GameDay Edition of All Things CW: Alabama at LSU

For a while there, you had to admit that LSU fans had a point.

Who would want to see the coach that raised up your program to the highest level leave and then come back and do the same with a rival?

Of course LSU fans were upset that Nick Saban was back in the SEC West, and guiding the Alabama Crimson Tide no less.

But in the end it only fueled the rivalry between the schools, and took it to a place that really nobody else could match.

Since 2007, the game dubbed by some as "The Saban Bowl" has consistently been college football's best matchup. Granted, it may not have had the same status as some of the name showdowns, and yes, the Iron Bowl has had some absolutely amazing games during the same span, however Alabama vs. LSU has been the pinnacle for pure college football excellence.

Consider the following:

• These are two of the three programs that have won more than one national championship during the last 15 years (the other being Clemson).

• They've played for a national championship.

• They've also twice squared off in a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup during the regular season. Six times they've met with both teams ranked in the top five.

• For years LSU had the most players in the NFL, a trend started by you-know-who. Now it's Alabama.

But the emotions behind the games have been just as important.

Remember, the two seasons before Saban arrived at LSU, the Tigers finished 7-15. He quickly turned it around, compiling a 48-16 record with two Southeastern Conference championships and the 2003 national title. Amazingly, he was only there for four years, but previously the program had only enjoyed one national and six SEC titles since 1933.

In 2007, LSU fans arrived at Bryant-Denny Stadium early sporting purple-and-gold houndstooth hats, which only reinforced the idea to most people in Tuscaloosa that Tigers fans were pretty much crazy. LSU, with 17 of the 22 offensive and defensive starters having been recruited by Saban, came from behind to win 41-34 and went on to win the national championship under "The Mad Hatter" Les Miles.

That did not placate the Tigers faithful, though, and when Saban returned in 2008 for his first trip to Baton Rouge with the Crimson Tide, it went a little mental. Part of the buildup included the burning of an effigy.

Thanks in part to three interceptions by safety Rashad Johnson, Alabama went home with an overtime win.

The Crimson Tide did the same in 2014 in dramatic fashion.

After a T.J. Yeldon fumble gave LSU the ball on the Alabama 6 with the score tied at 10 and 1:13 left, Tiger Stadium made an announcement asking fans to please not rush the field. However, aided by a penalty nullifying what would have been a touchdown, the Crimson Tide defense held and yielded just a field goal.

After struggling all game, Blake Sims drove Alabama 55 yards in the final 50 seconds of regulation for a tying field goal, and then threw a 6-yard touchdown pass to DeAndrew White for the game-winning touchdown.

Of course the 2012 game was decided by Yeldon taking an AJ McCarron screen pass 28-yards for a winning touchdown in the final minute.

In 2011, LSU won the "Game of the Century," 9-6 in overtime at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

But the Tigers haven't beaten Alabama at home since 2010.

We doubt there will be repeat with the fire this week, but do expect Tiger Stadium to fully embrace everything else, especially since Saban and Brian Kelly did once meet in a national championship game.

That's where the Alabama-LSU really excels.

Seeing something like Julio Jones against Patrick Peterson feels normal when they play. Or Joe Burrow vs. Tua Tagovailoa (who was 21-of-40 for 418 yards and four touchdowns with an interception and a fumble just 20 days off ankle surgery).

Or Ed Orgeron providing locker room wallpaper for the next decade with "This is our house from now on at Bryant-Denny Stadium, along with the postgame rant that was even more over the top.

Ok, scratch that. Nothing about Orgeron seemed normal.

Two years ago, when Alabama last visited LSU, the Crimson Tide dismantled the home team. Louisiana product DeVonta Smith caught eight passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns. Mac Jones threw for 385 yards and four scores, and Najee Harris ran for 145 yards and three touchdowns in a 55-17 shellacking.

It was also before a sparse crowd due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Regardless of the outcome on Saturday, this will be a very different setting.

The Crimson Tide's going back to Death Valley, where Miles once famously called "the place where opponents' dreams come to die.”

