1. Florida 34 – Miami of Ohio 12

“Bad News” Gators overcome sloppy start.

Two starters suspended.

George Diaz: Improv comedy at its worst.

2. Georgia 55 – La. Lafayette 7

Even without A.J. Green, Bulldogs dominate Ragin’ Cajuns.

Murray and new-look Bulldogs grow in blowout.

Defense responds to Grantham.

3. Kentucky 23 – Louisville 16

Joker gets his first win.

Cats got the win Joker needed.

Mike Hartline’s successful return.

4. Arkansas 44 – Tennessee Tech 3

Ryan Mallett and the Razorbacks roll.

Good start for Razorbacks’ defense.

5. Alabama 48 – San Jose State 3

Top-ranked Tide does everything well in opener.

Julio Jones involved early and often.

Kevin Scarbinsky: One down – 13 to go.

6. Auburn 52 – Arkansas State 26

608 yards of offense for the Tigers.

Cam Newton makes it look easy.

Jon Solomon: Just another roller-coaster ride at Auburn.

7. Mississippi State 49 – Memphis 7

Whether it’s Chris Relf or Tyler Russell at QB, Mississippi State coach Dan Mullen can’t go wrong.

Bulldogs hit on all cylinders in routing Memphis.

8. Tennessee 50 – Tennessee-Martin 0

Defense gets its wish – a shutout.

The Derek Dooley era begins.

9. Northwestern 23 – Vanderbilt 21

Mistakes prove costly for Commodores.

Controversy in opener – Vandy fans shower refs with liquids.

10. LSU 30 – North Carolina 24

Tigers hold off North Carolina rally.

LSU finds the Tar Heels backups tough.

Jacksonville State 49 – Ole Miss 48 (2OT)

Two-OT stunner – Rebels can’t seal the deal at home

Houston Nutt: “Worst loss I’ve ever had”

Ole Miss QB Nathan Stanley: Rebels “let up” after halftime

The Sunday Morning hangover

A “game changer” for JSU

All is not lost for Ole Miss

Can a conference that has won four consecutive titles (let’s throw the mythical Auburn ’04 team in there since we’re all things SEC) and has the #1 and #3 ranked teams heading into 2010 actually be down? Six conference teams in the top-25 and be down? Yes, I believe the conference as a whole has been down the last two years, but the expanding collection of hardware has deservedly kept the league’s lofty status as the supreme football conference in the country intact.

But after reading all the opinions and analysis about how top heavy 2010 will be one name comes to mind: Dolly Parton. Experts rave about the two teams up top (Alabama and Florida), but seemingly ignore everything else. Well, experts, Dolly Parton’s old, Tim Tebow’s on a mission with unicorns in Denver and Florida isn’t going to Atlanta this year.

Read the rest of this entry »

Outside of Boise State beating Virginia Tech in the football hotbed of the District of Columbia, the big winner of this weekend can’t actually win even if his team does. When Les Miles and LSU face North Carolina in the SEC Invitational tonight, what was a potential tipping point at one time for the LSU coach may end up being yet another artificial Tiger win against a “ranked” team in the eyes of Tiger fans.

I believe Miles’ nightmares probably look like something out of the movie “The Shining,” except every word in the 300 page book Miles wrote says, “Roster. Roster. Roster.”

Read the rest of this entry »

1. Lyons Talks Bama Uniforms

2. SEC Commitment Comparison

3. LSU Offers Mettenberger; How Is This Different Than Masoli’s Situation?

4. Why So Serious?  UK’s Coach Wants To Reach The Next Level

5. Chickillo Likes Vols Assistant

1. Miami of Ohio at Florida

A new era begins in Gator football

Let’s see what Santa Urban has brought us this year.

2. Louisiana-Lafayette at Georgia

New attractions abound today at Sanford Stadium.

Five keys to a Bulldogs victory.

Another arrest at Georgia. No more excuses.

3. Jacksonville State at Ole Miss

Ole Miss gets two pieces of good news before their season opener.

Jacksonville State is the favorite to win its conference.

4. Kentucky at Louisville

Two new coaches try to win their first game

The rivalry ingredients to make a spicy stew.

5. Tennessee Tech at Arkansas

Easy to laugh about Bobby Petrino’s first season at Arkansas but it was no joking matter.

Tennessee Tech gets a $450,000 payday for tonight’s game.

