Georgia 24-21.

The Tide exposed Georgia’s limited passing game and unleashed its own lethal passing game.

Georgia will lament how it could control the line — 6.9 yards per rush — yet falter in the red zone (0-for-3). In a 1-score game, o-fers lead to oh-nos!

Bottom line? I’m sorry, Paaaawwwlll! I take it all back. I wrote off Alabama and had Dabo replacing DeBoer.

All of that still might happen, by the way — unless DeBoer gets to play Georgia every game.

Roll Tide.

9. In Trinidad They Trust

Has a QB gone from the bench to SEC Offensive Player of the Year in the same season?

Only asking because, oh, my, Trinidad Chambliss showed he’s not only the best QB Ole Miss has, he might be the most dangerous quarterback in the entire SEC.

Chambliss capped his 3rd consecutive 300-yard passing game with a 4th-and-complete-trust completion to seal a narrative-changing 24-19 victory over No. 4 LSU. Chambliss threw 1 TD pass and added 71 yards rushing. He’s already topped 1,000 yards passing. Not bad for a D-II transfer.

It’s more than the numbers, though. It’s the way he impacts defenses. He literally is a game-plan changer.

If he keeps going, he might be a season-changer. He’s certainly changed Ole Miss’ national championship odds — as well as your opinion on Lane Kiffin‘s ability to win a big game.

8. Forget the offense, it’s time to worry about Brian Kelly

First things first: There’s zero shame in losing a road game against an undefeated top-15 SEC team.

However …

When does Brian Kelly actually win one of these games?

In 2023, Kelly’s LSU Tigers lost at No. 20 Ole Miss and at No. 8 Alabama — the only Top 20 SEC teams they faced on the road.

In 2024, Kelly’s Tigers lost at No. 14 Texas A&M — the only ranked SEC team they faced on the road.

In 2025, Kelly’s Tigers just lost at No. 13 Ole Miss.

More damning, Kelly’s Tigers were ranked inside the top 15 in each of those games. He’s not bringing SoCon players to an SEC fight. In some cases, he’s the alleged heavyweight.

LSU still has road games at Vanderbilt and Alabama this season, both of which could be in the top 15 at kickoff. How confident are Tigers fans that he’ll break through and win 1, much less both?

Now that’s a fair question — even at the beginning of a press conference, ahem — given the title-or-bust circumstances surrounding his arrival in 2022.

Now, about that offense … woof. Preseason, I Sharpied in Garrett Nussmeier as a Heisman finalist and lock to add to LSU’s list of 3,000-yard passers — and maybe become the first Tiger to top 4,000 yards twice.

That’s not happening. Nussmeier hasn’t topped 275 yards yet this season and was held to 197 against Ole Miss. He also tossed another interception, adding to his maddening total. Yes, leading rusher Caden Durham was out, but even my youngest child is old enough to remember when LSU was RBU. Besides, wasn’t Ole Miss without its starting quarterback? And, to further the point, LSU entered the game ranked 15th in the SEC in rushing even with Durham.

Different schools, but it feels like we’re beginning to enter Dan Mullen territory. Maybe 10 wins really is Kelly’s ceiling. If it is, he’ll eventually have an office in another football building.

He wasn’t hired to win 10 games at LSU. He was hired to win the next national championship.

7. Tennessee fans, I don’t know how you do it …

In Week 1, I crowned Tennessee while reminding myself, don’t overreact to Tennessee.

But the Vols are so much fun to watch, and their offense is dangerous enough to take out almost anybody.

Then comes a road trip to upset-capable Mississippi State, which, no matter how many times Josh Heupel reminded his players that this team was, indeed, capable of ruining the Vols season, all the Vols likely heard was: “Mississippi State has lost 12 consecutive SEC games and topped 30 points in only 1 of those.”

That’s exactly how you find yourself staring at a 7-point deficit late in the 4th quarter, needing 75 yards — and a spectacular/fortunate 4th-down conversion — just to keep your Playoff hopes alive.

Credit the Vols. Joey Aguilar didn’t play a clean game, but he was on point when it mattered most.

Great teams win these kinds of games. Merely good teams lose a lot of these 1-possession games.

The Vols are somewhere between good and great. My advice: Keep the outlook (and glass) half-full. Comes in handy.

6. Arkansas has a bye. Time to say, bye-bye …

The only positive thing you can say about Arkansas’ performance Saturday vs. visiting Notre Dame is this: At least the Hogs didn’t lose yet another 1-score game.

Giving up 42 points in the first half — 28 in the final 8 minutes, including 14 in the final 40 seconds — tells you everything you need to know about the state of this program.

I hate saying players have quit on Sam Pittman because I can’t pretend to know their mental state, but it’s pretty obvious they’ve turned the page. A quick glance at the stands in the 3rd quarter tells you fans have, as well.

It’s time for Arkansas AD Hunter Yurachek to do the same.

Forget worrying about technicalities in a an already-modest buyout saving you a few dollars.

The bye week is here.

Firing a defensive coordinator isn’t salvaging or fixing anything.

Thank Pittman, pay him, promote Bobby Petrino and move on.

5. Diego Pavia won’t win the Heisman, but he’s college football’s MVP

The Heisman Trophy is awarded to “the most outstanding player” in the country. Says so in the bylaws. Scan the list of Heisman winners, and it’s pretty obvious that “most outstanding” doesn’t always equate to most valuable.

Vanderbilt QB/Hype Man Diego Pavia isn’t the most outstanding player in college football — though he’s far better than you think.

Valuable? No question.

Think about what Pavia walked into, 2 years ago.

Fast-forward to how far Pavia has carried Vanderbilt fotball since.

Vanderbilt won 7 games last season — highlighted by the historic Alabama takedown.

Saturday, the No. 18-ranked ‘Dores improved to 5-0 with a thorough beating of Utah State. This is just the 2nd time Vandy has been 5-0 since WWII — and first time since the 2008 season. (The program record is 9-0, set in 1904, so, stay tuned ….)

Pavia, who tied a program record with 5 TD passes Saturday, now has 12 wins in 1 1/2 seasons — with more to come.

Vandy won 12 games — combined — from 2019-2023.

Again, perspective: He has completely changed the way you think about Vanderbilt football — or the fact that you even think about Vanderbilt football.

Next week, Pavia will try to become the first starting QB to beat Alabama 2 times since Nick Saban arrived in 2007. (Of course, those other QBs had to go through Saban, but we’re not about to rain on King Pavia’s parade. Cue: SEC Shorts.)

4. 4 takeaways from SEC schedule reveal

On Monday morning, Chris Low revealed the SEC’s 3 permanent opponents for the next 4 seasons. A couple of days later, the SEC confirmed Low’s reporting with an hour-long special on ESPN. By then, of course, Finebaum produced 2 shows, and SEC fans had overreacted to everything worth overreacting to.

I get one shot to overreact: Right here, every Sunday morning with you fine folks before we all head out for some much-needed saving.

My 4 biggest takeaways:

1. The SEC nailed it with Texas’ 3 permanent, err, “annual opponents.” It’s the most authentic, logical grouping in the league.

2. LSU got who? No Alabama? No Florida? Take your pick, but either the LSU vs Alabama or Florida vs. LSU rivalry has to be restored as an “annual” game, not an extra, occasional thrown into the rotation. I thought this was the biggest miss. It’s a puzzle, I get it. Remove one team, impact all of the others. It’s not as simple as just swapping LSU for Kentucky, but that’s what AI is for. Figure it out because this both matchups are among the best, high-stakes rivalries in the SEC.

3. Poor Auburn. No matter what happens, the Tigers can’t escape Alabama or Georgia. They’re still the only SEC team that has to play both every year. Obviously, the iconic Iron Bowl has to stay — even if/when the SEC expands to 32 teams and officially becomes the NFL (National Feeder League). And you can’t exactly get rid of the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry, either. And now Vandy’s good, too? In football? Poor Auburn.

4. Georgia ain’t losing to its 3 annual partners, a’ight? It’s cyclical, Paaawwwlll! The Gators are a great head coach from reclaiming the East, err, um, getting back to Atlanta!

Given the current circumstances on those respective campuses, I’ll take Georgia going 12-0 vs. Florida, Auburn and South Carolina against whatever record you prefer — even your first choice: 1-11.

3. A non-QB Heisman ballot, just for Coach Drink …

Mizzou coach Eli Drinkwitz wasn’t wrong when he chided the media’s fasciation with giving quarterbacks more love than running backs, in general, but particularly when discussing the Heisman Trophy. A quick look at the Heisman odds proves his point: There isn’t a running back to be found — and Ohio State receiver Jeremiah Smith generally is the only non-QB in the top 10.

Overreactions readers might remember that I had Smith on my Week 1 Heisman ballot — and noted I liked his chances to win the award primarily because there isn’t a Joe Burrow-type QB this season.

“Sure, quarterbacks still lead the way in the 2025 race, but there’s no player in America capable of separating from his peers — or opponents — quite like Smith.”

In honor of Drinkwitz, here’s my all-non-QB Heisman ballot.

1. Jeremiah Smith, WR, Ohio State: He’s the best player in America and might win it anyway.

2. Ahmad Hardy, RB, Missouri: Credit Drinkwitz for setting up an RB-friendly system that all but guarantees Mizzou a 1,000-yard rusher — usually with guys AP voters on either side of the country have never heard of. Hardy is the latest. Undersized and overlooked in every way imaginable, all the Louisiana-Monroe transfer has done thus far is run to the top of the SEC leaderboard in rushing yards. He had 130 yards (and 3 TDs) Saturday, giving him 730 yards through 5 games.

Here’s a fun fact: In the past 4 seasons, Mizzou has produced 2 1,600 yard rushers (Tyler Badie, 1,604 in 2021; Cody Schroeder, 1,627 in 2023). Hardy is on pace to become the 3rd Tiger to crack 1,600 yards — in 5 years.

Here’s some perspective on how ridiculous that is … courtesy of SDS’ trusty, exclusive database of every 1,000-yard rusher in SEC history:

Alabama has only produced 3 1,600-yard rushers in program history — and nobody since Derrick Henry set the SEC record with 2,219 yards in 2015.

Auburn has only produced 3 1,600-yard rushers (yes, Bo Jackson did it) — and nobody since Tre Mason (1,816 yards in 2013).

Georgia Heisman winner Herschel Walker is the only Dawg to top 1,600 yards — and he did it 3 times! In 1981, Walker set the SEC’s magic number of 1,891 yards — a single-season record that stood for more than 30 years until Henry broke it.

LSU’s most recent 1,600-yard rusher is Leonard Fournette (1,953 in 2015). Fournette and Charles Alexander are the only Tigers to top 1,600 yards in a season.

Arkansas’ Darren McFadden is the only Hog to top 1,600 yards, and he did it twice. (He should have won the 2007 Heisman, and he belongs on this list of the biggest Heisman snubs of all-time.)

Florida, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee and Vanderbilt haven’t produced a single 1,600-yard rusher — ever. Kentucky has produced 1 (Moe Williams). South Carolina has 2 — both by George Rogers before joining the SEC. Texas A&M has 3, but 2 were before joining the SEC.

Oklahoma (7) and Texas (6) have produced the most 1,600-yard rushers, but none of those rushers dealt with SEC defenses.

So, in sum, Mizzou has produced 2 1,600-yard rushers in the past 4 seasons and has a chance to do something in a 5-year span that most SEC teams have never done.

That’s worth your attention.

3. Jeremiyah Love, RB, Notre Dame: The Irish have fully recovered from the 0-2 start and are back in the Playoff hunt — thanks largely to Love, who added 4 more touchdowns (2 rushing, 2 receiving) in the 56-13 blowout at Arkansas. The Reggie Bush comps are legit: Love has now accounted for 8 TDs and is the dynamic playmaker in Notre Dame’s offense, capable of turning any touch into a Heisman moment.

2. He’s a man! He’s 40! He’s … outta here

Mike Gundy won a lot of football games in his 21 seasons at Oklahoma State. He won 170 to be exact. That’s not only the most in school history, it’s more than the Nos. 2, 3 and 4 Cowboys coaches won combined.

So why is it, almost 20 years later, every time we hear his name, we shout: “I’m a man! I’m 40!”

Gundy, of course, was in the news Tuesday because Oklahoma State unceremoniously fired him. In fairness, OK State had not been even OK for a few years. OSU lost 11 of its final 12 games under Gundy dating to last season.

Still …

It was a heck of a ride, Cowboy. Here’s hoping that this wasn’t his last rodeo.

1. SEC … follow the ACC’s lead — now

So, apparently, the ACC has been showing its replay review process all season. Who knew? I’m too busy watching SEC football to absorb anything other than ACC highlights.

Friday night’s primetime Virginia-FSU game was a revelation to me — and judging by the response on Twitter — most of the country. (Oh, Virginia was, too, and as we fully embrace the Portal-Parity Era of college football, I’m trying to prepare myself for Virginia vs. Indiana in a Playoff game.)

Back to the review process: It was fascinating, watching the ACC replay center scour video replays from numerous angles and discuss the findings with the lead official on the field. Viewers saw the same angles, heard every word of the conversation. Including the head of the replay review center finishing every review by asking the lead official: “Are in we all in agreement?”

Ultimate transparency. Zero conspiracy.

I mean, imagine the scenario in which Playoff-hopeful FSU got the benefit of an overrule without us hearing how and why a call was reversed? That’s how every other league does it — under the veil of secrecy. That’s how conspiracies start.

The SEC likes to lead the way, but they’re chasing badly in this instance.

The ACC showed everybody — from the SEC to the NFL — the value in transparency. With all the problems the SEC dealt with this past week, including the Auburn AD admonishing the SEC and its officiating during the Oklahoma game, the time is now.

Fix it.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 5 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game.

Follow this page for scores, stats and more in real time from every Week 5 game:

Arkansas vs Notre Dame

Vanderbilt vs Utah State

LSU vs Ole Miss

Texas A&M vs Auburn

Tennessee vs Mississippi State

Alabama vs Georgia

Missouri vs UMass

South Carolina vs Kentucky

The post Live updates: Week 5 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

You know who should be angry? Arkansas fans, Auburn QB Jackson Arnold and whoever is in charge of training these referees. Sir, all due respect, peace and love, but your boys had quite the day …

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 4 in and around the SEC.

10. 10 sacks? Auburn’s O-line was worse than the refs

Let’s just get this out of the way: If Auburn fans want to call Paawwwwlllll on Monday and scream for 3 hours about the home-cooking Oklahoma received … no complaints. It was horrific and, at minimum, game-altering, beginning with an overturned scoop-and-score in the first quarter that cost Auburn a TD and including another botched no-call that resulted in an Oklahoma TD (at least the SEC apologized for that one).

However, when your quarterback gets sacked 10 times — including on 3 consecutive plays on your last-ditch comeback effort — all of those complaints just come off as whining.

Auburn’s final possession ended like this:

• 1st-and-10: Jackson Arnold scrambles for no gain.
• 2nd-and-10: Holding on o-line.
• 2nd-and-20: False start on o-line.
• 2nd-and-25: Arnold scrambles again, no gain.
• 3rd-and-25: Arnold sacked.
• 4th-and-29: Arnold sacked for a safety.

Say it ain’t so, Cole Cubelic.

Oklahoma set a program record with 10 sacks. It also sent a stern message to the rest of the country.

I’ve said for 3 weeks that I wish this Oklahoma team had an easier SEC slate because then all of that Playoff talk would sound a lot more realistic. Same for John Mateer’s Heisman bid. He showed again on Saturday why he has the best Heisman odds, and delivered a signature game-winning TD drive with his arms, legs and heart.

