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SEC Football: Week 8 Power Rankings

By Hunter Kinniburgh

Oct 22, 2016; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) runs for a touchdown against the Mississippi Rebels during the second quarter of a game at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 22, 2016; Baton Rouge, LA, USA; LSU Tigers running back Leonard Fournette (7) runs for a touchdown against the Mississippi Rebels during the second quarter of a game at Tiger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports /
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Week 8 in the SEC brought the return of Leonard Fournette to the playing field and the LSU Tigers back into the conversation for SEC West contention. Here are the Week 8 power rankings.

While the Alabama and Texas A&M game was considered the biggest matchup of the week (and it turned into a laughable contest, as most games involving Alabama, do), the LSU-Ole Miss game presented the most intrigue as it was a rivalry game and was a game that LSU needed to show that it was still a viable team in the SEC West race. Boy did they prove it. The showdown with the Crimson Tide in Death Valley looms large in just two weeks.

Elsewhere in the SEC, fans were treated to the gem that was the Kentucky-Mississippi State game, in which the Wildcats won on a last second field goal to keep their bowl hopes alive, while the Bulldogs inch closer to a losing record and missing out on a bowl for the first time since the 2010 season.

Here are the power rankings for Week 8 for all 14 SEC teams, beginning with the Missouri Tigers:

Oct 22, 2016; Columbia, MO, USA; Missouri Tigers quarterback Drew Lock (3) runs the ball during the second half against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at Faurot Field. Middle Tennessee won 51-45. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 22, 2016; Columbia, MO, USA; Missouri Tigers quarterback Drew Lock (3) runs the ball during the second half against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at Faurot Field. Middle Tennessee won 51-45. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-USA TODAY Sports /

A loss to a out of conference foe, at home, is a quick way to find yourself at the bottom of the power rankings. That is exactly where Missouri finds themselves, as their normally tough defense could not get a stop all night and fell to Middle Tennessee State.

Missouri looked as if they had solved their problems from last season and appeared to be a different team to begin the 2016 season but that has obviously not sustained and the Tigers are looking at the possibility at missing out on a bowl game again. While the offense has been big against inferior defenses, they have not risen to the challenge of competing against better teams and it has hurt them. The offense is not to blame for the upset against Middle Tennessee, they did their part, the defense on the other hand, is a different story.

Yes, Middle Tennessee is a good team, but Missouri should not have lost this game, especially with 629 yards of offense.

Next game: October 29, 2016, vs Kentucky, 12:00pm ET SEC Network

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