6. San Jose State at Alabama

Doesn’t matter who you are playing, you still get opening game jitters.

Any doubt who has all the advantages?

In 81 years, Bryant-Denny stadium has seen eight major renovations.

7. Arkansas State at Auburn

Cam Newton has become the face of Auburn football

The Auburn Tigers are aiming high in Gene Chizik’s second season

The Tigers are 14-0 all-time against Sun Belt opponents.

8. Memphis at Mississippi State

Junior QB Chris Relf leads the Bulldogs tonight.

The Bulldogs are tired of talking and ready to play.

9. Tennessee-Martin at Tennessee

How will new Vols coach Derek Dooley run the sideline at Neyland Stadium?

Tennessee’s defensive line is impressed with Tennessee’s offensive line.

10. Northwestern at Vanderbilt

Northwestern wins. Why can’t Vandy?

These two teams haven’t face each other since 1952.

11. LSU vs North Carolina

Les Miles: “There’s a little juice involved in opening the season in the Georgia Dome and on national television.”

LSU is 7-1 at the Georgia Dome

North Carolina will be without 13 players tonight.

A new addition to the Mr.SEC team, please allow me to briefly set the stage… The fantastic work done by the guys running this site, bringing you news from every southern outpost, has become a daily stop for many of you. Whether it’s between (or during) meetings at work, a last check on the phone before calling it a day, or skirting a few responsibilities on the home front, this site has become HQ for all-things SEC Monday-Friday. My assignment is to lure you back here on Saturday for your SEC fix in Tyler’s Take. I’m going to “take on” a subject or two and highlight the marquee SEC games with a bit of commentary for you each weekend.  Enjoy it or hate it, here we go…

Well, ESPN, as a football fan, you almost made me wish it was February again. After months of anticipation our season opens with Lou Holtz and Mark May without his transition lenses!? Outside of picking my jaw up off the floor after an Alabama player sporting “Bama Bangs” delivered a dead-on impersonation of a Nick Saban tirade, I learned exactly ONE thing during the entire 30 minute kick-off special: My hearing wasn’t severely damaged in the off-season as I first thought; my ears just weren’t in shape for Lou Holtz. So, to start off the season with a bang, I salute you John Saunders for rescuing this “special.”

First Half Thoughts: Read the rest of this entry »

Georgia freshman Alec Ogletree has been suspended for tomorrow’s season opener following his arrest on a misdemeanor charge of theft-by-taking.

Mark Richt announced the decision this afternoon.  “I’m disappointed in the situation and will continue to gather information as the case is processed through the proper legal channels.  In the meantime, Alec is still responsible for a poor decision and will serve a minimum one-game suspension as a result.”

Ole Miss has won its appeal with the NCAA and Jeremiah Masoli is free to join the Rebels immediately.  The NCAA released a statement reversing its decision from earlier this week just moments ago.

From a legal standpoint — if you want to use the word “legal” — this decision is not a surprise.  Precedent has been set in previous cases in which the NCAA did allow players to gain their waivers immediately.  The NCAA, in denying Masoli initially, had ruled on the spirit or the rule rather than the letter of the rule.  Ole Miss successfully pointed that out in its appeal process.

The surprise comes in the fact that the NCAA reversed its own decision.  Known for sometimes making up the rules as it goes the body sided with the what’s actually in the rulebook on this occasion.

Whether or not you like the idea of Masoli playing right away or not, you can’t argue the fact that the NCAA did rule accurately — in the end — when it comes to the words laid out in its own rulebook.

According to WHBQ-AM 560 in Memphis (and their Twitter account):

“Ole Miss had a teleconference with the NCAA today, with Houston Nutt & Jeremiah Masoli … but no decision today.”

Take that for what it’s worth.  It’s a talk radio station and it’s Twitter.  The only thing less reliable is a website.  (Hey, wait a second…)


While we’re talking Ole Miss, there is some good news today — Defensive end Kentrell Lockett should be back in action next week.

And there’s also some odd news — The delegate to the US Congress from American Somoa has written a letter to the NCAA decrying its “arbitrary and unfair” decision regarding Masoli.  Somoans everywhere, unite!

According to KelinJohnson.com — the website of a former Georgia safety — former UGA quarterback Zach Mettenberger has received a scholarship offer from LSU for next year.

