Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
By Alondra Villarreal
Last weekend’s SEC slate brought us all the things we’ve come to know and love, a little drama, some answers and the classic “they got cheated by the refs.”
LSU built rhythm in its tune-up despite an injured QB, Missouri kept rolling, South Carolina kept stumbling, and Jackson Arnold fell short in his revenge game (enter refs).
The reality show that is college football only gets better as the SEC season heats up, so here are three more storylines to watch this weekend.
Hard Launch the Week of Ole Miss vs. LSU
LSU’s star linebacker Whit Weeks is dating Lane Kiffin’s daughter, and she hard launched it the week
LSU heads to Oxford to play her dad’s team. This is just good old fashioned gossip. But once you get past the gossip, the game itself is also something to pay attention to.
Garrett Nussmeier looked much better vs. Southeastern last weekend, but that was Southeastern. Caden Durham is currently injured, which is a blow to an already thin running back room. Ole Miss, on the other hand, is set to start Trinidad Chambliss over Austin Simmons for the first time.
LSU will go on the road to face their first ranked opponent since Clemson in the opener, who is no longer ranked. You also have play callers that will be playing the ultimate chess match in Blake Baker and Lane Kiffin.
This is a prove it game for LSU. Is this team and offense as good as we think it is? Will the defense be able to shut down Chambliss and the offense? And will Lane Kiffin put Landry up for adoption if they lose?
Aggies Catch Fire, Tigers Need Proof
It’s still early in the season, but this feels like a defining game for Auburn and Jackson Arnold.
The Tigers started 3–0, but dropped a game in Norman last week against Oklahoma. Hugh Freeze and Arnold are both coming off seasons that were mediocre at best, and after that hot start, they need to prove that it wasn’t a fluke.
On the other side, Texas A&M is cooking. Marcel Reed has been intriguing ever since he diced up LSU last season, and now he’s leading an Aggies team that already has a statement win on the road at Notre Dame. Reed and A&M look like a group that’s building real momentum.
So which way does this go? Do the Aggies keep streaking, or is this finally the week Auburn makes a statement and plays itself into the Top 25 conversation?
Alabama is a (De)BORE, Georgia Becoming the New Standard
I am of the opinion that Alabama is not the Bama of old, obviously, but I just don’t find them very intriguing since Kalen DeBoer took over. The physicality and “dawg” mentality seems to be gone, and while they are still in the middle of the pack in CFB, that’s not what Alabama is used to.
Kirby Smart and Georgia have become that team, even starting to leave their mark while Nick Saban was still at Alabama. The Bulldogs are currently ranked 6th and are 3-0, but I think this game will tell us a lot about both teams.
Bama has truly been up and down this season. They lost their opener vs. FSU, run up the score on ULM, and beat a bad Wisconsin team, so I don’t think you can know whether the Tide is good or not from these games.
Georgia does have a statement win this season vs. Tennessee in overtime, and they do have that physicality and tough mentality that Alabama is missing.
Although I find Alabama boring now, I will be looking to see if they’re definitively mediocre, and if Georgia is indeed the new standard in college football.
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