B&S Week 7 game-by-game recaps
The Neyland goalposts now sit at the bottom of the Tennessee River.
By: The Waco Kid, The Hammer, Bossman Slim
It was an electric scene on Rocky Top after Tennessee shed a 15-year losing streak against Alabama. Screencap via CBS Sports
WHAT A WEEKEND. Tennessee took down Alabama in one of the craziest games in recent memory. It was back and forth all night and the atmosphere was pure electricity. The goalposts were even carried out of Neyland Stadium and wound up in the Tennessee River. Cigars were lit and Dixieland Delight rang out over the loudspeakers as the “orange out” crowd rushed the field. The kind of game and environment that makes us all remember why we love this sport so much. Outside of Knoxville, Kentucky handled Mississippi State, LSU got a huge win on the road and Arkansas isn’t dead yet.
As usual, our picks stunk this weekend. In fact, it was the worst weekend we’ve had all year against the spread. We got slaughtered. Continue fading our picks if you want to make money. Let’s get into the recaps to see what the guys have to say about a wild weekend in the SEC.
#9 Ole Miss 48 - Auburn 34
Bossman Slim: I was a little surprised with how much fight Auburn showed after going down 21-0 to start this one, but in the end, the story played out as I expected it to. The Rebels ran roughshod over the Tigers, racking up nearly 450 yards rushing, and had three players go over 100 on the day. Jaxson Dart also found some success through the air, notching three TDs including a beautifully designed play where he found Zach Evans for paydirt. Auburn continues to stumble to a dismal season while Ole Miss is 7-0 and has everything in front of them, especially with Alabama looking vulnerable. There are some things to clean up on the defensive side of the ball, but overall a solid win for the Rebels at home. Ole Miss heads to Death Valley to take on a suddenly hot LSU team while Auburn gets a bye week before taking on Arkansas at home.
The Hammer: Well, the Rebs won here and it was never really in doubt. Auburn just kind of hung around without ever really threatening. What continues to surprise me about Auburn is that they haven’t given up yet. The Tigers keep playing hard and fighting for Harsin, they just aren’t very good. It was surprising to see Ole Miss allowing Auburn to run the ball like they did. The Rebels defense has been good so far in 2022 and Auburn’s offense has been abysmal. But the Tigers found some running room on Saturday and finished with 301 yards rushing with an average of 6.3 yards per carry. Definitely something to keep an eye on with the Ole Miss defense. Not to be outdone by the Auburn run game, Ole Miss WENT OFF on the ground, rushing for 448 yards on 69 carries. Yes, they really ran the ball 69 times and only threw it 19. Quinshon Judkins, Zach Evans, and Jaxson Dart all ran for over 100 yards. The Rebels running game continues to be one of the best in the entire country and until someone can slow it down, Ole Miss will be hard to beat.
The Waco Kid: Well I spoke too soon about Tank Bigsby, just when I counted him out he shows up with 179 rushing yards on 20 carries and two touchdowns. What a breakthrough game for the Auburn star, but it’s too little too late for this season. After Saturday’s loss to Ole Miss, the Tigers find themselves at 3-4 and clawing for relevancy in the West. The Rebs on the other hand, once again, lit it up on the offensive side of the ball. Jaxson Dart threw for three touchdowns while adding 115 yards rushing to his stat line. The run game was all-around impressive in this one. Mississippi had two backs, on top of Dart’s day on the ground, who each rushed for at least 130 yards and added another three scores between them. Between the tackles, the Lane Train continued to roll. However, their defense showed a lot of glaring gaps that can be exploited in the coming weeks. I mean they let Bryan Harsin’s crew put up 34 on them and they may be one of the worst offensive units in the SEC. Ole Miss will need to tighten things up defensively as they enter a 5-week run where they match up with LSU, A&M, Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi State. All teams, outside of the Aggies, can score at will against a team that allowed Auburn 441 total yards. Ole Miss enters next week ranked as the #7 team in the nation but it may be their last week in the top ten.
#1 Georgia 55 - Vanderbilt 0
Bossman Slim: Yeah, and? Great win by Georgia, they took care of business and got the defense back on track after some disappointing performances earlier in the year. Georgia looks like Georgia again and held a decent Vandy offense to 150 total yards…yeesh. The Dawgs once again look like the class of the SEC. Georgia gets a bye week before The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party™ on October 29th. Vandy has a shot at a win this Saturday against a down, but pesky, Mizzou squad.
The Hammer: This was a good, old-fashioned tail whipping. I thought Vandy would at least score a few points, but their offense was dominated all game by the Dawgs defense. Vandy had 150 total yards of offense. On the other side, Georgia had 579 yards of total offense and basically did whatever they wanted all game. We’ll get to Tennessee later, but the SEC East still runs through Athens and Georgia made sure everyone knew that with this beatdown.
