SEC Bookends: Who Cares Who’s #1?
October 27th, 2009 by Chris Pendley
Whether you think Florida or Alabama is the #1 team in all the land, there isn’t much question that the SEC continues to be the best conference. Take a look at some of these stat lines:
WildRebel Dexter McCluster hides well behind his O-line (Icon SMI)
Dexter McCluster, WR, Ole Miss (123 rush; 7 receptions, 137 yards, 1 TD)
Yikes; that’s one heck of a line for McCluster, who finally got close to 30 touches on offense and came through in a huge way for the Rebels. This is really the first time all season we’ve seen anything like this from him, so let’s hope he can build on it.
Alshon Jeffery, WR, South Carolina (8 receptions, 161 yards, 1 TD)
Vanderbilt put up one heck of an effort against the Gamecocks, but they had absolutely no answer for the true freshman; his 43-yard TD reception proved to be the final margin, but even with that the domination Jeffery had over this game was impressive.
Jevan Snead, QB, Ole Miss (22-33, 332 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INT; 17 rush, 1 TD)
Snead was involved in every Ole Miss TD in some form or fashion, and finally turned in one of those weeks we’ve been waiting on from him all season. Again, as has been the case with Snead all season, we’ll have to see if he can build on it, but it’s a step in the right direction. For once.
Kentucky D/ST (INT return for TD, punt return for TD, 1 sack, 3 INT, safety)
It’s always nice to get 14 points from your defense – not to mention the additional sack and interception points. Heck, it’s always nice when your defense outscores the other team, which happened to Kentucky this week. Is it repeatable? I doubt it, but Randall Cobb is a legitimate return threat, so this unit may be able to pick up some more TDs as the season wears on.
Mississippi State D/ST (2 INT returns for TDs, 3 sacks)
I remember a few years back when the Bulldogs made it to the Liberty Bowl, they basically did it on the weight of their ability to return picks for TDs. It warms my heart to see them do it again. Sure, it didn’t really matter in this game, but it still brought back memories of getting Croom’d. As it stands, I don’t think this is repeatable either, but it’s sure fun.
Terrance Toliver, WR, LSU (9 receptions, 86 yards, 1 TD)
It was a good day overall for the LSU offense; however, it’s the first time Toliver’s really had a chance to excel all season. Really, the victory was predicated on the efforts of Toliver, Brandon LaFell and Jordan Jefferson; Toliver just gets the mention here.
Stephen Garcia, QB, South Carolina (22-33, 312 yards, 2 TDs; 15 rush)
This was the week of Good Stephen Garcia, as he was basically South Carolina’s offense. Sure, a lot of the time he was just launching it to Jeffery, but apparently that’s all South Carolina needs some weeks.
John Conner, RB, Kentucky (46 rush, 1 TD; 2 receptions, 26 yards, 1 TD)
Conner isn’t exactly a household name, and there’s no guarantee he’ll be able to repeat these numbers against a SEC defense, but hey, he’s probably also available in most leagues. Getting 2 scores on only 8 touches overall is a pretty good ratio, although it may not exactly be something I’d classify as repeatable.
Next Week’s Games:
Tulane @ LSU
Eastern Michigan @ Arkansas
Let’s knock the easy games out first; those are absolute mid-major patsies, and if LSU’s offense is really on track, there’s plenty of opportunity there. Heck, maybe we can finally take Charles Scott off milk cartons (please). Arkansas should be able to put up some pretty gaudy stats.
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Georgia @ Florida (Jacksonville)
South Carolina @ Tennessee
Ole Miss @ Auburn
Mississippi State @ Kentucky
The sad part about all these games is that they all have some kind of question mark associated with them. Georgia players, in general, will be a bench, as Florida’s defense has simply been a wrecking crew. Guys like Chris Rainey and Aaron Hernandez should be pretty safe here – Riley Cooper certainly will be – as I don’t trust Georgia yet.
For South Carolina, Tennessee’s has done a great job shutting down people, and while I wouldn’t start Stephen Garcia, Alshon Jeffery’s ability to put up stats is going to depend entirely on how much you trust him to beat CB Dennis Rogan; personally, I wouldn’t touch him. On Tennessee’s side, Montario Hardesty should rebound but Gerald Jones may be a question mark – I still don’t trust Jonathan Crompton’s resurgence quite yet.
The Rebels should be in decent shape against Auburn – at least on offense – making McCluster and possibly good options, provided Snead’s actually turned a corner. For Auburn, guys like Ben Tate and Ontario McCalebb will put up solid numbers if Auburn’s quarterback – whoever he is at this point – can put up enough production to keep people out of the box. Personally, I’m reluctant until we see it; look elsewhere if you can.
The Bulldogs and Wildcats aren’t quite explosive enough to turn into a bunch of auto-starts, but I think Anthony Dixon should be okay; Randall Cobb, maybe not. Of course, this may not be a bad week to spot-start either of the defenses, since they’re on a roll.
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Georgia Tech @ Vanderbilt
This game, at least, is pretty easy to figure out – Vanderbilt guys are a bench here.
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BYE: Alabama
Greg McElroy may earn more fantasy points this week than he did last week.
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