SEC Football Q&A: O.J. Howard, Georgia's Game Plan and an Upset for Tennessee?
It's Tuesday, and that means it's time for a little SEC Q&A.
Heading into Week 3, we now know a lot about each team's strengths and where they need to improve. Week 3 offers compelling conference and out-of-conference matchups, with Georgia traveling to South Carolina for an SEC East showdown and Tennessee heading to Oklahoma in search of an upset over the Sooners.
Will Vols' head coach Butch Jones get that upset? Will Georgia continue to roll? Let's take a look at Week 3 and beyond with a little SEC Q&A.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
I'd love to have an answer for you, because when you have a 6'6", 240-pound tight end who can catch and run, it's a good idea to use him.
Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin has not.
Howard doesn't have a catch on the season and has only been targeted once. That pass—which was intercepted—came in the fourth quarter of the season opener vs. West Virginia when Blake Sims tried to force a pass up the seam into double coverage.
This is somewhat of a shock because, as B/R's Alabama lead writer Marc Torrence noted this summer, head coach Nick Saban was pleased with Howard's progress.
"Having a guy like that, really there's a lot of multiples in terms of how you can use him and create problems for the defense to have to adjust to him," Saban said. "He's worked hard and responded well.”
Except that he hasn't, and that's something that Saban hopes changes in a hurry.
"O.J. Howard is a guy that we need to get more involved in probably what we're doing," Saban said during Wednesday's coaches teleconference. "I think he has some capabilities to make plays that we need to take advantage of. He has been open a few times and we just haven't gotten him the ball."
Kiffin has done rather well during his first two games as the Crimson Tide offensive coordinator, putting Sims in positions to succeed while still allowing fellow quarterback Jake Coker the opportunity to show his upside at appropriate times. He's spread the carries around to Derrick Henry and T.J. Yeldon and used wide receiver Amari Cooper as a big-time weapon as the quarterback battle sorts itself out.
The biggest (and perhaps "only") criticism of Kiffin's play-calling through two games is Howard's absence, which shouldn't continue much longer.
Yes, and it should not only against South Carolina but every game of the season.
Georgia's game plan against Clemson was exactly why I picked the Bulldogs to finish the season undefeated and to be SEC champs and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff. The Bulldogs have the running back depth to use Todd Gurley at the perfect times, allow quarterback Hutson Mason to be more of a game manager than gunslinger and a defense that's properly coached for the first time in a long time.
As long as everybody stays healthy, head coach Mark Richt is doing the right thing limiting Gurley's first-half carries, using him on special teams and then bringing him in as the hammer in the second half to lean on worn-out defenses.
This is the luxury Georgia has. It is absolutely loaded with the talent to the point where putting your best player on special teams and "risking injury" (which is silly, because there's an injury risk on every play) is something the coaching staff can do to make the team better.
Yes, Georgia will stick with that this week, although I do expect them to take more shots deep with quarterback Huston Mason against an undermanned Gamecock pass defense.
"@BarrettSallee Is there even the slightest possibility that Butch Jones and Vols go into Norman and come back to Rocky Top with the W?
— Phil Webber (@61Webhead) September 9, 2014"
A chance, sure.
As I wrote earlier this week, running back Jalen Hurd is maturing at the right time. Either Hurd or senior Marlin Lane will have to play big, because keeping the ball out of the hands of Sooners' quarterback Trevor Knight and that offense will be job No. 1.
A big question for Oklahoma is cornerback Zack Sanchez, who left last weekend's game with a shoulder injury. Sooners' head coach Bob Stoops expects him to play Saturday, according to Eric Bailey of the Tulsa World.
If that's true, and Sanchez shows no ill effects from that injury, he'll make it tough on quarterback Justin Worley and wide receiver Marquez North.
No, I don't think Tennessee stands much of a chance in Norman. The Sooners are a more complete team from top to bottom, have the advantage of playing at home and a front seven that will force quick decisions from Worley.
No, and it shouldn't be the expectation. After all, when was the last time Arkansas won the SEC?
Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?
Head coach Bret Bielema inherited a mess in 2013, and he's trying to play LSU and Alabama-style football with players that aren't at the same level of those traditional SEC West powers. Toss in defending SEC champ Auburn and the emergence of Texas A&M as a team that not only can get hot but has staying power, and Arkansas plays in the toughest neighborhood in college football.
It shouldn't be about SEC West titles for Bielema, at least not within five seasons. It should be about being in the SEC West discussion. Consistently being in the division title discussion is as good as Arkansas has ever had it since joining the conference in 1992, and getting back to that point should be the goal for Bielema and the focus for Arkansas fans.
Once that happens, then talk about the conference title. But you have to get to that point first, which is much easier said than done.
Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and video analyst for Bleacher Report and co-host of the CFB Hangover on Bleacher Report Radio (Sundays, 9-11 a.m. ET) on Sirius 93, XM 208.
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. All stats are courtesy of CFBStats.com, and all recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.
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