SEC Extra Points with Barrett Sallee: Get Ready for Separation Saturday
While most of the news this week in the SEC has been dominated by off-field stories like the year-long suspension to Florida quarterback Will Grier and the departure of Steve Spurrier as South Carolina's head coach, it's also a huge weekend on the field.
It's particularly huge in College Station, Texas, and Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
No. 9 Texas A&M (5-0, 2-0 SEC) hosts No. 10 Alabama (5-1, 2-1 SEC) in a game that is a matchup nightmare for both schools.
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The Aggies have the quarterback and the wide receivers to exploit Alabama's biggest weakness, which is its secondary. If they can make this a game that fits the wide-open style of head coach Kevin Sumlin, it sets up the Aggies defense to play to its strengths: its pass rush, with ends Myles Garrett and Daeshon Hall.
"I think their defense is playing a lot better," said Alabama head coach Nick Saban. "They've got a really good scheme. They've got two 'plus' pass rushers to single-block off the edges, which can always cause issues in the passing game. [Defensive coordinator John] Chavis does a great job scheme-wise pressuring people."
Led by running backs Derrick Henry and Kenyan Drake, the Crimson Tide wants to establish the run early, which plays into the Aggies' weakness—its run defense. They're 12th in the SEC against the run after giving up 182.60 yards per game.
Chavis knows just how big it is to slow down the running game, according to the Bryan-College Station Eagle.
Down in Baton Rouge, No. 8 Florida (6-0, 4-0 SEC) will be charged with slowing down Heisman Trophy front-runner Leonard Fournette and forcing No. 6 LSU (5-0, 3-0 SEC) and quarterback Brandon Harris to beat them through the air.
Not the easiest task for the upstart Gators, who will also be without star quarterback Will Grier—who head coach Jim McElwain lost for a year after he failed a test for performance-enhancing drugs. That puts the onus on dual-threat signal-caller Treon Harris, who has experience but hasn't seen much action since a Week 2 win over East Carolina.
"Obviously we were putting things in for him as we kind of go," McElwain said. "He's been doing a great job in practice. As you know going into this, I felt that we've had two really good quarterbacks. Now it's Treon's opportunity to take the reins and run with it. He'll do a great job."
These two games will define the landscapes in both divisions—they could virtually eliminate Alabama from the West, if the Crimson Tide goes down, and cement the winners as unquestioned front-runners.
Not only that, Missouri vs. Georgia will essentially eliminate the loser from the SEC East race, and Ole Miss at Memphis has enormous College Football Playoff and "New Year's Six" bowl implications.
What we know about the SEC now might be totally different at midnight on Sunday morning after "separation Saturday."
Defense Wins Championships?
If Florida is going to spring the upset on LSU this weekend, it all hinges on the ability of the Gator defense to slow down Fournette.
That's much easier said than done.
The 6'1", 230-pound monster has 1,022 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns in just five games this season for the Tigers, and has proved to be one of the most feared running backs of this generation.
"I know I couldn't tackle him," McElwain said. "Here's what I told our guys...somebody jump on his back and maybe somebody will slow him down. Maybe somebody else grabs a shoelace and he trips."
If Florida has some success slowing Fournette down, it will at least put the game in the hands of quarterback Brandon Harris. At that point, what happens? Harris only has one game in which he's thrown for more than 200 yards and hasn't thrown for more than 100 in three of LSU's five games.
Simply put, he's a mystery that hasn't been solved—due in part to the cancellation of the season-opening tune-up vs. McNeese State and a surprisingly close game vs. Eastern Michigan.
Florida's defense has to slow down Fournette, otherwise the pressure on its own offense and new starting quarterback Harris might be too much to overcome.
Cam Robinson, Bielema's Flop And a Mystery Cameraman
Lost in the hubbub of the week has been an ongoing controversy that has enveloped two SEC head coaches.
Arkansas' Bret Bielema was widely panned after this video surfaced of what looked like a "flop" that resulted in a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Alabama's Cam Robinson last weekend in Tuscaloosa.
"When I stepped on the field, I put my face to our players," Bielema said. "There were a few of our players who were going to become engaged with an Alabama player. All I did was step in and face them because I knew they wouldn't touch me."
