Well, as good as Week 1 was for the SEC, Week 2 was just as bad. The college football nation was all eyes on Auburn’s near-disaster, overtime win against Jacksonville State. That could have been the worst win in the history of the SEC. And then, just as the shock of the Auburn game was wearing off, fans tuned into MAC power Toledo beating Arkansas in Little Rock. An Arkansas team that had a senior quarterback and rushed for 1.27 million yards last year. And to top it all off, Tennessee – with a chance at conference redemption – lost a two-touchdown lead at home against Oklahoma.
But it wasn’t all bad. Alabama, Ole Miss and Georgia avoided upset bids. And Kentucky, with quietly high expectations, beat South Carolina in what could be a changing of the guard in the middle of the SEC East.
As we do every week here at LastWordOnSports College Football, here is our look at how we see the teams stacking up against each other this week.
LWOS College Football SEC Power Rankings: Week 2
SEC West: There is some considerable shake-up in the way our voters see the SEC West this week. As expected, Auburn and Arkansas plummeted from the top, and LSU’s narrow win at Mississippi State didn’t do much to impress our voters. Meanwhile, the top two teams, Alabama and Ole Miss, are on a collision course that meets in Tuscaloosa this Saturday.
1. Alabama (28)
Alabama continued to play sound football in almost all aspects of the game. The Crimson Tide have avoided the close calls that many other top teams have experienced. With Ole Miss coming to town this weekend, expect a hard-nosed, defensive battle. Will the Crimson exact revenge for last year’s loss in Oxford? Or will Alabama’s reign atop the SEC West come to a temporary end to Ole Miss for the second straight year.
2. Ole Miss (22)
Ole Miss has been rolling for the first two games – albeit against clearly inferior competition. But we know that even inferior competition can win on Saturdays today. For the second straight year, we have a monumental face-off between the Rebels and the Crimson Tide early in the season. Can Ole Miss finish off the dream that began with a win against Alabama last season?
3. Texas A&M (20)
Are the Aggies the real deal, or are they just teasing us like they did in 2014? It seems like the John Chavis experience is already paying off with a much better defense in College Station. That defense will get tested as the competition gets tougher. If the quarterback play stays consistent, the Aggies could be a darkhorse contender in the conference.
4. LSU (16)
No one benefitted more from the tribulations of the conference this weekend than LSU. With Auburn and Arkansas making precipitous drops in the eyes of the nation, the Tigers stock is up in the West. Lost in the excitement of Saturday was another offensive struggle for LSU, with an anemic second half. To stay in contention, the Tigers must find some answers at quarterback.
5. Auburn (14)
Auburn’s near-death experience cost them dearly in the eyes of college football analysts and pundits. Can they bounce back and get back in the national conversation? Well get an answer soon as the Tigers travel to the City of the Red Stick and take on the Tigers this weekend. One way or another, one team of Tigers will move up and one team of Tigers will take a severe hit to their season’s championship dreams.
6. (Tie) Arkansas (6)
Arkansas went and got beat by a MAC team this weekend. This, exepectedly, caused the hype train in Fayetteville to go careening off the tracks. Razorback fans are now left wondering if this was an incredibly unfortunate aberration or if this season will be a disappointment compared to their offseason excitement. One thing is for sure, in the SEC West you can’t afford to drop games against MAC opponents.
6. (Tie) Mississippi State (6)
Dak Prescott led a Bulldogs rally from 21-6 down at home early in the fourth against LSU. The Bulldogs missed a two-point conversion and a late field goal as time expired that cost them the chance to upset LSU. With Alabama, Ole Miss, and Texas A&M rolling, fans in Starkville have to be wondering about what a difference a year is going to make.
SEC East: Our pollsters can only agree on two things: Georgia is the best team in the SEC East and South Carolina and Vanderbilt are the worst. Other than that, there are wide variations with the other four teams. This resulted in not one, but two ties in the power rankings this week. Let’s take a look:
1. Georgia (28)
With the bi-annual agonizing trip to Nashville out of the way, the Dawgs avoided one of their classic trap games. While the Bulldogs must be enjoying watching Florida, South Carolina and Missouri struggle this week, they also play Alabama and Auburn out of the West, so a divisional championship isn’t a sure thing – even in a seemingly weaker East.
2. (tie) Missouri (21)
The Tigers are another team that desperately needs consistent play at quarterback. Tigers fans must be at their wits end after the last two years with Missouri being the most up-and-down successful team in the nation. You would think with two straight divisional championships, things would be a little more clear in Columbia, but this is a team that we still can’t figure out.
2. (tie) Tennessee (21)
The bad news for Vols fans is that Tennessee lost to Oklahoma this weekend. The good news is that it was easily the best loss in the conference and maybe the best loss in the nation. The young Vols gave up a 17-3 fourth quarter lead, but both Oklahoma and Tennessee looked like national-level teams. If Tennessee plays to that caliber in SEC East play, they should easily compete for one of the top-two spots. But playing at that level, week-in and week-out, is a big question mark for this still young team.
4. (tie) Florida (15)
The Gators got all they could handle from East Carolina. With the shockers in Little Rock and Auburn, this close call was a little overshadowed. Florida is still another team looking for solid, consistent play from the quarterback position. Florida seems to be one of those teams that will be good-to-great one week and awfully disappointing the next. Can McElwain find some consistency in Gainesville?
4. (tie) Kentucky (15)
With help from some great defensive plays down the stretch, the Wildcats beat South Carolina for a second straight season and snapped a 22-game SEC road losing streak. This Saturday Mark Stoops’ club will try to end a 28-year losing streak against the Florida Gators. This might be a bell-weather game – not just for this season – for both of these programs. Maybe not the flashiest of games, but certainly one of the most important games of the season.
6. South Carolina (8)
Things are looking pretty down in Columbia. Another lose to Kentucky, an injured quarterback, and the meat of the schedule still looming. But don’t discount the Head Ball Coach – or Pharoh Cooper for that matter. South Carolina still has a great coach with over 200 conference wins and great athletes.
7. Vanderbilt (4)
Not much to say here other than fans in Nashville can go ahead and start making New Year’s travel plans. Vanderbilt hasn’t shown much progress in the first two weeks of the season. Derek Mason is the first coach in the conference to find himself squarely on the hot seat. Can the Commodores pull off an upset along the way? Or even more improbable, can they turn a lost season around before it gets too late?
About this poll: Points are awarded on a sliding scale 7-1 for places 1st through 7th.
This week’s voters: Mike Loveall (ML), Kevin McGuffey (KM), Matt Atkinson (MA), and Lauren Beasley (LB).
Main Photo: Derick E. Hingle / USA TODAY Sports
