Sheesh. Well, it’s game day. For some at least. Every Saturday morning we roll out an update on everything you need to know for your game day, but after the FAA issued a nationwide groundstop for travel, this week’s final 24 hours before kickoff was wildly chaotic.
Here’s everything you may have missed and need to know for Week 11.
Against all odds, John Mateer will play on Sunday
One of the wildest Fridays in recent memory took place yesterday. The FAA groundstop impacted the entire nation which means it also impacted college football Saturday. Several SEC teams were delayed while traveling to away games, and as night fell at airports nationwide there were still three teams that were still scrambling to leave. One of those teams was Ole Miss. After the groundstop was lifted around 8:00 p.m. EST, they were the only team that still hadn’t figured out travel plans.
Tennessee and Texas both took later flights. Texas didn’t even arrive at their team hotel in Baton Rouge, until after midnight. Ole Miss, with the help of SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, decided that wasn’t a viable option for them. The game was originally set for 3:15 p.m. on Saturday but was moved to noon on Sunday. That not only put a wrench in travel plans for 80,000 people heading to Norman, but it also gave an Ole Miss team with 16 players on their availability report an extra day to rest.
Several teams around the league took buses to their opponent’s city. Auburn and Alabama took four-hour rides to Starkville and Nashville, respectively. Ole Miss was the only team in the conference who couldn’t figure out how to make the travel work, and Oklahoma’s athletic director let them know that in a statement he released.
This game has only been played three times in the history of the programs, but it may very well be a rivalry after what happened Friday.
Alabama starting its backup QB against Vanderbilt
Alabama starting QB Keelon Russell was a noticeable addition to this week’s availability report. An ankle injury against LSU put him there, but with one of the easiest remaining strength of schedules in the SEC, the Tide can potentially afford to rest some key players. That includes Russell, as we found out on Friday.
Alabama announced that longtime backup QB Austin Mack would make the start for the Tide against Vanderbilt. Mack has played as the second-string signal caller for several years now on Kalen DeBoer’s team, even transferring to Alabama from Washington where the two initially worked together. Mack still has another year of eligibility and will most likely enter the transfer portal when it opens this year. This is a big moment for him to help his stock when that potentially happens this January.
It should be noted that Keelon Russell isn’t out for the game, and will be available if needed.
LaNorris Sellers to play, Nyck Harbor out for South Carolina
South Carolina is in the middle of a four-game winning streak. Next week, Georgia comes to town for a primetime game under the lights with College Gameday potentially coming to town as well. All of that is on the table along with a potential spot in the College Football Playoff if they are able to win out. None of that matters if they lose to Arkansas.
That is a bigger concern than what some initially may have thought after seeing this week’s availability report that included Nyck Harbor, J’Zavien Currence, Nitro Tuggle, Matt Fuller, and star quarterback LaNorris Sellers. All of those names are players who are starters or have been at some point this season, and all of the names on the list except Sellers are now out for the game against Arkansas.
Sellers injured his ankle last week against Texas A&M.
Betting Line Movement
Alabama at Vanderbilt
Opening Line: Alabama -19.5
Current Line: Alabama -14
Tennessee at Texas A&M
Opening Line: Tennessee -2.5
Current Line: Tennessee -1
Missouri at Georgia
Opening Line: Georgia -12.5
Current Line: Georgia -16.5
Auburn at Mississippi State
Opening Line: Auburn -3.5
Current Line: Auburn -2.5
Ole Miss at Oklahoma
Opening Line: Ole Miss -1.5
Current Line: Oklahoma -2.5
Florida at Kentucky
Opening Line: Kentucky -1.5
Current Line: Kentucky -3.5
Texas at LSU
Opening Line: LSU -3
Current Line: LSU -5
South Carolina at Arkansas
Opening Line: South Carolina -7.5
Current Line: South Carolina -9.5
Takeaways
The biggest change came in the Alabama-Vanderbilt game which feels obvious because of the Friday afternoon news that Mack would be starting. Elsewhere, some small road favorites woke up on Saturday morning, and saw their already miniscule line dwindle down to around a point or 1.5 points. Auburn and Tennessee are both traveling to play in hostile environments against dangerous teams with losing records.
The one that stands out the most for all eight is what happened in the Oklahoma-Ole Miss game. The outside noise clearly made its way inside the four walls of the Oklahoma locker room and football program. Expect the Sooners to be very mad when they take the field on Sunday after the debacle that occurred Friday night with Ole Miss’ travel and Sankey’s decision to move the game. The point spread points to that exact feeling as well.