Mettenberger was dismissed from Georgia’s team this spring.  He pleaded guilty to two misdemeanor charges of sexual battery resulting from an encounter in a Valdosta-area bar.

Let’s assume for a few moments that Kelin Johnson has got this story straight.  (And kudos to him if he’s really breaking it.)


1.  Did LSU fans toss any stones at Ole Miss for trying to land Jeremiah Masoli?  I’m going to guess that that’s a big affirmative on that one.  I wonder if they now view Les Miles’ decision any differently than they did Houston Nutt’s decision?  I’m sure they do… I’m just not sure how.

Both quarterbacks got into off-field trouble.  Both quarterbacks were dismissed from big-time programs.  And then new big-time programs came in to scoop them up.

And Miles isn’t even waiting for the healing waters of a year in the juco ranks to wash away Mettenberger’s sins.  If he came onboard next spring, I would expect to hear his new coach talk about how he’s changed his behavior, proven his character, etc, etc in a year in juco.  But — if this story is true — Miles is already offering.  In other words, if he could get away with it, he’d like to grab him ASAP.  Kinda like Nutt, right?


2.  The NCAA was down on Ole Miss bringing in Masoli because in their view a player should not use the NCAA’s own rules to skirt discipline handed down by an NCAA member institution. 

And how exactly is Mettenberger’s case any different?  He’s using the NCAA’s transfer rules to leave a place where he can’t play to go to a place where he can.

Is it the year he’s to spend in juco that makes everything alright? 

A few of you old birds like me might remember the scene in “Purple Rain” when Prince convinces Apollonia that she needs to purify herself in Lake Minnetonka before he’ll help her career.  (She gets naked, jumps into the water and only then does he tell her that they are at a different lake, not Minnetonka.)

Well, apparently NCAA officials like to put on their long, sequined, purple dusters and encourage wayward players to dunk themselves in the waters of Lake Juco-tonka.

A junior college — even if you’re just arriving, it seems — will alter a man’s heart, mind, soul and behavior so much that he can be given a second shot in D1 football.


3.  Just wondering: Will Stewart Mandel over at SI.com now call Miles a “dirty” coach because he’s willing to trade integrity for victories?


4.  I have nothing against Mettenberger and I hope he gets a second chance.  I also don’t have a problem with Miles for giving him that opportunity.  Mettenberger has cleared himself with the legal system and paid a price (in reputation) for his actions.  Miles won’t be the last coach to offer him a full ride.

But Mettenberger’s case is awfully similar in spirit to Masoli’s.  Both players were booted from their teams.  One is a pariah because he dared to move from one school straight to another in order to play ball again.  The other is okey-dokey because he’s moving from one school to another, too, BUT he’ll go juco first.  And he’s getting scholarship offers before his time at The Rock really even begins.


If the issue is bad kids and second chances, what the heck does a junior college have to do with things? 

Why not just tell guys like Mettenberger and Masoli to just say (or throw) ten “Hail Marys” and then go along on their way? 

I don’t see how a season in junior college makes everything hunky-dory for the second-chance seeking player and the second-chance giving coach.

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1.  Vandy’s Robbie Caldwell is nervous… and ready for battle.

2.  Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald has nothing but praise – of course — for Vandy’s players.

3.  Tennessee’s Derek Dooley knows that UT-Martin was in a dogfight with Auburn just two years ago.

4.  Neyland Stadium will look like a brand new building for tomorrow night’s opener.

5.  South Carolina rolled Southern Miss right out of Columbia last night.  Very impressive performance.

6.  Marcus Lattimore showed the promise the Gamecock fans were hoping for.

7.  Here’s a bit more on the NCAA issues USC faced right up until kickoff.

8.  Bobby Petrino believes nicknames matter at Arkansas.

9.  Arkansas Practice Report, here.

10.  This writer says the Hogs aren’t this year’s “Ole Miss,” Auburn is.

11.  LSU hopes tomorrow’s “showcase” game in Atlanta will help with recruiting.

Sidenote — Former Tiger Eddie Kennison will host an interactive Q&A session with fans at the Allstate Tailgate Tour from 5 to 6pm in the Georgia World Congress Center before the game.  (Wow, it’s almost like I was goaded into mentioning that fact.)