If the Sooners finish 10-2, they’ll have the best resume in the country and it won’t be close. That’s how difficult the road ahead is.

If they finish 9-3, they still will have better wins over ranked teams than just about everybody else, too, but it won’t be enough.

9. So long, Sam Pittman

At some point, no matter how nice the guy is, the scoreboard has to matter.

The day of (w)reckoning arrived Saturday, Sept. 20, for beloved Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman.

Arkansas had blown yet another lead, this time 28-10, yet had another opportunity to steal a win late. Even after a disastrous fumble wiped out the opportunity to kick a go-ahead field goal in the final minute, the Hogs quickly forced Memphis into a 3rd-and-8 from its own 9-yard line.

A stop and a punt would give the Hogs 1 final chance to kick a winning field goal.

Instead? Disaster. A play that likely will be remembered as the one that ended Pittman’s up-and-down tenure on The Hill.

Memphis backup QB Arrington Maiden, initially hit at the line of scrimmage on a designed run, seemingly carried half of Arkansas’ defensive front for 11 yards and the game-sealing first down. The final 7 yards played out almost in slow-motion, if only to dramatize the pending end of the Pittman era.

The late loss in Week 3 at Ole Miss (and its backup QB) was brutal. This, somehow, was worse than that.

And, yet, was anybody really surprised at the outcome? Arkansas is 3-14 in 1-possession games since the 2021 season ended.

The loss dropped Pittman’s record at Arkansas to 32-33. Which also seemed fitting.

Usually close, but not quite good enough to get it done.

8. What is targeting? What’s a catch? Better question: Who hires these guys?

Everybody wants to keep players safe. Just like everybody wants consistency with the way targeting is officiated.

This supposedly was targeting. I didn’t think it was — in real-time or on review. On review, it was even clearer that the Illinois defensive player led with his shoulder. Was it violent? Yes. It’s a violent game.

Flipping channels to the Mizzou-South Carolina game, there were 2 calls that could have been targeting — including 1 that I can only assume is in the textbook definition of “This Is Targeting” — that were reviewed and not called targeting.

I give up.

Nobody — and I mean nobody, not officials, not players, not coaches, not analysts and not even the rules experts on TV — can identify targeting with any level of proficiency.

It’s like everybody sees what they want to see.

It’s time to change the rule. Penalize them 15 yards if you must, but unless it is crystal clear that a player delivered a head-to-head blow on a blowup type hit, keep the player in the game.

These calls are impacting not just the current game — but in many cases the next game.

But, wait: There’s more!

When referees weren’t messing up targeting calls, they were blowing plays dead for no apparent reason, wiping out a touchdown in the process …

Or trying to determine what is a catch and what is not a catch. Actually, listening to Gus Johnson and Joel Klatt bet on catches being reviewed was comical. The review booth almost always disagreed with Klatt and their rules expert.

Credit the SEC for calling out one of the many mistakes its crews made Saturday.

Now, what about this one? An obvious pass interference that wasn’t called. In fairness, the back judge can only call what he can see, and he clearly could not see pass interference.

7. Trinidad Chambliss or Austin Simmons? Decisions, decisions for Lane Kiffin

It’s tough to upstage Alabama vs. Georgia, but Ole Miss vs. LSU is about to do that in Week 5.

You could make the case that this is the biggest home game of Lane Kiffin’s tenure at Ole Miss — if only because this Rebels team seems better equipped to capitalize on what a victory would bring.

Those stakes are enough to fill notebooks all week, but that’s not even the biggest story involving the Rebels.

Backup-turned-starter Trinidad Chambliss rescued the Rebels in a tight win in Week 3 against Arkansas, then showed out in a blowout of Tulane in Week 4.

Assuming original starter Austin Simmons is ready to go after reaggravating an ankle injury suffered in Week 2, will Kiffin go back to Simmons? Or will he stay with the hot hand in the far more experienced Chambliss, knowing he has Simmons in reserve?

Ole Miss fans already are choosing sides in a looming QB controversy — some going so far as to say there is no controversy: In Chambliss They Trust.

It’ll be fun to watch Kiffin dodge the QB Controversy topic all week, but he better get the answer right on Saturday.

6. Miami almost Miami-ed …

Admit it, Canes fans. Early in the 4th quarter, after officials wiped out a TD with a bad call and then Carson Beck coughed up an interception, you were nervous.

Miami still led Florida 13-7, but after the opening drive, this was anything but the beatdown you promised before Pat McAfee turned into Thornton Melon and jumped from the high dive into the water on College GameDay.

This was starting to look all too familiar. Another inexplicable loss to an overmatched squad was just 1 play from reality. Worse, this time, it would have been hated rival Florida delivering the stunning blow.

Now, exhale. Miami’s defense is title-worthy, nasty, fast and physical.

Instead of crumbling, like they did last year against Georgia Tech and Syracuse, they responded.

Their 26-7 victory on a wet, sloppy track won’t impress anybody who actually watched it unfold, but it won’t matter, either. In 2 weeks, the Canes will meet FSU in a top-10 showdown. State title and so much more on the line. Just like Bobby Bowden intended.

5. Is it safe to believe in Texas A&M … this time?

Texas A&M rose to No. 10 in the Week 4 AP Top 25 poll. That marked the 11th season since 2010 that the Aggies have cracked the top 10. During that stretch (2010-2025), only 4 SEC teams have reached the top 10 in more seasons.

Now comes the challenging/terrifying part: Staying there.

In those previous 10 seasons in which the Aggies reached the top 10, they finished the season unranked — yes, unranked — 7 times. Only twice did they finish in the top 10 — and one of those seasons was the COVID-altered 2020 campaign.

No other fan base in the country, much less the SEC, has had the turf pulled out from underneath them more frequently, more painfully or more dramatically.

Seriously, A&M’s rate of freefalling is almost impossible to believe — except it happened last year, too. The Aggies were 7-1, 5-0 in the SEC with a pair of top-10 wins … and promptly dropped their final 3 SEC games.

All of which leads to Week 5’s critical visit from Auburn and beyond: Any SEC team that finishes 10-2 will be in the mix for an at-large Playoff spot. A&M’s schedule is challenging enough that it can’t be picked apart, yet it doesn’t morph into a full-on gauntlet like, say, Oklahoma’s. The Aggies are set up perfectly for a 10-2 finish and Playoff run, but … well, you know. Aggies fans don’t need to be reminded — again — about what happened in 2011, 2014, 2015, 2016 … or 2021, 2022 and 2024.

Even after the dramatic comeback, last-minute win at Notre Dame in Week 3 and a full stress-free bye week, you can understand why Aggies fans are cautiously optimistic but also beyond apprehensive to utter the “P” word. Whatever could be possibly said about this team — explosive playmakers, electric quarterback, opportunistic defense, etc. — could have been said about the ghosts of Aggies past, too.

The biggest difference in 2025 might be Mike Elko. Yes, he obviously was part of last year’s collapse, too, but he’s no longer babysitting Jimbo Fisher’s players and deciding who has to go, who gets to stay.

This is his team, his vision, his culture.

Is it finally A&M’s time?

We’re about to find out. And if it is? That record buyout will look like a bargain.

4. The battle for the 12th Playoff spot will be epic

I can make the case that the SEC deserves 5 teams in the Playoff. That’s not going to happen, however, not until the Playoff expands to 16 teams. After Week 4, the most logical breakdown looks like this:

• SEC: 4 (Georgia, LSU, Texas A&M … and absolute chaos for the final spot.)
• Big Ten: 4 (Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Michigan. You like Indiana? Fine. Talk to me after they lose at Oregon and at Penn State. If blasting a clearly overrated Illinois team at home is your rallying cry for a Playoff bid …)
• ACC: 2 (Miami, FSU; Round 1 will be in Week 6 at Doak, but the ACC Championship odds suggest a rematch is all but certain.)
• Big 12: 1 (Texas Tech; I liked the Red Raiders before their emphatic victory at Utah. I like them even more now after they overcame key injuries, seemingly 50 false-starts and one of the better homefield advantages in the sport.)
• Group of 5: 1 (American champion; it’s worth noting that Memphis gets to host USF and Tulane in the regular season, and USF and Tulane don’t play each other. There could be 3 or 4 American teams with 1 conference loss.)

That projection doesn’t include Notre Dame, primarily because I think the Irish suffer a 3rd (and potentially 4th) loss.

If the Irish get it together and finish 10-2, it’ll make an already fascinating race for the 12th spot even more so.

What makes this so potentially riveting is that we could 4 or 5 of the biggest brands in the sport batting for that final at-large spot: Michigan, Alabama, Texas, Notre Dame. In theory, Oklahoma and USC could join the fray, too, but their schedules are anything but Playoff-friendly.

My only hope is we don’t have to sit through another Selection Sunday reveal that gives us a scheduled-enhanced Indiana-type and an SMU-type darling, Part 2.

3. Are there even 3 QBs you trust to win the national title?

The updated Heisman odds are led by quarterbacks. Zero surprise there. Since 2000, quarterbacks have won the most Heismans.

But here’s the question: Do you trust any of the 2025 Heisman contenders to actually win a national championship?

After 4 weeks of evidence, I’m not convinced that there are 3 QBs capable of legitimately leading a championship drive, as in, being the guy the other team must stop.

Just when you think Miami’s Carson Beck might be the closest thing to being the best offensive player on a national championship contender, he lays another egg against Florida. Wet field, rival, a win’s a win. I get it.

LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier has the tools and mindset to dominate, but his playmaking has regressed from 2024 standards. Just don’t mention that to Brian Kelly.

Ohio State’s Julian Sayin? TBD. Penn State’s Drew Allar? He’s been searching for that cape for 3 years.

Oregon’s Dante Moore is basically the West Coast version of Arch Manning: The tools exceed the results thus far.

Michigan’s Bryce Underwood? Are we talking this year or the next 2 years?

The good news if you’re a contender: Michigan’s JJ McCarthy is the only recent national champion QB who also was selected in the first round of the subsequent NFL Draft — and even McCarthy wasn’t viewed as a game-changer in college.

In some cases, good enough is good enough, and 2025 is shaping up to be another one of those years.

2. Why did Brian Kelly apologize?

In case you missed it, Brian Kelly didn’t like the tone of a reporter’s opening question following LSU’s tough 20-10 victory over Florida in Week 3.

To be honest, I didn’t like the question, either. It’s fine to ask about the state of LSU’s offense, but the actual question, tone, timing and delivery have to be better.

That’s not the first question you ask after a defense picks off 5 passes and controls a rivalry game anthem to handshake — and that’s certainly not how you ask that question.

Obviously I speak from experience. Coaches frequently overreact and invent slights, making press conferences personal and confrontational. I’ve been on the receiving end several times. I’ve had far more heated interactions than this one.

As such, I usually side with reporters in these instances, brotherhood and all, but not this time. I saw nothing wrong with how Kelly responded, other than finishing his critique by saying the question was “so out of line.” It wasn’t out of line; it was poorly worded.

Most in the media overreacted to Kelly’s reaction. I’m overreacting to their overreaction. When did we get this sensitive? That exchange wouldn’t make the top 1,000 “quarrels” in Coach K’s career.

Monday, of course, Kelly made the rounds and issued a public apology. There was no need.

Total play on. Just another day in the life of the coach-reporter working relationship.

1. Dabo to Alabama … it’s actually going to happen

“If Clemson’s tired of winning, they can send me on my way. But I’m going to go somewhere else and coach. …”

After losing to Syracuse and falling to 1-3 for the first time under Dabo, they’re probably more tired of losing.

Don’t wait for Tyler from Spartanburg to call. Start the clock. Dabo leaving Clemson — on his terms, by the way, and only on his terms — has never looked more realistic. Which means, neither has the fairytale ending.

Dabo’s eventually coming home.

Unless, of course, Arkansas or Florida boosters get to him first.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 4 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC went 8-4 in Week 4 of the 2025 college football regular season, including nonconference losses by Arkansas and Florida.

Here is the complete box score from every Week 4 SEC game, plus updated SEC standings and team stats:

Memphis 32, Arkansas 31

Tennessee 56, UAB 24

Mizzou 29, South Carolina 20

Miami 26, Florida 7

Ole Miss 45, Tulane 10

Oklahoma 24, Auburn 17

Mississippi State 38, Northern Illinois 10

Vanderbilt 70, Georgia State 21

LSU 56, Southeastern Louisiana 10

Texas 55, Sam Houston 0

SEC Standings after Week 4

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 4

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may also toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 4 SEC scores, stats and standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Florida fought hard, but the Gators fell 26-7 to Miami on Saturday night in Hard Rock Stadium.

Florida was shoutout in the first half, but had a window to get back into the game in the third quarter. Jadan Baugh scored a touchdown to make it a 13-7 game and then Cormani McClain picked off Carson Beck to give the Gators the ball back around midfield.

However, that was all the momentum Billy Napier and the Gators were able to muster. Florida wouldn’t score again, instead conceding 2 touchdowns to Miami in the fourth quarter as the Canes were able to get some separation on their in-state foes.

Neither quarterback was particularly efficient in this game, but it was an especially brutal outing for DJ Lagway. A week after throwing 5 interceptions, Lagway seemingly took no risks in this game. He finished with just 61 passing yards on 23 attempts.

As a team, Florida gained just 141 yards and averaged only 2.7 yards per play. That’s UF’s lowest yards-per-play output in a single game since 2013 and its second-lowest in any game since the 21st century. It’s also the lowest yards-per-play total for any SEC team against an ACC opponent since 2017.

Florida will be idle in Week 5 before hosting Texas on Oct. 4.

Miami 26, Florida 7

Here’s the Miami-Florida box score (use the dropdown menu to select team or player stats), followed by the complete play-by-play:

Caron Beck vs DJ Lagway

A statistical breakdown of how Georgia-turned-Miami QB Carson Beck outperformed Florida counterpart DJ Lagway:

The post Rapid Reaction: Florida’s offense hits historic low point in loss to Miami appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Missouri defeated South Carolina 29-20 on Saturday night in Columbia.

The Tigers fell behind early after a strong first half from LaNorris Sellers, but they were able to hold South Carolina’s offense to just 6 points in the second half. Mizzou is now 4-0 on the season and is poised to move up even further in the AP Top 25 next week.

Running back Ahmad Hardy continues to be the star of the show. He carried the ball 22 times for 138 yards and 1 touchdown in the win. Jamal Roberts also added 76 yards and 1 touchdown on the ground.

Defensively, Mizzou completely disrupted South Carolina’s rushing attack. The Gamecocks finished with -9 rushing yards on the night. Most of that was due to Sellers taking a number of sacks, but South Carolina’s running backs were also ineffective. Mizzou limited Rahsul Faison and Oscar Adaway to just 12 yards on 9 carries.

Mizzou now leads South Carolina 10-7 in the all-time series.

Next up, Mizzou will host UMass in Week 5. On the other side, South Carolina will look to snap a 2-game losing streak as it hosts Kentucky.

Mizzou 29, South Carolina 20

Here’s the Mizzou-South Carolina box score (use the dropdown menu to select team or player stats), followed by the complete play-by-play:

LaNorris Sellers vs. Beau Pribula

A statistical breakdown of how LaNorris Sellers compared to Beau Pribula in this contest:

The post Rapid Reaction: Ahmad Hardy leads Mizzou to win over South Carolina appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South provides live updates of every SEC game.

Follow your favorite team in real-time with every box score from every Week 4 SEC game:

Arkansas vs Memphis

Tennessee vs UAB

Mizzou vs South Carolina

Miami vs Florida

Ole Miss vs Tulane

Oklahoma vs Auburn

Mississippi State vs Northern Illinois

Vanderbilt vs Georgia State

LSU vs Southeastern Louisiana

Texas vs Sam Houston

The post Live updates: Week 4 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

It wasn’t much better for SEC haters, Vols fans, DJ Lagway, Dabo Swinney or Nico Iamaleava, either.