The Saban Bowl

Nov. 3, 2007: Tuscaloosa, No. 3 LSU 41 No. 17 Alabama 34
Nov. 8, 2008: Baton Rouge, No. 1 Alabama 27 No. 15 LSU 21 Alabama OT
Nov. 7, 2009: Tuscaloosa, No. 3 Alabama 24 No. 9 LSU 15
Nov. 6, 2010: Baton Rouge, No. 5 LSU 24 No. 10 Alabama 21
Nov. 5, 2011: Tuscaloosa, No. 1 LSU 9 No. 2 Alabama 6 OT
Jan. 9, 2012: New Orleans, No. 2 Alabama 21 No. 1 LSU 0
Nov. 3, 2012: Baton Rouge, No. 1 Alabama 21 No. 5 LSU 17
Nov. 9, 2013: Tuscaloosa, No. 1 Alabama 38 No. 10 LSU 17
Nov. 8, 2014: Baton Rouge, No. 5 Alabama 20 No. 16 LSU 13 OT
Nov. 7, 2015: Tuscaloosa, No. 4 Alabama 30 No. 2 LSU 16
Nov. 5, 2016: Baton Rouge, No. 1 Alabama 10 No. 13 LSU 0
Nov. 4, 2017: Tuscaloosa, No. 2 Alabama 24 No. 19 LSU 10
Nov. 3, 2018: Baton Rouge, No. 1 Alabama 29 No. 3 LSU 0
Nov. 9, 2019: Tuscaloosa, No. 2 LSU 46 No. 3 Alabama 41
Dec. 5, 2020: Baton Rouge, No. 1 Alabama 55 LSU 10
Nov. 6, 2021: Tuscaloosa, No. 3 Alabama 20 LSU 14

Yet Another SEC Coach Came and Went During the Saban Era

Trivia question: Which number is greater, Saban's age or the number of people who have been a football head coach in the Southeastern Conference since Saban was hired to lead the Alabama Crimson Tide in 2007?

Note: That latter number includes interim head coaches.

Made you pause and think for a moment, didn't it?

On Monday, Saban turned 71.

It was also when the Auburn Tigers finally said so long to head coach Bryan Harsin, who had been the equivalent of dead coach walking all season.

If anything, Auburn might have done Harsin a favor with the firing as he'll have a head start on landing somewhere else. His name has already been linked to some prominent programs, especially back west.

Was the firing a good thing for Alabama? It depends on whom Auburn hires. However, it'll definitely help regarding this year's Iron Bowl and for the next recruiting class or two.

For once, Saban can't be blamed for another SEC coach getting the axe because Harsin's team nearly pulled off quite the upset of the Crimson Tide during their only meeting last year. The former Boise State player and coach was already on the hot seat when Bryce Young led a 12-play drive in the 95 seconds of regulation and hit then-freshman Ja’Corey Brooks with a touchdown pass to send the game into overtime.

Maybe had the Tigers found a way to win, instead of losing 24-22 in the fourth overtime, Young wouldn't have won the Heisman Trophy.

But Harsin still probably wouldn't have saved his job the way things were looking.

We'll obviously never know for sure.

With Cadillac Williams named the interim coach, he's No. 65 on the list of people who have coached a team in the SEC since Saban was hired in 2007 (including 13 interims), and he's the sixth person to be at the helm at Auburn.

It seems highly likely that new athletic director John Cohen will not be looking to promote from within, so the next head coach will be at least No. 66.

It may not be a matter of if that number exceeds Saban's age, but when. The rest of the league has been averaging 3.5 head coaches fired/hired per year, en route to those 52.

The Auburn move was also made on the same week that Saban will face Kelly for the first time in an SEC regular-season game. They've squared off twice in the postseason when he was the head coach at Notre Dame.

Saban's 276 career wins are the most career victories by an active FBS head coach, ahead of North Carolina’s Mack Brown (272) and Kelly (269).

Saban is 281-68-1 (vacated wins not included) with a winning percentage of .804, while Kelly is 172-64 .729.

But here are two things that really separate Saban from everyone else in league history:

• His 146 conference wins (including SEC championship games) are second on the SEC career conference wins list, and he's closing fast on Paul W. "Bear" Bryant's 159.

• Saban is way out in front in SEC regular season winning percentage at .830 (146-30). Only three other coaches have been better than .750: Tennessee's Robert Neyland (1926-34, 1936-40, 46-52) at .787, Alabama's Frank Thomas (1931-46) at .765, and Bryant (Kentucky 1946-53, Alabama 1958-82 ) at.764.

Saban would have to lose 10 straight games to fall out of first.

