SEC Snapshot: Mississippi State's Epic Comeback, Ole Miss' Statement, Georgia is Just Fine
The shuffle was real on Saturday in the SEC. As all 14 teams were back in action for the first time in weeks, there was plenty of drama, late-game heroics and everything in between.
The league had a marquee ranked vs. ranked matchup, what we thought would be a formidable opponent for the top dogs, and even an FCS scare.
The full spectrum of games was on display across the landscape for Week 11 and we look back at it all on the morning after.
No. 15 Ole Miss 29, No. 11 Texas A&M 19
The marquee matchup of the slate lived up to its billing as a tale of two halves. The Rebels ran up and down the field on A&M, dominant on both sides of the ball, but the scoreboard did not reflect as much due to a turnover in plus territory and key defensive stops by the visitors on fourth down. Jimbo Fisher adjusted well after the break and the Aggies would rattle off 13 straight points to make it a 2-point game, but the Rebel defense would handle the rest of the evening, setting up the offense with a short field on an interception and then registering a pick-six via A.J. Finley on the following possession to put the game out of reach for good.
Matt Corral was brilliant in the first half as the offense put up 400 yards and the running game came to life in the second half to compliment. But the win for the Rebels was about the defense, for once, which dominated the first half and scored twice on its own in a must-win game for both positioning and perception in the SEC West. With Ole Miss getting healthy and Mississippi State picking up its pace, Thanksgiving night can't get here fast enough.
Kentucky 34, Vanderbilt 17
Kentucky jumped all over Vandy in the first half of this one, as one may expect, leading 31-3 at the half. Will Levis threw for a pair of scores, Chris Rodriguez grabbed one on the ground and there was even a pick-six by the Wildcat defense in the first two frames. The home team showed signs of life out of the break, and with Mike Wright in at quarterback over Ken Seals, the offense looked more productive in him leading a pair of scoring drives. Seals was banged up in the loss as the Dores fell to 2-8.
No. 25 Arkansas 16, LSU 13
After its surprisingly strong showing against Alabama, LSU came to play again with Arkansas in town behind its stout rush defense. One of the league's best on the ground, Arkansas, was unable to put long drives together in averaging just 3.5 yards per carry on the evening. The Arkansas defense gave up the lead to a true freshman quarterback, too, as Garrett Nussmeier replaced Max Johnson early on. He would connect with fellow frosh Jack Bech to put LSU up 10-3 at the half. Arkansas would respond with 10 unanswered in the third quarter but LSU would answer with a field goal and play good defense the rest of the way to force overtime. In the first extra session, Montaric Brown picked off Nussmeier to allow for the game-winning kick from Cam Little.
No. 1 Georgia 41, Tennessee 17
UT started strong and scored the first touchdown of the game, to ignite the home crowd and capture the nation's attention, but it was nearly all UGA thereafter. Stetson Bennett's legs and the dual-threat ability of James Cook as both a runner and receiver, combining for 147 yards on just 13 touches, were quite the story. UGA ran for 274 yards and four scores to control the clock and the flow of this one, while the defense rebounded from the initial UT surge like it has all year long. In the moral victory category, the Vols scored more points on Georgia than any other team this season.
No. 2 Alabama 59, New Mexico State 3
No sneaky upset was to brew in Tuscaloosa on Saturday. It was one of those games where things went the team's way just about every way possible, and where the more talented team showed it for four quarters. Bryce Young was nearly perfect in throwing for five scores on 21 for 23 passing. Big play threat Jameson Williams hauled in three of the scores, including a 50-yarder to get the scoring going in the first. Alabama scored 59 unanswered after NMSU got a field goal on the board in the first quarter. Superstar Will Anderson had two more sacks for the Crimson Tide.
Mississippi State 43, No. 17 Auburn 34
The Egg Bowl will be fun later this month. MSU showed the best resilience of any major program this week in creating a hectic comeback after a strong Auburn start. The Tigers got out as good a start on offense as anyone could ask for, scoring touchdowns on each of its first four possessions to build the lead to 28-3. Then Will Rogers and the MSU passing game woke up and he aired it out the rest of the way to the tune of 415 yards and a school record six touchdowns. The 40 unanswered points against one of the SEC's best defenses was a clinic for Rogers, who finished 44 for 55 passing. The offense wasn't stopped more than once during the 40-point run and it was enough to hold on late thanks to its run defense. It was the largest comeback in Mississippi State history, too.
Florida 70, Samford 52
That score isn't a typo. It was a basketball-like shootout in the Swamp after Dan Mullen fired defensive coordinator during the week. That Gator defense gave up more than 400 yards and 42 points in two quarters before bowing up a bit more consistently in the second half. Mullen's offense was just fine against the FCS opponent, as Emory Jones set a program record for total offense with 550 yards (464 passing) and tying another with seven touchdowns. Still, it just kind of feels like a step down in Gainesville as contending with Alabama feels like such a long time ago as perception continues to plummet around Mullen..
Missouri 31, South Carolina 28
A sneaky good SEC East game broke out at Mizzou Saturday in that both offenses were good, but turnover prone at the same time. Both teams gave it up three times and neither passing game was efficient, but as we've seen this year, the Tigers could turn to the running game to maintain the pace. Once again that means Tyler Badie had his way with the Gamecock defense, registering his fourth 200-yard rushing outing of 2021. Jason Brown and USC deserve some credit for making a late run at this one, scoring 14 unanswered points to close the game out. But when the final margin was reached, Badie and the MU offense were able to run the clock out without much resistance.