Those are some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 3 in and around the SEC.

10. It’s still Kirby’s world …

For 59 minutes and 57 seconds Saturday, Tennessee had its way with Georgia.

For the 9th consecutive year, it wasn’t enough.

Tennessee did almost everything right … and it still wasn’t enough.

The Joey Football Heisman Campaign was in 6th gear … until it ran out of gas and needed Sea Tow on the Tennessee River.

How did Georgia win? Everybody else is asking: How did Tennessee lose? Don’t blame the Vols. Don’t blame the kicker. Tennessee didn’t blow it, but how in the world did Georgia win?

The only time Georgia’s defense looked like a vintage Kirby Smart defense was the only time it mattered — on the Vols’ opening possession of overtime in what likely will be college football’s Game of the Year.

After surrendering 38 points, 371 passing yards and 4 passing TDs in regulation, the Dawgs stuffed Tennessee on the first 3 plays of OT and forced the Vols to settle for 3.

41-38 Tennessee quickly turned into … oh, what could have been.

Big picture? Both teams are Playoff-bound. Just like last year.

Narrowing the focus? As much as I like LSU’s oh-so legitimate chance to win the SEC, Saturday night in Knoxville proved it’s still the Dawgs’ world.

9. Actually, it’s the SEC’s world … thanks to Texas A&M

Last week, I wrote that everybody was sleeping on Texas A&M, but that would change in Week 3 after the Aggies knocked off Notre Dame and ended the Irish’s Playoff hopes.

Mission accomplished … and how.

On 4th-and-goal from the Irish 12, Marcel Reed tossed a game-winner to tight end Nate Boerkircher with 13 seconds left to stun the Irish 41-40.

Reed threw for 360 yards and 2 TDs. The terrific transfer tandem of Mario Craver (7 catches, 207 yards, 1 TD) and KC Concepcion (4 catches, 82 yards) was unstoppable. The Aggies’ defense tightened just enough to allow the offense time to erase a 24-14 deficit.

Texas A&M still has an incredibly difficult path to reach the Playoff, maybe the most difficult in America, but the Aggies also might have enough firepower to pull it off.

Saturday night, A&M created wiggle room, too, and further proof after another signature nonconference victory that the SEC — and only the SEC — deserves to have 5 teams in the Playoff.

8. Nick Saban Knows Defense, Part 1 Trillion …

During College GameDay, Nick Saban didn’t just say what was about to happen to Florida QB DJ Lagway later Saturday night at LSU, he broke it down with such precision and quickness that he left Kirk Herbstreit gasping for air, trying to call timeout so viewers at home might have a chance to understand the mad genius at work.

Saban, pointer in hand, was breaking down film of LSU’s multi-look defense and all of the ways DC Blake Baker disguises coverages and concepts to trick quarterbacks into seeing opportunities that simply don’t exist.

It was fascinating TV, a glimpse into what it must have been like to be Minkah Fitzpatrick in one of Alabama’s film studies.

It was also a foreign language to 99% of the viewers — which Herbstreit quickly realized as Saban’s breakdown became more nuanced.

No matter the words that Saban used, his message was unmistakable: LSU was about to make life miserable for Lagway, who’s still very much learning on the job.

There’s analysis, and then there’s the best defensive mind in the game explaining, frame by frame, what’s about to happen, and why.

“He’s going to have a hard time,” Saban concluded.

Fast forward to Saturday night in Death Valley: LSU fooled and forced Lagway into a career-worst 5 interceptions, including a dagger pick-6 that Saban saw coming 12 hours earlier.

LSU’s defense is good enough to win it all. It’s so good that LSU hasn’t even need Garrett Nussmeier to get out of cruise control.

7. Nobody beats Vandy 17 times in a row!

South Carolina fans, let me stop you before you start making excuses about LaNorris Sellers’ unfortunate game-ending injury: Ole Miss backup quarterback Trinidad Chambliss threw for 353 yards and accounted for 3 TDs in his first career FBS start to keep the Rebels’ Playoff hopes alive in a gutsy win vs. Arkansas. And your backup, Luke Doty, is a guy many of you once thought would be The Guy.

So instead of playing the what-if game, let’s give (more) credit to Diego Pavia and perennially overlooked Vanderbilt for emphatically ending the ‘Dores’ 16-game losing streak to South Carolina.

Obviously, Sellers’ head injury had an impact, but Vanderbilt already was ahead when he went out.

The fact is, after South Carolina scored to tie the score at 7, Vandy reeled off 24 consecutive points to end the skid, move to 3-0 … and likely into the AP Top 25 on Sunday.

Cue the fine folks at SEC Shorts … the King is coming.

6. Is Alabama back? No, Paaawwwl!

Disclaimer: Blasting a mid Wisconsin team certainly is better than not blasting a mid Wisconsin team.

However, for the love of Finebaum, the biggest takeaway from Alabama’s beatdown Saturday had more to do with how far Wisconsin has fallen, not how much Ty Simpson and the Tide have improved since the FSU debacle.

Simpson is making strides, no doubt. Nobody can discredit a career day: 24-for-29 for 382 yards and 4 TDs. That’s Tua-like efficiency. But remember when beating Wisconsin used to signify something significant? Remember the hype surrounding the 2015 season-opener? No. 3 Bama vs. No. 20 Wisconsin … Alabama dominated that game en route to winning the national championship. The Badgers began a slow but steady drift into the wilderness. They haven’t finished a season ranked in the AP Top 25 since 2019. They weren’t ranked at all in 2024.

Without question, Alabama players, fans and Kalen DeBoer’s family have to feel a lot better about their pending trip to Georgia in Week 5, but unless you actually believe Simpson can do that against an incredibly angry Georgia defense (and I don’t), nothing that happened Saturday against Wisconsin is plug-and-play ready to take down the Dawgs. (Unless, of course, it involves throwing more passes to Ryan Williams, now the best 18-year-old in the country.)

My advice? Enjoy the victory and bye week because there still is a very real possibility that the Tide wake up on a Sunday morning in October with a losing record.

5. Predicting the 5 automatic Playoff bids

The 5 highest-ranked conference champions receive an automatic bid into the 2025 College Football Playoff. After 3 weeks of evidence, here are the teams earning those bids:

ACC: Miami. It’s been a minute since Miami-FSU kicked off as a top-10 battle — 2013, to be exact. But history could be revisited in Week 6 at Doak. FSU is the only currently ranked ACC team remaining on Miami’s schedule. The ‘Noles also face Clemson, but the Tigers might have checked out after Saturday’s shocking loss to Georgia Tech dropped them to 1-2. Miami QB Carson Beck is a Heisman contender, but the Canes’ friendly conference schedule is the biggest reason Miami’s ACC Championship odds are so favorable.

Big 12: Texas Tech. Iowa State has the easiest conference schedule. But Iowa State can’t score like Texas Tech and Baylor can. The Utah-Texas Tech winner in Week 4 has the inside track to advance to the Big 12 Championship Game. I wish TCU had an easier schedule. No idea why the Horned Frogs had a bye in Week 2 after blasting Bill Belichick and UNC in Week 1, but they were back to business in Week 3. The schedule is more difficult than it appears (including a Week 5 Friday night tilt at Arizona State), but TCU has the offensive talent to at least spoil some title hopes in the Big 12.

Big Ten: Oregon. Why? I trust Dante Moore more than I trust Drew Allar or Julian Sayin. I like Penn State, but, besides the whole “Little Game James” thing, the Nittany Lions are the only B1G contender that plays Oregon and Ohio State in the regular season. That basically means they’d have to go at least 2-1 against those 2 to win the B1G Championship and secure the automatic bid.

SEC: Georgia. If the Dawgs can survive Knoxville on a day the defense didn’t show up, nobody’s taking them down in their backyard in Atlanta. If nothing else happens this season, Kirby Smart will fix that defense.

Group of 5: USF. Forget the Miami game. It’s irrelevant. No other Group of 5 team will finish the year with 2 nonconference wins over AP Top 25 teams. USF controls its fate: Just run the table from here out, and the G5 Playoff bid is yours.

4. 4 coaches who should have stayed where they were …

USF coach Alex Golesh became the next big thing immediately after his Bulls rallied to knock off Florida in Week 2. GameDay told his remarkable life story on Saturday. He’s on every P4 AD’s up-and-coming list.

From a world-class city and prestigious AAU academics to a new, on-campus stadium on the way and favorable Playoff path as a Group of 5 program, USF has so many more advantages than most Power conference programs. The only thing USF can’t offer Golesh is a top-40 coaching salary. Golesh makes $2.5 million in 2025. Nice work if you can get it, obviously, but that’s coordinator money in the SEC or B1G.

So, of course, he’ll be tempted to leave when the offers pour in during Firing SZN. He doesn’t have to look far or long to realize leaving a good thing isn’t always the best thing. Here are 4 (among dozens of candidates) coaches who should have stayed where they were.

1. Willie Taggart: Speaking of USF, Taggart started his rise to Power 5 paychecks by leading the Bulls to a 10-win season in 2016. He rebuilt the program, improving his win total each of his 4 seasons before cashing in when Oregon came calling. A year later, he left for Florida State, where he went 9-12 before being fired. Taggart resurfaced as FAU’s head coach, but was fired after 3 unsuccessful seasons. He’s an assistant coach in the NFL now.

2. Scott Frost: Frost led UCF to its undefeated season in 2017, then went home to Nebraska. You can’t blame that decision, but he won more games in 2 seasons at UCF (19) than he did in 4+ years as the ‘Skers’ head coach (16). All’s well that ends well; Frost returned to his home-away-from-home and is the head coach at UCF, which is now in the Big 12.

3. Jimbo Fisher: Fisher won a national championship at FSU but left for Texas A&M oil money. He got a record amount of it — but he hasn’t been able to land another head coaching job since.

4. Billy Napier: The buyout will be the best part about his Florida tenure.

3. Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate for a Playoff spot?

Georgia Tech didn’t just stun Dabo Swinney and Clemson on Saturday. The Rambling Wreck served notice that they very much belong in the Playoff picture instead of Clemson.

Georgia Tech is 3-0. It hasn’t even been ranked, but that will change Sunday. That in itself is noteworthy: Georgia Tech has spent exactly 1 week in the AP Top 25 since the 2015 season ended.

Brent Key’s team might stay awhile this season because its ACC schedule could not be set up any better. Tech avoids Miami and FSU, and doesn’t face another currently-ranked team until Thanksgiving weekend.

Speaking of which …

There’s forever to go, but it’s never too early to think ahead, especially when the dream scenario includes a hated rival.

Georgia Tech’s hot start has set the stage for one of the most epic encounters in the annals of the Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate rivalry.

You have to go all the way back to 1966 to find the last time Georgia Tech and Georgia were both ranked in the top 10 at kickoff.

Can you imagine this top-10 showdown stealing the stage on Rivalry Weekend?

P.S: If Brent Key really is Florida’s top choice should it move on from Billy Napier, the price just went up.

2. Rejection of the weak

Poor UCLA. Poor Nico Iamaleava. Living in LA is so expensive that his reported $2 million NIL deal can’t even buy him a lead at any point during UCLA’s 0-3 start. That includes 2 games against Mountain West teams.

Friday night, Iamaleava and the Bruins lost 35-10 to New Mexico.

It’s not all Nico’s fault, of course. But it’s not not his fault, either. Through 3 games, Iamaleava has thrown 3 TD passes with 3 interceptions. It’s not for lack of trying, either. Iamaleava is averaging 32.3 passes per game, top 5 among B1G QBs and nearly 7 more per game than he tossed last season for Tennessee. He just doesn’t have much to show for it. His 6.3 yards-per-attempt ranks above only Iowa and Northwestern’s QBs. And, again, this is mostly against Mountain West Conference defenses.

At any rate, when things are going this poorly at John Wooden’s School of Champions, you end up with tweets like this:

1. Could be worse: AP voters used to determine national champions …

Some of y’all like to overreact every week to the AP Top 25.

I’m all for overreacting, clearly, and I also check out Reddit’s weekly voting breakdown. But I’d caution you against taking this ranking too seriously. The AP poll’s dirty little secret is that these 95% of voters don’t have the time to watch any team other than the ones they are paid to cover.

That’s how you get a reporter in California slotting Florida at No. 15 and not ranking USF at all — hours after USF beat Florida on Florida’s home field to improve to 2-0 against ranked teams. That’s how you get 2 other voters ranking Florida ahead of USF. Even more voters slotted SMU ahead of Baylor … hours after Baylor beat SMU at SMU. (You know who didn’t? The same woman y’all have been blasting all week.)

Of course that makes no sense.

Every week you can scan the voting breakdown and find at least 10 ballots that make you ask: Did you even watch the games?

The answer is: No. And how could they? It’s all I can do to watch every SEC game every weekend. I haven’t seen USC play a single series in 3 weeks — and I enjoy watching Lincoln Riley’s offense. But I’m not paid to watch West Coast football, and that’s the point. So I only see highlights.

The good news, of course, is this group of voters no longer crowns a national champion.

The fact that they used to, for generations — and y’all accepted that as gospel! — still boggles the mind.

Almost as much as Danny Kanell and I agreeing on … anything.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 3 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC went 12-4 in Week 3, highlighted by Georgia outlasting Tennessee in overtime, and Texas A&M’s last-minute comeback victory over Notre Dame. Of course, that record included 4 conference games..

Here is the complete box score from every Week 3 SEC game, plus updated SEC standings and SEC team stats:

Oklahoma 42, Temple 3

Alabama 38, Wisconsin 14

Auburn 31, S. Alabama 15

Georgia 41, Tennessee 41 (OT)

Mizzou 52, Louisiana 10

Texas 27, UTEP 10

Mississippi State 63, Alcorn State 0

Ole Miss 41, Arkansas 35

Texas A&M 41, Notre Dame 40

LSU 20, Florida 10

Kentucky 48, E. Michigan 23

Vanderbilt 31, South Carolina 7

SEC Standings after Week 3

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.”

SEC Team Stats after Week 3

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may toggle between offensive and defensive stats.

The post Week 3 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Each week, Saturday Down South provides live updates, scores and stats from every SEC game.

Here is the live box score from every Week 3 SEC game:

Oklahoma vs Temple

Alabama vs Wisconsin

Auburn vs S. Alabama

Georgia vs Tennessee

Mizzou vs Louisiana

Texas vs UTEP

Mississippi State vs Alcorn State

Arkansas vs Ole Miss

Texas A&M vs Notre Dame

Florida vs LSU

Kentucky vs E. Michigan

South Carolina vs Vanderbilt

The post Live Updates: Week 3 SEC scores & stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

No, not the fact that Alabama won a football game Saturday. The Tide have done that a time or two over the years.

What was rare was the fact that, for the first time since Week 1 of the 2008 season, the Tide were not part of the AP Top 20. Yes, the Tide extended their active AP Top-25 streak to 280 weeks, the 2nd-longest in the sport’s history. Congratulations. But for the first time since opening the 2008 season at No. 24, the Tide won a game without being in the Top 20.

And y’all doubted Kalen DeBoer …

There’s no need to doubt Texas A&M’s retooled offense … Mizzou’s hatred of all things Kansas … or Billy Napier’s ability to snatch defeat from victory.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m overreacting to after Week 2 in and around the SEC.

10. Kalen DeBoer will always have U-LM …

Last week, Kalen DeBoer’s $70 million buyout was trending. Losing 4 games to unranked teams in 13 months will do that to a guy.