SEC Coaching Changes During Saban Era (2007-22)

Arkansas: Houston Nutt (1998-2007), Reggie Herring (interim 2007), Bobby Petrino (2008-11), John L. Smith (2012), Bret Bielema (2013-17), Paul Rhoads (interim 2017), Chad Morris (2017-19), Barry Lunney Jr. (interim 2019), Sam Pittman (2020-current).

Auburn: Tommy Tuberville (1999-2008), Gene Chizik (2009-12), Gus Malzahn (2013-2020), Kevin Steele (interim 2020), Bryan Harsin (2021-22), Cadillac Williams (interim 2022).

Florida: Urban Meyer (2005-10), Will Muschamp (2011-14), D.J. Durkin (interim 2014), Jim McElwain (2015-17), Randy Shannon (interim 2017), Dan Mullen 2018-21), Billy Napier (2022).

Georgia: Mark Richt (2001-15), Kirby Smart (2016-current).

Kentucky: Rich Brooks (2003-09), Joker Phillips (2010-12), Mark Stoops (2013-current).

LSU: Les Miles (2005-16), Ed Orgeron (2016-21), Brian Kelly (2022).

Ole Miss: Ed Orgeron (2005-07), Houston Nutt (2008-11), Hugh Freeze (2012-16), Matt Luke (2017-19), Lane Kiffin (2020-current).

Mississippi State: Sylvester Croom (2004-08), Dan Mullen (2009-17), Greg Knox (interim 2017), Joe Moorehead (2017-19), Mike Leach (2020-current).

Missouri: Gary Pinkel (2001-15), Barry Odom (2016-19), Eliah Drinkwitz (2020-current).

South Carolina: Steve Spurrier (2005-15), Shawn Elliott (interim 2015), Will Muschamp (2016-2020), Mike Bobo (interim 2020), Shane Beamer (2021-current).

Tennessee: Phillip Fulmer (1992-2008), Lane Kiffin (2009), Derek Dooley (2010-12), Jim Chaney (interim 2012), Butch Jones (2013-17), Brady Hoke (2017), Jeremy Pruitt (2018-20), Josh Heupel (2021-current).

Texas A&M: Kevin Sumlin (2012-17), Jeff Banks (interim 2017), Jimbo Fisher (2018-current).

Vanderbilt: Bobby Johnson (2002-09), Robbie Caldwell (2010), James Franklin (2011-13), Derek Mason (2014-2020), Todd Fitch (interim 2020), Clark Lea (2021-current).

Like Usual, Early CFP Playoff Rankings Talk Misses the Mark

The first official College Football Playoff rankings of the season were announced Tuesday night, and like usual were immediately followed by the first official complaints of the College Football Playoff rankings.

Why? Because it's college football and that's just the way it is.

The big issue is apparently over No. 6 Alabama and No. 7 TCU, as the Horned Frogs are undefeated and have two wins against teams in the CFP top 18, and the one-loss Crimson Tide doesn't have any.

The two wins that TCU supporters are looking at are over No. 13 Kansas State and No. 18 Oklahoma State (which lost 48-0 to the Wildcats last week).

Alabama's biggest win is at No, 24 Texas, and it lost at No. 1 Tennessee, 52-49.

Boo Corrigan, the athletic director of North Carolina State who is serving as the College Football Playoff Selection Committee chair, made it pretty clear that there was a lot more discussion about which team should be No. 1 over which should be No. 6.

"The debate over the top 25 rankings were extensive and very animated, particularly at the top," he said during the post-rankings press conference. "A case was made for Ohio State to be No. 1, for Georgia and for Tennessee, and there were good arguments for each one of the schools.

"At the end of the debate, the committee voted Tennessee No. 1 because of their impressive road win at LSU and their victory over Alabama, and Alabama is a team that the committee respects highly."

When asked specifically about Alabama and TCU, he said:

"Alabama has got the dominant wins over Mississippi State, at Arkansas, the close win at Texas. Bryce Young missed the Texas A&M game, which was close, and again, TCU with the wins against Oklahoma State at home and Kansas State at home, really good wins, really good team. But we felt like the defense struggled to keep points off the board at times, but it doesn't take away from the season they've had thus far."

Translation:

1) The SEC is better than the Big 12.

2) The Frogs aren't passing the eye test yet.

3) Alabama could still end up being the most complete team in college football.

Honestly, I wish he'd answer "If Alabama and TCU played, which team would you bet on?" The Crimson Tide would clearly be favored.

