SEC Football: What We Learned from Week 3 Action

The SEC provided football crazies with yet another excellent week of college football, which is something we have come to expect from the conference. 

We learned a lot about each of the teams that play in this brutal conference, especially with this being the opening week of conference play for some teams. 

The headline game of LSU vs. Mississippi State opened play up last Thursday night, and it all ended on Saturday with Alabama's thrashing of North Texas.. 

The following are some of the lessons we learned from Week 3 in the SEC. 

Chris Rainey Is Making Some Noise for Heisman Trophy Consideration

Chris Rainey has been the do-everything running back for the Florida Gators this season and may have had his best game as a Gator on Saturday. Rainey eclipsed the 100-yard mark in both rushing and receiving, and showed how versatile he is after blocking a punt.

Rainey is averaging 100 yards rushing through the first three games while averaging 71 receiving yards and could warrant some consideration from Heisman voters if he keeps up this pace.

LSU Is a Legiment National Title Contender

Jarrett Lee is making LSU Tiger fans forget about suspended quarterback Jordan Jefferson. Lee was quick with his decisions and was extremely accurate as he picked apart the much improved Mississippi State defense.

He finished the game 21 of 27 for 213 yards and a touchdown and only made one faulty pass which was an interception thrown in the fourth quarter.

The LSU defensive front seven is the best in the country hands down and is always going to keep games close.

Marcus Lattimore Is the Best Back in the Country

37 carries for 246 yards and three touchdowns is nothing short of a once in a lifetime performance.

Lattimore grinded out tough yards and was the main catalyst for South Carolina's late win against the Navy Midshipmen.

For the season, he has 534 yards rushing on 87 carries and seven touchdowns, equating in 6.1 yards-per-carry. If South Carolina can take home the SEC East, then Lattimore should be the front-runner for the Heisman trophy by season's end.

South Carolina Is Lucky to Be 3-0

While 3-0 is still 3-0 no matter how you look at it, there is some concern in Gamecock country.

South Carolina barely edged out a win against rival Georgia the week before and this week's game against Navy was almost the upset of the week.

South Carolina is still a formidable team and they have an excellent chance at the SEC east title.

Alabama's Offensive Line Needs to Improve

When you looked at Alabama's stat line after their 41-0 thrashing of North Texas, you might have thought that the offensive line played exceptionally, considering they rushed for 340 yards. Well that was not the case.

Running backs Trent Richardson and Eddie Lacey broke a number of tackles as a result of defective pursuit angles by the Mean Green.

The offensive line also gave up too many sacks to an inferior opponent, and they will need to clear this up before their SEC battle against Arkansas.

Vanderbilt Is Quietly 3-0

The Commodores have started the season 3-0 and have beaten two quality opponents in Connecticut and Ole Miss.

This week's game at South Carolina could be an upset in the making, and it would be a colossal win for this Vanderbilt team.

The defense is ranked 20th in the nation in points against and is the strong point for this team.

Mississippi State Is the Best 1-2 Team in the Nation

Mississippi State plays in the premier league and best conference in all of college football, and if they were anywhere else they most likely would not be 1-2.

The defense struggled against Auburn, but came out strong and kept themselves in the game against LSU. This team should reach the eight win mark this season and become bowl eligible.

Auburn Is a Work in Progress

The defense got torched by Sammy Watkins and the Clemson Tigers Saturday, and the offense made some serious bloopers.

The Auburn front seven is the main concern for this team because when they don't play well they expose a struggling Auburn secondary.

While they still have some outstanding talent, it is difficult to imagine this team winning more than six games.