All is well in T-Town on this Sunday morning.

As referenced, DeBoer did something that Nick Saban couldn’t do: Beat ULM in his first try.

Noted. Still not overly impressed. But noted.

Wisconsin awaits, and now it’s time to do something Saban routinely did: Beat the brakes off Big Ten teams.

9. Gators fans, don’t blame me … I fired Billy Napier last season

I made a preseason oath that I was gonna lay off Billy Napier, primarily because, at this point, I’m merely choosing different words to fire the guy.

And then came Saturday …

Every single problem that has existed since he took over Steve Spurrier’s football program was on display in what has to be a tenure-ending loss to USF. Play-calling? Check. Poor clock management? Good grief. Inexplicable lack-of-discipline penalties at the most inopportune time? Spitting on guys? Two days after the entire world watched an NFL lineman get ejected for spitting on somebody? Seriously?

I’d say it’s over for Napier, but it’s been over.

His postgame press conference all but confirmed he knows it, too. He sounded like a politician conceding after losing an election.

Nice guy. Admirable character. Obviously cares. Overmatched in this setting. It happens.

8. Can Texas A&M blow up the SEC pecking order?

Everybody is sleeping on the Aggies.

Eleven teams garnered at least 1 media vote to win the SEC Championship — but nobody picked Texas A&M. The media predicted the Aggies would finish 8th in the division-less SEC.

ESPNBet listed the Aggies odds at +4000 to win the national championship.

After 2 weeks of actual games, it might be time to adjust some ceilings.

LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier is the SEC’s top gunslinger and most likely to crack the 3,000-yard passing mark again this season. Last week I raved about Tennessee transfer Joey Aguilar, and Week 2 only reinforced all of that positive mojo; he’s a lock to throw for 3,000.

After that? It’s very much TBD. But don’t be surprised if Marcel Reed tops 3,000 yards, too. Aggies coach Mike Elko brought in a pair of playmakers in Mario Craver (Mississippi State) and KC Concepcion (NC State) to upgrade one of the SEC’s least threatening passing offenses. So far, so good. The duo combined for 11 catches, 187 yards and 3 TD catches Saturday. Through 2 games, the transfers have combined for 6 TD catches.

A&M’s reimagined and suddenly potent passing game will only help keep heat off Le’Veon Moss, the only Aggie named to the preseason first-team all-SEC.

Bottom line: There aren’t 8 teams in America, much less the SEC, that have a more dangerous QB-RB-WR quartet than the Aggies.

Which means, these Aggies have a chance to be the biggest spoiler in college football, starting in Week 3 at Notre Dame, which can’t suffer another loss and expect to return to the Playoff.

CFP hopefuls LSU, South Carolina and Texas await, as well. Plus Florida.

It’s unfair to expect the Aggies to go 10-2 or maybe even 9-3 against that type of schedule, but they have the firepower to outscore any of those contenders and end their Playoff dreams.

7. S-E-C! S-E-C!

Admit it: Fans from 48 states wanted Michigan to beat Oklahoma, to send yet another message that the SEC is dead and that we’re all living in a B1G, bad world.

Didn’t happen. I’d be much more optimistic about Oklahoma’s Playoff chances if the Sooners had the schedule of, oh, about 6 other SEC teams. I’d be much higher about John Mateer’s Heisman chances, too. He’s an absolute playmaker, a throwback to the Lincoln Riley OU QB mold.

OU’s schedule just won’t allow a serious Playoff run or Heisman bid. The Sooners still have 6 games against currently-ranked SEC squads, and that doesn’t even include Mizzou, which soon will be ranked.

OU could finish 4-4, maybe 5-3 in the SEC — and that’s kind of the point.

A mid-level SEC team took out a B1G Playoff hopeful on a night the Sooners weren’t anywhere close to their best.

That was the headliner on the SEC’s big day, but it wasn’t the only haymaker the league landed.

• Mississippi State, thought to be the worst team in the SEC, shocked Playoff-hopeful Arizona State on a 58-yard TD strike from Blake Shapen to Brenen Thompson in the final minute.
• Vanderbilt, always doubted, dominated Virginia Tech.
• Mizzou outlasted Kansas (more in a minute).

We get it: It’s fun to write off the SEC, but days like Saturday remind us all of how silly it is to do so.

6. There’s only 1 man who can save Bill Belichick …

(UNC opened last Monday, so we didn’t get to overreact to the debacle … until now.)

No, it’s not Tom Brady, though he does look good in Carolina blue. No matter how many lawsuits the NCAA has lost, or will lose, I’m fairly confident the window on Tom Brady’s college career has closed. Probably.

No, the only man capable of saving the disaster that was Bill Belichick’s defense in Week 1 is … noted television personality and commercial star Nick Saban. All jokes aside about Belichick’s debut, the real tragedy about UNC’s already-doomed 2025 season is that the ACC gift-wrapped him a path to the Playoff with the easiest schedule of any Power 4 team.

It’s so easy, 2024 Indiana thinks it’s easy.

Things got a bit better Saturday: Belichick picked up his first win as a college coach, a 20-3 victory over the Charlotte 49ers. Like Belichick, we’re on to whatever cupcake is next.

5. Illinois is this year’s Indiana … with 1 major exception …

The exception? Everybody loves Illinois head coach Bret Bielema, and how could you not?

His press conferences are legendary, his boisterous personality unstoppable.

Here’s the best part: His 2025 Illinois football team is set up to make a run at the Playoff.

Four Big Ten teams (at least) are going to make the Playoff. Ohio State is a lock. The Penn State-Oregon winner is next. (They play in Week 5, and the loser isn’t necessarily done, either, though Penn State still has to travel to Ohio State in Week 10.)

Illinois is among a group of 4 other B1G programs in the mix — and its schedule is set up to finish 10-2 at worst, potentially 11-1.

The No. 11-ranked Illini destroyed Duke on Saturday and could jump into the Top 10 of the AP Poll on Sunday. The last time Illinois cracked the top 10? Try 2001.

Interestingly, the Illini’s first major roadblock arrives Week 4 at Indiana — which capitalized on its cushy schedule in 2024 all the way to the Playoff. Indiana and Illinois don’t have much of a football rivalry — the stakes haven’t been high enough to interrupt their hatred on the hardwood — but, thanks to basketball, there is absolutely no love lost between the border rivals.

The coaches will take center state during the buildup, and the dichotomy in their personalities will be on full display.

Bielema, as he always does, will destroy curmudgeon Curt Cignetti in the press conferences.

If “Bert” wins the game, look out. The Illini only face 1 other team currently ranked — Ohio State.

4. 4 more teams that didn’t make the Playoff in 2024 but will in 2025

No, Alabama, you’re not part of this list. Let’s just get that out of the way. Last week, I overreacted by naming 4 Playoff teams in 2024 that won’t make it back in 2025. Today, we’ll go the other direction.

1. LSU: It’s not 2019, but it’s not 2020-2024, either. Brian Kelly came to Baton Rouge to win championships, just like Nick Saban, Les Miles and Coach O did. I’m not ready to say the Tigers are ready to do that, but I’m not ready to say they can’t, either.

2. Miami: Part of it, maybe the biggest part of it, is the fact that Miami is the class of the ACC. (Of course, we said the same thing for most of 2024, too, right up until the Canes misplayed their way out of the ACC Championship Game.) Miami will find a way to lose a game it shouldn’t, but only after sweeping Florida and FSU in back-to-back games while breaking hype meters in South Florida.

3. USF or UNLV: The highest-ranked Group of 5 champion makes the Playoff. Saturday, USF announced itself as the front-runner by beating a Top 25 team for the second consecutive week. The Bulls blew out Boise State in Week 1, then rallied, on the road at the famed Swamp to take down No. 13 Florida on Saturday. USF has the best resume in the country. (Maybe now they’ll actually be ranked?) Up next? A date at No. 5 Miami. The Bulls don’t have to win that game, by the way. But they do have to run the table after that and win the American. Finish 11-1 with 2 signature wins? No G5 champ will have a better resume.

And if they slip up? Imagine if Dan Mullen leads UNLV to the Playoff before Florida makes the Playoff? It could happen as soon as 2025. If it does? Please let the Runnin’ Rebs face Georgia in the opening round.

4. Michigan: An early loss, with a freshman quarterback, at a ranked SEC team isn’t going to keep Michigan out of the Playoff. Neither will the rest of Michigan’s schedule. The Wolverines won’t face another currently ranked team until their annual season-ender against Ohio State. Good luck keeping a 10-2 Michigan team out of a 12-team Playoff — and that’s assuming Bryce Underwood doesn’t go go all Cam Newton against the Buckeyes.

3. 3 dark-horse Heisman candidates worth considering

Heisman odds are famously volatile early in the season. That also means shrewd bettors can find value before an obvious Heisman leader emerges.

Two weeks in, here are 3 quarterbacks outside the top 6 worth considering:

Marcel Reed, Texas A&M ESPNBet listed Reed’s Heisman odds at +6000 entering Week 2. That seems wildly high considering the weaponry the Aggies added on the outside to supplement Reed’s proven dual-threat qualities. Reed is capable of making highlight reel throws and runs, and the Aggies’ schedule is challenging while also offering an argument-proof Playoff resume should they finish 10-2. He added 4 more total TDs Saturday. (He had to be helped off the field and left the game early, but Elko told reporters afterward that Reed was fine.) Next week’s showdown at Notre Dame will go a long way to measuring reality for his and the Aggies’ goals.

Arch Manning, Texas: There is no real value in betting on the preseason Heisman favorite, which Manning was. But entering Week 2, Manning no longer was among the top 5 betting favorites, which meant there is plenty of value if you still believe in his talent. Jump on it fast, though. The Manning Hype train gained some passengers Saturday after he threw for 295 yards and tied a career-high with 4 TD passes.

Tommy Castellanos, FSU: He’s not a threat to throw for 4,000 yards or 40 TD passes, but he’s an exciting, playmaking dual-threat QB for a team that very well could run the table in the ACC. ESPNBet listed Castellanos’ odds at +3500 ahead of Saturday’s play date with something called East Texas A&M.

2. Speaking of East Texas A&M … Why?

Why are we still doing this?

FSU reportedly paid East Texas A&M $450,000, but as my son quickly and comically noted: “That might not even cover their medical bills after the game.”

It wasn’t just FSU, of course.

The SEC might as well have played a Sun Belt/FCS Challenge. Farther north, Ohio State pounded Grambling, which is a noble gesture, I guess, giving those kids the experience to play at The Horseshoe. Minnesota beat up on Northwestern State — which clearly isn’t the same without Ed Orgeron manning the middle. Indiana beat Kennesaw State, but that’s on brand. So forth, and so on.

We all know why these games are played, and those rea$on$ used to make sense.

College football is moving in the right direction. It’s actually holding a legitimate postseason tournament to crown a champion. It’s time to start punishing teams — via rankings — that continue to schedule these kinds of games and reward teams that schedule aggressively.

Take a cue from Mizzou: Restore an old rivalry, even better if it’s one of the oldest in college football history.

And, then, when you take one 63 yards to the house against the team you hate most, like Jamal Roberts did to KO KU, that lives forever. (Even if it wasn’t the most memorable event from the game!)

1. Mizzou’s SEC moment arrives … and it just means everything

It’s been more than a decade, but some of y’all still aren’t all that wild about outsider Mizzou being part of the SEC.

Maybe after seeing this interaction during the renewed Mizzou-Kansas rivalry game, you’ll be a bit more welcoming, maybe even reluctantly admit Mizzou fans have more in common with other SEC fans than you might think.

Here’s video evidence — or the play of the day.

That’s Iron Bowl, Egg Bowl level hate, a’ight?

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 2 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC went 14-2 in Week 2 of the 2025 college football regular season, with Oklahoma and Mississippi State registering victories over Top-25 opponents.

Here is the complete box score from every Week 2 SEC game, plus updated SEC standings and leaders:

No. 7 Texas 38, San Jose State 7

No. 19 Texas A&M 44, Utah State 22

No. 4 Georgia 28, Austin Peay 6

No. 20 Ole Miss 30, Kentucky 23

Mizzou 42, Kansas 31

No. 22 Tennessee 72, East Tennessee State 17

USF 18, No. 13 Florida 16

Arkansas 56, Arkansas State 14

No. 10 South Carolina vs SC State Box Score

Auburn 42, Ball State 3

No. 3 LSU 23, La. Tech 7

Mississippi State 24, No. 12 Arizona State 20

No. 18 Oklahoma 24, No. 15 Michigan 13

Vanderbilt 44, Virginia Tech 20

No. 21 Alabama 73, La.-Monroe 0

SEC Standings after Week 2

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” Every conference is available. The standings update automatically.

SEC Team Stats after Week 2

Use the dropdown menu to select “Southeastern.” You may toggle between offensive and defensive team stats.

The post Week 2 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Follow every SEC game in Week 2 of the 2025 college football regular season.

Texas vs San Jose State Box Score

Texas A&M vs Utah State Box Score

Georgia vs Austin Peay Box Score

Kentucky vs Ole Miss Box Score

Mizzou vs Kansas Box Score

Tennessee vs East Tennessee State Box Score

Florida vs South Florida Box Score

Arkansas vs Arkansas State Box Score

South Carolina vs SC State Box Score

Auburn vs Ball State Box Score

LSU vs La. Tech Box Score

Mississippi State vs Arizona State Box Score

Oklahoma vs Michigan Box Score

Vanderbilt vs Virginia Tech Box Score

Alabama vs La.-Monroe Box Score

The post Live Updates: Week 2 SEC Scores & Stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

My bad. This piece is dedicated to overreacting, and that character assessment is the antithesis of an overreaction.

Saying that Texas won’t make the Playoff after a weak Week 1 showing at Ohio State? Or that FSU might? Or insisting the Kalen DeBoer countdown is on at Alabama, $70 million be damned? That’s more like it.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m overreacting to after an eye-opening Week 1 in and around the SEC.

10. Arch Sadness

Late in final minutes of Arch Manning’s disastrous first-half flop at Ohio State, Fox Sports asked a trivia question: “Who was the last preseason Heisman Trophy favorite to win the Heisman?”

The answer was Matt Leinart, in 2004.

After Manning proceeded to airmail his next pass, I joked: “Who was the last Heisman Trophy preseason favorite to be benched in the opening game?”

Manning wasn’t in danger of being benched, even after going 5-for-10 for 25 yards, side-arming balls (for whatever reason) into the turf along the way.

But he hardly looked like a top-tier SEC quarterback, much less like the preseason Heisman favorite. He didn’t even look as good as Tennessee’s quarterback — um, the new guy, Joey Aguilar, not famous uncle Peyton Manning.

First true road start. At the defending national champion. Retooled offense. Apply all the standard caveats. Too predictably, Twitter was full of jokes, as well. Commercial count, jabs at his last name, comparisons to (pick a Sanders) or Bronny.

This one was fake, but still amusing:

Arch rebounded a bit in the second half, but as debuts go, it was more notable for what it wasn’t than what it was.

His Heisman odds already dropped, but that says more about Vegas than Manning or his future. Here’s a thought: Maybe next time you don’t essentially give a first-time starter that kind of preseason billing?

9. Remember No. 9 …

No doubt you heard lots of numbers after Alabama’s loss to unranked Florida State on Saturday. You probably heard that Kalen DeBoer now has lost 4 games to unranked teams. You probably heard that it was Alabama’s first season-opening loss since 2001.

Here’s a number you probably didn’t hear: 9 — that’s how many games Nick Saban lost from 2011-17.

Fourteen games into his Alabama tenure, Kalen DeBoer is more than halfway there.

