SEC Power Poll Ballot, Week 7

1. Alabama. Didn't play, Schmidn't play. That doesn't mean they aren't still the best team in the country. Cuz they kinda are.

2. Florida. I saw something I never expected to see Saturday: I saw someone make LSU look slow. Verne Lundquist said Urban Meyer is "close" to his goal of having the fastest team in the country. Close?

3. Georgia. In some ways, the score against Tennessee was deceptively close: The Dawgs were up 20-7 at the half. In other ways, the game was closer than it looked: It was 20-14 at the end of the third quarter.

4. LSU. I don't think the Bayou Bengals are as bad as they looked Saturday. I'm also hoping the Baton Rouge Tigers read this and take it as a sign of respect. Please don't hurt us. We're not the ones you're mad at.

5. Vanderbilt. CROOMed. That doesn't mean they're bad, just vulnerable to an upset. And, really, when was the last time you said "Vanderbilt was upset" by an SEC team?

6. South Carolina. Gasp! We have an offense! At least as long as Garcia doesn't get drunk. Hooray!

7. Mississippi. Their defense might not be as good as Kentucky's, but their offense functions. I'm not sure after watching the Wildcats that UK's does.

8. Kentucky. It's really hard to win, even in the SEC, if you can't score more than 17 points. And, like South Carolina, their schedule gets no easier from here.

9. Mississippi State. Sly Croom will win at least one SEC game this year. What's that? They still play Tennessee and Arkansas? Sly Croom will win at least three SEC games this year.

10. Arkansas. They actually felt bad enough for Auburn that they gave the Tigers points. Literally.

11. Auburn. The offense just gets worse and worse and worse. Hey, at least you can't score negative points, though the Tigers could test that theory at some point.

12. Tennessee. Fulmer is under siege. Johnny Majors is raining down sniper fire from his front porch. The Clawfense is an abject failure. And Tennessee needs to make clear that it will join Clemson in the coaching sweepstakes.