The Waco Kid: No surprise here. Georgia rolled over an inferior Vanderbilt team. The only plus to playing this game is that UGA gets an easy win, for free might I add, and allows their backups to play in some real-time game situations. The East continues to look like a close battle between Tennessee and the Dawgs. The conference will most likely be decided on November 5th and everyone in the nation is counting the days until that monumental Saturday.
#6 Tennessee 52 - #3 Alabama 49
Bossman Slim: I don’t think there is enough you can say about this game. It could be recency bias, or it could just be true: this was probably the best regular season game to watch in the last decade. 15 years in the wilderness for Tennessee and in year two of Heupel Hype, they slay the dragon. The scene in Knoxville after this game was incredible, and new footage and memes keep coming out day by day which makes it that much better. As for the game itself, this was a freaking track meet. Alabama’s secondary was letting receivers run right past them all night like they were bouncers at Rounders letting in underage Phi Mu’s. It’s not like Tennessee’s defense was much better, giving up 42 points to the Tide (another 7 came on a late scoop-n-score that looked like it might be a classic Alabama dagger). This one was about the offenses. Bryce Young is a magician, but Hendon Hooker outplayed him by just enough to get the job done. Jalin Hyatt will never buy another beer in Tennessee, and may even have a statue built in his likeness outside Neyland after posting a stat line of 6 receptions for 207 yards and 5 TDs. Right next to him will be Chase McGrath, who kicked through the wounded-duck game-winning 40-yard FG as time expired. This one will go down in SEC lore. As for Bama fans, it was a tough one to stomach, but there is some solace: in the Nick Saban era, the Tide are 29-1 in the regular season after a loss. It’s all still in front of Alabama if they can get the defense right. Bama gets Mississippi State in the confines of Bryant Denny next week, while Tennessee gets to relax a bit with UT Martin coming to Neyland (just don’t relax too much).
The Hammer: What a dadgum game! For the first time since 2006, Tennessee defeated Alabama and got to smoke their victory cigars while storming the field and throwing the goalposts into the Tennessee River. Neyland was electric all night and produced one of the absolute best atmospheres you will ever see in college football. The game itself was incredible as well. Back and forth all night, with both offenses trading haymaker after haymaker. Bryce Young (455 yards passing and 2 TDs) and Jahmyr Gibbs (103 yards rushing and 3 TDs) played incredibly well in a losing effort. On the Vol’s side, Hendon Hooker finally threw an interception (and had a costly fumble that was returned for a TD), but that didn't matter. Hooker finished with 385 yards and 5 touchdowns on 21/30 attempts. The real star for Tennesse was wideout Jalin Hyatt who had 6 catches for 207 yards and 5 touchdowns. A legendary performance that will live on in Tennessee lore forever. Alabama hurt themselves all night by committing 17 penalties, a troubling trend for tide fans as they continue to be heavily penalized. My main takeaways from this game are that Tennessee is the real deal and Alabama is who they’ve shown themselves to be. They are a great team but vulnerable. I fully expect Alabama to go on and win the SEC West and be right in the middle of the CFP picture but the days of Alabama steamrolling every opponent seem to be done.
The Waco Kid: I thought for sure Nick Saban would not allow a team that had lost 15 straight to him to overturn the Tide. But Rocky Top was rockin’ on Saturday and that is exactly what the Tennessee Vols did to Alabama. Hendon Hooker proved he was the real deal and a Heisman candidate with the performance he put on against the number 1 team in the nation. He threw for 385 yards and 5 TDs against a Tide defense!! Even in down years, their defense is not as bad as they looked on Saturday. The Vols had no quit in them and took this one down to the very end. And with the game on the line and ice in his veins, UT kicker Chase McGrath kicked a duck of a ball that just happened to die going through the crossbars that would soon no longer be a part of Neyland Stadium. Yes, Alabama had the opportunity to take the lead and most likely win with a last-minute field goal of their own but the inconsistent special teams play from Will Reichard gave the ball back to the orange and white with one last chance to upset the Tide. Both of these teams will continue to compete for a chance to play in Atlanta and while Tennessee took one step closer and Alabama took one step back, it is actually the Vols that have the more difficult route to the SEC Championship. While the game is in Atlanta, all roads lead through Athens where Georgia awaits. Beating one number 1 team a season is something in and of itself but beating two is near impossible. If Josh Heupel wants to play in Atlanta he will have to overcome the impossible and take what is owed to no team but wanted by all. Alabama’s road to the championship is a lot easier. They are still undefeated in the West and will need to win out in conference play for a chance to compete in the Georgia Dome.
