Best and Worst SEC Football Performances: Week 3

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Erich Schlegel-USA TODAY Sports

Auburn’s defense (especially against the run)

– Muschamp’s defense was absolutely obliterated in week three by the rushing attack of the Tigers. LSU Running back Leonard Fournette, who was on the bests list in week 2, showed up again on Saturday and totaled 228 yards on 19 carries against Auburn. Fournette averaged a whopping 12 yards per carry on the day, including a 71 yard gain on the first play from scrimmage, on his way to three touchdowns.

At one point in the game, an Auburn defender was so tired of being trucked and run over by Fournette that he tried to grab the ram by the horns and tackle him from the top. Fournette easily flipped the defender over his shoulder and ran in for a score.

The really bad part about this game, besides Fournette’s monster numbers that resulted in 21-45 scoreline in favor of LSU, was the Auburn Tiger’s defense. The defense couldn’t stop a bus in a residential neighborhood, that’s how bad they were. The Auburn defense gave up 485 total yards and 20 first downs against LSU and couldn’t cause a turnover.

This brutal loss to an SEC West rival comes after last weeks slim victory over Jacksonville State which took overtime to decide. If the Auburn Tigers don’t figure something out defensively to stop elite SEC opponents and can’t find a way to help their defense stay off the field with a consistent offense, they will be ending up on this worst in the SEC list week after week, just like in weeks 2 & 3. Look for Auburn to rebound in week 4 but the game is a nail-bitter.

Sep 19, 2015; Lexington, KY, USA; Kentucky Wildcats quarterback Patrick Towles (14) runs the ball against the Florida Gators at Commonwealth Stadium. Florida defeated Kentucky 14-9. Mandatory Credit: Mark Zerof-USA TODAY Sports

Patrick Towles, QB, Kentucky

– Junior quarterback Patrick Towles couldn’t figure out the Florida Gators secondary on Saturday as the Gators extended their winning streak against the Wildcats to 29 games. Towles was eight of 24 passing for 126 yards and ran for -8 yards against a stout rush defense.

The Gators held Towles and the Wildcats to 241 total yards but didn’t do much better only tallying 245 yards of offense. The difference was the play of the quarterbacks. While Florida freshman Will Grier was able to find the end zone on a broken play that ended in six for the Gators, Towles couldn’t get out of his own backfield.

Some of that falls on the offensive line and credit the Gators defense for shutting down the run and disrupting the passing lanes, like on Vernon Hargreaves III interception in the first quarter. But Towles needs to step up and score for the Wildcats if they want to win more SEC games this year than in 2014.

The Wildcats are hopeful that their returning players will lead them to a winning record this season. If Towles doesn’t step up his game, they could be in trouble and fans might instead start talking about basketball season very soon in Lexington.

Missouri

– The team overall played pretty poorly in week three. Critics say that quarterback Maty Mauk follows up a good game with a poor one like it is routine and he stuck to that in Mizzou’s 9-6 win over UCONN on Saturday.

After scoring three touchdowns and leading his team to a comeback victory in week 2, Mauk threw for 145 yards and an interception against the Huskies. Mauk found the end zone on the ground, but the other players on his offense couldn’t get anything going. The entire team struggled as the Tigers escaped with a victory.

A bright spot for the Tigers was a team safety in the first quarter, but this game was nothing to write home to mom about. Mizzou really has to be consistent week in and week out if they want to make it back to the SEC Championship in 2015 and stay in the AP top 25.

Next: Biggest Takeaways from Week 3

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