B&S week 6 game by game recaps
Saturday’s slate was spectacular. Bama goes down, Kentucky steamrolls LSU and Ole Miss and Arkansas was an instant classic.
By: Bossman Slim, The Hammer, The Waco Kid
@biscuitsandsec; @TheWacoKidBS
What a wild weekend in college football last weekend. From the Red River Shootout to Kyle Field, we witnessed some incredible games. Since this is an SEC centric blog, we won’t get into the Red River game, but just know this: Texas is not back and seeing that collapse was almost as funny as the Arkansas Razorbacks pile driving the Longhorns into the ground week two. Can they join the SEC already and take the weekly beating they have coming?
Anyway back to our regularly scheduled SEC content. There is so much to get to after week 6 as LSU got whooped by Big Blue Nation, Ole Miss outlasted Arkansas in an instant classic and a Texas A&M team left for dead slayed the mighty Crimson Tide in front of 106,000+ screaming fans.
Let’s check in on how the crew fared last week:
The Waco Kid: 5-2; 50-11 overall
The Hammer: 6-1; 50-11 overall
Bossman Slim: 5-2; 47-14 overall
The Waco Kid remains atop the leaderboard but The Hammer has tied him. Meanwhile, Bossman Slim is sputtering behind.
Calzada celebrates with fans after the game of his life. Photo by Sam Craft, Associated Press
Early Games
#13 Arkansas 51 - #17 Ole Miss 52
Bossman Slim: I sure had this one pinned, picking Ole Miss 35-Arkansas 27. Instead, both offenses EXPLODED in the 4th quarter, accounting for 6 TDs. They had four possessions each, only two of which resulted in punts. This was a track meet as the defenses wore down late in the game. That made this one a ton of fun. An instant classic in Oxford as Ole Miss scrapes out a victory on a stopped two point conversion to end the game. Big win for the Rebels.
The Hammer: Talk about starting off the SEC football weekend with a bang. I was wondering which team would get off the mat and play a good game in this one, and the answer was both. These offenses came to play….the defenses not so much. Both offenses ran the ball for over 300 yards and averaged over six yards per carry. This game was back and forth all game with the offenses just trading blows, as KJ Jefferson and Matt Corral were at the top of their game. I predicted a much lower scoring game because I wasn’t sure the Ole Miss offense would be able to rebound that well after Alabama shut them down. Arkansas has a solid defense as well, or so we thought. Both teams have holes as we saw this past weekend, and against Alabama and Georgia, but they are good teams that are fun to watch. KJ Jefferson and Matt Corral are must watch.
The Waco Kid: What a great game, between this and the Red River Rivalry, there was no shortage of drama in the early games. Arkansas fell far from grace after a Georgia beatdown, but who cares? Now it seems the black and red may be the best team in the nation. The Razorbacks fought tooth and nail with the Rebs and at the end of the day, the defining call was made by Sam Pittman to go for two after a last second score. Did the Hog coach make the right call? I think so, don’t take an offensive powerhouse into overtime, give your squad a winning chance right outside of the goal line and see what they can do. Unfortunately this led UA to back to back losses in SEC play. No one thought this game would be close but KJ Jefferson led the Ark offense to unbelievable heights this past weekend. Ole Miss is still a team that will compete but under Lane Kiffin this team should have left no doubt. Meaning that Mississippi still has things to improve on the defensive side. You cannot give up 51 and expect that to be acceptable in the West.
#20 Florida 42 - Vanderbilt 0
Bossman Slim: I picked UF 45-7 over Vandy. Probably the easiest pick I made all year other than Georgia vs. Vandy. Florida gets back on track by thumping the Commodores as expected. The Gators get LSU in Baton Rouge next week to try and avenge the shoe game and to put the final nail in the coffin of Oregeron’s time on the Bayou.
The Hammer: Vanderbilt getting crushed by a conference opponent? Nothing to see here. I predicted a 42-3 game and nearly nailed it, but Ken Seals and the ‘Dores couldn't even manage a field goal. This was a glorified scrimmage.
The Waco Kid: Seems about right.
Tennessee 45 - South Carolina 20
Bossman Slim: Tennessee is clicking right now. The Heupel offense is finding 5th gear with Hendon Hooker leading the charge. On the flip side, South Carolina continues to be bad bad bad. The Vols have a little life...can they keep the momentum going and get a big win over Ole Miss this weekend? Can’t wait for that one on Rocky Top.