Arkansas 52 - BYU 35
Bossman Slim: I said it in the preview: Arkansas is a different team with KJ Jefferson under center. QB1 came back in style against the Cougs, posting a huge stat line of 29/40 for 367 yards, 5 TDs, and a 94.5 QBR. Dang, son. I also thought Rocket Sanders could run on BYU, and he sure did, getting in on the scoring action with 2 TDs and notching 175 yards on the ground. Kendall Briles dialed up one heck of a game plan as the Razorbacks marched all over Provo to the tune of 644 total yards and 52 points. Arkansas didn’t leave unscathed though as that secondary continued to show vulnerability, giving up 356 yards and 4 TDs through the air. However, they did come up big with Arkansas clinging to a 24-21 lead late in the 2nd quarter, with Hudson Clark securing in an INT that led to an Arkansas touchdown to give the Hogs a two-score advantage heading into the break. A solid, momentum-building win for the Razorbacks who needed a win in the worst way after dropping three straight in SEC play. Next up is Auburn in Jordan-Hare after a bye week.
The Hammer: Shame on me for doubting an SEC team against BYU. I thought the road game in Provo would prove to be too much for a desperate Arkansas team, but the Hogs took it to BYU in this one. KJ Jefferson coming back really showed how important he is to this team. I knew how good KJ Jefferson was but I didn’t expect the Razorbacks to explode for 644 total yards and 52 points on the road. Jefferson lit up BYU through the air, throwing for 367 yards and 5 touchdowns on 29/40 attempts. He only ran the ball 10 times for 32 yards because Rocket Sanders was unstoppable running for 175 yards and 2 TDs. Really impressive win for Arkansas here to get things back on track before the back half of the season.
The Waco Kid: I told you Arky by 17. I may have done horribly against the spread for the rest of the games but this one I nailed. When your best win is against Baylor, the SEC does not consider you a threat in any game. Plus KJ Jefferson returned this game and did so in a remarkable way. He threw for 367 yards and 5 touchdowns in his comeback game. The BYU defense could not stop anything the Razorbacks threw at them offensively. Raheim Sanders added another 175 yards rushing for two more touchdowns. The Cougs did some scoring of their own putting up 35 points 3 of which came through the air from QB Jaren Hall, but in the end it was not enough to overcome the spectacle Sam Pittman’s offense put on. AU gets Auburn next week and before Saturday I would have said this would be a blowout. But with the re-emergence of Tank Bigsby and the run game, this could end up being one you don’t want to miss.
LSU 45 - Florida 35
Bossman Slim: Where did that come from? LSU has a passing game now? The Tigers walked into this rivalry game and opened it up through the air as Jayden Daniels had his best passing game to date, hitting three different receivers for TDs, not throwing an INT, and lighting up the Florida defense for 349 yards. LSU was also able to get the running game going to the tune of 179 yards and THREE MORE Jayden Daniels TDs on the ground. Jayden for Heisman? No, but it was a great performance that left Gators fans stunned and wondering what happened. Anthony Richardson struggled yet again through the air but did break off a beautiful 81-yard TD run. The Gators posted 210 yards on the ground and 4-total TDs. The biggest story of the night may have been LSU finally getting Kayshon Boutte going, who accounted for 115 of those 349 Daniels yards through the air. The Tigers are gaining confidence at the right time as they head into a difficult stretch with Ole Miss in Vaught Hemingway next week, a bye, then Alabama in Death Valley. Florida is left picking up the pieces again. Lucky for them they have a bye week before facing Georgia, but it may not matter.
The Hammer: Yet another game I was totally off on. But to my defense, who in their right mind saw Jaydon Daniels exploding for 6 total TDs on the road? The Tiger signal-caller played his best game of the season by far, throwing for 349 yards and 3 TDs along with 44 yards rushing and another 3 TDs. He finally cut loose in the passing game like LSU fans have been hoping for. Knowing the talent in the LSU wide receiver room, it’s about time. LSU wideouts were making fantastic catches all night and it seemed like every 50/50 ball that Daniels threw up, the Tigers came down with. Anthony Richardson and the Florida offense played pretty well themselves, they just couldn't keep up. The Gators ran for over 200 yards and averaged 6.4 yards per carry, but it’s hard to win when your defense gives up 45 points. LSU is another team to watch down the stretch because if Daniels plays like that every week, the Tigers will be hard to beat.
