The SEC continued to struggle this week, and there was a shake-up in our weekly ratings as a result.
The balance of power seems to be shifting in the West, as Ole Miss beat Alabama two straight years – for the first time in forever. Literally, for the first time in forever. In the thousand year history of football, Ole Miss has never beaten Alabama in two straight contests. They have now.
The balance of power in the East seems to be sorting itself out, although it’s mostly because teams are underperforming and settling into lower seeds than they are accustomed to in the past.
Let’s take a look at how are voters see the SEC this week.
LWOS College Football SEC Week 3 Power Rankings
SEC West: There’s a new clear leader in the SEC West. Ole Miss’ convincing, historic win in Tuscaloosa has, for the second straight year, put them near the top of the College Football landscape. Alabama, LSU, and Texas A&M are all grouped together in the second tier of the Division, and Auburn and Arkansas, with their surprising collapses, joins Mississippi State as the current basement. It’s still early, though, so things could change.
1. Ole Miss (28)
In an unexpected role reversal, Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly led the Rebel Offense to an offensive explosion against the vaunted Alabama defense. Of course, Ole Miss’ defense created five turnovers against an Alabama offense that just couldn’t seem to get in a rhythm all night. But the Rebels have been here before, as they rose to the top spot last year before fading late in the year due in no small part to some key injuries. Can Hugh Freeze keep his charges at the top for the arduous campaign that is only a quarter of the way through this year? Or will Ole Miss see a repeat of the disappointment of 2014?
2. LSU (21)
The Tigers poured it on a reeling Auburn team, with Leonard Fournette leading the charge. The sophomore running back racked up 228 yards and three touchdowns en route to a victory that cemented LSU as a serious contender for the SEC West and may have vaulted Fournette to the top of the Heisman race. But look closely, and you’ll see LSU only managed 74 passing yards. That won’t cut it against some of the other defenses in the Division, no matter how hard the super sophomore runs.
3. Alabama (20)
Alabama had five turnovers and still managed to have a shot to win the game on the last drive. And they did score 37 points against one of the best defenses in college football. If the Crimson Tide can figure out their quarterbacking, they still have a chance to make an impact on the national stage this year. But for the first time, there’s talk of dynastic demise in Tuscaloosa. Is this the beginning of the end, or just another one-loss Alabama championship team.
4. Texas A&M (19)
Texas A&M handled a fiesty Nevada team that’s played some good teams this year. They’ll get their first intra-league test this week as they face a disappointed Arkansas team. With a similar offense and a much better defense than Texas Tech, you’ve got to think A&M’s stock will rise some more. Can the Aggies take the next step this year, or will they finish in the second tier for the third consecutive year?
5. Auburn (11)
The bottom has seemingly fallen out of the Tigers’ season. It’s hard to recall a team that went from Top 5 to out of the polls in such short order. If the Tigers are to right the ship, they are going to have to do it in the teeth of an SEC West schedule, one that continues with Mississippi State visiting The Plains this week. This match-up looks completely different than it did last year. What a difference a season makes.
6. Mississippi State (8)
Mississippi State is starting to climb out of the unanimous perception that they are the seventh team in the West with the collapse of Arkansas and Auburn. The Bulldogs loss to LSU seems like a good loss – if there is such a thing – and they have an opportunity to climb even higher on the road against Auburn this weekend.
7. Arkansas (5)
The Bret Bielema show has gone of the rails in Fayetteville after back-to-back loses to Toledo and Texas Tech. The hype around the Razorbacks program in the offseason was off the charts, and so far expectations are far from being met. The Razorbacks have a chance to get back on track as they host Texas A&M this weekend. A third loss in week 4 might do serious injury to the psyche of this program.
SEC East: Our pollsters had identical ballots for five of the seven teams and there was only one discrepancy between the other two teams. With experts all saying the same things, only one thing is sure: It’ll be completely blown up with a dramatic Saturday.
1. Georgia (28)
Georgia’s dismantling of South Carolina strengthened the Dawgs’ stranglehold on the top spot. It seems that Georgia’s path to Atlanta is paved with struggling teams, save Alabama and Tennessee, and if the Bulldogs can avoid their annual inexplicable upset, they should contend for conference Championship in December. But remember Jacksonville last year, as there is no telling what each new Saturday brings.
2. Tennessee (24)
The Vols are a solid number two based more on what other teams did rather than their performance this week. Tennessee did take care of business, dispatching FCS Western Carolina with a 41-point halftime lead. But the disappointing efforts by Missouri, Florida and Kentucky all made Tennessee the number two in the East by default. Tennessee has its’ biggest game of the year this weekend as they travel to Gainesville and try to end a decade-long drought against the Gators. A win on the road against Florida sets up a Tennessee challenge for the East Divison crown.
3. Florida (19)
The Gators continue to win, albeit in unimpressive fashion. The Gators have had trouble in the past two second-halves, and their offense is still sputtering. They’ve relied on their top-flight defense, but that plan can only last for so long. They’ll get their toughest test of the early season this weekend as an improved and talented Tennessee team visits The Swamp in a renewal of what was a national championship caliber game in the 1990s. Have the glory days passed the Gators by, or is this just merely a bump in the road?
4. Missouri (17)
Another week, another lackluster performance resulting in a win. The Tiger offense failed to generate any momentum against UConn without tailback Russell Hansbrough. Next week Mizzou will begin SEC play against Kentucky and again lean heavily on their top-rated defense. There are questions at quarterback, and the Tigers need to get things figure out quickly if they are going to defend their Division title.
5. Kentucky (12)
Everything was set up perfectly for the Wildcats to finally break the streak against Florida.However, questionable play calling and clock management along with some bad throws by Patrick Towles ultimately doomed Mark Stoops’ club and the streak goes to 29.A win against Missouri would help calm the fan base from thinking this is the same old Kentucky football. Consistency would do the Wildcats some good in this all important season.
6. South Carolina (8)
The Gamecocks are looking at a long season if they don’t improve from the loss to Georgia. The South Carolina pass defense gave up the best passing efficiency day in the history of the NCAA to Georgia quarterback Grayson Lambert and the Georgia running backs continued their dominate performance. South Carolina needs to find some answers quickly or else things could get even worse quickly.
7. Vanderbilt (4)
Vanderbilt got their first win of the season against Austin Peay State University on Saturday. Extra points for anyone who can tell me what state Austin Peay is located in. It’s going to get a little tougher this week, as the Commodores travel to Oxford to play Ole Miss. Let me help you out here: whatever the spread is, take Ole Miss.
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).
