SEC Power Rankings: Boy, was I wrong about Missouri
OK Missouri! I was wrong about you!
I was wrong about Eli Drinkwitz! I was wrong about Brady Cook! I was wrong about Harrison Mevis! I was wrong about Missouri’s game against Kansas State on Saturday, in which I predicted a home shellacking! I was wrong about Missouri and Vanderbilt being the worst teams in not only the SEC East, but also the SEC!
OK, maybe not the wanker and the weird-about-the-daughters bit, but I was wrong about you, Eli! Please forgive me!
Harrison Mevis’ ‘Bomb heard around the SEC’ the longest kick in SEC history. Brady Cook got the boos at the start but got the cheers at the start. And the atmosphere was off the chain.
And it felt like Missouri would once again be a factor in the SEC (to finish second!).
Anyway, here are the Power Rankings for the SEC:
- Ole Miss (3-0): Beat Georgia Tech handily this week in a game we thought would be closer. This Ole Miss feels like a team that could be real this year. As for winning the SEC West? Could be any of them. Also: Won the SEC’s only ranked match-up, and it was on the road.
- Georgia (3-0): Georgia was poor against South Carolina, and trailed 14-3 at the break (it should have been 14-9 had two short field goals been hit). But what makes Georgia special is their second hand adjustments. Their defensive front is also as nasty as ever. From all reports, Spencer Rattler is still running for his life.
- LSU (2-1): LSU’s total blow-out of Mississippi State and an incredible performance by Jaylen Daniels (361 yards, 2 TDs, rush for 64 yards, 2 TDs) has you believe the Tigers are getting better and better. Malik Nabers’ 239 yard, 1 TD performance was the best of the year. The return of John Emery – who came back gradually this one – solidifies their running stable.
- Florida (2-1): The victory was stunning (apart from those who called it….like moi!) over Tennessee. But if Florida’s running back duo of Trevor Etienne and Montrell Johnson are for real, these Gators will be ranked the end of the season.
- Missouri (3-0): Luther Burden’s a freak. If Brady Cook can replicate this kind of performance and keep getting the ball to him, then the Tigers will be fine. If they can eliminate their braindead penalties, then Missouri will be a very competitive SEC team. If you know anything about Missouri sports, these are big ‘Ifs’. But for this weekend, this team looked like a surefire East contender.
- Texas A&M (2-1): Aggie fans that we met weren’t overly happy about their team’s performance, but they are three-pronged at receiver, and Connor Weigman’s a pretty good quarterback. We are worried about the Aggies’ secondary, which gives up 8 yards/attempt (103rd in the country).
- Alabama (2-1): The Alabama many saw on Saturday was dreadful. Yes, there was a certain letdown after the Texas game, but why wasn’t Jalin Milroe put back in after the awfulness of Tyler Buchner and Ty Simpson? We think Alabama’s identity this season’s going to be all about the running game of Roydell Williams/Jase McClellan. It might not excite the fanbase used to the passing/receiving excellence that Bama fans have become used to, but this is what will happen.
- Kentucky (3-0): Kentucky is bang average. They rank 57th in the country in offense (despite the poor opponents) and 27th in defense (despite the poor oppoents), and the thing people usually say about them is: “It was was closer than the scoreline suggested”. Three games in, we’re still waiting for Devin Leary to truly shine (he’s 8th in pass completions in the SEC) to shine, although Ray Davis is pushing the offense along. Yeah, we’re not excited.
- South Carolina (1-2): South Carolina led at Georgia in the first half, and were feeling good. Then Georgia made the adjustments, completely massacred Carolina’s un-vaunted offensive line, and the rest was history. Kudos to Spencer Rattler – and Carolina – for battling it out.
- Tennessee (2-1): The drop-off in receiving talent was always going to hurt Tennessee. And Joe Milton’s inconsistencies hamper them further — particularly as it seems he’s bad at running outside of the pocket. From now on, he could get a whole lot worse.
- Auburn (3-0): Auburn fans were not excited about the win over Samford. In fact, the Tigers haven’t beaten anyone of any note all season, so it’s hard to work out whether Payton Thorne is truly a hit at the moment. So why so low? Because unless they show me different, they still feel like a 6-6 team….if that.
- Arkansas (1-2): The same old line problems persist, and there was some horrible playcalling at the end of the game. We like KJ Jefferson, and the more Raheim Sanders is out injured, the worse and worse it will get for this Arkansas team (Update: He’s out for the LSU game).
- Mississippi State (2-1): We knew it was going to be bad. The sneaky Arizona victory gave us a glimpse of hope….the utter destruction by LSU put that away. We don’t know how good Zach Arnett is as a coach, and we’ll find out in 2024. But right now MSU fans, just try to remain calm. And hope your DC has a strategy of playing man-to-man on the opposition’s best wide receiver.
- Vanderbilt (1-4): I knew they were going to be bad after the Hawaii game. But sweet Lord Jesus, this Vanderbilt team is terrible in every facet of the game.