SEC Football: Best Performances from Week 5
Everything pretty much went according to plan in the SEC in its Week 5 matchups, as the vast majority of Saturday's slate featured lopsided wins against inferior competition.
This sentiment is certainly not true for the Georgia Bulldogs, though, as their SEC East hopes sustained devastating damage in a 34-31 heartbreaker against Tennessee.
In what was arguably the game of the season, Georgia scored with 10 seconds remaining on a 47-yard pass from Jacob Eason to Riley Ridley, only to have the Volunteers convert a Hail Mary pass as time expired.
As for the rest of the league, traditional smashmouth football ruled the day, as defense and rushing attacks led the way for each game's favorite to come out with a win.
With that in mind, let us take a look at which individuals stood out above the rest on Saturday. As always, this list is based on statistical production and the significance of the player's performance on his team moving forward.
Honorable Mentions
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- RB Eugene Brazley, Mississippi
- S Ronnie Harrison, Alabama
- QB Chad Kelly, Mississippi
- DB Henre' Toliver, Arkansas
- RB Darrel Williams, LSU
- LB Tim Williams, Alabama
These players greatly impacted their games on Saturday, but they just missed out on this week's list for various reasons.
Mississippi's Eugene Brazley and Chad Kelly were instrumental in the Rebels' 48-28 revenge effort against Memphis. Brazley ran 13 times for 124 yards and two scores, while Kelly threw for 361 yards, one touchdown and one interception. However, several others on this list were slightly more impressive statistically, which puts these two in the mentions this week.
It is always defense by committee at Alabama, as it gets solid production from players all over the field. This is part of what make the Crimson Tide so spectacular on this side of the ball, but it usually does not end up creating too many noteworthy individual performances. Ronnie Harrison and Tim Williams were products of this system on Saturday in their team's 34-6 win over Kentucky. Harrison totaled seven tackles and a 55-yard fumble recovery touchdown, while Williams racked up three tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. These are nice efforts, but others in the conference stood out more individually.
Arkansas rolled in an unsurprising 52-10 win over Alcorn State, but it was not the team's best game, as it was outscored 7-0 in the second quarter. Still, Henre' Toliver came up with a big play to seal the game for the Razorbacks in the third quarter, returning an interception 70 yards for a touchdown. He also added seven total tackles on the day, but his production was in the same boat as Harrison's.
Lastly, Darrel Williams had a great day for the Bayou Bengals as they rolled to an impressive 42-7 win over Missouri in the first game of the post-Les Miles era. Williams put up 130 yards and three scores on the ground, but most of his work came with the game already decided, and his backfield mate slightly outshone him on Saturday.
DE Derek Barnett, Tennessee
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For the second week in a row, Tennessee needed a frantic comeback to offset a slow start in a crucial SEC East game. For the second week in a row, Derek Barnett led the charge from the defensive end position.
Barnett racked up five total tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, two sacks and a forced fumble as he was in Eason's grill all afternoon in Athens. His forced fumble was a turning point in the contest, as it was recovered in the end zone to put Tennessee up 27-24 in the fourth quarter.
The junior is one of the few players in all of college football who can lift his entire defense with his play. He leads one of the best defensive lines in the nation, and Tennessee will be a legitimate contender for the College Football Playoff if he continues to put together these types of performances every week.
Statistics are courtesy of Tennessee's athletics department.
LB Jarrad Davis, Florida
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Florida reverted back to its offensive struggles from last season in an ugly 13-6 win over Vanderbilt, but the defense came to play on Saturday.
Jarrad Davis was the catalyst for this effort. Faced with the tough assignment of containing Vanderbilt's star rusher, Ralph Webb, Davis came through with a whopping 15 total tackles. He also led the Gators with three pass breakups.
Davis' tackle total led all SEC defenders in Week 5, and the senior will undoubtedly be a key piece of Florida's run defense moving forward.
Statistics are courtesy of Florida's athletics department.
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QB Joshua Dobbs, Tennessee
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In a game with monumental SEC East implications for Tennessee, Joshua Dobbs put forth a remarkable effort to lead the Volunteers to arguably their most memorable win in the last decade.
With Tennessee down 17-7 at halftime, Dobbs helped his team outscore Georgia 27-14 in the second half to pull out an improbable road victory. The play that obviously stands out is his 43-yard heave to Jauan Jennings to win the game. The senior was understandably in disbelief following the game, per 247Sports' Ryan Callahan.
"It’s a crazy play. It’s stuff you dream about — you know, Hail Marys and everything. To be involved in one is absolutely amazing. But it was a great play by Jauan, just going up, owning the ball in the air, coming down with it and securing it.
They had about four guys in the end zone, so you know it’s coming. It’s a Hail Mary at the end of the game. My job as the quarterback is just to give them a chance — put it in their area by any means necessary. You don’t want to take a sack, so get the ball to the end zone, give them a chance. I saw the ball come down. I thought he caught it, and then I saw everyone jumping up and down.
"
Dobbs finished with an impressive stat line as well. He displayed his dual-threat talents to the tune of 230 yards, three touchdowns and one pick passing while also adding 26 yards and a score on the ground. He continues to come up clutch for Tennessee in big games, which should make the team feel pretty confident for the rest of the season.