The Waco Kid: There was no infamous shoe toss or last-second field goal to end this game, just one team outperforming another that could have gone any way on any given Saturday. Alas, the Tigers put away the one game I had picked the East to win with almost a gentle, nonchalant ease about it. On a night dubbed “Tom Petty Night”, it did not end up being Mary Jane’s Last Dance but may have been the curtain call for a successful Florida Gators’ 2022 season. The Tigers took the lead before halftime and never looked back. Both teams performed well but LSU’s Jayden Daniels put the Bayou Boys over the top with his 6-touchdown performance. It was a masterpiece both through the air and on the ground that Florida could not find an answer for. The purple and gold play caller threw for 349 yards and picked apart a UF secondary that looked like a high school JV team. Even with the defensive poor play, Billy Napier found himself in a situation down by ten and about to get the ball back with plenty of time to score twice. This chance was negated due to a penalty committed by Sophomore defensive lineman Gervon Dexter when he forced Jayden Daniels to throw a pick but allowed his full 312 pounds of force to land on top of the LSU QB resulting in a 15-yard penalty. After that, it was too little too late for another thrilling end in the Swamp. LSU improves to 5-2 while Florida sits at 4-3, neither of which are bad records but for historical powerhouses are a bit of a disappointment. The Tigers pull #7 Ole Miss next weekend, while things just get worse for the Gators as they travel to Athens to take on the #1 Georgia Bulldogs.
#22 Kentucky 27 - #16 Mississippi State 17
Bossman Slim: Another head-scratcher. Mike Leach is good for laying at least one inexplicable egg each year, and this was the first one. The LSU loss can be written off - it’s always tough to win in Death Valley - but this one was puzzling after the Bulldogs had just torn up both Texas A&M and Arkansas. Kentucky kept this Leach/Rogers offense stifled all night, as Mississippi State was only able to post 10 offensive points, the other 7 coming on a pick-six. Will Rogers had his worst offensive performance to date, only throwing for 203 yards, 1 TD, and a critical INT that came late in the 4th quarter with State trying to mount a comeback. Will Levis had an efficient night through the air with 230 yards and 1 TD, but has to clean up the turnovers. The pick-six could have been fatal in an ugly game, but you have to give him credit. After that crucial mistake, Levis led Kentucky on a 5-play, 75-yard drive that included a 50-yard completion to Dekel Crowdus before being capped off by a 7-yard Chris Rodriguez TD. Speaking of Rodriguez, what a night for him as he gashed the State defense for 196 yards and 2 TDs. I expect State to bounce back and play better the rest of the way, and a daunting challenge awaits with a pissed-off Alabama team next week in Tuscaloosa. Kentucky gets a bye week to get healthy before they faceoff with #3 Tennessee in what will be another fantastic SEC matchup.
The Hammer: And the cherry on top for my pathetic picks this weekend. I thought for sure Mississippi State had turned a corner and the typical Mike Leach garbage game was behind them when they lost to LSU. Wrong. The Bulldogs laid a total egg in Lexington on Saturday night. Will Rogers and the offense looked lost all night. Rogers only mustered 203 yards passing and added 1 TD and 1 interception. The rushing attack from Mississippi State that looked so good in the prior two weeks was held to 22 yards. Just terrible offense all night from the Bulldogs. Mark Stoops and Kentucky deserve a ton of credit for this one. The Wildcats defense dominated State and Will Levis coming back gave Kentucky enough offense to get it done. Levis is an absolute warrior and it’s clear how good of a leader he is. The entire Wildcat team just plays better when Levis is on the field. Chris Rodriguez and the Kentucky running game finally got going as well. Their offensive line has been really bad all year, but they found their groove in this one. Rodriguez went for 196 yards and 2 touchdowns on 30 carries. Kentucky would be wise to keep giving that man the rock. It’ll be interesting to see where both teams go from here, but morale is high in Lexington and super low in Starkville, especially with a road trip to Tuscaloosa looming for Mississippi State.
The Waco Kid: This one was a bit of a surprise to me but was in true Mike Leach fashion. Leach may always win 10 games but will undoubtedly drop at least two contests that his squad should win. It is just his MO at this point. As great of a coach as he may be, he cannot seem to get over what I like to call the Richter scale. Copyright pending. Which is based on longtime Georgia great Mark Richt. Always on the cusp of legendary but doomed to be stuck on the elite tier. The Bulldogs could not seem to get things going offensively in this one. Will Rogers only passed for 203 yards and a touchdown while the ground game was absolutely abysmal. This is a far cry from the Rogers we are used to watching put up 300+ yards and 3+ scores per game. While MSU flopped, UK did everything in their power to keep this one out of reach. Will Levis returned from injury and threw for 230 yards and a touchdown, but it was really Chris Rodriguez’s game from the get-go. CRod rushed for 197 yards and two TDs to keep the ball out of Leach’s hands and the score out of reach. Both teams are now 5-2 and both teams also face what could end up being the #1 team in their respective divisions next weekend. MSU travels to Tuscaloosa while Kentucky heads to Knoxville to take on a Tennessee team coming off their first win against Alabama in the Nick Saban era. Both games could be one-score decision games and will make for an entertaining Saturday slate.