DeBoer lost 4 games in 2024. Given what you saw in Alabama’s lackluster loss in Tally, is it out of the question that DeBoer loses 5 games in 2025?

It’s ridiculous to think Alabama could lose as many games in the first 2 seasons after Saban as it did during a 7-year stretch that included 4 national championships, but that’s the reality for DeBoer’s program.

(Heck, even if you wanted to change the years and start from scratch, Saban lost 8 games and won 1 national championship in his first 3 years at Alabama. And he had to rebuild from scratch. DeBoer can only lose 3 more games and must win a natty this year or next to match that start — and he started with Saban’s players.)

You might say it’s unfair to compare any coach to the greatest coach of all-time. And I’d agree. But that’s exactly what DeBoer signed up for when he left Washington to replace Saban.

Here’s the real problem, you know, besides DeBoer’s near-$70 million buyout: Nobody fears DeBoer’s Alabama. Florida State certainly didn’t.

FSU QB Thomas Castellanos called out the Tide before the game, saying they don’t have Nick Saban to save them.

How did the ‘Noles prove it? After Alabama appeared to regain momentum with a 4th-quarter TD to pull within 7, FSU went for it on 4th-and-1 at its own 34, rather than play punt-and-protect. Of course the ‘Noles converted — on their way to the end zone. Why? Zero fear.

Can you imagine any team going for that, in that situation, with that much at stake, against a Nick Saban team? I can’t, either.

8. Because it’s never too early to speculate …

This Alabama situation reminds me of the predicament UNC basketball found itself in after Dean Smith retired. It’s slightly different in that Smith handpicked his short-term successor, long-time assistant Bill Guthridge. Guthridge led UNC to the Final Four twice, but he only stayed for 3 seasons. He was never UNC’s long-term answer. That was going to be the coach who followed Guthridge.

North Carolina pursued former Tar Heel and longtime Smith assistant Roy Williams, but Williams reluctantly stayed at Kansas. UNC hired former player Matt Doherty. It didn’t go well. Doherty went 8-20 in Year 2 and was fired after a mediocre Year 3.

North Carolina went back to Williams, with Smith all but begging Williams to come home and revive the program. He did. And then some. Williams led the Tar Heels to the NCAA championship in 2005, 2009 and 2017. He won more NCAA Tournament titles in that span than any coach in the country, including his neighbor, Mike Krzyzewski.

What does that have to do with Alabama football in 2025?

If this continues at its current pace, the Tide soon will be looking for a new coach. They pursued former Alabama player Dabo Swinney once — and he obviously turned them down.

When the time comes, the Tide can’t let Dabo stay away again.

Unless, of course, they’d rather have the guy with ties to the state who just keeps beating them — new FSU OC Gus Malzahn.

7. Brace yourself … FSU might actually be back

I don’t know who was happier Saturday night, Mike Norvell’s family … or the SEC’s favorite punching bag, Danny Kanell.

Oh, who are we kidding? Kanell celebrates Alabama losses more than LSU or Auburn fans do. And the fact that his ‘Noles delivered the Tide takedown this time?

My advice? If you’re not a fan of Kanell’s smirk and smack directed the SEC’s way, stay far, far away from the computer and TV this week. It’s already started.

The truly scary part is FSU looked the part: Fast, physical and fearless. Very suddenly, coupled with Clemson’s home loss, the Seminoles became the most likely ACC team to reach the Playoff in 2025.

6. Don’t overreact to Tennessee … Don’t overreact to Tennessee …

No matter how many times I remind myself not to overreact to anything Tennessee does well, I just can’t help it. I’m usually overly optimistic about the Vols, admittedly because SEC football is just more fun when they’re rolling and Vols fans are doing what Vols fans do.

This season? I was in wait-and-see mode, for good reason — just not the reason you probably thought.

I wasn’t worried about the Vols losing Nico Iamaleava. He was fine at UT, nothing more. Joey Aguilar is an upgrade without the fuss — and looked the part in an impressive dual-threat debut vs. Syracuse. The real concern? Who could replace Dylan Sampson? The sample size is 1 game, and “Syracuse defense” isn’t a term that strikes fear in opponents. Still, Star Thomas and DeSean Bishop combined for 174 yards rushing. Each had a long run of at least 20 yards.

I get it: Others are low on the Vols. There’s a reason BetMGM lists Tennessee’s odds to win the SEC Championship at +2200 — behind 9 other SEC teams.

I’m not saying Tennessee is a threat to win the SEC. But their SEC schedule screams 6-2 — at worst. There’s no way this team finishes 9th in the SEC — as media predicted this summer.

5. SEC Team of the Week? LSU

LSU held on to beat No. 4 Clemson 17-10. That might not sound terribly impressive, but the last time LSU won a season-opener, Joe Burrow was the quarterback.

That 2019 team ran the table and built a solid argument to be called the greatest college football team of all time.

Nobody’s going to confuse these 2025 Tigers with those Tigers, but the worm might have turned Saturday night at Clemson’s Death Valley.

Brian Kelly didn’t have to pound his fist in anger, because this time, the players he recruited and signed to close out tight games in hostile environments did exactly that.

Was there room for improvement? It’s Week 1, of course there is.

But there also were flashes of a fast and furious defense, a staple that has been sorely missing in the 2020s. The running game, nonexistent last season, showed signs of life against an elite defense. And gunslinging Garrett Nussmeier played smart, winning football while still reminding folks of his arm talent. (His perfectly placed overturned TD throw to Barion Brown was the throw of the week … until it didn’t count.)

Those are all ingredients of a Playoff team. It’s one week, but if you’ve been waiting for the lights to come on in Baton Rouge on Kelly’s watch, this gutsy win at Clemson represents more than just a flicker of hope.

(Apologies for not mentioning your team that blew out a cupcake. Of course, that’s far better than me calling out a team that didn’t blow out a cupcake. A win’s a win, right, Kentucky?)

4. 4 Playoff teams in 2024 that will come up short in 2025

SMU: Every year is different, but … how many times will we be reminded of SMU’s 28-point loss in the first round of the 2024 Playoff? That result, of course, came after the Selection Committee’s controversial decision to include the Mustangs after they lost the ACC title game. SMU capitalized on a cupcake ACC schedule in its first year in the league. This season, the Mustangs travel to Clemson and face Miami (I know, I know).

Boise State: The Broncos made the Playoff last season ahead of other Group of 5 hopefuls in large part because of their narrow loss at Oregon in Week 2. As losses go, it was impressive. Oregon couldn’t stop Ashton Jeanty. At all. A similar narrative/opportunity exists in 2025 when the Broncos visit Notre Dame in Week 6. Can they keep it close without Jeanty? I don’t see how, not after getting blown out at USF. Circle the date against Dan Mullen and UNLV in Week 8. That game might ultimately decide the G5 Playoff rep — but with Boise potentially playing the spoiler.

Texas: You came here for overreactions, right? Arch Manning eventually will be fine, but he didn’t appear to have a lot of help against Ohio State. I’m not overreacting to the Longhorns losing a road game by a single score. I might be overreacting to the lack of firepower on display. Texas still plays 4 ranked SEC teams — and 3 of those games are away from home. Even if they split those games, they’ll have 3 losses and likely a slim chance of returning to the SEC Championship Game. Every year, a preseason top-10 team tanks. Texas won’t sink to 2024 FSU levels (preseason No. 10 … to 10 losses) or even 2023 USC levels (preseason No. 6 … to 5 losses), but landing outside of the top 12 in the final Playoff ranking? That’s certainly plausible based on what we saw at Ohio State.

Indiana: Why? Aside from opening with the weakest 3-game nonconference slate imaginable, IU’s B1G schedule is more difficult than the 2024 layup that fooled the committee into believing the Hoosiers were Playoff worthy. (They didn’t fool Overreactions; we sounded the warning bells in early October that the Hoosiers were set up to make it, even though Michigan and Ohio State would expose them as pretenders. That played out exactly the way we said it would.) The good news is we won’t have to wait long for the truth to be revealed in 2025. After IU’s inevitable 3-0 start against Old Dominion, Kennesaw State and Indiana State — quick aside, IMG Academy has more blue-chip talent than any of those 3 programs — the Hoosiers face a ranked Illinois squad and travel to Iowa in back-to-back weeks. A trip to Oregon and Penn State still await. No matter how much Curt Cignetti whines this year about the B1G being superior to the SEC, a 2-loss Indiana squad has no chance to make the Playoff. Congrats on the 13-point win over Old Dominion. No wonder you skipped out on playing Virginia.

3. The 3 Heisman finalists will be …

We have a full page devoted to the Heisman Trophy. It contains Heisman odds, updated in real-time, plus scouting reports on the leading contenders and a bit of history. Check it out.

Here’s how I would fill out a Heisman ballot after Week 1:

1. Garrett Nussmeier: Sure, other QBs had bigger days statistically. (Shout out to Arkansas’ Taylen Green, who threw a career-high 6 TD passes, and Texas A&M’s Marcel Reed, who tossed 4.) But no QB had a better day in a Playoff-type atmosphere. Nussmeier threw for 230 yards and 1 TD in leading LSU to a win at No. 4 Clemson. His numbers will be there in the end; he passed for 4,052 yards last season. His Heisman bid will be tied to LSU’s Playoff run. So far, so very good.

2. Thomas Castellanos: Tommy Football? Sure, he’s bounced around — Florida State is his 3rd program, but he spent the better part of Saturday bouncing around Alabama’s defense. He made smash plays with his arm and feet — delivering strikes and notice that the ‘Noles not only are the most improved team in the country but also could become part of the Playoff mix. Bet365 lists Castellanos’ Heisman odds at +12500, so there is plenty of value available if you believe.

3. Jeremiah Smith: Forget the opener, a’ight? Breaking in a new QB against a national contender hell-bent on taking you away isn’t the way you launch a Heisman bid. The most underrated part of Smith’s Heisman campaign is precedent. Did you know that more receivers (2) have won the Heisman in the past 10 years than running backs (1, the great Derrick Henry)? Sure, quarterbacks still lead the way in the 2025 race, but there’s no player in America capable of separating from his peers — or opponents — quite like Smith.

2. Thank you, again, Playoff expansion

Back in 2014, when talking heads like Barrett Sallee were bemoaning the move to a 4-team Playoff and fearing subsequent expansion, I was reminding folks of how much better their precious regular season would become.

Why? An expanded Playoff offers wiggle room. For every team except Indiana, apparently, it also incentives teams to schedule aggressively.

There is no way, absolutely no way, that we get 3 true home/road blockbuster showdowns in Week 1 like Texas at Ohio State, Alabama at FSU, and LSU at Clemson in a world where 1 loss could eliminate your championship hopes.

That scheduling is the product of Playoff expansion.

Just say thank you and move on.

You’re welcome.

1. Farewell, Lee Corso

College basketball has Dickie V.

College football has Lee Corso.

Both are former college coaches turned endearing ambassadors, sharing their love of the game for decades with ESPN audiences.

For legions of fans, Corso and Dickie V are the faces of their sports — even if their face sometimes was covered by a mascot costume.

Corso made his final headgear pick Saturday on College GameDay. He went out a winner, too, correctly picking Ohio State. Cole’s GameDay Blog, which has tracked Corso’s picks since the start, says Corso retired with a record of 287-144. That’s impressive.

His colleagues might joke that he was much better at picking games than coaching games, where he had a lifetime record of 73-85-6.

Heck, he went 8-8 against Nick Saban — as a picker!

Enjoy retirement, Coach, and thank you for the laughs and memories.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 1 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

The SEC went 13-2 in Week 1 of the 2025 college football regular season. (South Carolina plays Virginia Tech later Sunday.)

Here is the complete box score from every Week 1 SEC game:

Missouri 61, Central Arkansas 6

Auburn 38, Baylor 24

Ohio State 14, Texas 7

Mississippi State 34, Southern Miss 17

Tennessee 45, Syracuse 26

Kentucky 24, Toledo 16

Florida State 31, Alabama 17

Georgia 45, Marshall 7

Arkansas 52, Alabama A&M 7

Oklahoma 35, Illinois State 3

Florida 55, Long Island 0

Texas A&M 42, UTSA 24

Vanderbilt 45, Charleston Southern 3

LSU 17, Clemson 10

Ole Miss 63, Georgia State 7

South Carolina vs Virginia Tech

This box score will update in real time. Kickoff is 3 pm Sunday, Aug. 31.

SEC Standings after Week 1

To find the SEC standings, use the dropdown menu on the far right and select “Southeastern.” These standings will automatically update.

The post Week 1 SEC scores, stats & standings appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Every week, Saturday Down South will provide live scores and stats from every SEC game. This article will update scores and stats automatically. Use the dropdown menu to alternate between team and player stats.

Here’s the Week 1 SEC slate:

Missouri vs Central Arkansas Box Score

Missouri kicked off the SEC’s season against Central Arkansas on Thursday night, Aug. 28.

Auburn vs Baylor Box Score

Auburn played Baylor on Friday night, Aug. 29.

Texas vs Ohio State Box Score

Mississippi State vs Southern Miss Box Score

Tennessee vs Syracuse Box Score

Kentucky vs Toledo Box Score

Alabama vs Florida State Box Score

Georgia vs Marshall Box Score

Arkansas vs Alabama A&M Box Score

Oklahoma vs Illinois State Box Score

Florida vs Long Island Box Score

Texas A&M vs UTSA Box Score

Vanderbilt vs Charleston Southern Box Score

LSU vs Clemson Box Score

Ole Miss vs Georgia State Box Score

South Carolina vs Virginia Tech Box Score

The post Live Updates: Week 1 SEC Scores & Stats appeared first on Saturday Down South.

And then 2024 showed up — producing another SEC national champion and 3 of the greatest individual seasons in the SEC’s storied history.

In the past 2 years alone, the SEC produced 14 first-round draft picks and forced countless revisions to the record books.

Nicknames like Jac-tani, Tanks and CMo became part of our baseball vernacular.

There’s no way more magic awaits in 2025, right?

Maybe?

10 key storylines in and around SEC baseball

Opening Day is here. Will the SEC extend its run of College World Series titles? Who are the next big names to know? Here are 10 key storylines as we count down the minutes until the first pitch of 2025.

1. Can the SEC make it 6 straight CWS titles?

Vegas certainly thinks so.

Per FanDuel Sportsbook, reigning champion Tennessee (+750), Texas A&M (+900), LSU (+950) and Arkansas (+1100) have the best odds to win the College World Series. Virginia is next, but then Florida (+1600) and Texas (+2600) also are in the top 10.

Tennessee outlasted Texas A&M in a thrilling best-of-3 CWS finals last year. That was the Vols’ first title — and the SEC’s 5th consecutive. Notably and impressively, all 5 titles were won by different programs.

Baseball America believes, too.

SEC teams occupied the top 4 spots in BA’s preseason poll, led by No. 1 Texas A&M.

Because it’s never too early to start thinking about Omaha, BA also projected a record 13 SEC teams to make the 64-team NCAA Tournament.

2. Texas A&M: New coach, same mission

There’s no way to sugarcoat the way Jim Schlossnagle left Texas A&M for Texas. There’s also no need to rehash how poorly he handled an obviously awkward situation.

Or how quickly A&M fans circled April 25-27, when the Aggies travel to Texas for the most anticipated series of the season.

The Aggies rebounded, though, and quickly promoted hitting coach Michael Earley, whom university president Mark A. Welsh III described as a “budding superstar leading Aggie baseball.”

Earley is a first-time manager, and clearly the task is daunting. But he’s widely respected among coaching circles as a hitting whisperer and clearly has the trust of everybody in the clubhouse.