12.  UNC’s Butch Davis was on LSU’s short list as coach… twice.

13.  The NCAA hasn’t forgotten about LSU’s issues revolving around fired assistant DJ McCarthy and former player Akiem Hicks. 

14.  When it comes to big money athletic departments, Florida is aces according to The New York Times.

This morning we wrote that North Carolina has been dealing with some of the same distractions that South Carolina has been coping with.  USC whooped up on Southern Miss last night despite the off-the-field headaches.  In our view, LSU should take UNC serious — despite the negative buzz — because they could use their distractions as a rallying point, too.

But that might prove tougher for UNC than it was for USC.  The NCAA has now declared six Tar Heel starter ineligible for tomorrow night’s game with LSU.  Six more players will also be withheld while the NCAA’s investigation continues.

So the first lucky break of 2010 goes to… Les Miles.  At least that’s how it looks right now.  On paper.

According to The Northeast Mississippi Journal, Ole Miss officials are hopeful that the NCAA respond favorably to their appeal regarding the eligibility of quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.  A final verdict could come today, in fact.

Athletic director Pete Boone has spoken of inconsistencies in the way the NCAA has ruled in this case.  You can bet the name Kenneth Cooper — which me mentioned earlier today — has been brought up to NCAA officials.

Based on the wording of transfer/waiver rule and past precedents, it would appear likely that UM and Masoli will indeed see the original verdict overturned.

But based on the fact that the NCAA usually makes things up as it goes along, I wouldn’t bet two sawmill dollars on Masoli suiting up for the Rebels this year.

Indeed, by the letter of the rule, Masoli shouldn’t have been turned down in the first place. 

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1.  For the fourth straight year, Alabama will have at least one player suspended for NCAA rules violations.

2.  Freshman linebacker CJ Mosley could have an immediate impact (as a backup) with the Tide.

3.  Mark Ingram says the guys on Bama’s offense “want to be the best in school history.”

4.  Auburn will use its young defensive linemen earlier and more often than its young offensive linemen.

5.  Arkansas State’s offense will have some similarities to Auburn’s tomorrow.

6.  Left tackle Lee Ziemba is working to create more leverage for himself when engaging defenders.

7.  This writer says that Dan Mullen is facing a “must-win game” against Memphis.  Year Two, Game One, Must Win?  A little hyperbole never hurt anyone.

8.  Making matters tough for Mullen is the fact that Memphis has a new coach… and therefore the element of surprise is in their favor.

9.  Chris Relf will get the start at quarterback tomorrow but Tyler Russell could see first-half action, too.

10.  The SEC will hand down bell-related monetary fines to MSU at end of the season, not on a week-to-week basis.  “The bell tolls for thee, Grossbard.”

11.  Whether starting defensive end Kentrell Lockett will return to Ole Miss — after heart issues last Saturday — is up in the air at this point.

12.  The Rebels will need to fill the sizable void left by his absence.

13.  Hosuton Nutt says Randall Mackey will get plenty of snaps at quarterback behind Nathan Stanley tomorrow.

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1.  Urban Meyer says his team is ready for gameday.

2.  Sophomore Jon Bostic will likely start at middle linebacker for the Gators tomorrow.

3.  Receiver Frankie Hammond will be suspended from UF’s game with Miami (Ohio) due to his offseason DUI charge.

4.  Georgia has some absences on offense heading into its opener with Louisiana-Lafayette.

5.  Jeff Schultz of The AJC believes UGA should sit AJ Green if the NCAA has any questions about his eligibility.

6.  Georgia Practice Report, here.

7.  Home field advantage hasn’t meant a lot in the Kentucky-Louisville football series.

8.  Quarterback Mike Hartline wants to go from game manager to game changer.

9.  Defensive coordinator Steve Brown thinks his unit’s struggles against spread offenses have been overblown.

10.  Tony Barnhart of The AJC makes his weekend predictions here.

On Tuesday I was in Atlanta to do a segment on CSS’ “SportsNite” with Bob Neal and crew.  Driving into town I flipped on 680 The Fan and listened to “Buck and Kincade” featuring former Georgia quarterback Buck Belue.

The hosts were having a laugh that former Georgia commit Da’rick Rogers had not made Tennessee’s two-deep at wide receiver.  He of course was one of the Vols arrested this summer for his role in a bar brawl (interestingly he received no suspension from the team).  Finishing off the talk about Rogers, one of the hosts said something to the effect of, “Maybe he’s on the police department’s two-deep.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at how SEC fans and backers so easily criticize other programs when in reality they all face the same issues.  After all, Georgia’s Washaun Ealey had just been arrested a few days prior to the Buck and Kincade joke about Rogers.