RB Derrius Guice, LSU
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Leonard Fournette missed his second game of the season due to injury, but Derrius Guice was there once again to carry LSU's offense with his legs.
The running back absolutely carved up Missouri, finishing with 17 carries for 163 yards and three touchdowns. He also added a 21-yard reception. Guice demonstrated that he can score from anywhere on the field with finesse runs of 42 and 37 yards while also powering in for a touchdown on the goal line.
The Tigers should not have an overwhelming sense of urgency to rush Fournette back, since Guice is more than capable of producing for this offense. This is a tremendous luxury for LSU, and a scary proposition for the rest of its schedule.
DE Daeshon Hall, Texas A&M
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Texas A&M did not miss a beat defensively with star pass-rusher Myles Garrett out with injury, and that's because the Aggies boast another stud on the opposite side of the line.
Daeshon Hall was a menace in his team's 24-13 win over South Carolina, racking up six total tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and two sacks. He also led the team with two quarterback hurries.
Hall showed the conference that he is still a dominant player without Garrett eating up blocks on the other end of the defensive line. Just like LSU, Texas A&M also has the benefit of easing its star back into the lineup thanks to a sensational counterpart.
Statistics are courtesy of Texas A&M's athletics department.
RB Kerryon Johnson, Auburn
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Auburn seems to have finally found some rhythm offensively, and it is largely based off of feeding the ball to an emerging star at running back.
Sophomore Kerryon Johnson tore up lowly Louisiana-Monroe in the Tigers' 58-7 win, going for 146 yards and two scores on 24 carries.
After the offseason departures of Jovon Robinson and Roc Thomas, there were serious questions surrounding Auburn's rushing attack, but Johnson has stepped up considerably. He has six scores on the year while averaging 5.1 yards per carry. He will only improve with more reps, and that could lead to All-SEC honors as soon as this season.
LB Natrez Patrick, Georgia
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Georgia may have left Saturday's game heartbroken, but there is a silver lining moving forward.
Sophomore inside linebacker Natrez Patrick was a force all afternoon. Tasked with containing Dobbs and dynamic running backs Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara, Patrick led the Bulldogs with 10 total tackles to go with 2.5 tackles for loss and a sack.
Georgia lost a ton of production from last year's linebacker group in Leonard Floyd, Jake Ganus and Jordan Jenkins. Thus, Patrick's performance is a sign of encouragement for the future of this unit in 2016 and beyond.
Statistics are courtesy of Georgia's athletics department.
WR Calvin Ridley, Alabama
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Alabama's passing attack has been rather conservative this season as it breaks in true freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts, but its star receiver put the conference on notice that this team can still make plays through the air.
Calvin Ridley came up with undoubtedly his best game of his sophomore season, racking up 11 catches for 174 yards and two touchdowns against a hapless Kentucky secondary. Following the game, Alabama head coach Nick Saban said that the passing game still left some big plays on the table, per Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News.
"We have to be more consistent in the passing game," Saban said. "Calvin had a career game, but we had some plays that were designed and the receivers were wide-open and we didn't get the ball to them, or see them. We didn't pass well and (Hurts) didn't have time on some of them."
As Hurts becomes even more comfortable, Ridley will replicate performances like this, which will be critical to the Crimson Tide this season.
DB Maurice Smith, Georgia
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There was plenty of hoopla this offseason surrounding Maurice Smith's intentions to attend Georgia as a graduate transfer from Alabama, and for good reason.
Smith filled up the stat sheet against Tennessee, totaling seven tackles, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, an interception and a pass breakup.
Being part of a successful Tennessee Hail Mary is not an ideal finish to this game from Smith, but he was a turnover machine for the Bulldogs, and they would not have been in this game if not for his play.
Statistics are courtesy of Georgia's athletics department.
LB Shaan Washington, Texas A&M
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Hall was not the only Aggie who balled out on Saturday, as senior linebacker Shaan Washington was all over the field against the Gamecocks.
Washington led Texas A&M with 11 total tackles while also adding two tackles for loss, a sack and forced fumble.
Texas A&M has stars in every level of its defense, from Garrett and Hall on the line, Washington at linebacker and Justin Evans at safety. This unit is among the country's best, which should give the Aggies some confidence heading to Tennessee next week.
Statistics are courtesy of Texas A&M's athletics department.
DB Zedrick Woods, Mississippi
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Ole Miss was embarrassed on defense last season by Paxton Lynch and the Memphis offense. Defensive back Zedrick Woods shut down any chance of a repeat performance from the Tigers on Saturday.
Woods was everywhere for the Rebels, as the sophomore led the team with eight total tackles to go with a tackle for loss and two interceptions. One of those picks went 31 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter, which set the tone for Mississippi for the rest of the night.
This team had some trouble defending the pass early, particularly against Florida State. However, the Rebels turned in their second strong defensive effort in a row, and Woods was an instrumental part in that. This should give the team some assurance in the secondary with matchups against teams like Texas A&M still on the schedule.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