The Hammer: Tennessee jumped out to a big first half lead yet again (35-0 late second quarter) before letting off the gas in the second half. That’s becoming a bit of a theme for the Vols, but this is a way better brand of football than we’ve seen in Rocky Top for some time. In fact, the Vols have already scored more points this season through six games than they did all of 2020 in 10 games. Hard not to be excited if you are a Vols fan, especially with Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss coming to town next weekend. On the other side, South Carolina is still not good. We’ve known this and they are exactly who we thought they were (shout out Dennis Green RIP).
The Waco Kid: Bad call on the South Carolina win. The Tennessee win over Mizzou was a fluke in my mind but I guess not. The Vols continue to score over lesser opponents and I get that now. With Hendon Hooker at the reins UT will continue to win in games that they are projected to win. No more betting against this offense. Hooker has had 6 passing TDs in the last two games and if they cannot continue this streak it is all on Heupel.
Midday Games
#2 Georgia 34 - #18 Auburn 10
Bossman Slim: Tombstone Bennett keeps the gravestone makers busy. Add another one to the 2021 Dawgs graveyard. Georgia is a machine this year, and they aren’t going to be beaten. Auburn got a little bounce after beating LSU, but Georgia is a cut above everyone this year, and it’s very obvious. See you in Atlanta, Dawgs.
The Hammer: I didn’t think the Bo Nix heroics from a week ago would happen against Georgia, and I was correct. Nix didn't necessarily play a terrible game, there is just no room to operate against Georgia. Their defense is unbelievable. They held Auburn to 1.6 yards per carry and 46 total rushing yards. They sacked Bo Nix four times. You can’t say enough about how impressive that unit is. After the Tigers kept up for a quarter, Georgia leaned on that run game and eventually suffocated Auburn. The Dawgs ran for 201 yards and Stetson Tombstone Bennet played another solid game throwing for 231 yards and two touchdowns on 14/21 attempts. Bennett might just be a game manager but he’s doing a damn good job at it, and until someone can actually move the ball on Georgia’s defense, they’ll be just fine.
The Waco Kid: Bo Nix is a sham. One game on, the next trash, that is why you cannot depend on Auburn to get the W in big games. Granted they were playing arguably the best defense in the country but if your offense can only put up 10 against that type of competition, there is no reason for discussion. Georgia, once again, relied on their run game while sprinkling in that Stetson Bennett pass attack. Bennett and the backs went for 4 touchdowns, proving that even without a QB1 the Dawgs are in the hunt. If anyone wants to beat Smart’s team they will have to figure out a game plan for this nasty defense. While we wait for that to happen, I will continue betting UGA for all foreseeable games. The only way they get beat is by Bama in the SEC Championship and I cannot see that happening.
Missouri 48 - North Texas 35
Bossman Slim: Mizzou gets the win but gives up wayyy more points than makes you comfortable. North Texas is a dismal team...and so is Mizzou. The Tigers can score points, but they can’t stop anyone. Drinkwitz needs to find some answers on defense or this season will get ugly and that seat will start heating up.
The Hammer: This one went about as expected, except for Mizzou giving up 35 points. The Tigers offense had no trouble moving the ball, especially on the ground as Tyler Badie ran for 209 yards and two touchdowns. Connor Bazelak had a decent day tossing two TDs and throwing for 168 yards. This Mizzou defense is a problem though. North Texas actually out gained the Tigers 493 to 472 on the day. North Texas was 1-3 coming into this game and their point outputs in prior weeks were 44 against Western Carolina, 12 against SMU, 6 against UAB, and 17 against Louisiana Tech. But they somehow managed to score 35 and put up almost 500 yards of offense on Mizzou. Yikes.
The Waco Kid: 35 to North Texas? Really? Just when I thought the Tigers could not be worse they proved that where there is a will there's a way. Eli Drinkwitz has to come up with something better or see his team diminish to a squad that is destined to play and lose to an overrated University of Texas team. Then we will all have to hear about how they fit into the SEC, it’s a great fit, and the Horns are back. Kill me now.
Late Games
Kentucky dominated LSU Saturday night. Photo by Scott Utterback/Courier Journal
#16 Kentucky 42 - LSU 21
Bossman Slim: Alright. Well. I’ll eat it on this one. I took the Tigers because I just keep believing in the LSU I know from the past, and I want Coach O to be the coach at LSU. The man just fits in that position, better than anyone else in college football. He’s Louisiana through and through. But it’s almost over, it isn’t working, and this one was probably one of, if not the, final nail in the coffin of O’s time on the Bayou. Hats off to Kentucky, this team is winning in all different ways. Sucking the life out of Florida and doing just enough to win, to blowing out LSU. Mark Stoops is one helluva coach, and Kentucky has a massive shot at Georgia this week to make some serious noise.
