Week 1 of the college football season was especially quiet for the SEC as conference play hadn't begun, but the conference started off 16-0. The second weekend of the season promised to bring far more drama, with the first game of league play, along with massive matchups for Texas and Oklahoma against Ohio State and Michigan.
It looked like it could be an abysmal weekend for the SEC after Oklahoma's loss and as Ohio State held a massive lead over Texas. Then the Longhorns went on a 21-0 run in the 4th quarter to pull off a shocking win, turning the nation on its head.
Power Ranking the SEC after Ohio State-Texas chaos
16. Arkansas Razorbacks
The Arkansas Razorbacks are currently battling the Utah Utes, their ranking will be updated following the game.
15. Vanderbilt Commodores
Jared Curtis seemingly ended Vanderbilt's QB battle on Saturday, leading the Commodores to a win over Delaware. The freshman threw for a touchdown while adding two scores with his legs while Blaze Berlowitz struggled. Next week begins the tests for this new look team as Vandy faces NC State, and moving forward with Curtis as the starter feels like the only decision.
14. Auburn Tigers
The Auburn Tigers are currently leading Southern Miss at halftime.
13. Kentucky Wildcats
Will Stein tried to rile up the Kentucky fans ahead of his first SEC game, and they delivered before his team disappeared in the second half. Alabama held the Wildcats offense to just 2.0 yards per carry while the Crimson Tide secondary made Kenny Minchey look like a quarterback making his first SEC start. Kentucky won't be a doormat in the SEC, but they're also not ready to beat the best of the best.
12. South Carolina Gamecocks
Shane Beamer and the Gamecocks added another win to the win column, but the real tests still won't begin until conference play kicks off. The Gamecocks are going to need better passing performances out of LaNorris Sellers if they're going to accomplish anything, as he managed to complete less than 50% of his passes against a bad Towson team.
11. Missouri Tigers
The Missouri Tigers were tasked with playing a game filled with hate, as this year's Border War had added bad blood. Without Ahmad Hardy, Missouri still found a way to score 38 points as Eli Drinkwitz looked to embarrass Kansas for the off-field drama this week. The Tigers will have one more game to clean everything up against Troy and hopefully get Hardy closer to playing before entering SEC play.
10. Mississippi State Bulldogs
It looks like Jeff Lebby finally has a team capable of doing some damage in the SEC as Mississippi State picked up a statement win over Minnesota. Kamario Taylor put on a clinic, completing 72.7% of his passes for 227 yards and 3 touchdowns while adding 86 yards with his legs. Fluff Bothwell added 113 yards on the ground with 2 scores, and the Bulldogs finally have the personnel to make this offense click.
9. Florida Gators
Jon Sumrall and the Florida Gators played one last tune-up game before opening SEC play next week, picking up a 52-3 win over Campbell. Aaron Philo was nearly perfect while Jadan Baugh added another 136 yards and two touchdowns to his resume. The Gators have the potential to be a dangerous team in the SEC, and next weekend's game against Auburn will give us a chance to see where both teams stand,
8. Oklahoma Sooners
The Oklahoma Sooners were seemingly facing a wounded Michigan team after they needed an added second to beat Western Michigan, while all the talk was about potentially benching Bryce Underwood. Instead, it was John Mateer who looked awful, going 17 for 33 for 189 yards with a touchdown and a pick. The defense played well enough to win, but until Mateer proves he's capable of beating top competition, the Sooners have a limited ceiling.
7. Tennessee Volunteers
The Volunteers started slow, but once the second quarter hit, the Volunteers woke up and put Georgia Tech to bed. The defense was outstanding, forcing 3 interceptions from Alberto Mendoza, including a pick 6 by Dejaun Lane. Faizon Brandon struggled at times as a passer, but he threw for 2 touchdowns without a turnover, while DeSean Bishop powered the offense with a 2 touchdown performance on the ground.
6. Alabama Crimson Tide
Kalen DeBoer's team looked like a group that heard Will Stein asking the fans to yell obscenities at them this week. Keelon Russell looked like a freshman making his first start on the road with two picks, but it didn't matter as the Tide rushed for 155 yards. Kane Wommack's defense truly won Alabama this game, scoring a touchdown of their own while shutting out the Wildcats in the 2nd half.
5. Texas A&M Aggies
Many labeled Texas A&M as a team on upset alert this weekend as Kenny Dillingham and Arizona State came to town. The defense was dominant with a pair of pick 6's while forcing and recovering a pair of fumbles. The offense didn't need to do much, but Marcel Reed still threw for 3 touchdowns en route to a 48-20 win for the Aggies.
4. Ole Miss Rebels
After showing some cracks against Louisville, Pete Golding's team was dialed in and ready to dominate against Charlotte. Kewan Lacy returned after exiting last week's game with an injury and was back to his normal self, while Trinidad Chambliss continues to look like a Heisman frontrunner. The Rebels now head into a bye week before the biggest game of the season when Lane Kiffin and LSU come to Oxford.
3. LSU Tigers
It turns out that Louisiana Tech was far more capable of exposing some of LSU's concerns coming into the season than Clemson was. Sam Leavitt's 3 1st half interceptions kept LSU from opening up the game in the first half, but the offense eventually cleaned things up. The good news is that the defense continues to live up to the hype and will be key when SEC play rolls around.
2. Georgia Bulldogs
The Georgia Bulldogs followed up their beatdown of Tennessee State by dismantling Western Kentucky. The running backs were the stars of the show as Nate Frazier made plays on the ground while Chauncey Bowens found the end zone on a pass from Gunner Stockton with the perfect hurdle before the starters left the game. The Bulldogs aren't going to be tested until some of the ranked SEC games arrive, but Kirby Smart's team looks like a group feeling disrespected by the lack of offseason hype.
1. Texas Longhorns
For 3 quarters, it looked like the rematch between Texas and Ohio State was going to be a repeat of last year's game as the Longhorns trailed by 20 points heading into the 4th quarter. Texas finally clicked on both sides of the ball as Arch Manning found Ryan Wingo before Hollywood Smothers added a pair of touchdowns to win the game. Steve Sarkisian still has a lot to clean up, but escaping this game with a massive win puts Texas well on their way toward making the College Football Playoff.
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