Well, here’s what happens when you laugh too hard at the issues of other schools: Georgia’s Alec Ogletree now has a warrant out for his arrest.

University of Georgia police took out the warrant yesterday charging Ogletree with “theft by taking.”  (What other kind of theft is there?)

The freshman safety was a key signee for the Dawgs in February.  As Tim Tucker of The AJC points out, Ogletree would be the ninth Georgia player arrested this year.

The lesson?  Even if you’re tempted to poke fun at another school’s arrests, just pipe down and keep your mouth closed.  It’s a bad move to throw stones when you live in a glass house.  And whether you’re in Athens, Knoxville, Gainesville, Tuscaloosa, Starkville or Baton Rouge, eventually, the 5-0 will roll up on your team’s block and drag one of your stars away.

There’s nothing more juvenile — or fate-tempting — than making fun of another school’s arrests.  It’ll bite ya in the rump every time.

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Kudos to Rod Walker of The Jackson Clarion-Ledger for providing some interesting reading the past few days.

First, Walker provided info on a case very similar to that of Jeremiah Masoli… except in its outcome.  Yes, it seems the NCAA did recently give a waiver to another player who like Masoli was trying to work his way around a team’s discipline.

Meet basketball player Kenneth Cooper (photo at left).  Cooper began his career at Oklahoma State before transferring to Louisiana Tech.  He sat out the 2007-08 season as a transfer and then played in 2008-09 for Tech.  He was dismissed from Tech’s team after 15 games for violating team rules.

He stayed at Tech and graduated.  And then he transferred to UAB — taking up another major, etc, etc.  How was he able to join UAB’s team and play?  The NCAA granted his waiver.  And this was last October, less than a year ago.

Apparently the NCAA has since seen the error of its ways and decided to start ruling based on the spirit of the rule rather than upon the letter of the rule.

Either that or the Masoli case garnered tons of national attention while no one outside of Birmingham ever heard a peep about Cooper. 

And that, of course, IS the reason Masoli’s case was handled differently.  The NCAA didn’t like seeing so many headlines about a player skirting one school’s discipline by using an NCAA rule to aid his skirting. 

But that, too, is a problem.  If the NCAA has a rulebook, its contents should be applied evenly.  Bad kid or good kid.  High profile kid or no-name kid.

To be honest, I have no problem with the message the NCAA is sending.  I just think the fact they’re sending it sets an interesting precedent.

Clay Travis, a lawyer by trade, blogged about the issue and argued much the same thing.  (Travis, it should be noted, likes the NCAA’s decision.)

Andy Staples of SI.com calls the NCAA’s enforcement of the transfer waiver rule flat out “hyprocritcal.” 

My view: If the NCAA wishes to prevent players from transferring from school-to-school due to discipline issues, it needs to put that in writing.  Leaving the rulebook open for interpretation only creates bad press and bad blood.  Do Ole Miss fans not have a right to feel ska-rewed by the NCAA now that they know the same body OK’d a player’s move to UAB under very similar circumstances?

I understand that Masoli wouldn’t be transferring had he not been booted from Oregon’s team.  But I also know that Greg Pawlus would not have transferred to Syracuse had he not had a chance to play football.

The fact that one player got into trouble and the other was a squeaky clean Dukie matters in the court of public opinion, but it doesn’t if you read the NCAA’s graduate/transfer/waiver rule.  So if the NCAA wants to make behavior matter, it needs to write it into the graduate/transfer/waiver rule.

Leaving it out and then ruling against a kid — who was good-to-go according to the letter of that law — well, that’s not fair.  Even to a kid who was a trying to skirt discipline by switching schools.

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The search for an on-field replacement for Colonel Reb hasn’t reached its conclusion.  That means the Ole Miss Rebels will once again have to take the field on Saturday without the aid of a living, breathing mascot.

(Pause for dramatic effect.)

But as Rebel officials struggle to make a decision — a horse, a bear, a lion? — we humbly suggest the following (again):

A fightin’ Faulkner should be allowed to stalk the sidelines buoying the boy’s spirits.