Texas A&M is going to hit — and not just because the Aggies retained the best player in college baseball and then added somebody with even more career home runs. Speaking of …

3. Will Jace LaViolette go No. 1 overall?

Soon after Schlossnagle bolted, Texas A&M star Jace LaViolette entered the transfer portal. Other key Aggies did, too, but LaViolette was the headliner.

There’s zero coincidence that the Aggies’ stars all returned as soon as Earley was named manager.

“I cried when I heard Mike was our new coach,” LaViolette told reporters last summer. “That’s how much this man means to me and means to this team. He’s our rock. He’s our foundation. He’s one of the reasons why we were in Omaha. He’s one of the reasons why this team was so damn good. Excuse my language, but I get fired up talking about him.

“I could run through a brick wall for that guy. I love him. I could go to war for him. Same with the whole team, it’s going to be unbelievable.”

Unbelievable is one way to describe LaViolette’s power potential.

LaViolette hit 21 home runs as a freshman and 29 last season.

Barring injury, LaViolette is as close to a lock as possible to join Tommy White in college baseball’s exclusive 20-20-20 home run club. (South Carolina’s Ethan Petry also is a 20-20-20 candidate, but more on him later.)

Already with 50 career home runs, LaViolette needs just 6 more to become Texas A&M’s career leader — and he needs 31 to supplant Eddy Furniss as the SEC’s career leader.

At 6-6, 230, he’s built like Jac Caglianone — and has just as much power.

MLB.com ranks LaViolette the No. 2 overall draft prospect and top college prospect.

His bat and power potential are the biggest reasons he’s solidly in the mix to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 MLB Draft.

4. Who wins the SEC HR crown?

Entering the 2023 season, just 2 hitters in SEC history had hit 30 or more home runs in a season — and nobody had done it since 2000.

In 2023, Jac Caglianone smashed 33, setting Florida’s single-season record. It didn’t last long. Cags followed with 35 last season.

That was a Florida record, but it wasn’t enough to lead the SEC.

Georgia’s Charlie Condon mashed a program-record 37 home runs. Tennessee’s Christian Moore hit 34 to set Tennessee’s mark.

In 1 year, 3 SEC sluggers set program records for single-season home runs, and in the process, that trio also combined to produce more 30-home run hitters than the league had in its pre-Caglianone history.

The question in 2025 isn’t whether we’ll add another slugger to the 30-home run club, but which one will it be?

We’ve discussed LaViolett’s merits. Petry has as much raw power as anybody in the country; if he can reduce his strikeout rate, he could make a run at 30.

LSU’s Jared Jones is a preseason All-SEC first-team selection — for good reason. He hit 28 homers last season, doubling his freshman output.

Those 3 are the household names and most likely candidates to crash the 30-home run ceiling this season.

5. Oh, brother …

Last season, Mississippi State hurler Jurrangelo Cijntje turned heads with his rare ability to pitch with either arm. It wasn’t just for show, either. Cijntje was so elite the Seattle Mariners selected him with the No. 15 overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft.

This season, Oklahoma has a pair of twin aces who are turning heads. Literal twins.

Juniors Kyson and Malachi Witherspoon are fresh off a dominant summer, excelling in the premier Cape Cod League and making Team USA’s national college team.

Now they’re tasked with leading Oklahoma’s staff in their first taste of SEC baseball.

Obviously, it’s not easy to tell them apart. Malachi is 6-3, 211 and wears No. 25. Kyson is 6-2, 207 and wears No. 26. Both are right-handed with similar power stuff.

Kyson has the higher ceiling though, with a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and has touched 99. MLB.com ranked him as the No. 26 prospect in the 2025 MLB Draft. He’s an experienced starter who went 8-3 last year and led OU with a 3.71 ERA.

Malachi has been a reliever who led OU with 5 saves last season, but that could change. His development over the summer has him in position to join Kyson in the weekend rotation.

6. SEC pitching is loaded … again

Imagine being ranked the No. 26 draft prospect in the country — and still not earning preseason first-team All-SEC honors.

That’s Kyson’s fate — but it’s also an indication of the SEC’s pitching depth.

Thirteen SEC pitchers appeared in MLB.com’s preseason ranking of the Top 100 draft prospects. Twelve of them were ranked behind Kyson.

LSU had 3 pitchers ranked in the top 100 — led by No. 38 prospect Chase Shores. Gavin Guidry didn’t make the top-100 ranking — no doubt at least in part because he’s a closer, but he’s one of the most reliable late-game arms in the league.

Tennessee had 3 pitchers ranked among the top 100 prospects.

7. Why Florida’s Liam Peterson is the most important player in college baseball

Two years ago, Liam Peterson was viewed as one of the best high school pitching prospects in the country.

Mentioned as a fringe first-round prospect, most expected him to bypass college altogether.

Last season, SEC hitters reminded Florida’s freshman starter that the gap between prep ball and the best college conference in America is steep, relentless and unforgiving.

Peterson’s mid-90s fastball plays anywhere, but his inability to consistently command it led to mixed results and a temporary move to the bullpen.

Did Florida put too much on its touted recruit too soon? Maybe. He was the Gators’ Saturday starter, after all.

Peterson spent the offseason addressing mechanical flaws that made it difficult to repeat his delivery. His motion is now shorter, smoother, simpler — which means less can go wrong from the time his hands break until he releases the ball.

If he figures it out — again, the stuff plays — Florida is a threat to get back to Omaha for the 6th time in the past 10 tournaments.

If the struggles continue, this lineup lacks the 1-swing firepower to overcome it.

8. What’s a fair expectation for Tennessee?

Nobody has repeated as national champion since South Carolina went back-to-back in 2010 and 2011.

The most recent team to even reach consecutive CWS finals was Vanderbilt, which won the 2019 title and then lost to Mississippi State in the 2021 finals. Even that came with a caveat, as COVID wiped out the 2020 CWS.

Winning once is difficult enough. Playing baseball on the final day of the season in back-to-back years in this era is next-level challenging.

So what’s fair for Tennessee, which ended decades of angst and quieted old-school naysayers by winning its first CWS title last season?

Coaches picked the Vols to finish 2nd in the SEC. Baseball America ranked the Vols No. 3 in its preseason Top 25 — behind 2 other SEC programs.

No matter whose opinion you value most, the key takeaway is that this program isn’t expected to regress in 2025. Despite losing a generational talent like Christian Moore, 4 other key starters and 3 quality arms.

The Vols had 8 players drafted last summer — including their first 5 hitters in the CWS finals. Not that Tennessee needs any PR help, but those 8 players received signing bonuses totaling more than $12 million, by the way.

Tony Vitello reloaded by bringing in the nation’s No. 7 transfer portal class. The headliners are Gavin Kilen, who played shortstop at Louisville but will replace Moore at second base with the Vols, and third baseman Andrew Fischer (Ole Miss). BA ranked both newcomers among the top 10 transfers. They’ll play alongside draft-eligible sophomore shortstop Dean Curley — a preseason All-SEC first-team pick and No. 24-rated prospect in the 2025 MLB Draft.

Tennessee’s rotation also will look different, but all 3 projected weekend starters are among the top 100 draft prospects in the country.

Translation: Nobody is a lock to get to Omaha, but few teams have more talent than these Vols.

9. Speaking of transfers, here are 5 more to know …

Anthony Eyanson (LSU): LSU’s weekend rotation is stacked, and Eyanson is right in the middle of it after 2 standout seasons as a starter at UC-San Diego. BA ranked Eyanson the No. 4 transfer in America. He also pitched in relief for the USA college national team this summer.

Blake Cyr (Florida): Nobody is replacing Caglianone’s power, but Cyr, a transfer from Miami, is expected to hit in the middle of the Gators’ lineup. He hit 17 home runs as an All-American freshman at Miami in 2023, but injuries limited him to just 20 games last season.

Wyatt Henseler (Texas A&M): Henseler dominated lower-level pitching at Penn, but it will be interesting to see how he handles the significant step up — as well as a position change from third base to second base. For what it’s worth, the senior has hit 54 career home runs, which makes him college baseball’s active co-leader (Mississippi State’s Hunter Hines). He joins a lineup led by LaViolette, so protection won’t be an issue.

Zach Root (Arkansas): SEC media picked Arkansas to finish 3rd. BA ranked the Hogs No. 4 in the country to start the season. It’s more of the same, in other words for Dave Van Horn. Arkansas features 2 pitchers ranked in BA’s Top 100 draft prospects list — and added Root, a lefty who went 6-2 as part of East Carolina’s weekend rotation last season.

Cade Fisher (Auburn): Fisher needed a fresh start after a rough sophomore season at Florida, where he went from Friday night starter to middle reliever. He’s not overpowering, but he’ll be part of the weekend mix at Auburn.

10. Who are the biggest threats to the SEC’s reign?

How’s this for dominance?

If you include new SEC member Oklahoma, each of the past 4 CWS finals were an SEC vs. SEC affair. More impressive, all 8 of those finalists were different programs.

• 2024: Tennessee defeated Texas A&M
• 2023: LSU defeated Florida
• 2022: Ole Miss defeated Oklahoma
• 2021: Mississippi State defeated Vanderbilt

This season, the top 4 teams in Baseball America’s preseason poll were SEC teams. Three more appeared in the top 15.

Stopping this run won’t be easy, but the ACC appears to be in the best position to do it.

No. 5 Virginia, No. 6 FSU, No. 8 Clemson and No. 10 Duke all feature high-level MLB prospects.

FSU ace Jamie Arnold might be the best pitcher in the country. Clemson outfielder Cam Cannarella is a viable threat to win the Golden Spikes Award. Virginia’s infield is as decorated as any in the nation.

There is plenty of talent. Does 1 outsider have enough depth to win a best-of-3 and temporarily halt the SEC’s run?

Only time will tell. The best we can hope for is that the ride to Omaha is just as thrilling in 2025 as it was the past 2 seasons.

The post College baseball preview: 10 burning questions about the 2025 season appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Don’t get too attached, though: If recent history holds, it’s safe to say many won’t stay where they signed. Drake Maye (Class of 2021) is the most recent 5-star quarterback who spent his college career on the same sideline before heading to the NFL. The last class that didn’t include a 5-star QB transfer was 2017.

Just this week, 2 more former 5-star QBs announced they were transferring, continuing a trend: 12 of the past 25 5-star QBs transferred (or plan to), some more than once.

Consider this a word of caution before you rush out and buy that jersey: A detailed look at every 5-star QB in the past 8 recruiting cycles.

2024 class (1 of 3 transferred)

No. 3 overall DJ Lagway (Florida): Everybody wanted him, and a few reportedly still are interested. As long as Billy Napier remains Florida’s coach, it sure looks like Lagway will be Florida’s starting quarterback for the next 2 years.

No. 7 overall Dylan Raiola (Nebraska): His recruitment was full of twists, but he was given the keys to Nebraska’s offense with hopes of restoring the ‘Skers’ championship history.

No. 20 overall Julian Sayin (Alabama): He didn’t wait long to bolt, but he had a good excuse: Nick Saban retired shortly after Sayin signed with Alabama last December. Sayin transferred to Ohio State in January.

2023 class (*3 of 5 transferred)

No. 1 overall Arch Manning (Texas): Sure, transfer rumors ran rampant after Quinn Ewers announced last offseason that he was returning, but Manning looks like he’ll finish his college career as Texas’ starter in 2025.

No. 2 Nico Iamaleava (Tennessee): Iamaleava watched and waited in 2023 before taking over and leading Tennessee’s Playoff push in 2024.

No. 4 Dante Moore (UCLA): Moore played in 9 games as a true freshman, but he never truly bought in to the Bruins’ staff. He picked UCLA to play for Kenny Dillingham, but Dillingham left to become the head coach at Arizona State. Moore transferred to Oregon, the school he committed to before flipping to UCLA, and served as Dillon Gabriel’s backup this season.

*No. 10 Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma): Arnold started for the Sooners this season, but this week announced he planned to transfer.

No. 13 Malachi Nelson (USC): Nelson committed to play for Lincoln Riley, first when Riley was at Oklahoma, but then signing with hometown USC when Riley was named the head coach. He threw just 3 passes as a freshman as Caleb Williams’ backup, then transferred to Boise State, where he serves as a backup for the Playoff-hopeful Broncos.

2022 class (1* of 4 transferred)

No. 3 overall Drew Allar (Penn State): Is it the system or his ceiling? Either way, Allar has been fine during his 2 years as a starter, but he’s rarely the difference-maker in any particular game. Penn State couldn’t care less. The Nittany Lions are in the Big Ten Championship Game and soon will make their first Playoff appearance.

No. 13 Cade Klubnik (Clemson): Klubnik is somewhat of a scapegoat for Clemson’s post-Trevor Lawrence drop, but he’s hardly the reason. He has outperformed every QB in this star-crossed class and has the Tigers in position to end their Playoff drought.

*No. 22 Conner Weigman (Texas A&M): Weigman had opportunities, but he had even more bad injury luck. This week, after 3 chaotic seasons, he announced he was entering the transfer portal with hopes of leading a Playoff contender in 2025.

No. 29 Ty Simpson (Alabama): Simpson is a clear outlier, as he has stayed at Alabama and backed up Bryce Young and Jalen Milroe. Next season will be his 4th in the program — but first real chance to win the starting job.

2021 class (3 of 4 transferred)

No. 1 overall Quinn Ewers (Ohio State): No, it hasn’t been a straight or speedy line from top recruit to likely No. 1 overall pick in the NFL Draft, but it’s hard to argue with Ewers’ success. He transferred after an idle freshman season at OSU and is about to lead Texas to the Playoff for the 2nd consecutive year. He could add an SEC title, too. Then it could get really interesting. Ewers’ NFL stock has fallen. He could take a chance, anyway. Or he could stay in college. With Arch Manning ready to take the reins, Ewers could be one of the portal’s biggest prizes.

No. 8 Caleb Williams (Oklahoma): Williams counts as a transfer, but only because he followed Lincoln Riley to USC, where he won the 2022 Heisman Trophy en route to becoming the No. 1 overall pick in the 2024 NFL Draft.

No. 23 Sam Huard (Washington): Huard has transferred twice. He left Washington for Cal Poly, where he spent the 2023 season before transferring to Utah. Huard didn’t

No. 24 Drake Maye (UNC): Maye is the most recent 5-star QB who stayed put before going to the NFL. He sat behind Sam Howell as a freshman, and then spent the next 2 seasons assaulting UNC’s record book.

2020 class (1 of 3 transferred)

No. 1 overall Bryce Young (Alabama): Young did it all at Alabama, including becoming the first Tide QB to win the Heisman Trophy. No, he didn’t lead the Tide to a national title as a starter, but he was Mac Jones’ backup on the 2020 national title team.

No. 2 DJ Uiagalelei (Clemson): Not much has gone Uiagalelei’s way since Signing Day. He was chased out of Clemson after the 2022 season, enjoyed a productive rebound at Oregon State in 2023, but was the face of FSU’s free fall in 2024 before suffering a season-ending injury in a 3-INT loss at SMU. He could apply for a medical waiver and be granted a 6th year, but that likely would be at another school — his 4th.

No. 29 CJ Stroud (Ohio State): Safe to say the recruitniks would like a do-over with this ranking order. Twice a top-5 finisher in the Heisman vote, Stroud did everything but win a natty in 3 years at OSU. He’s the only QB in program history to throw 40+ TD passes twice.

2019 class (1 of 1 transferred)

No. 9 overall Spencer Rattler (Oklahoma): Rattler was the only 5-star QB in this class, which also included fellow NFL players Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix and Sam Howell — and 3-star Dillon Gabriel, who is about to lead Oregon to the Playoff and perhaps a Big Ten title. Rattler, of course, left Oklahoma after 3 roller-coaster seasons and transferred to South Carolina, where the thrill ride continued. All’s well that ends well, though, as Rattler ended up where he was projected: the NFL.

