Separation Saturday in the SEC and College Football
Saturday October 2nd will go down as the first Separation Saturday of the year in the SEC. Several teams went in with undefeated records either overall or at least in the conference. In a 12 hour period, much action unfolded on football fields across the south, and here is how it shook out.
No. 12 Ole Miss vs No. 1 Alabama
Photo Credit: USA Today
Lane Kiffin told the CBS sideline reporter to “get your popcorn” ready before kickoff Saturday afternoon against Nick Saban and Alabama, but the show that unfolded was far from what the young brash coach imagined. One successful attempt on 4th down was quickly followed by 3 failed 4th down attempts after which on all 3 occasions Alabama took advantage and put the ball in the endzone. This lead to a 28-0 halftime lead for the tide, after which they just cruised to a convincing 42-21 win at home over the Rebels.
No. 8 Arkansas vs No. 2 Georgia
Photo Credit: USA Today
The Arkansas Razorbacks were riding higher than a 747 coming off victories against the biggest schools in Texas. They quickly learned that they still have work to do to become an elite team in the Southeastern conference. Georgia jumped out early and just ran the ball right at them most of the day en-route to a 37-0 thumping of the hogs. It may take a while to get the bacon smell out of those hedges in Athens. Arkansas has come a long way in less than two season under a passionate coach who loves that program, but they still have a lot of work to do in Fayetteville.
No. 22 Auburn vs LSU
Photo Credit: USA Today
The Auburn Tigers had lost ten straight in Baton Rouge. Their last win against the LSU Tigers in Death Valley happened in 1999. LSU jumped out early on Auburn, but their inability to run the ball combined with a failure to bring down Bo Nix resulted in the visiting tigers scoring late to upset LSU in Baton Rouge late this past Saturday night.
No. 10 Florida vs Kentucky
Photo Credit: USA Today
The Kentucky Wildcats have struggled mightily against the Florida gators to the tune of 1 victory in the last 34 tries going into Saturday’s tilt in Lexington. Florida appeared to have plenty of momentum as they played Alabama really well 2 weeks prior and they absolutely hammered the Tennessee Vols the week before. Kentucky was not to be outdone though as they came in undefeated, and on the strength of a blocked punt and a 4th down stop late in the game, they were able to silence the gators and remain unbeaten this season. You could have won big if you had Kentucky in the preseason as the third undefeated team in the SEC going into the second weekend of October.
The old Pirate lead his Mississippi State team into College Station and came away with treasure. Aggies lost at home to a Mississippi State team that was coming off two straight losses to Memphis and LSU. Tennessee put up 450+ rushing yards on their way to blowing out Missouri this past Saturday, and Vandy and South Carolina got out of conference victories.
Texas A&m is learning that it is not as easy as it seems to replace a multiyear starter at quarterback, and it is made doubly tough when the new starter is lost to injury. To sum it all up, Alabama and Georgia are a cut above everyone in the league. Kentucky is the 3rd best team as of today recordwise, but there is still a lot of football to be played. There will be a lot of back and forth amongst that second tier of teams, and it starts this weekend. Stay tuned and enjoy the pomp and circumstance of southern college football.