The Hammer: I think this one put the nail in Ed Orgeron’s coffin. He may not get fired before the end of the season, depending on it plays out (I was a little surprised he didn't get canned Sunday), but I’m not sure you can come back from this, Kentucky beat the crap out of LSU and was leading 35-7 in the 4th quarter before LSU finally showed some fight. The Wildcats ran for 330 yards on LSU, which should not be possible with the talent LSU has. Will Levis only had to throw the ball 17 times and the Tigers still gave up 42 points. It is a mess in Baton Rouge right now and I’m not sure the players care. Plus, Kayshon Boutte unfortunately went down for the season in the game, so LSU lost its only weapon on offense. On the Kentucky side, give MArk Stoops a ton of credit here. This team is tough, physical and has beaten Florida and LSU in back to back weeks, a sentence many Wildcat fans never thought they would hear. We’ll see what Big Blue is really made of this weekend against the Dawgs, but regardless of what happens, this is a good Kentucky football team that knows how to play winning football.
The Waco Kid: LSU is bad and Coach O may find himself looking for a new job within the next few weeks. On the flipside, Kentucky is good? Never thought I would be typing that sentence but as we all know weirder things have happened in the past year. Once again Levis and C-Rod controlled the game with 145 and 3 TDS through the air and 147 for one TD on the ground. It just isn’t fair at this point. The Wildcats are not supposed to be good and yet they sit at 6-0, looking to compete for the SEC East title. Florida and Dan Mullen move out of the way because the Bluegrass state has plans of their own. This week we will see what they are really made of, but in a fight between canine and feline, my money is on the Dawg.
#1 Alabama 38 - Texas A&M 41
Bossman Slim: What an unbelievable game. This was a true Rudy story, David vs. Goliath. Coming into this year, A&M was expected to compete with Alabama. And then the season started and the wheels started falling off. The roster was decimated with injuries, kids weren’t playing up to their potential, the offensive line and play calling was out of whack, the QB wasn’t playing well. No one gave A&M a chance in this game, period. Not even A&M fans, who had resigned themselves to another drubbing at the hands of the mighty Tide. Instead, on one night, the stars aligned, Zach “Rudy” Calzada stepped up to the plate with the biggest balls this side of the Mississippi, and Texas A&M slayed Goliath. The scenes out of College Station were awesome to witness. Games like this are why we love college football. The season of chaos continues.
The Hammer: Alabama goes down! I was really down on this game coming in because Texas A&M had not shown us anything. But holy smokes was I wrong. That team played a fantastic game Saturday night in front of one of the best atmospheres you will ever see in college football. Over 106,000 Aggie fans made life hard for Alabama all night and eventually stormed the field as Seth Small’s game winning kick sailed through the uprights. I know some Alabama fans were upset with the red zone play calling, but Texas A&M took Alabama’s best shot and won. The Tide kept coming, especially in the second half, where they scored a special teams touchdown and moved the ball almost at will, but A&M kept responding. And when it came to crunch time, Zach Calzada miraculously led the Aggies on two scoring drives in the final 10 minutes and the Alabama offense had a three and out and was forced to punt it back to A&M with two minutes left. This is the kind of game that reminds us why we love college football. Just when you think you have it figured out, something like this happens. As the saying goes, that’s why you play the games.
The Waco Kid: I missed going to this game for work, what worse fate can befall a SEC fan than missing the game of the century. I can tell you now there is none. What do you think those that missed the kick six or the Mississippi miracles or the Manziel triumph feel? I now know, and it is a horrible feeling. Zach Calzada led the Ags to an improbable win through hard work, dedication, and the underlying hate that is felt towards any Nick Saban coached team. Calzada was brilliant throwing for over 250 yards and 3 TDs. If he had played this way in the past two contests, A&M would be undefeated and a top 4 team. Unfortunately before taking down the beast he had to slay a couple of pests that took advantage of the new starting quarterback. Jimbo will look to take the Aggies to a 10-2 season, which will not be enough to make the playoffs, but anyone in the West would agree a win over Bama signifies a turning season. I fully expect to see Bryce Young and Co. in the CFP beating up on the likes of OU or Cincy but for now, TAMU alumni everywhere can celebrate the one beautiful night that the Tide did indeed stop rolling.