2018 class (2 of 3 transferred)

No. 1 overall Trevor Lawrence (Clemson): The only thing Lawrence didn’t accomplish was winning the Heisman — he was the runner-up in 2020. Everything else played out as a best-case scenario for the top overall recruit in the country — including becoming the No. 1 overall pick after just 3 years.

No. 2 Justin Fields (Georgia): Kirby Smart won plenty with Jake Fromm, but could he have won it all with Fields in 2019? Or 2020? That’ll forever remain a what-if. Fields transferred to Ohio State, and though he didn’t win a natty, he more than lived up to the recruiting hype.

No. 6 JT Daniels (USC): No need to pile on. It just didn’t work out. At USC. Or Georgia. Or West Virginia. Or Rice.

2017 class (0 of 2 transferred)

This is the most recent class of 5-star QBs that didn’t include a transfer. Both also made it to the NFL.

No. 19 overall Davis Mills (Stanford): Not many NFL QBs threw just 18 TD passes in college, but that’s Davis’ story. Injuries and COVID contributed to the limited sample size at Stanford. It’s wild to think he started as many games in his first NFL season with the Houston Texans as he did in college.

No. 22 overall Tua Tagovailoa (Alabama): Tagovailoa authored the greatest pass in Alabama football history — and arguably the most dramatic walk-off winner in the sport’s history, too. He couldn’t quite get back to the mountaintop in his final 2 seasons, but it’s hard to argue he isn’t the greatest QB in Tide history.

The post Where are they now? Tracking every 5-star QB since the 2017 recruiting class appeared first on Saturday Down South.

From Georgia rallying for an epic 8-OT victory over Georgia Tech to South Carolina’s heart-stopping comeback at Clemson in a Playoff-elimination game, Week 14 was the best to date.

Unless, of course, you were Ryan Day or Mike Elko.

Those are among the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after the Rivalry Week in and around the SEC.

10. South Carolina earned its spot in the Playoff

The emphasis is on “earned” — admittedly a unique concept to Playoff talking heads.

The Gamecocks’ strength of schedule is No. 18 — and you could easily argue that they should be 4-2 against the 6 ranked teams they’ve played instead of 3-3.

But why debate details that occurred 2 months ago — even egregious officiating mistakes that robbed the Gamecocks of a victory against then-No. 16 LSU.

You don’t even need to focus on all of November, even though that’s when the Gamecocks got back in the Playoff picture by crushing then-No. 10 Texas A&M by 24 and beating then-No. 23 Mizzou by 4.

Focus on Saturday and the winner-take-all showdown at No. 12 Clemson. It was billed as a Playoff elimination game and lived up to the hype.

In a microcosm of the Gamecocks’ season, they fell down, got up, stumbled and then righted themselves with a run for the ages.

They’re going to talk about LaNorris Sellers’ unscripted, game-winning, 20-yard scramble-drill TD run forever.

LaNorris Sellers for Heisman

pic.twitter.com/m1KMXZh2cS

— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) November 30, 2024

But if that TD ends up sending the Gamecocks to the College Football Playoff — and it should — it might go down as the greatest play in program history.

9. Texas is back! For a day, anyway …

I’ll happily own it. People loved Texas a lot more than I did.

I had Texas atop my Playoff top 4 at various points earlier this season, but I jumped off after Georgia wrangled them in Austin and then just waited for them to lose again after Vandy pushed them to the brink the following week.

Good, not great. That was my take on Texas.

Part of that is, much like I thought Florida would be far more dangerous and better with DJ Lagway than Graham Mertz, I’m not a big believer in Quinn Ewers.

I still think Arch Manning gives the Longhorns a dimension to defend that Ewers doesn’t. And we saw as much Saturday night, where Manning replaced Ewers on a key 4th down and ran 15 yards for the game’s first score.

This isn’t an overreaction to Ewers throwing a pick-6 to get Texas A&M back in the game, either. Or is lost fumble later that prevented Texas from adding to its lead.

It’s just a scouting evaluation and belief that Texas’ ceiling is higher with Manning.

We’ll find out soon enough.

This weekend, let’s just give the Longhorns some credit.

On a day many higher-ranked teams struggled or even lost, Texas beat Texas A&M, at Kyle Field, in a game 13 years in the making.

Next up? A rematch with Georgia in the SEC Championship.

And, no, I don’t think the result is any different than it was in Austin.

8. Indiana is back, too, baby! (Insert laughter here) …

This will be short and sweet. Indiana predictably “fixed” all of its offensive flaws and rolled past Purdue, proving beyond any doubt that the Hoosiers belong in the Playoff.

Did I do that right?

Please, people.

All Indiana’s “high-flying offense” did Saturday was beat up on another patsy after being shut down by the only 2 teams with a pulse it faced.

For the last time, let’s separate fact from fiction, shall we? And we all know how much they hate facts.

Before Indiana's offense suddenly "gets right" vs. Purdue, a reminder of what's real vs. what the Playoff folks want you to believe. So much noise, so little substance. But, hey, the Hoosiers are 10-1 going on 11-1, so … pic.twitter.com/qYAFxkz4Bw

— Saturday Down South (@SatDownSouth) November 29, 2024

Indiana had exactly — and only — 2 chances to impress anybody this season and it set back-to-back season-lows in points and total yards, en route to averaging 17.5 points.

The didn’t fix anything Saturday. They just got back to playing the easiest schedule in the country.

Let me simplify this: IU is the Jake Paul of college football.

7. The 7 Playoff at-large teams should be …

1. SEC title game loser (Texas)

2. B1G title game loser (Penn State)

3. Notre Dame

4. Tennessee

5. Ohio State

6. South Carolina

7. Miami (though SMU has a solid enough resume should it lose the ACC title game)

Next 4 out: Indiana, Ole Miss, Alabama, ACC title game loser.

7b. But … what about the poor title game losers?

Am I concerned about teams falling out of the Playoff because they lost their conference title game and being replaced by teams that watched?

Not in the least. The aforementioned selections have the ACC and Big 12 losers missing the field.

Heck, the Playoff has included plenty of teams that didn’t play for a conference championship. It has left out even more conference champions. And in one case, it selected an idle team over the conference champion, despite the fact the conference champion also beat the idle team.

So if you’re worried about precedent, that ship sailed. It’s impossible to establish precedent when the criteria/teams/schedules/locations, etc., change every year — especially in a selection process as subjective as this one.

It would be different if every team had the same path to said title game. Obviously they don’t. Who you play absolutely matters.

The committee’s job is to pick the 12 best teams, not placate people or worry about establishing any type of perceived precedent.

6. Ole Miss’ 2024 season … complicated

On one hand, Ole Miss has never been in position to scoff at a 9- or 10-win season.

On the other hand? Oh, my, did the Rebels waste what could have been the greatest season in school history.

Give Lane Kiffin credit for building the expectations — and the team.

Ole Miss won’t make the Playoff, but they could win a bowl game and win 10 games for the 3rd time in the past 4 years under Kiffin. That’s remarkable.

But it also was supposed to be the floor for this group, meticulously constructed, piece by piece, to chase a championship under a program legend in Jaxson Dart.

When remembering the 2024 Rebels, the overwhelming sentiment will always be: What could have been.

5. Nobody hates their coach like Ohio State hates Ryan Day

I know, I know. Kentucky fans are beyond done with Mark Stoops, who fell to 18-20 in the 3 years after what felt like a breakthrough 10-3 season in 2021.

FSU fans were over Mike Norvell midway through the 2022 season, before he struck gold with Jordan Travis before reverting to … Mike Norvell.

Alabama fans memorized Kalen DeBoer’s buyout numbers before his first Iron Bowl kicked off.

Still … there isn’t a fan base in America who wants to fire their coach more than Ohio State fans want to fire Ryan Day.

Context is everything. Those who don’t understand will point to Day’s overall record.

Those who know will point to the only record that matters: 1-4 vs. Michigan, 4 losses in a row, including Saturday’s debacle as a 3-TD home favorite.

Saturday was, by far, the worst loss in Day’s tenure, if for no other reason than this Michigan team was the worst version of the Block M that he’s ever going to see.

Some things just don’t work out.

This clearly isn’t working out.

No, he’s not going to become the first coach to get fired before a Playoff game, but if he doesn’t win it all, I don’t think he’ll be back in 2025.

4. The SEC’s 4 Playoff teams are …

1. Georgia, 2. Texas, 3. Tennessee, 4. South Carolina

3. The team I wish were Playoff-bound: Colorado

There isn’t a Joe Burrow-type talent in the Playoff field.

If Miami sneaks in, Cam Ward is as close as it gets to being a guy who can single-handedly make enough plays to steal victory from defeat.

Carson Beck can’t do that. Quinn Ewers can’t do that. Dillon Gabriel, records and all, can’t do that.

One guy who potentially could have done that? Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders, with a healthy dose of soon-to-be Heisman winner Travis Hunter, of course.

As wild as this season has been, as great and unpredictable as this first real football tournament is going to be, Colorado could have been the ultimate wild-card because the Buffs have 2 of the best players in America.

It would have been fun to see that play out on the national stage with everything at stake.

2. So, Gus Malzahn is FSU’s coach-in-waiting? Got it …

Probably hoping to divert attention and grab a positive headline, FSU announced Saturday that UCF head coach Gus Malzahn had resigned to become the Seminoles’ offensive coordinator in 2024.

Mike Norvell, in case you were wondering, still is FSU’s head coach. Allegedly, he is the offensive brainchild.

Norvell hiring (or being forced to hire?) Malzahn is different from Sam Pittman hiring Bobby Petrino.

This is more like Jimbo Fisher hiring Bobby Petrino. We know how that ended: Petrino held up his end of the deal, but Fisher was fired and cashed in the largest buyout in college sports history.

If and when FSU nixes Norvell, it will have a proven Power 5 head coach to turn to.

1. Is Georgia just toying with us?

At their best, nobody is more dominant on both sides of the ball than Kirby Smart’s Dawgs. But they’ve hardly ever been at their best this season.

The real season starts next week in Atlanta.

If the Dawgs are ever going to flip the switch to elite, now’s the time.

If they do, they’re winning it all for the 3rd time in 4 years.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Rivalry Week in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

After the craziest Saturday of the craziest season in college football history, I need a ghostwriter.

Seriously, 1,000 words — Pulitzer quality, I promise — vanished faster than Indiana, Ole Miss and Alabama’s Playoff hopes Saturday night.

It’s just before midnight, and I’m starting from scratch. Just like Billy Napier.

That’s just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 13 in and around the SEC.

10. Sorry, Alabama, it’s over …

A 9-3 team might/probably will make the College Football Playoff, but it most certainly will not be Alabama.

Not after that eFFort Saturday night at Oklahoma — emphasis on the 2 Fs in “effort.”

Just when you think Jalen Milroe might actually be great enough to overcome all of Bama’s obvious issues this season, the tackle and tight end miss their assignment and he RPOs into concussion protocol. Or a decoy wideout in a jumbo package misses his block and sets up a pick-6.

Honestly, I can’t remember a worse Alabama offensive line or a weaker backfield. I can’t remember a defense pointing more fingers at one another than getting said fingers on footballs, quarterbacks and running backs.

We’ve gone from Brother Routes that produced touchdowns and titles to, “Bruh, what was that?”

Maybe Kalen DeBoer fixes this. Probably he doesn’t.

But it feels like I’ve spent every other week jumping on and off this rolling Tide of inconsistency.

No more. The 2024 season ended Saturday. It’s time to move on.

9. Indiana, that was your Playoff game …

If only the rest of the world applied the same standard of underachievement, right?

Instead of rightly burying Indiana’s Playoff chances — DOD, 3:47 PM, Columbus, Ohio, 11/23/2024 — we’re about to be greeted with an avalanche of excuses.

Cue the caveats and, please, keep promoting irrelevant stats compiled against the weakest schedule in Power 4 to tell us how explosive Indiana’s offense is.

The scoreboard wasn’t broken 2 weeks ago against Michigan, and it didn’t lie Saturday, either: Ohio State 38, Indiana 15.

Even that’s being generous. Ohio State left 14 points on the board, and both of IU’s TDs were aided by questionable pass interference calls. Even with the gifts, IU set season-lows for points, passing yards (68), total yards (151) and probably a few other less interesting categories.

None of it was surprising — unless you only listen to pot-stirrers like Danny Kanell, Tim Brando and Co. pumping nonstop nonsense. My advice? Don’t.

As I wrote 2 weeks ago, a below-average Michigan team exposed Indiana’s offense as a paper champion after allowing just 20 points, 2 TDs and 246 yards.

I told you Ohio State would make the Hoosiers look even more impotent.

They did.

For weeks I’ve said forget IU’s record, this team doesn’t have enough NFL-ready talent and isn’t physical enough to play with Playoff teams.

Saturday, Ohio State punctuated that sentiment with an exclamation point.

Indiana finally played a worthy Playoff opponent it was a first-round TKO.

Curt Cignetti specializes in acting indignant, so it was no surprise that he essentially called everybody who doubts IU’s Playoff bona fides a bumbling idiot.

“So obvious,” he said, before shutting down the questioner.

Oh, it’s obvious all right …

I guess an SEC team should be happy, though. Getting to host Indiana in a first-round game would be the next best thing to earning a bye.

8. Is Texas the SEC’s Indiana?

Relax. We’re only discussing 2024, and more specifically, we’re only discussing strength of schedule.

Whatever formula the SEC used to create the 2024 conference schedule, it wouldn’t surprise anyone if the computer, program and programmer all were official property of the University of Texas — Austin.

Friendly is probably the nicest way to describe Texas’ slate.

The Longhorns have faced exactly 1 test — and promptly flunked it. They tried to give away Saturday’s game against Kentucky, too.

Others are starting to catch on Texas’ potential schedule problem — the Horns can render it moot by beating Texas A&M next week, by the way.

I’ve been back and forth Texas all season.

Sure, they beat Michigan, and that win in Ann Arbor was far more impressive than Indiana surviving the visiting, stumbling Wolverines by 5 points in Week 11.

The biggest hindrance to Texas making the Playoff without beating A&M next week is the fact that the SEC has 4 other qualified candidates.

This is where the Texas-IU comp ends, though. Abruptly.

Indiana faces no such hurdle. The B1G is so weak teams 5 through 18, that the Hoosiers will remain its 4th-best team. The only way IU misses the Playoff — and, for the record, I think they should after losing to Ohio State by 23 — is if the selection committee only chooses 3 Big Ten teams.

7. Is there such a thing as Comeback Coach of the Year?

Has anybody gone from hottest seat to hero faster than Billy Napier?

The guy almost didn’t make it to Year 3, then almost didn’t make it past Week 3 of Year 3.

Now? He’s going to a bowl after taking down ranked opponents in back-to-back weeks to finish 4-4 in the SEC against one of the most challenging league slates in league history.

Napier outclassed Brian Kelly and Lane Kiffin along the way, too.

Who saw any of this happening? I certainly didn’t.

Billy Napier leaves the field to dans chanting his name.

What a wild season. pic.twitter.com/2AwDYlunRX

— Nick de la Torre (@delatorre) November 23, 2024

The Gators have a chance to win 8 games and carry that momentum into 2025, which they’ll enter with the no-doubt best QB in the conference.

Credit Napier for having the foresight to save DJ Lagway’s Heisman ability for the stretch run, right?

6. Don’t feel bad for conference runners-up now

For the first 100 years of this sport’s life, nobody cared about conference champions. The 4-team Playoff didn’t even care enough to include all 5 Power conference champions. Every year, it left out at least 1 Power 5 conference champion, and 6 times in 10 years, it left out 2.

