SEC Football: Impressions from Around the Conference, Week Nine

Oct 22, 2016; Columbia, SC, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks quarterback Jake Bentley (4) passes against the Massachusetts Minutemen in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 22, 2016; Columbia, SC, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks quarterback Jake Bentley (4) passes against the Massachusetts Minutemen in the second half at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Another fantastic week of SEC Football is behind us. Below you will find our impressions from this week’s games. There were several intriguing matchups. Be sure to share your own impressions of them in the comments below. Off we go!

Alabama:

  • The Tide had a bye week this week.

Arkansas:

The Razorbacks had a bye week this week.

Nov 21, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers kicker Daniel Carlson (38) kicks off against the Idaho Vandals during the fourth quarter at Jordan Hare Stadium. The Tigers beat the Vandals 56-34. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 21, 2015; Auburn, AL, USA; Auburn Tigers kicker Daniel Carlson (38) kicks off against the Idaho Vandals during the fourth quarter at Jordan Hare Stadium. The Tigers beat the Vandals 56-34. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports /

Auburn:

  • Kamryn Pettway is a beast.
  • Sean White was extremely efficient, largely due to the defense being so concerned with stopping Pettway.
  • Daniel Carlson is a machine.
  • The Tiger defense finally showed a little bit of vulnerability.

Florida:

  • The Florida defense is incredible. They held Georgia to 21 rushing yards as a team.
  • Is Luke Del Rio still rusty? Or is he just not very good? I’m starting to think it’s the latter.
  • Jordan Scarlett is the lead back, but he wasn’t particularly impressive.

Georgia:

  • Georgia’s offense is a raging dumpster fire that won’t be put out this season. The offensive line is not good at run or pass blocking. The receivers are small and can’t catch. Jacob Eason is still raw. That’s a bad combination.
  • The Georgia defense performed admirably, but it wasn’t enough.
  • I can punt as far as Georgia’s punters can.

Kentucky:

  • The Wildcats have found a great running back tandem in Stanley Williams and Benjamin Snell Jr.
  • Stephen Johnson had one interception, but played well otherwise.
  • The Wildcat defense is not a great unit, but they didn’t have to be this week.

LSU:

The Tigers had a bye week this week.

Oct 29, 2016; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Nick Fitzgerald (7) gets away from Samford Bulldogs defensive lineman Ke
Oct 29, 2016; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Nick Fitzgerald (7) gets away from Samford Bulldogs defensive lineman Ke /

Mississippi State:

  • Nick Fitzgerald was a one-man offense. He passed and ran the ball excellently.
  • Donald Gray and Fred Ross both had big days catching the football.
  • The Bulldog defense is just embarrassing at this point. You can’t give up 41 points to Samford. You just can’t do it.

Missouri:

  • Drew Lock performed pretty well.
  • The running game never really got going for the Tigers.
  • The Tiger defense is extremely soft against the interior running game.

Ole Miss:

  • Aside from one horrible interception Chad Kelly played marvelously.
  • Evan Engram showed why he is going to be a high draft pick this spring, though he did drop what would have likely been his second touchdown of the evening.
  • The Ole Miss defense is horrendous. They largely knew what was coming but still couldn’t do anything to stop it.

South Carolina:

Oct 29, 2016; Columbia, SC, USA; Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Joshua Dobbs (11) rolls out against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the second quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 29, 2016; Columbia, SC, USA; Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Joshua Dobbs (11) rolls out against the South Carolina Gamecocks in the second quarter at Williams-Brice Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Blake-USA TODAY Sports /
  • Jake Bentley is the answer at the quarterback spot. He didn’t throw for a lot of yards, but he was efficient and took care of the ball.
  • Rico Dowdle had a great night at the running back spot. He and Bentley will form a solid Carolina backfield for years to come.
  • The South Carolina defense played well, apart from letting John Kelly run all over them.

Tennessee:

  • Joshua Dobbs got outplayed by a true freshman making his second career start. That’s not a good look for a senior.
  • Jalen Hurd didn’t do anything. He played like garbage. John Kelly had a good game however.
  • The Tennessee defense is still banged up and it showed. They didn’t get the job done in this one.

Texas A&M:

It’s hard to take much away from this one considering how bad New Mexico State is.

With that said, everyone played well.

The reserves got a lot of playing time, which is always nice to see.

More from SEC Football

Vanderbilt:

  • The Commodores had a bye week this week.

Thank you for reading. Be sure to “like” us on Facebook and “follow” us on Twitter. Also, be sure to post your impressions from this week’s SEC Football action in the comments below. And finally, be sure to check in with us tomorrow for our “3 Things to Watch For Recap.”