SEC Week 6 Round Up: Bye Week Bonanza, Longhorns Lose, Aggies Make Statement

While several teams were on byes, Week 6 of the College Football season produced a couple of notable headlines. Here’s how things shook out across the conference outside of Vanderbilt: 

9 SEC teams remain in the Top 25 

In yesterday’s AP Top 25 poll, the SEC had 9 ranked teams, still more than any other conference. Here are the current ranked SEC teams: 

Ole Miss (5-0), No. 4

Texas A&M (5-0), No. 5

Oklahoma (5-0), No. 6

Alabama (4-1), No. 8 

Georgia (5-1), No. 10

LSU (4-1), No. 11

Tennessee (4-1), No. 12

Missouri (5-0, No. 14 

Vanderbilt (5-1), No. 20

Florida shocks Texas 

On Saturday, Florida (2-3) shocked No. 9 Texas (3-2) with a 29-21 upset win. Texas is currently 0-1 in SEC play after entering the season as a presumed College Football Playoff contender in the eyes of many. The loss ousted Texas from the AP Top 25 rankings for the first time since the 2022 season. Meanwhile, Gators Head Coach Billy Napier has temporarily halted the calls for his job down in Gainesville. 

The Longhorn defense gave up 457 total yards, 298 through the air and 157 on the ground. What should concern Texas fans is that the Gators entered Saturday’s game with one of the SEC’s most lackluster offenses and scored 29 points. In its previous three games, Florida scored 16, 10, and 7 points, respectively. 

For Texas, quarterback Arch Manning struggled once again, completing 16 of 29 passes for 263 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 2 interceptions. Although receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. had 3 catches for 75 yards and receiver Ryan Wingo had 4 catches for 73 yards and 1 touchdown, Manning struggled to string completions together, and Texas was 3/11 on third down. In the run game, the Longhorns struggled to gain any momentum and managed just 52 yards. Vanderbilt plays Texas on the road on November 1, and that game looks more winnable each week. For its next game, Texas faces its hated rival, Oklahoma, on Saturday. 

On Saturday, the Gators finally found some offense to complement their strong defense for most of the season. The Gators played their most balanced offensive game of the season. Quarterback DJ Lagway completed 21 of 28 passes for 298 yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception. Running back Jadan Baugh set the tone for the Gators with 27 carries for 107 yards and 1 touchdown. Receiver Dallas Wilson dominated the Longhorn defense with 6 catches for 111 yards and 2 touchdowns. 

Defensively, Florida finished the day with 6 sacks and 2 interceptions. Whether it was hitting Manning or making him pay with interceptions or incompletions, the Gator defense did a great job of making life difficult for a talented Texas offense. The Gators face a tough road test this week at Texas A&M.

Another statement win for Texas A&M

Texas A&M (5-0) might be the most under-the-radar undefeated team in the Top 25. After Mississippi State had Tennessee on the ropes last weekend, the Aggies dominated State in a 31-9 win at College Station. 

Head Coach Mike Elko’s defense looks scary good and held State to 1/10 on third down and just 219 total yards. The Aggies’ front seven has some serious freaks and sacked quarterback Blake Shapen 4 times on Saturday. The Aggies held Shapen to just 142 passing yards, 1 touchdown, and forced an interception. 

Offensively, the Aggies were led by dynamic mobile quarterback Marcel Reed, who completed 13 of 23 passes for 2 touchdowns with 1 interception. Reed also had 6 rushes for 30 yards and a touchdown. Out of the backfield, Aggies running back Rueben Owen’s shredded the Bulldog defense for 142 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries. Receiver KC Concepcion proved extremely efficient for A&M with 4 catches for 61 yards and 2 touchdowns. 

Texas A&M takes on Florida at home this Saturday. 

For Mississippi State (4-2), the Bulldogs will need to capitalize on their next three games against Florida, Texas, and Arkansas to become bowl eligible. After those three games, State’s schedule gets much tougher with games against Georgia, Missouri, and Ole Miss to close out the year. 

Georgia bounces back, smokes Kentucky 

After suffering a setback against Alabama last week, Georgia bounced back with a 35-14 win over Kentucky (2-3). 

Georgia went back to utilizing quarterback Gunner Stockton’s legs against the Wildcats. Stockton finished the day with 6 rushes for 48 yards and 2 rushing touchdowns. In the passing game, Stockton completed 15/24 passes for 196 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception. Bulldogs running back Chauncey Bowens had a productive day on the ground with 15 rushes for 70 yards and 2 touchdowns. Georgia heads to Auburn on Saturday night for a prime-time road game. 

For Kentucky, Cutter Boley completed 25/41 passes for 2 touchdowns and an interception, but the Wildcats’ defense was no match for Georgia’s athletes. This type of football result is precisely what happens when you devote nearly half of your NIL revenue share to basketball. The good news for Kentucky? Basketball season starts next month. 

Oklahoma destroys cupcake Kent State 

With star quarterback John Mateer on the mend from thumb surgery, Oklahoma (5-0) took care of business and beat Kent State 44-0. Sooners quarterback Michael Hawkins completed 14/24 passes for 162 yards, 3 touchdowns, and 0 interceptions. Oklahoma’s pass rush also generated 5 sacks. 

Hawkins faces a tough test on Saturday at Texas as the Red River rivalry game enters its second year in the SEC. With all of Texas’ struggles, the Longhorns will look to take out their frustrations against their hated rival. 

Stay tuned for TDR’s wrap up of Week 7 next week!