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SEC POWER POLL RESULTS FOR WEEK 2
1. Alabama Crimson Tide, 153 points (10 first-place votes)
2. LSU Tigers, 140 (1)
3t. Texas A&M Aggies, 127
3t. Georgia Bulldogs, 127
5. South Carolina Gamecocks, 113
6. Florida Gators, 93
7. Mississippi Rebels, 91
8. Auburn Tigers, 62
9. Vanderbilt Commodores, 60
10. Tennessee Volunteers, 57
11. Missouri Tigers, 46
12. Arkansas Razorbacks, 40
13. Mississippi St. Bulldogs, 34
14. Kentucky Wildcats, 12
Alabama still holds the No. 1 spot and still does so with one dissenting vote, though all that could change as soon as this weekend. South Carolina drops from No. 3 last week to No. 5 this week, while Ole Miss gained rapidly on Florida. I wonder how that happened. And the teams after that rearrange themselves in all sorts of orders.
We're beginning to see the first stages of tiering, where teams break of into closely-bunched groups based largely on voters agree generally how good a set of teams are but maybe not where those stand in relationship to each other. So Alabama and LSU are way out in front, followed by a pack that includes A&M, Georgia and South Carolina, followed by a group consisting of Florida and Ole Miss, then a group that has Auburn, Vanderbilt and Tennessee, then a group that has Missouri, Arkansas and Mississippi State, and finally Kentucky. Because Kentucky.
Voters?
ALABAMA
Giving Nick Saban two weeks to prepare for a team that's been in his sights for a year almost seems unfair.--Get the Picture
Only time will tell the ceiling on this team. That time is Saturday in College Station.--Roll Bama Roll
ARKANSAS
The Hogs looked better than expected in Week 1, but a tough fight against Samford may be a more accurate indication of what fans will see in Fayetteville this season.--College and Magnolia
Even we at Kentucky are not impressed.--A Sea of Blue
AUBURN
Auburn has yet to hold an opponent under 420 yards of offense or 24 first downs. Gus Malzahn has yet to care, or show Nick Marshall the other four-fifths of his playbook.--Dawg Sports
Won the Malzahn Bowl and is now allowed to keep their head coach.--And the Valley Shook
FLORIDA
When your fans are hopeful about your starting QB's ankle not getting better, you've got issues.--Georgia Sports Blog
That didn't go well. Remember when Jeff Driskel was the #1 quarterback in high school football? Those were the days.--Red Cup Rebellion
GEORGIA
What a difference a week makes. The Dawgs' defense is not up to normal SEC championship standards, but with an offense that good, it might not matter.--College and Magnolia
Georgia is a few defensive backs away from being the most complete team in the SEC (and, ergo, the nation). Really, that offense is truly phenomenal and controlled game against South Carolina.--Red Cup Rebellion
KENTUCKY
Savor the win, 'Cats. Now come four straight games against ranked opponents.--Get the Picture
Kentucky moved to 1-0 in the MAC and one week closer to basketball season, so really the weekend couldn't have gone much better.--Dawg Sports
LSU
The more of the new Zach Mettenberger the better for the Bayou Bengals. He threw for five more touchdowns this week. Maybe his "shaving the mustache" antidote is finally coming around. While the stable of running backs continues to do their thing for Les Miles, Odell Beckham is quickly becoming LSU's biggest weapon (5 receptions for 136 yards and 3 scores this week).--Arkansas Fight
There are some weaknesses on this team to be sure. The difference this year is that an offense may for compensate them.--Roll Bama Roll
MISSOURI
Missouri and Tennessee are the only two undefeated teams in the SEC East after two weeks, and I'm thinking those Mayan calendar devotees just miscounted by a year.--Dawg Sports
The Tigers struggled to find running room against Toledo. Have fun with the rest of the SEC.--Red Cup Rebellion
MISSISSIPPI
Ate up a cupcake of a squad in Southeast Missouri State, but we're about to find out how Ole Miss stands up to a real, bigtime college football program. You know, after they play Texas.--Dawg Sports
Southeastern Missouri St. gets 17 first downs against the Ole Miss defense? Really?--A Sea of Blue
MISSISSIPPI STATE
Oh, there's the offense. Regretfully for Mississippi State, that win only insured they weren't the worst team in Mississippi.--Georgia Sports Blog
We still don't know how good or bad this team is. The bellwether game against Auburn will tell us a lot about both team.--Roll Bama Roll
SOUTH CAROLINA
The Gamecocks find themselves behind the 8-ball at 0-1 in the division with a loss to their top competition. But, the rest of their conference schedule is much more manageable than Georgia's. Perhaps the trend of the UGA-SC loser advancing to Atlanta will continue for a third straight year.--College and Magnolia
With games against UNC and Georgia, Mike Davis is averaging nearly ten yards per carry.--Red Cup Rebellion
TENNESSEE
Forced seven turnovers and put Bobby Petrino's plans for returning to the SEC on hold.--Get the Picture
Tennessee's defense got some gifts from Western Kentucky (five turnovers in six plays), but they still gave up far too much on the ground. Two big games coming up against Oregon and Florida. If they win one of those, they jump way up this list.--Red Cup Rebellion
TEXAS A&M
Allowed 28 points to Sam Houston St, who I'm sure presents an equal challenge as the Alabama offense. No worries, right?--And the Valley Shook
The Aggies should probably get their running defense figured out before Alabama comes to College Sta- What? That's THIS weekend? Eesh... Sorry, Ags.--Red Cup Rebellion
VANDERBILT
Austin Peay, against schools from the SEC, has a lost by combined score of: 83-3. Hopefully the Governors were compensated fairly by their in-state opponents.--Arkansas Fight
One end game defensive meltdown away from being in the top 25. That's the thin line between success and failure that mediocre teams walk.--And the Valley Shook