Ranking the Best SEC Football Matchups of Week 9
With Alabama, Auburn and LSU off this weekend, three of the SEC's top programs will be resting and watching the rest of the league unfold. That leaves a slim slate for fans around the country.
There are still a couple of important games, as well as some other intriguing matchups around the conference.
It all begins with the World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party in Jacksonville, Florida, where Georgia takes a comfortable, commanding two-game SEC East lead into the game against hated rival Florida. Over in College Station, Mississippi State and Texas A&M will attempt to continue promising rebound years.
While it looks like Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin's job is safe for the time being, this is around the time of year when A&M has begun to struggle over the past several seasons. Other coaches need major turnarounds in their fortunes, too.
Tennessee's Butch Jones takes his lame-duck coaching show on the road to Lexington, Kentucky. Barry Odom is in a similar position as his Missouri Tigers travel to UConn. And Ole Miss' Matt Luke and Arkansas' Bret Bielema will square off in a Hot Seat Bowl in Oxford, Mississippi, on Saturday morning.
Storylines abound, even if the SEC won't be throwing its fastball at your television screens this weekend. Let's rank the top games.
6. Missouri at UConn
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After Missouri somewhat got back on track last weekend with a 68-point performance in a dominant win over Idaho, the biggest question mark is whether the Tigers can win enough games to keep second-year coach Barry Odom's job.
They must stay in the win column this week with a road trip to Connecticut to take on the improving Huskies. Coach Randy Edsall's team has beaten Temple and Tulsa in the past two weeks to improve to 3-4. Now, they'll play the back end of a home-and-home series with the Tigers following 2015's snorefest 9-6 loss.
This looks like a mismatch favoring Mizzou on paper, but the Huskies are playing much better defensively than their No. 128 ranking in total defense would indicate. The Tigers also have defensive issues, but quarterback Drew Lock and Co. can post plenty of points.
Saturday's showdown will almost certainly produce more than the 15 combined points from the last time these two teams met. Heck, you may be able to multiply that number by six. However, two key runners will be missing in UConn's injured Arkeel Newsome and Mizzou's Damarea Crockett, who may miss the rest of the season.
Odom has seen a budding contributor emerge in Crockett's absence in Larry Rountree III, but it's vital for him to keep producing and provide some balance to the offense. With games against struggling teams such as Tennessee and Arkansas left on the schedule, the Tigers could keep this season moving in the right direction.
At 2-5, they need to do a lot just to get bowl-eligible. This weekend is essential.
5. Arkansas at Ole Miss
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As terrible as the SEC East is with three 0-4 teams, Arkansas would fit right in.
The Razorbacks also haven't won a conference game in four tries, and their season has gone off the rails. It's enough that head coach Bret Bielema's leash is shorter than it's ever been, and it wouldn't be surprising to see the Hogs go in a different direction.
Ole Miss isn't much better at 1-3 and 3-4 overall, and interim head coach Matt Luke doesn't look like he's going to be removing that "interim" from his title anytime soon.
The Rebels had a chance to earn some goodwill last weekend with a home game against hated rival LSU. Instead, the Tigers manhandled Ole Miss as the Rebels defense continued to look clueless against conference foes.
That should improve this week. But from an offensive standpoint, the Rebels won't be able to put sophomore leader quarterback Shea Patterson at the helm for the remainder of the year. He'll miss the extent of the season with a torn posterior cruciate ligament.
"Shea will be immobilized probably two to three weeks," head coach Matt Luke told the Daily Mississippian's Billy Shuerman. "Then you will have to go and take another picture of it to see where it is. At that point, then, you make the decision (on whether or not to have surgery)."
The future is the most important thing for Patterson, as Ole Miss couldn't go to a bowl game this year regardless with self-imposed sanctions. Junior Jordan Ta'amu will lead the offense in his stead.
Arkansas has its share of injuries, too, with freshman Chase Hayden out a while and senior center Frank Rangow missing the rest of the year. At this point of the season, Arkansas will need a major turnaround without them to crawl into bowl contention.
4. Vanderbilt at South Carolina
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It has been a long time since a fine start to the season had folks around the SEC singing Vanderbilt's praises.
The Commodores allowed six, zero and seven points in wins over Middle Tennessee, Alabama A&M and Kansas State to open the season. But reality slapped them across the face quickly.
Since that time, VU has lost 59-0 to Alabama, 38-24 to Florida, 45-14 to Georgia and 57-35 to Ole Miss. After a bye week to regroup, they'll now get to face a 5-2 South Carolina team that is beginning to bounce back following the loss of star receiver Deebo Samuel.
Following the loss to the Rebels, Vanderbilt head coach Derek Mason said running back Ralph Webb and quarterback Kyle Shurmur were the only two offensive players who aren't in danger of losing their jobs.
"I think I still feel the same way," Mason told the Tennessean's Mike Organ this week. "Every day it's about getting better. If you're not opening it for competition, then what are you doing? I mean everybody's got to be sure that they earn their seat on the bus. If I'm giving away seats on the bus, then you know what, it's not much of a competition."