Does it really matter which team is No. 6 at this point? Probably not. Either Alabama is going to make a run and move up, or take another loss and be eliminated from contention. It's not staying in no-man's land.

Instead, what you're really hearing are those who are frustrated with the four-team playoff, and those who complain for the sake of complaining.

What so many people forget when the initial rankings come out every year is that most of this will simply play out over the next five weeks. If TCU is truly deserving to be No. 6 (which would still miss the playoff), it'll get its chance.

The Horned Frogs still have Texas Tech, Texas, Baylor and Iowa State to go, plus the likely Big 12 Championship Game, where they could be looking at a rematch with Kansas State.

TCU could go through the whole season without a true signature win.

So yes, it probably needs to run the table to have a shot at the playoff.

So does Alabama, which will have to win at No. 10 LSU and No. 11 Ole Miss on back-to-back Saturdays with both teams coming off byes, and then knock off the winner of Tennessee-Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.

Any team that can do that deserves to be in the semifinals.

But here's the other reason why so much of the talk now has to be considered hype and overblown: It's so early.

Do you remember which team was No. 1 in the first CFP rankings back in 2014? It was 7-0 Mississippi State, which then promptly lost at Alabama, 25-20, and, well, that was that. The Bulldogs subsequently lost to rival Ole Miss, and then to Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl.

Here's a listing of the initial top four teams for each playoff. The bolded names are teams that actually played in the semifinals.

2014: Mississippi State, Florida State, Auburn, Ole Miss
2015: Clemson, LSU, Ohio State, Alabama
2016: Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, Texas A&M
2017: Georgia, Alabama, Notre Dame, Clemson
2018: Alabama, Clemson, LSU, Notre Dame
2019: Ohio State, LSU, Alabama, Penn State
2020: Alabama, Notre Dame, Clemson, Ohio State
2021: Georgia, Alabama, Michigan State, Oregon

Only once has the initial ranking pegged the final four and it was during the coronavirus season when most stadiums were nowhere near capacity and teams played a different number of games (for example, the Buckeyes were just 6-0).

More telling is that it was the only time the team initially ranked third made it.

In short, the chances of the semifinals being Tennessee, Ohio State, Georgia and Clemson are slim. At No. 5, Michigan will get its chance, and so will Alabama. TCU and the Pac-12 champion may need a little help, but have to take care of business.

We have five weeks to knock that list of eight down to four. Probably the only other team that has a chance is Ole Miss, but it would need to beat Alabama and then hope for a lot of things to fall right.

The real complaint should probably be over why LSU is No. 10, but again the SEC has earned that kind of respect, Regardless, that debate won't matter much until the 12-team playoff becomes reality, it'll just shift to more people being upset about which teams are No. 13-15.

Using the CFP's first rankings, here's how an expanded playoff would look using the adopted format:
(1) 6 highest-ranked champs get AQs
(2) next 6 highest-ranked teams get At-Larges
(3) byes to top 4 conference champs pic.twitter.com/6MmQEeW80O
— Ross Dellenger (@RossDellenger) November 2, 2022

Don't Be Fooled by the Former Leprechaun in the Tiger Suit, it's Still LSU

On Monday, Kelly set the tone by starting his news conference by ... wishing Saban a happy birthday?

The college football world couldn't be blamed for doing a bit of a double-take. Even though Saban was celebrating turning 71 that day, this was coming from LSU, with a fan base that has sworn to hate all things Alabama Crimson Tide due to its having the greatest dynasty the sport has ever seen led by the Tigers former head coach.

Oh, what might have been.

“Maybe that'll soften things up a little bit,” Kelly said, knowing he had nothing to lose.

The approach is something Alabama isn't used to.

More normal for this rivalry is hearing something like LSU running back Darrius Guice calling the Crimson Tide defense "scared" of the Tigers' running game, not once, but twice, in 2017.

If that wasn't enough, linebacker Devin White chimed in with, "It’s like having that older brother that you haven’t been able to beat up. We’re bigger, stronger and it’s time to beat them up."

Led by its defense, Alabama won that game 24-10. Guice had a respectable 71 rushing yards on 19 carries, but the game did take a toll on the Crimson Tide.

Safety Minkah Fitzpatrick went down a couple of times in the first half and played a situational role in the second with Saban saying he kept "begging" to get back on the field. Interior linebacker Mack Wilson was carted to the locker room before halftime and then Shaun Dion Hamilton went down later.

