PALMER: What LSU learned from its upcoming SEC opponents

By Hunt Palmer

A banged-up LSU team enjoyed the week off.

Six SEC games await these Tigers, and three of those opponents took the field Saturday to kick off October. We know LSU has three home games and three road games left in SEC play. We also know 5-1 is the likely goal for playoff qualification. One year is a small sample size to draw from for that conclusion, but it’s a reasonable one.

Alabama and Vanderbilt played a close game for three quarters but got away from the Commodores late. And then a Jam Miller touchdown with 17 ticks left decided the gambling outcome. Texas A&M smoked Mississippi State after halftime. Oklahoma beat the worst FBS team in the country 44-0.

South Carolina and Arkansas took the week off with LSU.

Here’s what I learned on Saturday about LSU’s opponents.

ALABAMA’S QUARTERBACK CAN WIN GAMES

I had low expectations for Ty Simpson. He’d been in Tuscaloosa for three years and hadn’t been able to get to the field in front of the grossly inconsistent Jalen Milroe (unless he was playing LSU). Simpson is not a threat with his legs, but he’s been sensational with his arm for a month.

On Saturday he threw for 340 yards and a pair of scores and made some incredible throws in the process. Four different Alabama pass catches has a reception of 25-plus yards. Simpson is accurate and strong-armed. At this point, he may be the best quarterback in the SEC. I’ll hear arguments for John Mateer, Trinidad Chambliss or Beau Pribula. Any argument that doesn’t include Simpson, though, is invalid.

VANDERBILT’S PASSING GAME IS ITS WEAK LINK

Diego Pavia is the face of the Vanderbilt program, but his passing is the worst aspect of the team. That sounds like a shot at Pavia, but it’s meant as a compliment to everything else Vanderbilt does. The 30-14 final doesn’t indicate how competitive the game was. Vanderbilt trailed by six entering the fourth quarter and turned the ball over twice in the red zone. One of those was an awful Pavia interception.

The ‘Dores ran for 7.6 yards per carry, including a 65-yard touchdown run from Sedrick Alexander. He also caught a gorgeous shovel pass for a score in the first half. Vandy struggled to contain Jam Miller on the ground and Ryan Williams through the air. Those two are more talented than anyone in black and gold, but the Commodores were game in Bryant-Denny Stadium Saturday afternoon. That will be a tough game for LSU to go win.

OKLAHOMA’S KICKER IS AWESOME

Kent State is atrocious. The Golden Flashes rank 136th of 136 in scoring defense and 133rd of 136 in scoring offense. That’s really hard to do. So, not much of what Oklahoma did in a 44-0 win matters much.

However, Tate Sandell had a hell of a day booting the football. Sandell made all three of his field goal attempts. His first came from 49, and he drilled a 55-yarder just before the half. He added a 39-yarder, as well. Sandell is 9-for-10 on the season with three makes from over 50.

REUBEN OWENS IS A&M’S BEST BACK

Le’Veon Moss is a heck of an SEC running back. Reuben Owens is better. Lucky for Texas A&M, they don’t have to choose. They can just feed both. Owens missed last season with a torn ACL, but he’s back. And Mississippi State found that out. Owens ran for 142 of Texas A&M’s 303 yards Saturday night. The Aggies annihilated an outmanned State team in the second half, outscoring the Bulldogs 24-6 after intermission.

The Aggies return four starters on that offensive line, and with Marcel Reed‘s athleticism in the backfield with those two backs, the running game is a problem for defenses. Owens hadn’t carried the ball more than seven times in any game this year. He carried 21 on Saturday night. I doubt he has a game with under 10 the rest of the way. The former five-star prospect is a handful with the ball.

LSU’s future opponents looked good on Saturday. It’s going to be a tough final two months for this Tiger team. A week of rest should help some of the guys dealing with bumps and bruises. The defense remains excellent. It’ll be up to the offense to hold up its end of the bargain against some really good teams the rest of the way.