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Bill Connelly does a good job here breaking down what lessons we should draw about the offense from LSU's lackluster win over Auburn. In hindsight, I should have been expecting a closer game than what I had been thinking. Auburn DC Brian VanGorder, in his first year back in college in a while, figures to fare better against pro-style offenses like LSU's rather than spread option attacks like those of Clemson, Mississippi State, and UL-Monroe that he probably hasn't seen much of, if at all.
Shout outs to Auburn special teams and demerits to Zach Mettenberger within.
Steve Spurrier has leaned hard on Marcus Lattimore over the past two seasons. When Lattimore is healthy, that is. And for the most part, Lattimore has been able to carry the load. Here, Matt Hinton explores how the Gamecocks' back is doing less this season and why the reason for that lightened load is the same for why the offense is doing more.
If you watched any of Morgan Newton's struggles against Florida, you know just how big of a deal Smith is to the Wildcats' offense. Smith practiced this week, but he's not 100%. If this isn't bad enough, CoShik Williams aggravated his hip strain and is doubtful for this weekend's game against South Carolina. It's hard enough to be Kentucky football in the SEC; going through bad injury luck is just unfair.
Jelani Jenkins hasn't seen the field since fracturing his thumb during the Gators' win against Texas A&M. He had a pin put in, but that pin is coming out tomorrow. He might get to play in a cast against LSU, which would be a boost to a defense that will need a fully stocked front seven to counter the Tigers' burly running attack.
Nick Saban is digging deep this year to keep his team motivated. Remember when he flew into a rage over the betting line for the WKU game being to large? And over the press writing too many good things about his team? Now he's invoking Florida's loss to Ole Miss in 2008, Tim Tebow speech and all, to warn his players about the dangers of playing the Rebels. There might be one or two things different between the '08 and '12 Ole Miss teams, but hey, when has that stopped a coach before?
Speaking of Ole Miss, it looks like Bo Wallace is going to get a chance to play against the Tide this weekend. He has been a revelation in his first year out of JUCO, immediately becoming the Rebels' best quarterback and a big reason for the team's 3-1 start. He's now going to get the real SEC initiation by becoming a ritual sacrifice to Saban's defense.
We don't often throw in news from other conferences here, but Clemson is among the most SEC-like of ACC teams and has history with South Carolina and Georgia. Anyway, this post from Shakin' the Southland is not just a tremendous explanation for why the Tigers' defense can't turn the corner, but it describes conditions that plague everyone from time to time. If you team's defense has gone through a stretch where it just couldn't stop anyone, then what's here very well could apply to them.