That's the part of Alabama-LSU that few fans fully get.

"I told the players before the game that we haven't been tested with hard," Saban said at the time. "Hard kind of defines you. We didn't play a great game out there. We had a lot of self-inflicted wounds but you can't argue with the fight the players fought with."

If there's one consistency about facing LSU it's that "hard" aspect. Over the years the Tigers have been challenging both physically and emotionally to the point that Alabama almost always schedules its bye for the previous week to try and rest up (both sides do). It's a tough, physical grind, and also the game the Tigers want to win the most.

Remember, Saban was the man who turned around the LSU program (2000-2004), captured a national championship and set the stage for a whole lot more. He then left and ended up at Alabama.

If that emotional scar wasn't enough, he's probably done more damage to the Tigers over the last 15 years than anyone else.

Alabama under Saban cost LSU the 2011 title and a chance for that team to go down as one of the greatest in college football history. LSU prevailed in 2019, but who knows how many championships the Crimson Tide has cost the Tigers?

He’s also recruited top-end players out of Louisiana on a regular basis. The Crimson Tide has won 10 of the last 11 meetings. And so on ...

Alabama's success even had an influence on LSU hiring away the head coach from Notre Dame and giving him a 10-year, $95 million contract with numerous incentives and bonuses. Facing multiple NCAA investigations and infractions following the Ed Orgeron and Will Wade years in basketball, it went all in on finding a name replacement who might have a shot at keeping up with the Crimson Tide.

Happy birthday? Don't be fooled.

Kelly may not have everything going quite the way he'd like (see below), but at No. 6 this is the lowest ranking Alabama's had going into the LSU game since 2010, which was also the last time the Crimson Tide lost in Baton Rouge (24-21).

Meanwhile, LSU is coming off solid wins at Florida and against Ole Miss. Death Valley will be rocking after sunset — it's the fourth loaded-for-bear road game for Alabama this season — and the talk in Baton Rouge has been about not being intimidated by the Crimson Tide, like usual.

The message is just being packaged in a different way.

Alabama at LSU

Statistical Category Alabama; LSU (national rank)

Rushing Offense 210.8 (17); 183.2 (42)
Passing Offense 274.4 (34); 266.9 (42)
Total Offense 485.1 (17); 450.1 (30)
Scoring Offense 43.1 (4); 35.1 (28)
Rushing Defense 93.9 (12); 142.0 (66)
Passing Defense 201.8 (32); 204.2 (35)
Total Defense 295.6 (14); 346.2 (35)
Scoring Defense 16.6 (7); 21.1 (28)
Interceptions 3 (117); 5 (86)
Sacks 2.88 (22); 2.12 (63)
Tackles for loss 6.5 (31); 4.8 (104)
Turnover margin -0.38 (92); 0.38 (42)

Frustrated Alabama Basketball Fans Eager to Finally See Team

The college basketball season is right around the corner and Alabama Crimson Tide fans can't help but be excited about the potential of this year's team.

However, they're also really frustrated.

As everyone waits for the return of guard Jahvon Quinerly from surgery, the list of players that the Crimson Tide faithful are familiar with are junior forward Darius Miles, sophomore center Charles Bediako, and fifth-year guard Noah Gurley.

That's about it. Alabama has eight new players on the 2022-23 roster, with four transfers and four freshmen who everyone's eager to see. The list begins with McDonald's All-Americans Brandon Miller, who with a good season has to be a candidate to be a one-and-done, and Jaden Bradley.

But there's also Rylan Griffen, Noah Clowney and Nick Pringle. Mark Sears joined the Crimson Tide from Ohio, and Dom Welch arrived as a graduate-transfer from St. Bonaventure.

Don't forget sophomore guard Nimari Burnett, who will finally see playing time in crimson and white after missing his first season with a knee injury.

But hardly anyone has seen them play yet.

Alabama went on a three-game summer tour in Europe, and there wasn't even a Facebook Live on someone's phone that the diehards could enjoy (unlike the last international trip to Canada prior to the start of the 2017-18 season).

There was the secret scrimmage against TCU on Oct. 16, but like the name implies it was closed, and then Alabama opted to face Southern Illinois in a charity game at Foster Auditorium last Saturday, and only allowed in students.

We were big on the sentiment, but not the execution. Doing so on Halloween weekend, when the football team was on a bye, a lot of students already had plans or opted to do other things. Consequently, there were a lot of empty seats in the small venue.