The 'Dores just need to get competitive again to keep Mason from feeling his first signs of heat. In a year when there could be a ton of turnover in the league, his name isn't coming up much.
As for the Gamecocks, following coach Will Muschamp continuing to own Tennessee with a 15-9 win in Knoxville, South Carolina appears to be one of the few teams on an upswing in the SEC East.
Can the Gamecocks continue that with a home win over Vanderbilt? They'll be favored, but the Commodores are still dangerous, especially after a couple weeks of rest.
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3. Tennessee at Kentucky
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For 31 of the past 32 years, Tennessee has beaten Kentucky in the rivalry once known as the "Battle for the Beer Barrel." The only time that didn't happen was in 2011, when a 10-7 loss to the Wildcats kept the Vols out of a bowl and marked the beginning of the end for then-head coach Derek Dooley.
Another UK win this weekend would likely spell the end of Butch Jones' tenure in Knoxville.
With UT sitting at 3-4 and 0-4 in the SEC, fans are restless and already turning their attention toward the next coaching regime. Following back-to-back 9-4 seasons, they're beginning to think this coaching staff can't get the Vols to a championship level.
While Kentucky hasn't looked great this year, the Wildcats are 5-2 and continue to find ways to win enough to keep the fans pleased with coach Mark Stoops. Last weekend was a major setback, however, as the Wildcats went on the road to Starkville and were embarrassed 45-7 by Mississippi State.
That's the same margin the Vols lost to rival Alabama.
The Vols haven't scored an offensive touchdown in 14 quarters, and the only time they tossed six points on the scoreboard in that period was when linebacker Daniel Bituli returned an interception 97 yards for a touchdown against the Crimson Tide last week in a game that was effectively over.
With Jarrett Guarantano learning the ropes behind center, UT is struggling to find its way, although the defense is improving.
Kentucky has its own issues, but it also owns wins over Missouri and South Carolina. That's two more conference victories than the Vols have.
2. Mississippi State at Texas A&M
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Mississippi State's only two losses this year came on back-to-back blowouts to Georgia and Auburn. Other than that, the Bulldogs have largely played well, including an early-season victory over LSU that now is looking much better.
What do those two losses have in common? They were both away from Davis Wade Stadium. In related news, the Bulldogs must travel to Kyle Field this weekend to take on Texas A&M.
"Road games, we've kind of gotten out of character, gotten a lot of penalties and false starts," Mississippi State quarterback Nick Fitzgerald told reporters. "We've not been handling the environment very well.
"I think a lot's changed since those two games."
After wins over BYU and Kentucky the past two weekends, it looks like head coach Dan Mullen's team is back on track. Fitzgerald returned to his early form, accounting for 270 total yards and three touchdowns against the Wildcats.
He now must face an improving Aggies defense that looks a lot better than it did during the season-opening collapse against UCLA that had people calling for coach Kevin Sumlin's job. The only other loss since then was a respectable home setback to Alabama.
In that time, the Aggies found a freshman quarterback who has shown flashes of brilliant playmaking ability in Kellen Mond, who has gone from a coveted high school prospect to a dual-threat collegian who is improving every week.
With Mississippi State, Auburn and LSU remaining on the schedule, it's vital for A&M to get off to a strong start with a home win this weekend. The Bulldogs need to stay hot, too.
1. Georgia vs. Florida
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This seems like the game that decides the SEC East most years. Though the Georgia Bulldogs look like they have the division in good shape right now, there is more to play for when it comes to the Bulldogs and the Gators.
Only six UGA players on the roster have beaten Florida, and that came all the way back in 2013. Head coach Kirby Smart asked the Bulldogs who'd beaten UF to stand earlier this week, and the locker room got to see just how futile the recent seasons have been.
"It set the tone for the week," senior tight end Jeb Blazevich told Dawgs247's Jake Rowe. "When you get back to work coming off the bye week, sometimes it's hard to start. Once he said that, it was time to get back in there and get to work. We've got a job to do."
That job doesn't look that difficult this year considering how much Florida has struggled offensively, but the Gators are still stout on defense, and they seem to have UGA's number.
That psychological advantage doesn't always go a long way, but it bears watching whether it does this week against a superior Bulldogs team.
As for UGA, a win does something much greater—it keeps the Bulldogs in the running for the College Football Playoff. With Auburn and a potential SEC Championship Game showdown with Alabama looming, there are some marquee showdowns down the road.
But none of those mean as much if Georgia slips up and loses to the Gators.
The 3-3 Reptiles need a victory to get back on track in head coach Jim McElwain's tenure. Florida fans are restless with mediocrity, and there need to be signs of life in the program. A blowout this weekend could turn up the pressure in Gainesville.
Unless otherwise noted, stats courtesy of Sports Reference and cfbstats, and recruiting data courtesy of Scout.
Brad Shepard covers college football for Bleacher Report. Follow him on Twitter: @Brad_Shepard.
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