I mean, really, how obvious can this choice be?

In light of the last minute suspensions being handed down at South Carolina and Alabama, Georgia fans are biting their nails over the availability of star wideout AJ Green for Saturday’s opener.

Mark Richt would not respond earlier this week when asked if Green was going to play against Louisiana-Lafayette.  “You know I can’t talk about that.  It’s a good try, though.  I just can’t talk.  I don’t know the answer to anything other than I’m not supposed to talk about the situation.  And I really don’t know.”

Green has been investigated for possibly receiving extra benefits from an agent.  Specifically, an agent party in South Beach is believed to be at the crux of the NCAA’s query, but Green has repeatedly said that he’s never even been to Miami.

So will he suit up on Saturday?  If Richt knows, he’s not saying.  More than likely, UGA reps are still waiting for the NCAA to give the thumbs-up or the thumbs-down.

Alabama defensive end Marcell Dareus will miss the Crimson Tide’s first two games (against San Jose State and Penn State) following an NCAA investigation into two trips — not just one — that might have involved contact with agents.

Dareus will also have to pay back $1,787.17.  Actually, that money goes to a charity, but it’s considered a payback of the benefits he received from an agent(s).

Nick Saban said that he plans to appeal the decision in hopes that the suspension would be reduced and Dareus would be available against the Nittany Lions next week.

Saban also said on his radio show that Dareus was “shanghaied a little into this… by some other players.”  Those around the Bama program and around Dareus continue to say that the player did not knowingly violate any NCAA rules.

The Whitney Hotel?  What Whitney Hotel?  And what quarterback controversy?

It’s a long way to Atlanta, but for one night at least it appeared that South Carolina might just be battle ready after all.  Distractions or not.

The Gamecocks’ 41-13 romp over Southern Miss was as impressive as it was unlikely.  Up until 6pm ET last night — an hour and a half before kickoff — the Cocks were preparing to play without 12 players (including freshman running back Marcus Lattimore).  Those 12 had not been with the team since Wednesday.  Talk about off-field worries.  But the NCAA finally sent word that 10 of the 12 could play (Chris Culliver and Jarriel King were ruled out).  The Cocks then survived some early struggles and eventually mopped the floor with the visitors from Hattiesburg. 

Some observations:

* Carolina looked shaky on offense to begin the game.  Two plays for minus yardage and an incomplete pass (when Stephen Garcia took a hit) were all USC had to show for its first series.  To make matters worse, Southern Miss put together a deep drive of its own… until Carolina picked off a pass inside its 20 yard line.  From that point on, things changed.

* The most impressive part of the debut was… the offensive line.  Under their third coach in as many years, the unit struggled on the opening drive and then got called for back-to-back false starts following USC’s drive-stopping interception.  After that the protection for Stephen Garcia improved and there were running lanes to be found for Lattimore.  Carolina rushed for 224 yards.  And that’s a whole lot better than the Cocks’ performance on the ground last year.

* Stephen Garcia looked like a poised veteran.  He was 16 of 23 for 193 yards.  He had two touchdown runs and did not take a sack.  It’s too soon to say that USC’s quarterback issues are behind them — we all know that Spurrier can fire up the QB merry-go-round at any moment — but Garcia did his part to earn some trust from his coach and the fans.  Garcia was solid in 2009.  Not great, but certainly not as bad as the offseason ripping he received from Spurrier suggested.  Even those in Columbia who initially believed the coach was just motivating his QB had come to believe that Spurrier really was down on Garcia.  And he might be again.  But for one night it looked like Carolina has one key ingredient that the other teams in the East don’t have — an experienced, proven quarterback.  Garcia might not yet be Joe Montana, but if the plays as he did last night he can take the Cocks to some new heights in 2010.

* I’m sure folks will be praising Spurrier’s play-calling this morning.  A pitch off of a reverse led to a 52-yard gain by freshman Ace Sanders and set up a USC touchdown, for example.  But play-calling gets too much blame in losses and too much credit in victories.  More impressive was Carolina’s execution for much of the evening.

* Carolina’s defense was back on its heels as Southern Miss made a long first quarter march, but then Ellis Johnson’s unit began to play as though an alarm clock had gone off.  (Or maybe a rooster had crowed.)  Again, it was one game, but the USC defense appears to be solid once again.  If the offense can continue to be balanced, effective and smart with the football, Atlanta should not be ruled out as a possible longshot destination.  And I don’t mean for the Chick-fil-A Bowl.