This isn't to suggest that schools officials have been deliberately trying to hide the men's basketball team outside of SEC Media Days. But it certainly seems like a missed opportunity, especially considering the way last season ended on disappointing note without a single win in March.

At least the waiting will end with a doubleheader on Monday, with the women's team facing Alabama A&M at 5 p.m., and the men taking on Longwood at 7:30 p.m.

Robinson Gets Some Closure ...

An arrest was finally made in connection with the August shooting of former Alabama running back Brian Robinson Jr., who is already back playing with the Washington Commanders.

“I wasn’t really thinking much about it,” Robinson said per Sam Fortier of The Washington Post.

“Just being in the locker room, just focusing on the season and stuff like that. So, I was happy to hear they found somebody. That was a relief."

Washington D.C. police arrested a 17-year-old juvenile earlier this week.

“It’s definitely closure, only because the situation was so random. I had no idea who did it, it made me feel a lot better to know who did it.”

After missing four games due to being shot twice in the leg, Robinson has 54 carries for 175 yards and a touchdown this season.

“I’m passionate for [football]," he said. "This is what kept me alive mentally through everything I went through. So it’s easy for me to focus on this and stay locked in on this because I’m very passionate about it.”

... But Robertson May Not

Former Crimson Tide pitcher David Robertson is thrilled about being back in the World Series, but not the opponent.

The Phillies relief pitcher was also a member of the 2017 New York Yankees team which was eliminated in seven games by the Houston Astros in the American League Championship Series. When it came out that Houston had participated in an elaborate sign-stealing cheating scandal, Robertson called the Astros' behavior a "disgrace."

He hasn't changed his mind.

“I think that those people who were involved in that situation still, every day, at some point, have to realize what they did and live with the decisions they made,” Robertson told the L.A. Times. “I will never get 2017 back.”

Robertson made two appearances in the 2009 World Series, when the Yankees beat the Phillies in six games. He's pitched in three games in this series against the Astros, notching a save in Game 1. He has yet to give up a career World Series run.

Tide-Bits

• The best thing about the Thursday night game between the Eagles and the Texans was seeing former Alabama wide receivers Smith and John Metchie III together again. It was reported on the broadcast that Metchie is halfway through his chemotherapy treatments after being diagnosed with a form of leukemia in July,

• Per Pro Football Focus, Alabama's J.C. Latham has the lowest allowed pressure rate among tackles in college football this season at 0.7 percent, just ahead of Clemson's Jordan McFadden and North Carolina's Asim Richards.

• A big reason why Jaguars general manager Trent Baalke felt confident in pulling the trigger in the Calvin Ridley deal was that he spent roughly four months looking into the former Alabama wide receiver and interviewing people close to him. The discussions between Jaguars coach Doug Pederson and Baalke regarding the acquisition of Ridley began in March.

• Mel Kiper Jr. has a new Big Board for the 2022 NFL Draft, with Alabama linebacker Will Anderson Jr. first overall and \Young fifth. The ESPN analyst wrote about Anderson's numbers being a little down: "I'm not concerned in the slightest. This is a dominant edge rusher who might have been the No. 1 overall pick last April if he had been eligible for the draft. He's that good."

• Sports Illustrated tracked down the story behind Nick Saban's hat:

• Alabama has hired Daniel Heck as the Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Marketing. He'd been the Assistant AD of Marketing at Auburn.

• Going back to the Eagles' 29-17 victory, it was the first time Jalen Hurts got to play in his hometown Houston. After completing 21 of 27 passes for 243 yards and two touchdowns to help Philadelphia secure to its first 8–0 start in franchise history, he got some "M-V-P" chants at NRG Stadium. At the midway point of the NFL season, he has to be considered a strong contender.

"TURN ME UP!!"

Eagles fans in Houston chant "M-V-P!" as Jalen Hurts exits the field 💚 #FlyEaglesFly

(🎥: @NFL x @JalenHurts)pic.twitter.com/c6AvK9Vd48
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) November 4, 2022

Did you Notice?

Appetite for Destruction: Tennessee, Georgia Prep for a Classic Clash

Lane Kiffin Says Deion Sanders Would ‘Do Great’ As Auburn Coach

No Excuses, Many Faults in Aftermath of Michigan-Michigan State Melee

Christopher Walsh's notes column All Things CW regularly appears on BamaCentral.

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