The Sunday Blog stayed up way too late but there was football to be watched and I feel it is my duty. Also, the beers were still cold from my wife’s tailgate.
1. To me, if you are a sane voter and not an FSU homer, you have to vote Mississippi State No. 1 in the polls. The body of work is amazing. Dak Prescott is going to most of the credit, but that’s a pretty salty defense. The Magnolia schools get a breather this week because Ole Miss plays host to Tennessee (yes, a breather is any team in the East) and Mississippi State of off. But what a couple of weeks for those fans.
2. Meanwhile in Alabama … Auburn showed what a lot of us thought in the preseason, that the schedule was too difficult for the Tigers to make another magical run. Still on Auburn’s schedule — South Carolina (meh), at Ole Miss, Texas A&M, at Georgia and at Alabama. And remember when Alabama clobbered Florida and everyone was canonizing Lane Kiffin? On Saturday, his offense managed 227 yards against Arkansas. Poor Arky. The Hogs can’t win for losing. “The part that kills me is for my players, their families,” Bret Bielema said in a teary postgame presser. . “Because they are winners. I can’t give them a `W’ … They’re getting frustrated. It is very frustrating for me.”
3. I am not a football coach. I watch a lot of football but that doesn’t make me smart. That said, I’m wondering why on third-and-25 Florida didn’t have a defensive plan to, oh, I don’t know, keep the receivers from running free down the field. Muschamp said they checked to a coverage and one player didn’t get it. Why are you even checking? Here’s the plan — stay back and keep the receivers in front of you. It’s happened too many times. You’re a defensive coach whose defense made Alabama look like ‘95 Nebraska and LSU score 30 points a week after it scored seven. That’s not good.
4. So now Missouri comes to town with an offense that ran four plays in Georgia territory the entire game Saturday. I’m sure Maty Mauk will rediscover himself in The Swamp. The Tigers had 147 total yards and five turnovers. Nick Chubb had 174 for Georgia all by his lonesome. It’s Georgia’s East to win now.
For your TV pleasure, please to watch:
* Kansas State at Oklahoma, noon, ESPN.
* Texas A&M at Alabama, 3:30 p.m., CBS.
* Georgia at Arkansas, 4 p.m., SEC Network.
* Notre Dame at FSU, 8 p.m., ABC.
