Last weekend gave us a little meaningful sample size for evaluation, not that my ballot changed that radically from Week 3. But I have to admit the SEC is impressing me less than it did before the season started.
- Alabama. Yes, I know the Tide is 13th in the conference in total offense and 9th in total defense. What’s your point?
- LSU. The team took a vote and gave Jeremy Hill a pass on his next brush with the law.
- Georgia. You know, this is a pretty decent bunch when it manages to stay out of its own way.
- Texas A & M. Can a squad that’s last in total defense win the SEC?
- South Carolina. Why are the Gamecocks traveling to Central Florida for a game?
- Ole Miss. Shit’s about to get real, Rebel Black Bears.
- Florida. Before you get too excited, Gators, you beat a Tennessee team that was annihilated the week before by Oregon.
- Missouri. Third straight win, 628 yards against a Big Ten opponent that had averaged 50 points per game. The Tigers should be 4-0 in September before facing SEC competition. They may be 4-4 by the end of October.
- Vanderbilt. Really, you had to wear UMass down to pull away in the fourth quarter, Vanderbilt?
- Auburn. I’d like to push Auburn higher, but that defense gives me pause for thought.
- Mississippi State. Signs of life in pounding Troy. Hey, you gotta start somewhere.
- Arkansas. Brandon Allen was injured, which is why I’m giving the Hogs the benefit of the doubt and not ranking them lower.
- Tennessee. Glass half-empty or half-full time, Vols: You knock Driskel out of the game and still lose by two touchdowns. Or, you turn the ball over six times in the Swamp and only lose by two touchdowns!
- Kentucky. Florida, South Carolina and Alabama for the next three weeks. This is not going to end well.
Get The Picture 
Schedule whining is almost always overblown in my book, but I do have to express at least a modicum of sympathy for Tennessee. At least their Oregon game was a 3:30 ET kickoff. That’s still a real bear of a flight home. Then, a week later, they’ve got to travel down to Gainesville and play one of their most important games of the year. That’s a tough turnaround. I am not sure how much fatigue played into all those turnovers and how much it was just them being a crappy team. Neither explanation really explains Florida’s turnover bug, though.
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UT’s starting quarterback was very well rested. Didn’t seem to help.
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“I’ll be blunt.”
“I’m burnt out. I’m fried. My mind is as barren as the surface of the moon. I can run that offense no longer.”
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The Swamp will always be Burma to Peterman, 4-11, 5 yards, 2 ints and a fumble
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Also, I understand it is warm in Florida.
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That’s an urban legend, just like the sombrero
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At this point, I can’t blame you for having LSU ahead of Georgia, but I don’t think I’d blame you if you had it reversed, either.
Mettenberger looked great against UAB and Kent State – he looked pretty pedestrian against TCU and Auburn. Texas Tech just held TCU to ten points. They scored 27 on the Tigers.
Seriously though, since this is a power poll, I’m taking this to mean that you expect the Dawgs to lose against LSU this weekend (or to win the game by less than 3 points)?
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I’d say it’s more of a 2A/2B situation. I gave undefeated LSU the benefit of the doubt and listed the Tigers first.
The spread looks about right to me.
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That’s fair. If you’d told me you had LSU ahead of Georgia simply because we play them this week and you didn’t want to jinx us, I’d have counted that as a valid reason as well.
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Hmm, I wonder if the Gators caused those six turnovers or if Tennessee just handed the ball to them like UF did against us last year.
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The first quarter provided enough bloopers to last most teams a season. The biggest thing to come from that game is the emergence of Murphy as a more than adequate replacement for the injured Driskel and the knowledge that if Murphy goes down, Purifoy will be forced to become the Gator version of Hines Ward.This may severly limit the amount of running (due to injury risk) that Murphy will be allowed to do.
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“You know, this is a pretty decent bunch when it manages to stay out of its own way.” One of your more astute observations.
I hope I am wrong, this week anyway, but LSU looks better than Bama to me.
Course Auburn is hardly TAMU…or are they? Defensively? Hmmm.
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Why are the Gamecocks traveling to Central Florida for a game?
Orlando means a lot to the program. It is where their biggest bowl game took place.
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Excellent! You can’t spell Citrus Bowl without poseur USC
Plus, next to Steve, their most famous celebrity ex-coach is cooped up down there. His handlers sometimes even let him out to strut through the woods before feeding time
http://www.celebrityhousepictures.com/lou-holtz.php
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I love that Kentucky is dead last. Love having them in the SEC. I believe, if I were a student there, I would not be in school during football season. Have a friend who has a Masters is Math from UK. Real successful, good looking chic. Knows absolutely nothing about FB.
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Joy,
Given those three categories, how you rating yourself?
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On a scale of 1 – 10 …I’d say I am an 8.
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In this morning’s fun with numbers challenge, why not take it to the limit one of these nights with an 11?
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Might try that tonight. Celebrating my Birthday at NS Tavern!
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YOLO!
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… but that defense gives me pause for thought.
Understatement of the young season right there, Senator. I know you’re just being kind because I described their defense to a friend who was unable to watch as “silly.” I have never before called anyone’s defense “silly” to my knowledge.
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i’d wager that south carolina can beat texas a&m.
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+1
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