Hey kids!
I hope everyone enjoyed week five of the college football season. What initially seemed to be a boring slate of games turned into a pretty exciting day. Outside of the SEC, Clemson/Syracuse was a fight for the second year in a row. Ohio State/Penn State didn’t disappoint (unless you were cheering for Penn State).
We don’t have much of a shakeup in the Power Rankings this week. Our top six remain the same, with some changes to the middle of the pack. Don’t misinterpret the lack of changes though. We still learned plenty about the SEC this weekend. Let’s go to the rankings and see what happened!
1. Alabama – Same story, different day. The Tide dismantled an inferior opponent to the surprise of nobody. Alabama scored at will and could continue to do so all season. (Stoney has Tua Tagovailoa at #5 in his Heisman Watch, but he’ll win if he stays healthy. Mark it down.) Alabama heads to Arkansas for what Nick Saban calls a “trap game.”
2. Georgia – The Bulldogs are still the second best team in the SEC (and the country), but didn’t play like it on Saturday. Georgia let Tennessee hang around entirely too long last Saturday, which is a big no-no for top tier teams. The Bulldogs just don’t seem to have hit their stride yet. But when they do? That’s bad news for the rest of the SEC. They host Vanderbilt this weekend.
3. LSU – The Tigers seemingly get zero respect from the rest of the college football world. Even with two top 10 wins, most aren’t giving LSU a chance to win the SEC or the CFB Playoff. Joe Burrow is playing some great football, but the rest of the offense doesn’t seem to be a threat. As long as the defense continues to destroy teams, it might not even matter. They head to Florida this weekend.
4. Kentucky – Another week, another win for the Wildcats. I’m officially a believer. Kentucky put on a good show against South Carolina and notched another SEC win. I don’t think anyone saw a 5-0 Kentucky right now, but the SEC is better for it. Georgia will be put on notice if Benny Snell and company take down Texas A&M.
5. Auburn – I’m having a hard time figuring the Tigers out this season. They are a few pieces away from being a top threat in the SEC. The offensive line needs to protect Jarrett Stidham and maybe help get some form of running game going. They head to Starkville this weekend.
6. Texas A&M – A classic Alabama hangover, the Aggies struggled to put away a pitiful Arkansas squad. A&M is still a good team, but they’re 4th best in the West on a good day. They need to shake the cobwebs off fast. Kentucky comes to Kyle Field Saturday. (How wild is it that Kentucky is a major threat to A&M?)
7. Florida – Maybe the Gators aren’t actually a bad team. Maybe the loss to Kentucky isn’t a terrible loss. Maybe Feleipe Franks is actually a good QB. Ok, that last one was a lie. Still, Dan Mullen stole a win in his old stomping grounds without lighting up the scoreboard. That might be tougher to accomplish when they welcome LSU to the Swamp.
8. Mississippi State – WHAT. HAPPENED? The wheels have fallen off in the last two weeks, with consecutive losses to unranked teams. Joe Moorhead walked into a good situation in Starkville and the underperforming has the locals restless already. The offensive line needs to pull it together quickly. They could be looking at a third straight loss when Auburn rolls into Starkville.
9. South Carolina – I really thought the Gamecocks were a contender in the East. I really did. I own that. Jake Bentley and the offense haven’t been consistent while the defense has major holes in the secondary. That doesn’t bode well for a team hosting Drew Lock this weekend.
10. Missouri – The Tigers come off of a bye week. Drew Lock heads to South Carolina this weekend. Maybe the rest of the Tigers will join him.
11. Ole Miss – The nWo of Ole Miss went missing against LSU. The terrifying shark mascots usually lean on the high octane offense, but have been exposed in the worst way. Even with the struggles down in the Grove, fans shouldn’t be calling for Matt Luke’s job yet. You aren’t going to do better right now. Luke will right the ship. For some reason Ole Miss plays AT Louisiana-Monroe.
12. Vanderbilt – Since losing to Notre Dame, the Commodores haven’t been playing the same. A narrow win over TSU won’t do it in the SEC. Especially considering Vanderbilt trailed at half time. It won’t get better when they head to Athens.
13. Tennessee – UT might not be in the basement, but they’re on the bottom step.
14. Arkansas – At least you can talk to Tennessee, but they’ll probably ignore you
Poppa Bear is the Lead SEC Analyst for the SoBros Network, and serves as our resident expert on the human anatomy, fixin’ stuff, and tomatoes. Follow on Twitter:@SoBroPoppaBear
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