SEC Week 3 Roundup: The in-conference bloodbath begins 

Week 3 of the College Football season brought no shortage of chaos, with the SEC going 12-4 overall. A couple of notable losses by Tennessee and South Carolina have shaken up the SEC landscape. Some other teams that were seen as potential frontrunners to win the SEC also struggled. The SEC is more wide open than Randy Moss on a go-route. Here are some key takeaways from an eventful weekend around the conference: 

It still means more… AP Top 25 rankings 

Once again, there are 11 SEC teams in this week’s AP Top 25 poll, the most out of any conference represented. Here’s the list of SEC programs currently ranked: 

LSU, No. 3 

Georgia, No. 5

Texas, No. 8

Texas A&M, No. 10

Oklahoma, No. 11

Ole Miss, No. 13

Alabama, No. 14

Tennessee, No. 15

Vanderbilt, No. 20

Auburn, No. 22

Missouri, No. 23

Tennessee blows a massive opportunity against Georgia 

Facing a young and NFL draft-depleted Georgia defense, the Volunteers had a massive opportunity to beat the Bulldogs for the first time since 2016. Tennessee had a 21-7 lead in the first half, and quarterback Joey Aguilar appeared to be rolling after rushing for a touchdown and throwing for 2 touchdowns on the Volunteers’ first three series. Georgia had difficulty substituting players early on and was getting gashed by Heupel’s high-flying offense. Tennessee went into halftime with a 21-17 lead and appeared to have control of the game. 

The second half was a different story. Despite throwing two more passing touchdowns, Aguilar allowed Georgia to get back in the game with two interceptions. The picks forced Tennessee’s defense to get back on the field, and the Bulldogs began to get into a rhythm, particularly in the run game. With 2:32 left in the fourth quarter, Georgia quarterback Gunner Stockton threw a 28-yard dime to receiver London Humphreys for a touchdown and immediately followed it with a two-point conversion to tie the game at 38. 

The following sequence cost Tennessee the game. A combination of some Aguilar completions and the Volunteer run game got Tennessee to the Georgia 20 on third and five with 7 seconds remaining. Right as Tennessee was about to send kicker Max Gilbert out for a field goal on the next play, the Volunteers incurred a killer false start penalty, moving them back 5 yards. With a chance to win the game, Gilbert missed a 43-yard field goal. 

To make things worse, Tennessee got the ball first in overtime and only managed a field goal. Georgia capitalized on its only overtime possession and won the game 44-41 on a 1-yard run by running back Josh McCray. 

While Tennessee has a schedule with plenty of opportunities for more wins, Saturday’s loss has to hurt. This was the Volunteers’ best chance in years to beat Kirby Smart for the first time since 2016 and take advantage of a young Bulldog defense. A win would have put Tennessee firmly in the driver’s seat for a College Football Playoff spot. 

A few questions emerge for Tennessee after Saturday. Can the Vols’ defense hold up against better competition? Despite pulling out to an early 21-7 lead at home, Tennessee gave up 44 points and 502 yards of total offense, with the majority coming through the air. One also has to wonder if Tennessee could have pulled away without those turnovers from Aguilar. Aguilar finished the day 24/36 with 371 yards, 4 passing touchdowns, 1 rushing touchdown, but those 2 interceptions were costly. And what about special teams? I’m sure Josh Heupel would have loved to send Brock Taylor out there to end the game and is sick to his stomach that the star kicker from Knoxville plays on West End. 

Texas A&M holds off the Irish 

Despite allowing 16 points in the second half, the Aggies defeated Notre Dame 41-40 in South Bend. Quarterback Marcel Reed threw for 360 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Aggies appear to have something in the run game with Le’Veon Moses, who ran for 3 touchdowns and 81 yards on 20 carries. Receiver Mario Carver also balled out with 7 catches for 207 yards and a touchdown, torching the Irish defense along the way. 

With 13 seconds left in the game, Reed threw the game-winning touchdown to tight end Nate Boerkircher. The Aggies were happy to escape South Bend with a win after giving up 429 yards of total offense and 3 rushing touchdowns against Notre Dame. The Aggies have a bye week and face Auburn on September 27.

Arch Manning and Texas struggle again 

While Texas defeated UTEP 27-10, the game proved to be another sloppy showing from the Longhorns’ offense. Quarterback Arch Manning completed just 11/25 passing for 114 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception, and his longest completion of the day was for only 23 yards. While Manning did have 2 rushing touchdowns on the ground, he needs to do much more in the passing game. It is unclear whether Manning is injured or simply not ready for the spotlight when he’s under center.

Texas has one more tune-up game against Sam Houston State before entering conference play against Florida on October 4th. If something doesn’t drastically change on offense, this Longhorn team looks vulnerable. 

Ole Miss wins an offensive showcase 

Saturday’s game between Ole Miss and Arkansas featured absolutely little defense and was reminiscent of old Big 12 matchups. Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss was outstanding, completing 21/29 passes for 353 yards and a touchdown and rushing for 62 yards on 15 carries for two scores. 

The Rebels held off an all-time performance by Arkansas quarterback Taylen Green, who threw for 305 yards and a touchdown and ran for 115 yards and another score. The Razorbacks also had big days from running back Mike Washington, who ran for 2 touchdowns, and wide receiver O’Mega Blake, who caught 6 passes for 81 yards and a score. 

While Lane Kiffin’s offense looks dangerous, the Rebel defense clearly has some holes in it. Ole Miss has a tough matchup against 3-0 Tulane this weekend in Oxford. 

Florida exposed against LSU, questions for the Tigers 

Florida’s 20-10 loss Saturday night in Baton Rouge was yet another reminder that quarterback DJ Lagway may not be the guy in Gainesville. Lagway completed 33 of 49 passes and threw for 287 yards, 1 touchdown, and 5 interceptions. While LSU’s defense is significantly improved, Lagway looked rattled, and head coach Billy Napier having Lagway throw as many passes as 2007 Tom Brady certainly didn’t help calm the young quarterback’s nerves. Florida fans should feel especially frustrated after holding LSU’s ground game to just 96 yards and Tiger quarterback Garrett Nussmeier to 200 yards and a touchdown. Napier’s seat has now reached a volcanic level of hot in Gainesville. 

For LSU, while its defense looked great, there are concerns about how much the Tigers can score. The lack of offense should concern LSU fans, considering the talent in their receiver room and Nussmeier’s abilities as a pure passer. LSU will need all the points it can muster in two weeks when it takes on Ole Miss’ explosive offense. 

Takin’ care of business in non-conference play 

Saturday displayed more non-conference dominance for the SEC, with most teams taking care of business and leaving no doubt. Here are some of those scores: 

Oklahoma 42, Temple 3

Alabama 38, Wisconsin 14. Quarterback Ty Simpson finally looked the part with 382 passing yards and 4 touchdowns against the Badgers. 

Auburn 31, South Alabama 15. Auburn started hot with 28 points in the first half and then coasted for the remainder of the game. 

Missouri 52, Louisiana Lafayette 10.

Mississippi State 53, Alcorn State 0. 

Kentucky 48, Eastern Michigan 23. The Wildcat defense…yuck. Kentucky giving up 23 points to a 0-2 team is not a good sign. 

Stay tuned for next week’s edition following Week 4!