Plenty has changed for SEC since opening weekend of college football
Random thoughts on college football as the season approaches the home stretch …
How quickly things can change. Remember that opening weekend of the season? The SEC took a PR beating. LSU lost to Wisconsin. Missouri lost to West Virginia. Auburn lost to Clemson. Mississippi State lost to South Alabama. Kentucky lost to Southern Mississippi. Ole Miss blew a 28-3 lead and lost to Florida State. Arkansas had to score late to beat Louisiana Tech, and Tennessee needed overtime to beat Appalachian State.
Only four teams spared the SEC from complete humiliation. Alabama dominated Southern Cal, while Georgia and Texas A&M beat North Carolina and UCLA, respectively. Florida beat Massachusetts, as it should have.
Now look. The first College Football Playoff poll of the season was released Tuesday night, and two of the top four teams are from the SEC. Alabama at No. 1 was a virtual given. But Texas A&M, with a single loss to Alabama, is No. 4 ahead of undefeated Washington.
Now, LSU’s loss to Wisconsin doesn’t look so bad. The Badgers nearly beat Michigan and Ohio State in consecutive weeks, then did beat Nebraska.
Ole Miss and Tennessee have been the biggest underachievers, and Georgia has been a bust. But Auburn, Florida and Texas A&M have surged.
The bottom line: When the only poll that really matters was released Tuesday night, the SEC had five teams in the top 13 — Alabama, Texas A&M, Auburn, Florida and LSU. The Big 10 matched that with Michigan, Ohio State, Wisconsin, Nebraska and Penn State.
The gap might not be nearly as wide, but the SEC remains the premier conference in college football. Yes, better than the Big 10, for two reasons. One, it has Alabama. Two, from the sixth spot on down, the SEC is stronger than the Big 10.
Other thoughts:
▪ Auburn won’t make the College Football Playoff because it has two losses, but the Tigers certainly will be a factor. The more Auburn wins, the better it looks for Clemson and Texas A&M. Clemson doesn’t necessarily need the help. If the Tigers win out, including the ACC Championship Game, they have to be a lock for one of the four spot. But if they trip up, especially if it’s a close loss, that win over Auburn in the season opener carries more weight.
Meanwhile, if Texas A&M wins out, the Aggies will be 11-1 and with their only loss coming against Alabama in a game that they led in the second half. The case could be made that Auburn’s revival provided the Aggies just enough boost to edge Washington for the fourth spot.
▪ For the past several years — and even at times early this season — Georgia fans were always hopeful about the next season. But there is no evidence to support such optimism right now. The offense is simply awful, and it’s hard to imagine all the answers will be found in one recruiting class.
The Bulldogs lose three starters on the offensive line — tackles Tyler Catalina and Greg Pyke and center Brandon Kublanow. They need at least one deep threat receiver. If they have any offensive starters to leave — either for the NFL draft or by transfer — it could get even worse.
One has to wonder if Jacob Eason, the freshman quarterback, is second-guessing himself for sticking with a decision he made when he was 16 years old and things were much different in Athens.
▪ There’s no upside to Jalen Hurd’s stunning departure from Tennessee. Players already are transferring between seasons at a higher rate than ever. But until now, prominent players haven’t just up and quit in the middle of a season. Coaches have to be concerned whether Hurd’s decision will set a precedent for some others.
This story was originally published November 1, 2016 at 9:19 PM with the headline "Plenty has changed for SEC since opening weekend of college football."