* Just as the SEC benefits from having Alabama on top in football and Kentucky on top in basketball, it’s good pub for the league when Steve Spurrier is making comments like this:  “We had 41 points with 11 minutes left.  They sort of milked the clock on us.  I was thinking, maybe, for the first time, we might score 50.  We need to score 50 sometime.”  The media loves Spurrier.  If his sixth Carolina team can finally take a step forward then you can bet he’ll start to run his mouth a bit more.  That’ll mean even more eyes and ears on the SEC, which is good for everybody’s recruiting.  As I’ve said in the past, an SEC title game between South Carolina and Ole Miss someday would do wonders for showing that the SEC truly is the strongest, deepest conference in America.  (To those 8 or 9 people who still don’t believe.)

* Finally, last night might serve as a good wake-up call for LSU’s players.  South Carolina has been dealing with players missing practice, a bit of a quarterback debate, and the possibility that the NCAA would banish 12 players from last night’s game.  Rather than fall apart amid the controversies, USC fought like a wounded animal.  That can happen.  And with North Carolina going through similar distractions (as many as 16 Tar Heels are in NCAA limbo), LSU might want to take note of how the other Carolina responded to such matters.  Some teams fold when faced with distractions.  Others come together.  Last night, South Carolina came together.  LSU should be prepared as though North Carolina will do the same.  USC’s performance could be a great help to Les Miles as he tries to prepare his team to face a UNC team that everyone is counting out.

* Anybody else looking forward to the South Carolina-Georgia game?

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Just a quick note to apologize for today’s few and far between posts. 

Have you ever tried to type up a story while zipping through Atlanta on MARTA?  Me, neither.  But I can tell you it’s not easy.

Tunnels aren’t great for my Verizon Wireless card.

Today’s been a “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” type of day… starting off with traffic delays getting out of New York. 

I hope you’ll excuse our lack of updates today.  All will be back to normal tomorrow morning here at MrSEC.  Dozens of stories, dozens of links.  All the news you’ve come to expect from MrSEC every day.

Assuming I eventually make it home.

Everyone knows that defense wins championships in the SEC.  And a quick check of recent league statistics proves it to be true.  But did you know there was a pretty clear shift from offense to defense that took place about eight years ago?

Going back 15 seasons, we broke down each of the SEC champions from 1995 (Florida) right on up through last year (Alabama) in eight major statistical categories.  Here’s what we found, starting with the offensive numbers:


Scoring Offense
The SEC champ led the league in scoring offense 6 times in the last 15 years.  (Florida in 2008, 2000, 1996 and 1995, Auburn in 2004 and Georgia in 2002)

Rushing Offense
Only 2 of the past 15 SEC champions actually led the league in rushing.  That’s a surprisingly low number.  (Florida 2008 and Tennessee 1998)

Passing Offense
Again, only 2 SEC champs since 1995 have topped the league in this category.  And you have to go back a long way to find the last champ to do it.  (Florida in 1996 and 1995)

Total Offense
Only 3 teams in 15 years have led the league in total offense and lifted that round SEC sign in Atlanta.  (Florida in 2008, 1996 and 1995)

Scoring Defense
The SEC’s champion has led the league in points allowed 5 times in the past 15 years.  But all five teams have done so in the last 8 years.  (Alabama 2009, Florida 2008, Auburn 2004, LSU 2003, and Georgia 2002)

Rushing Defense
In the last 15 years, just 3 SEC champs have led the league in this category… but all have occurred in the last 7 years.  (Alabama 2009, Florida 2006, and LSU 2003)

Passing Defense
Want an interesting fact?  Try this one: No SEC champion since 1995 has led the conference in this category.  Got a so-so secondary?  You can win big anyway.

Total Defense
Of the last 15 champs, 3 have led the league in total yards allowed.  Again, all three instances have taken place in the last 7 years.  (Alabama 2009, LSU 2007 and 2003)


Conclusions

* You don’t have to a league-leading offense or defense to win the SEC.  Georgia (2005), LSU (2001), Alabama (1999) and Tennessee (1997) didn’t lead the SEC in any of the 8 main team categories.