Now we’re suddenly concerned about the loser of a conference championship game?

I’m not saying it’s ideal that a team that doesn’t qualify for a conference championship takes a Playoff spot from a team that loses its conference title game, but it’s not apples to apples, either.

Rankings don’t determine who plays in conference title games. Your schedule does. So, yes, it’s entirely possible, even likely, that the 2 teams advancing to the SEC Championship won’t be the 2 highest ranked teams in the Playoff poll.

Part of that is because of how tightly bunched the SEC teams are.

Georgia clinched a spot in the SEC title game Saturday, not because of what it did, but because of what Texas A&M, Alabama and Ole Miss didn’t do.

The Dawgs, remember, were ranked behind Texas, Alabama and Ole Miss in the 3rd set of Playoff rankings. Texas A&M was the 6th-highest ranked SEC team.

Georgia will play the winner of next week’s Texas-Texas A&M game for the SEC title and automatic Playoff bid. (Via tiebreakers, Tennessee has been eliminated.)

Georgia could finish with 3 losses. Done. Texas A&M could finish with 4. Not even worth discussing. Even Texas, should it advance and lose again to Georgia, would have 2 losses.

The ACC and Big 12 most likely are 1-bid leagues, earned by the conference champion. Their runner-up almost certainly won’t be included.

Already, that’s 2 Power 4 leagues whose runner-up won’t be part of the Playoff field.

Depending on how next week unfolds, there’s certainly a world in which the SEC runner-up doesn’t go, either — but only because there are 3 more deserving SEC teams that will.

6b. Want real chaos? Root for Notre Dame to lose …

Notre Dame is a lock to secure an at-large Playoff spot if it finishes 11-1.

The Irish also are a lock to miss the Playoff if they finish 10-2.

If that happens, an extra at-large bid opens up, and that will bring a 5th SEC team into the mix, battling probably a 2nd ACC team and 2nd Big 12 team for the final at-large spot.

The Irish end the season next week at USC. Even if it’s more fun to jeer Lincoln Riley than cheer, now’s the time if you’re a fan of a fringe team.

5. Predicting the 5 conference champions

Saturday complicated the Big 12 picture and brought clarity to the B1G picture.

ACC: Miami (or Clemson). SMU clinched a spot in the ACC title game, but I don’t see the Mustangs beating Miami or Clemson. Miami clinches with a win next week at Syracuse; Clemson needs Miami to lose.

Big Ten: Ohio State. I’ve had Oregon all season, but Will Howard finally looked the part Saturday.

Big 12: Arizona State. Why not? The Sun Devils are the 1-year makeover team nobody is talking about. They were ranked No. 21 in the Playoff poll. They’ll move up, ahead of Tulane, which is key.

SEC: Georgia. Kirby it Atlanta … without Nick on the other sideline? This season has been crazy, but it hasn’t been that crazy.

Group of 5: Boise State (as long as Ashton Jeanty is healthy).

4. Predicting the SEC’s 4 Playoff teams

1. Georgia, 2. Tennessee, 3. Texas A&M, 4. Texas

I get it. Y’all like Texas more than I do. AP voters like Texas more than I do. Even the always-despised Playoff committee does, too.

Nick Saban warned Texas A&M that Jordan-Hare was haunted, and dang it if the Aggies didn’t see ghosts.

Bygones. Let’s reconvene next Saturday night — after Texas A&M wins, shall we?

3. Are we sure South Carolina isn’t Playoff worthy?

I know most of you can’t embrace the concept of a 3-loss team competing for a national championship.

But what if the Gamecocks go into Death Valley next week and hammer Clemson by double digits?

Would that change your mind?

That would be the Gamecocks’ 3rd victory over a ranked team, which, you know, would be 3 more than Indiana has.

If there’s going to be a 3-loss SEC team in the Playoff, why not the hottest 3-loss team in America?

2. Mack Brown just lost his right to control how this ends

Mack Brown is a Hall of Famer and greatest football coach in UNC’s slightly above-average history.

But we’re nearing the end of Year 6 of his 2nd stint, and the Tar Heels still haven’t won 10 games once. If you think that benchmark is too high, remember, Brown won 10 games 3 times at UNC before jumping to Texas.

And he did that with 1 fewer game on the schedule and no NFL-caliber QBs.

Everybody celebrated his return in 2019. Rightfully so. But the good will well has run dry.

I was adamant earlier this season, and even more so after Tylee Craft’s death, that he shouldn’t step away midseason, that he wasn’t going to step away midseason, that he felt a sense of responsibility to stand by his football family and see this season to the end.

But that should be it. Build the statue. Rename the field. But it’s time to move on. This isn’t an overreaction to Saturday’s 20-point loss at Boston College, either.

He turns 74 in August. No matter. Wednesday, Brown said he’s returning to coach in 2025. Announcing that clearly was an attempt to quiet whispers and keep recruits. He still has time to reconsider.

He should, too. Agree to a soft landing — before UNC makes the decision for him. Nobody wants to see that, but that’s where this is heading.

Bottom line: College sports stopped being sentimental decades ago. UNC can’t continue to accept 8-win seasons as a ceiling. Not in a winnable ACC. Not when SMU jumps from the American Athletic Conference to the top of the ACC standings in 1 year.

1. Can you blame him? Bring on Texas A&M-Texas …

Technically, it was “Auburn Week” for the Texas A&M Aggies, but let’s be real: It’s always Texas Hate Week in College Station.

It showed, too.

Before his team lost to Auburn in 4 overtimes, Aggies coach Mike Elko was asked about the dangers of looking ahead.

Even he couldn’t help himself …

We are 100% focused on Texas…. I mean Auburn. pic.twitter.com/8vYbso4Ffk

— CousinShane (@BigOrangeVolz) November 19, 2024

It’s OK, coach. We get it.

These hated rivals haven’t played since 2011 — so long ago that Johnny Manziel didn’t even play in the rivalry.

Losing at Auburn wasn’t ideal, but ultimately, it didn’t change anything.

Next Saturday they’ll meet with a spot in the SEC Championship — and a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff at stake.

This? This absolutely will mean more than more. It will mean everything.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 13 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.

Thank the Playoff selection committee for that.

For the Hoosiers (and that silly committee), reality awaits in Week 13.

Reality arrived Saturday for Missouri, Boise State haters and especially LSU.

Those are just some of the 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 12 in and around the SEC.

10. Thank goodness for Playoff expansion, right?

I laughed at the 2nd set of Playoff rankings.

How could you not?

Indiana finally played an “average team” with at least some NFL-type size … and Curt Cignetti’s high-flying offense suddenly looked like Iowa under Brian Ferentz.

IU set season-lows in the following (and probably a few others not included):

• Fewest touchdowns: 2 (IU scored at least 4 vs. everybody else)
• Fewest points: 20 (previous low was 31)
• Fewest yards: 246 (bit less than the 701 vs. W. Illinois, eh?)
• Fewest rushing yards: 40 (120+ vs. everybody else)
• Fewest explosive rushing plays: 1 (IU had led the B1G with 55 runs of 10+ yards)

Forget comparing IU to Texas, which manhandled a still-optimistic Michigan team 31-12 at the Big House in Week 2. Or Oregon, which did even more damage in another House invasion. Those aren’t fair comps for a team like IU; they’re cruel.

Compare IU to average. IU scored fewer points vs. Michigan than USC … and Minnesota … and Washington … and Illinois did — and the Hoosiers were playing at home.

The Playoff committee probably watched it unfold? Maybe? Hard to tell. They responded to the Hoosiers’ nearly flunking their first pop quiz by moving them up 3 spots to No. 5 in Tuesday’s poll.

Hysterical.

But here’s what nearly made me spit out my tea …

Can you imagine if we were still stuck in the 4-team era of yesteryear, staring at the prospect of this 4-team field?

• No. 1 Oregon: 13-0 Pac-12 champion
• No. 2 Ohio State: 13-0 Big Ten champion after beating, what, a 7-5 Iowa team in the Big Ten title game?
• No. 3 Texas: 12-1 Big 12 champion
• No. 4 Penn State: 11-1
• No. 5 Indiana: 11-1
• No. 6 BYU: 12-1 if it beat Texas in Big 12 title game to take the Longhorns’ Playoff spot.

The highest-ranked team from “last year’s SEC” is No. 7 Tennessee, and the Vols just lost to Georgia — guaranteeing that at least 1 2-loss team will make the SEC Championship Game.

Fortunately, this is nothing more than a fun exercise in pointing out how ridiculous the 4-team format was to begin with.

We have 12 teams now, finally — at least 3 of which will come from the SEC, and most likely 4.

Indiana could be 1 of them in the field, sure, but let’s not pretend they deserve to host a first-round game.

9. However, a Playoff game in the snow would be epic …

The 4-team Playoff produced plenty of drama, but it largely avoided any outcomes impacted or decided by the elements.

Sure, a few games were played in the rain, but nobody had to go 80 yards through snow, howling winds or a combination thereof to lock up a spot in the title game or win it all.

This year? Stay tuned …

It’s ridiculous that Boise State already isn’t in the top 8, but there’s a chance it climbs to the No. 8 spot, which means it would host a first-round game on Dec. 20 or 21. Bundle up and prepare for temperatures in the 30s.

There’s a better chance Ohio State, Indiana or Penn State claims an at-large bid and is ranked high enough to host a first-round game.

Weather is the only thing less predictable than the Playoff committee’s choice of what matters most this week, but those night games could be played in the snow, with temps in the 20s.

(I mean, there’s a reason the Big Ten has held its championship game every year in a dome … 3 weeks earlier.)

To be honest, I’m all for it.

The thought of a warm-weather program bundled up and playing football in snow for the first time, on that stage? QBs who have never even thought about wearing gloves, suddenly learning how to throw with them in real time?

It might not be pretty, but it would be fun to watch.

And all the more reason to win your conference title game and avoid an unnecessary and potentially dangerous hurdle.

8. No, Mizzou, you’re not a Playoff team … is South Carolina?

Poor Eli Drinkwitz.

After last week’s win against Oklahoma, the Mizzou coach defended his backup quarterback who fueled the win and then went all in, dropping this pearl of wisdom:

Eli Drinkwitz on miraculous win over Oklahoma:

“This keeps us in the Playoff hunt.

“That’s right, I said it, Playoff hunt!”
pic.twitter.com/CxB1WzfL6y

— SEC Mike (@MichaelWBratton) November 10, 2024

Mizzou wasn’t in the Playoff hunt, of course, but for those still playing along, South Carolina removed all doubt Saturday, rallying for a thrilling 34-30 win to hand Mizzou its 3rd loss.

There has been a growing buzz about whether a 9-3 Gamecocks team could sneak in as the final at-large Playoff team.

Well, the Gamecocks are 7-3 now with in-state games against Wofford and Clemson remaining.

Unless Notre Dame loses again — thus opening another at-large bid — it’s almost impossible to imagine any viable Playoff path for the Gamecocks.

That’s a shame, too, considering the Gamecocks are legitimately 2 stops (and a couple of horrendous calls) from being 9-1 inside the top 10 of the Playoff ranking.

Wonder if the committee takes botched calls into account?

Either way, take a bow, Shane Beamer.

Since the start of the 2022 season, Shane Beamer has six wins over Top 25 teams at South Carolina.

That's more than …

Ryan Day (5)
Lane Kiffin (5)
Brian Kelly (4)
Lincoln Riley (4)
James Franklin (3)
Mike Norvell (3) pic.twitter.com/7HIHlnsOpu

— Brad Crawford (@BCrawford247) November 17, 2024

7. Angry Kirby is the best Kirby (rinse, repeat)

Part of what made Nick Saban so dominant for so long is the man refused to lose 2 games in a row.

Kirby Smart paid attention.

The Playoff committee wrote off Georgia after the Dawgs lost to Ole Miss last week — because if we’ve learned anything from Danny Kanell it’s this: All losses are the same, Paaawwlll!

And Georgia has lost twice!

Laughably, the Dawgs were the Unlucky Dog — the first team out in Tuesday’s Playoff poll.

You knew what was coming Saturday: Course correction.

Georgia hasn’t lost back-to-back games since 2018, when it lost the SEC title game to Alabama and then dropped a who-cares-now? Sugar Bowl to Texas.

Saturday, the Dawgs rebounded from a slow start to hammer Tennessee and make an emphatic Playoff statement.

Pick who you want. There aren’t 6 better teams in America than Georgia, much less 12.

6. Florida is going to a bowl game …

The Gators picked up their 5th — and most unlikely — victory Saturday, knocking off No. 22 LSU.

They need 1 more win to qualify for a bowl, but go ahead and block out a few days in late December. No matter what happens next weekend at Ole Miss, the Gators will clinch bowl eligibility on Thanksgiving weekend at rival FSU.

How they got from Billy Napier’s final hours to the verge of is … interesting.

Napier deserves a lot of credit. His players clearly never stopped fighting for him.

But don’t give him all of the credit. I’m not sure Saturday night happens if Graham Mertz stays healthy and Napier isn’t forced to give DJ Lagway full control of the offense and the team’s direction.

Lagway and Jadan Baugh, a pair of elite freshmen, have fueled Florida’s turnaround after spending most of the first half of the season watching upperclassmen largely underachieve.

Ultimately, nobody cares how the sausage is made, as long as it tastes great.

Florida is cookin’ right now.

5. Oh, no, you didn’t go there …

Please don't damage our tables coach. pic.twitter.com/iN66QdkZYC

— Florida Gators Football (@GatorsFB) November 17, 2024

4. Predicting the SEC’s 4 Playoff teams

1. Alabama, 2. Ole Miss, 3. Georgia, 4. Texas A&M

You want Texas? Fine. The Longhorns outlasted Arkansas, but they weren’t overly impressive.

Let the committee nitpick. Texas and Texas A&M close the season; they’ll settle this the old-fashioned way: on the field. I’m going with Texas A&M to win at home and get to the SEC title game for the first time.

Speaking of which …

3. 2-loss SEC team drama …

The SEC Championship pairing will be incredibly simple … or deliciously complex.

Nobody likes boring. Let’s root for chaos.

Because Georgia beat Tennessee, we are guaranteed to have a 6-2 team in the SEC title game.

Which one? Grab a calculator, you’re going to need it. (And we might get 2 if A&M or Texas lose next week before their showdown.)

It’s possible, if not likely, that 5 teams finish with a 6-2 record.

Here’s the most likely path to joining Georgia at 6-2:

• Texas A&M (5-1) — beat Auburn, lose to Texas
• Texas (5-1) — beat Kentucky, lose to Texas A&M
• Tennessee (5-2) — beat Vanderbilt
• Ole Miss (4-2): beat Florida and Mississippi State
• Alabama (4-2): beat Oklahoma and Auburn

Now we know why the SEC waited until the last second possible before announcing the tiebreaker procedures.

2. Here’s your Heisman moment …

https://twitter.com/CFBONFOX/status/1857855926524428695

2b. Auburn, all of this could have been yours

Not sure if Tigers fans or administrators want to hear this, but everything that is happening at Colorado — nonstop national media coverage, immeasurable economic impact, pending Heisman Trophy celebration, likely Playoff berth — could have happened on The Plains had the Tigers had the foresight to hire Deion Sanders 2 years ago.

Oops.

1. Indiana extends Curt Cignetti for 8 years …

Honestly, this is the overreaction of the year.

Smart on Cignetti and his agent to get it signed the week before traveling to Ohio State, though.

The post 10 things I’m absolutely overreacting to after Week 12 in the SEC appeared first on Saturday Down South.