There's more to the story, though. Specifically, the origin of the video above.
As former Arkansas basketball player Blake Eddins noted on Twitter, the video appears to be shot by the person holding the parabolic microphone.
"When I was first contacted by the league, they weren't so much concerned about the incident—obviously it was something that got blown out of catastrophic proportion," Bielema said. "[The video] was something that they were really concerned about, and I'm excited for them to get back to us on exactly where that came from, the concern of being on our sideline and what else may be out there."
Alabama head coach Nick Saban, however, isn't too concerned after he was asked specifically about the person holding the parabolic microphone.
"I don't really know what you're talking about, and really don't care to be honest with you," he said. "I don't know anything about the cameras. We have a game this week against Texas A&M, and that's what we're focused on."
John Nabors of Hog Sports Radio in Fayetteville, Arkansas, received a statement from ESPN that said the footage did indeed originate from a GoPro camera from the individual holding the parabolic microphone, he was in violation of ESPN policy and that the legal department has requested that he surrender all footage.
Nothing like a little midseason controversy to keep things interesting.
Quality Opponent, Quality Quarterback
If Ole Miss' trip to Memphis on Saturday afternoon doesn't intrigue you, it should.
The 5-0 Tigers, led by head coach Justin Fuente have burst onto the scene with a dynamic offense and one of the best up-and-coming head coaches in the country.
"We're playing a very confident bunch, and Justin has done a great job building them," Ole Miss head coach Hugh Freeze said. "They play great schemes and will be a great opportunity for us to test ourselves again."
One of those confident players is quarterback Paxton Lynch.
The 6'7", 245-pound junior has tossed 10 touchdowns and zero interceptions on the year, added 116 yards and another score on the ground is one of the best quarterbacks you've never heard of.
"He's one of the better quarterbacks in the nation," Freeze said. "The way he manages their offense and is poised all the time, takes care of the football, uses his legs well. I think he's one of the better ones that we've faced during my time here, to be quite candid. I'm really, really impressed with him."
Don't sleep on Memphis keeping this game close. The combination of Lynch's ability to press opposing defenses and Ole Miss' injuries on that side of the ball could make this one of the best games of Week 7.
Praise For The Head Ball Coach
Former South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier said goodbye to the SEC on Tuesday, and the rest of the SEC coaching fraternity all had thoughts on the Head Ball Coach.
One of the predominant themes of the week was "remembering Spurrier."
"I'd like to give a shout out to Coach Spurrier," said Auburn's Gus Malzahn. "His influence on me goes back as a high school coach, where I started wearing a visor. I've gotten to know him, and he's been a mentor for me at times. I want to tell him that I really appreciate everything that he's done for me. Sad to see him go. He's been great for our league."
"First and foremost, let's celebrate what this guy's all about and what he's all done," said Florida's Jim McElwain. "Not only with the game of football but with the impact he's had in so many young guys' lives along the way. You know what's great is we've had so many former players that played for him and come back to the Gators. To see what he's done—that's something special. It's truly a tribute and we're going to miss him."
"Everybody should know that this guy is one of the best college football coaches over a long period of time, winning at various programs from Duke to Florida to South Carolina," Alabama's Nick Saban said. "He wasn't always in great situations, but he always made those situations better. He's been really good for college football, and we certainly will miss him."
"A great player and great at every school he ever was a head coach at," LSU's Les Miles said. "One of those guys that made college football very entertaining. He will be missed."
"I read in the paper after he stepped down all of his one-liners, and every one of them is funny," Missouri's Gary Pinkel said. "That's just who he is. Really a class guy. Tremendous respect for him. He had a huge influence on thousands of kids and our profession, and I'm going to miss him The last three years, I've gotten to sit in meetings with him...He's a lot of fun to have in meetings. He says all the right things at the right—and wrong—times."
Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Recruiting information is courtesy of 247Sports. Statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com.
Barrett Sallee is the lead SEC college football writer and national college football video analyst for Bleacher Report as well as a host on Bleacher Report Radio on SiriusXM 83. Follow Barrett on Twitter @BarrettSallee.
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