* There was a shift from offense to defense right around 2002.  Since that time, only 5 champions have led the league in an offensive category.  However, 11 SEC champs have led the league in a defensive category in that same 8-year span.

* That’s a switch from the 1990s.  Not once between 1995 and 2001 did an SEC champion lead the league in one of the four major defensive categories.

* It’s not breaking news, of course, but even when you do a little simple math with the SEC Media Guide you find that defensive success is more important than offensive success in today’s SEC.

Predictions are fun.  And usually useless.

There’s no telling who’ll be hit with injuries at the worst possible time.  There’s no way to predict which games will be impacted by bad weather.  And it’s impossible to guess which game might change entirely based on an opening-kickoff fumble.

In other words, I wouldn’t go putting any money on the predictions you’re about to read.  But as we’re set to start the 2010 season tonight, here’s the current view from MrSEC.com:


Teams Most Likely To Reach Atlanta

1.  Alabama — The Tide won’t go undefeated this year, but it’s hard to imagine anyone in the West slipping past them in the standings.  The gap closes a little this year, but the Tide is still way out in front.

2.  Florida — The Gators will have new players on the field and new coaches on the sidelines.  They’ve also had a few issues with a particularly cocky and mouthy freshman class.  But the big question is can they replace Tim Tebow — meaning Tebow the team leader and Tebow the automatic-third-down-converter.  Odds are they’ve got the talent to win the division, but…

3.  Georgia — The Bulldogs have talent on offense.  They can insulate new quarterback Aaron Murray by putting veterans at every position around him.  On defense, it doesn’t seem possible that the Dawgs could be any worse than last season.  For those reasons, UGA is our current sleeper to reach Atlanta.


Rising / Falling

As we just noted, Georgia has a lot of pieces in place to compete in the East.  Florida is still the favorite and they’ll get the biggest dose of media scrutiny.  The Dawgs might thrive with lower expectations and an underdog mentality.  UGA is on the rise.

South Carolina looks to be the team set up for disaster.  What should be a good quarterback situation appears murky at the moment.  The Weslye Saunders/Whitney Hotel situation has been a distraction.  Mix in the fact that many people are raising expectations for the Cocks and this could be the perfect storm. 

All that said, if Carolina tops Georgia in Week Two, you can officially flush these last-minute preseason gut feelings.


Best Record For A New Coach

Joker Phillips beats out Derek Dooley and then Robbie Caldwell in this one.  Just look at the Wildcats’ schedule for the reason why.  Louisville, Akron, Western Kentucky and Charleston Southern make up the non-conference part of the slate.  Inside the SEC, UK will go to Ole Miss and Mississippi State and host Auburn.

Dooley’s Vols will face Oregon outside the conference and their SEC West games consist of visits from Alabama and Ole Miss and a road game at LSU.  Advantage Wildcats.

As for Caldwell, if Vandy wins 3 games, he’ll have done a solid job.  The roster is young.  The schedule is tough.  Things don’t look good for the ‘Dores.


Player of the Year on Offense

Ryan Mallett’s stats should be spectacular at year’s end.  As we’ve broken down previously, he’ll need to improve his performance in league games (specifically on the road), but coupling his arm with Bobby Petrino’s system is sure to produce more fireworks.


Player of the Year on Defense

Everyone seems to be going with Alabama’s Dont’a Hightower in this slot, but the edge here goes to LSU cornerback Patrick Peterson.  Both are tremendous players, but Peterson is likely to star in a league filled with great receivers.  He wins on degree of difficulty.


Who’s The Real #2 in the West

We like Georgia as the only real sleeper in the league behind Alabama and Florida.  Period.  But if someone said, “Pick someone from the West or else,” we’d study the teams’ non-division opponents and their matchups with each other:

Arkansas — at Georgia, at South Carolina, Vanderbilt, LSU, at Auburn

LSU — at Vanderbilt, at Florida, Tennessee, at Arkansas, at Auburn

Auburn — South Carolina, at Kentucky, Georgia, LSU and Arkansas

Scratch LSU from the list immediately.  That leaves a head-to-head race between dark horse darlings Auburn and Arkansas.  Auburn has the schedule advantage, but they also have more questions to answer — Is Malzahn’s offense for real?  Will the defense be better? 

We have to wonder about Arkansas’ defense, too, but we can be pretty sure that their offense will thrive.  For those reasons, we like the Hogs to finish #2 in the West.

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