The goings on of the rest of the SEC are somewhat difficult to truly follow. Because of the number of times that BWE and I have seen uninformed fans make sweeping judgments of opposing teams based solely on their quarterback and halfback, we decided to start a segment where, though we will talk about halfbacks and quarterbacks, we'll also talk about the other players on teams that are succeeding or failing.
ALABAMA 1-0 (0-0 SEC)
It's scary to me that Eddie Lacy, Alabama's third or fourth-string halfback, ran for 111 yards in their opener versus San Jose State. What a testament to Bama's offensive line. Alabama crushed San Jose State 48-3, and you wouldn't have known that their defense lost nearly everyone from a year ago. The Crimson Tide allowed just 175 yards of total offense. If for some reason you weren't scared before, you have plenty of time to get scared before our Rebels head to Tuscaloosa. Alabama plays host to the Penn State Nittany Lions on Saturday at 7:00 PM on ESPN.
ARKANSAS 1-0 (0-0 SEC)
Senior linebacker Anthony Leon accounted for four tackles for loss including two sacks in Arkansas' destruction of Tennessee Tech. The defense, which has a lot to prove, allowed 187 yards of total offense. They've still got a long way to go before we annoint them as a good defense, but that's certainly a start. The offense rolled to over 500 yards of offense. This team could be really good. Watch them destory UL-Monroe Saturday at 6:00 on ESPN3 or the SEC Network.
AUBURN 1-0 (0-0 SEC)
So all of us who were hoping that Cameron Newton wouldn't be good should probably give up that hope now. Newton carried the ball 15 times for 177 yards and two touchdowns. Through the air, he was 9/14 for 186 yards and three touchdowns. Yikes. I know that it was against bad competition and all, but I don't remember Auburn doing that last year against ANYONE. Watch Cameron Newton put the hurt on Mississippi State Thursday night at 6:30 on ESPN or ESPN3.
LSU 1-0 (0-0 SEC)
LSU defeated North Carolina on Saturday but allowed TJ Yates to pass for 412 yards against their generally strong defense. They stuffed the run well but appeared lost in coverage. Russell Sheppard played quite well, accumulating 79 yards despite touching the ball only 7 times. This week, LSU gets Vanderbilt at 6:00 on ESPNU. That should be ideal for making their defense appear as if week 1 was simply an anomaly.
MISSISSIPPI STATE 1-0 (0-0 SEC)
State beat Memphis 49-7. Everyone has already talked about Tyler Russell's 13/16, 256 yards, 4 TD performance. It was really nice. The thing that stuck out to me most though was Robert Elliot's struggles. He was named the starter, but honestly Perkins played the best of all the backs. Even Ballard struggled a bit, with 6 carries for 9 yards and one for 51. Their defense was too much for Memphis though, limiting the Tigers to just over 250 yards. This Mississippi State team could be pretty good. A good test comes Thursday night in the aforementioned matchup versus Auburn.