Week 5 in the SEC: All Seven Game Previews
September is closing, Fall is full, and the Southeastern Conference is starting to shape out and heat up. Seven conference matchups are on the docket Saturday. Is Georgia ready for a real battle on the road at Auburn? Can Ole Miss finish an upset? Are LSU and Bama contenders or pretenders? Let’s look at every Week 5 SEC matchup.
No. 1 Georgia (4-0, 1-0 SEC) vs. Auburn (3-1, 0-1 SEC)
If Auburn lets the Dawgs make them as one-dimensional as Texas A&M did, it will be a long day for the Tigers. Last week’s 27-10 loss featured three quarterbacks and it was as “three strikes, you’re out,” as one could imagine.
Payton Thorne and his 6,000-plus yards and three years of experience at Michigan State will be given the nod against the Dawgs after a 6-for-12, 44-yard performance last week. A nasty, hostile SEC road environment awaits Carson Beck and Georgia. Hugh Freeze is a creative enough mind to know he has to open up this offense to hang around. Dawgs roll with superior talent.
No. 22 Florida (3-1, 1-0 SEC) vs. Kentucky (4-0, 1-0 SEC)
An Over/Under set at 44 tells the right story: This is going to be an old-school SEC bloodbath. The Gators lead the SEC in passing defense (162.8 yards per game allowed), team defense (245 ypg) and they have yet to allow any opponent to rush for over 3.5 yards per carry.
Kentucky’s Devin O’Leary will need to leave his 9:5 touchdown-to-interception ratio on the bus against this Gators defense. Florida’s Graham Mertz, on the other hand, will need to bring his 78 percent completion rate to Lexington. This game comes down to these two QBs. Kentucky sits at a one-point favorite at home. The last time Florida lost three in a row in the series was from 1948 to 1951. The Gators are due.
Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0 SEC) vs. Arkansas (2-2, 0-1 SEC)
Texas A&M’s starting quarterback, former five-star Conner Weigman, has surprisingly been ruled out for the season with a foot injury worse than first anticipated. Captain Positive speaking in the face of despair: The Aggies have an elite backup in former LSU Tigers starter Max Johnson, who started 14 games for the Tigers in 2020-21 SEC play before starting three games last year for the Aggies.
The Razorbacks have to start to play some clean football to have a chance against A&M in the trenches; 14 penalties and two turnovers, like they had against BYU, plus 11 penalties and two turnovers as they had against LSU will end in another loss, regardless of how well starting quarterback K.J. Jefferson performs for Sam Pittman and company. Arkansas doesn’t have it figured out quite yet to take down A&M.
No. 23 Missouri (4-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. Vanderbilt (2-3, 0-1 SEC)
While both teams similarly do not play good pass defense (Missouri allowing 238.3 yards per game vs. Vanderbilt’s 234.2 ypg), it is the difference in run game defense that has to make Missouri the favorite. Can Vanderbilt close that gap on the ground? Missouri’s senior running back Cody Schrader and his 6.2 yards per carry look to have a big day in a Mizzou SEC road win.
No. 13 LSU (3-1, 2-0 SEC) vs. No. 20 Ole Miss (3-1, 0-1 SEC)
The Magnolia Bowl is an underrated rivalry in the conference. This is the matchup to watch for high scores and quarterbacks airing it out. LSU’s Jayden Daniels and his 6:1 TD:INT ratio seem settled and ready for a road battle caliber of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
The Tigers bring a 58 percent third down success rate into a loud, “vibrant” opposing fanbase’s backyard. That’s the ultimate difference, Jaxson Dart and Lane Kiffin go pedal to the metal, but can’t keep up on converting and the same Rebels defense that gave up an 81 percent completion rate to inferior SEC passer Jalen Milroe can’t get off the field. Ole Miss looking at another “close, but no cigar.” All that to say, I could eat this one, this is an upset alert.
South Carolina (2-2, 1-1) vs. No. 21 Tennessee (3-1, 0-1)
South Carolina massacred Tennessee 63-38 last year. Spencer Rattler tossed a stat line of 30-for-37, 438 yards and six touchdowns on Josh Heupel’s head. Are we set for another shootout? Yes and no. Yes, big passing and big points are coming from Spencer Rattler and Joe Milton III, but not 100-plus points worth. Funny enough, both Rattler and Milton each have 128 pass attempts this season. What have they done with them?
- Rattler: 95 completions, 1242 yards, 7 touchdowns, two interceptions
- Milton: 80 completions, 925 yards, 8 touchdowns, one interception
In a shootout, you’d figure you’d take Rattler, but Milton has protected the ball this year to pair with the fact Tennessee bolsters a considerably better pass defense. Shane Beamer isn’t ready to take Heupel down back-to-back years, especially at Rocky Top. Similar to my last comment in the LSU-Ole Miss section above, I could eat this one, this is an SEC upset alert.
No. 12 Alabama (3-1, 1-0) vs. Mississippi State (2-2, 0-2)
An eye-popping factoid to start here that will be pointed to by many is Mississippi State’s dead last in the country opponent completion percentage (74.2%). There is no way for MSU to hope to make Alabama one-dimensional Saturday. Milroe showed a nice enough turnaround last week against a superior Ole Miss team to bring some momentum into Starkville.
Will Rogers has been the starting quarterback for Mississippi State for a decade. He has to be better on Saturday night to have a chance against Milroe and the Crimson Tide. This Tide defense is considerably better than MSU’s unit. Nick Saban is not taking a second loss in five games.
Which teams do you think will prevail in Week 5? Let us know in the comments!
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