DawgNation has a new content offering this week. We’re here to provide you with a quicker-than-ESPN recap on all things SEC on each week of the series.
Consider’s this your weekly need-to-know on all things SEC. Just served up for the appetite of the discriminating Georgia reader.
This Week’s Scores
No. 4 Georgia 27, No. 7 Auburn 6 No. 2 Alabama 52, No. 13 Texas A&M 24 No. 3 Florida 38, South Carolina 24 Arkansas 21, No. 16 Mississippi State 14 No. 20 LSU 41, Vanderbilt 7 Ole Miss 42, Kentucky 41 OT No. 21 Tennessee 35, Missouri 12
What does all of that mean for Georgia? Here is all of what DawgNation needs to know:
Next Week’s Opponent: Tennessee (2-0)
How they fared: The Volunteers scored touchdowns on three of their first five possessions to cruise to a 23-point victory. Running backs Eric Gray and Ty Chandler combined to rush for 195 yards and two touchdowns while quarterback Jarrett Guarantano also ran for two scores.
What UT did well: Behind Gray and Chandler, Tennessee exploded for 232 rushing yards, which is about 100 yards more than what the Volunteers rushed for last week against South Carolina. Cade Mays appeared to make a huge difference for the Tennessee offensive line.
What UT did not do well: Stopping the pass. Missouri only threw for 218 yards but that was on 25 passes. The Tigers averaged 8.7 yards per pass.
The big stat line: After rushing for just 3.3 yards per carry against South Carolina, Gray doubled his average with 105 rushing yards on 16 attempts and scored a touchdown.
DawgNation Outlook: Tennessee will roll into its matchup with the Bulldogs undefeated, ranked for the first time in years and in possession of the longest winning streak in the SEC. The Volunteers have won six straight SEC matchups and haven’t lost since falling to Alabama on Oct. 19, 2019.
Week 4 opponent: Alabama
How they fared: After allowing Texas A&M to score two straight touchdowns to tie the contest at 14, Alabama ended the second quarter tallying three consecutive touchdowns to pull away from the Aggies to win, 52-24.
What Bama did well: Alabama threw the ball all over the yard, averaging 16.1 yards per pass attempt. Alabama posted 544 offensive yards, reaching the 500-yard mark of offense for the fourth time in the program’s last five SEC games.
What Bama did not do well: Nick Saban will likely criticize his defense at practice next week. The Crimson Tide allowed 450 yards, and the Aggies converted 10 of 17 third-down opportunities.
The big stat line: Quarterback Mac Jones completed 20 of 27 passes for 435 yards with four touchdowns and an interception. Wide receiver John Metchie III led Alabama with 181 receiving yards and two scores.
DawgNation Outlook: Alabama looked very much like the No. 2 team in the country Saturday. Georgia will need Stetson Bennett at his best when the Bulldogs face the Crimson Tide in a couple weeks.
Week 5 opponent: Kentucky
How they fared: The Wildcats dropped a tough one in overtime. Kentucky kicker Matt Ruffolo missed a field goal and extra point, which proved to be a costly misfire in the extra session.
What UK did well: Kentucky dominated on the ground, rushing for 408 yards and six touchdowns. Three players each accumulated more than 100 rushing yards.
What UK did not do well: The Wildcats defense struggled to slow down Ole Miss quarterback Matt Corral. The sophomore signal caller had nearly as many touchdowns as incompletions, as he went 24 of 29 for 320 yards and four touchdowns.
The big stat line: Running back Christopher Rodriguez Jr. led the way for the Wildcats running game, posting 133 yards and two touchdowns on just 17 carries.
DawgNation Outlook: The Bulldogs will have to be ready to stop the Kentucky ground game, which includes quarterback Terry Wilson. On Saturday, he rushed for 129 yards and three touchdowns.
What did Florida do?
How they fared: The Gators scored on four of five possessions starting late in the second quarter to pull away from the Gamecocks. Despite not scoring in the game’s final 19 minutes, Florida still won by 14.
What UF did well: Florida was very efficient through the air, averaging 9.2 yards per pass with only eight incompletions. The Gators also held the Gamecocks to 3.3 yards per rush.
What UF did not do well: Florida was not able to generate much in the running game. The Gators rushed for 80 yards, averaging only 3.3 yards per carry.
The big stat line: Quarterback Kyle Trask went 21 of 29 for 268 yards with four touchdowns. Trask also had one interception.
DawgNation Outlook: The Florida passing game looks improved from last season, but the Gators will likely struggle to get any running game going versus Georgia if they don’t improve the ground attack before the showdown with the Bulldogs.
The Rest of the Schedule:
Missouri (Week 8): Quarterback Connor Bazelak averaged 10.4 yards per pass, but he couldn’t find the end zone and threw a pick. Running back Larry Rountree III scored Missouri’s only touchdown.
Mississippi State (Week 9): Mississippi State’s spread offense threw for 313 yards, but it took 60 passes to reach that total, and quarterback K.J. Costello tossed three interceptions.
South Carolina (Week 10): The Gamecocks held the Gators to under 3.5 yards per rush and controlled the time of possession but were unable to take advantage of two Florida turnovers and lost by 14.
Vanderbilt (Week 11): After holding Texas A&M to just 17 points, the Commodores couldn’t slow down the defending champions. LSU quarterback Myles Brennan posted four touchdowns in the 41-7 Tigers victory.
Arkansas (Week 1 win): The Razorbacks held Mike Leach’s spread offense to just 14 points to win their first SEC game in three seasons. Maybe this explains why Georgia’s offense struggled initially in Week 1.
The Rest of the SEC:
TEXAS A&M: It looks like Kellen Mond is regressing in his fourth year as a starter. His interception returned for a touchdown allowed Alabama to begin to pull away in the second quarter.
LSU: The Tigers rebounded from its season-opening loss by scoring 41 points at Vanderbilt. LSU quarterback Myles Brennan threw for 337 yards and four touchdowns.
OLE MISS: Lane Kiffin’s offense sticks out here. Quarterback Matt Corral threw for 320 yards with four touchdowns on just 29 attempts in the overtime victory.
