B&S Week 12 game-by-game recaps
The B&S crew eats crow as complete chaos unfolded on Saturday night.
By: The Waco Kid, The Hammer, Bossman Slim
Spencer Rattler played the game of his life on Saturday, torching the Vols. (Photo via Draft Network)
Cupcake week turned into “eat crow week” for the crew at B&S. Boy, did we get some of these predictions wrong, and we deserve the clowning coming our way from South Carolina and Arkansas fans, and even Vandy fans! That was a lesson for Bossman and Waco Kid to not deal in absolutes because they absolutely got their words handed right back to them on a plate.
Just one win a piece from this week for the boys and a whole lot of L’s keep the standings close. Only one week to go, this one is going to come down to the very last week.
Let’s dig into the recaps.
Vanderbilt 31 - Florida 24
Bossman Slim: Just when I thought Florida was getting it figured out, they go out and get beat by Vanderbilt. Critical mistakes cooked the Gators this week, especially a muffed punt that turned into a Vandy fumble recovery for a TD in the endzone. I was sure that this rushing attack of Anthony Richardson, Montrell Johnson and Trevor Etienne would be able to run on the worst run defense in the SEC. I was wrong about that just like I was wrong about almost everything else this weekend. The Gators were only able to muster 45 yards on the ground and did not post a TD. AR-15 was able to throw the ball all over the field for 400 yards and 3 TDs, but a crucial pick deep in their own territory turned into a Vandy touchdown on the next play early in the third quarter. That was the backbreaker, putting the Commodores up 28-12. Credit to Vandy - the stats aren’t eye-popping, but they made the plays when needed and capitalized on Florida’s mistakes. Clark Lea has this program on the right track.
The Hammer: Billy Napier and Florida were riding high after two straight SEC wins by multiple scores over Texas A&M and South Carolina. Yet on Saturday, Clark Lea and the Commodores dropped an anchor on their heads. Anchor down, son! That’s two straight SEC wins for Vandy and the ‘Dores are now one win away from a bowl game. Heck of a coaching job by Clark Lea and this staff. Mike Wright continues to make the most of this second chance at starting, leading Vandy to another big win. Wright wasn’t spectacular but he got the job done, throwing for 108 yards, 3 TDs, and one pick on 10/16 attempts. Ray Davis continued churning out yardage, running for 122 yards on 30 carries. Florida’s offense moved the ball well through the air, and the Gators actually outgained Vandy 445 to 283 on the day. But the Commodores completely shut down the Gator rushing attack, only allowing 45 yards all game. That was really the difference here. Vanderbilt could run the ball with some success and Florida could not.
The Waco Kid: It’s official: Vanderbilt is no longer at the bottom of the SEC. That honor is bestowed upon Texas A&M for the time being. I am not sure where Vandy all of the sudden came from but these past two weeks they have shocked the nation. The Commodores followed up their victory over Kentucky with a second straight win over Florida, who were both double-digit favorites. It would be easier to say that Anthony Richardson and the Gator offense just couldn’t produce but that was not necessarily the case. I mean AR-15 threw for 400 yards and three touchdowns both of which were up there with his season highs. He did exactly what he needed to, which was be efficient with the ball and limit turnovers but 14 points in both the second and third quarter for the ‘Dores was just too much. It seemed like they had an answer for every score and turned around and put points on the board themselves. If we learned one thing from this game it is that Richardson can throw the ball but the Gators will thrive or shrivel on his legs, not his arm.
#1 Georgia 16 - Kentucky 6
Bossman Slim: Told ya! I said Kentucky would cover against the Dawgs and got laughed at. Who's laughing now! I was wrong about how much both Georgia and Kentucky would score in this one, but I’ll take a win anywhere I can get it right now. This game was a defensive battle on the slower side, with the first touchdown not being scored until 6:22 left in the third quarter. Both of these defenses played well, forcing a turnover and holding the other under 400 yards (UGA 363; UK 295). UK really wasn’t able to contain the UGA rushing attack, giving up 247 yards on the ground, but they kept the Dawgs out of the end zone. Will Levis threw a patented INT, this one midway through the second quarter in the red zone that was on the backend of a promising 13-play drive. Had Kentucky scored there, it would likely have been a very different game. It didn’t go how many thought, but still a solid win for the Dawgs. For Kentucky, this shows that they really aren’t that far off from being near the top of the SEC East. UGA gets Georgia Tech on Saturday while Kentucky hosts rival Louisville.
The Hammer: I think I picked every game wrong against the spread this week, and that includes this one. I did not see Kentucky keeping this one close, but the Wildcats fought hard. Give their defense credit for holding UGA to just 16 points and frustrating Stetson Bennett all game. The Dawgs ran the ball well, totaling 247 yards on 46 rushing attempts. Bennett, however, only threw for 119 yards and one interception on 13/19 attempts. Kenny McIntosh led the way for the Dawgs on the ground with 143 yards and a TD on 19 carries. As usual, though, the Georgia defense showed up and won this game. Kentucky just had no rhythm offensively and Georgia stopped the Wildcat rushing attack, forcing Levis to try and beat them with his arm. Levis didn't play poorly, but he didn’t play great either and the Wildcats never really threatened Georgia here. Just another day at the office for Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs.
The Waco Kid: This was not the best performance by the Georgia offense but their defense is good enough that all they needed was 16 points to put this away. Stetson Bennett had a bit of a lackluster performance only throwing for 116 yards and no scores. He was also pretty non-existent in the ground game, adding only 25 yards with his legs. Luckily the Dawgs have a stable of workhorses that pounded the ball for four quarters and finally found the end zone in the third quarter after wearing down the Wildcats defense. Kenny McIntosh was the highlight of Kirby Smart’s offense, rushing for 143 and a TD. Kentucky on the other hand could not get anything going Will Levis finally threw a touchdown in the fourth to add 6 to the board but Chris Rodriguez was ineffective against that powerful UGA defensive front. Georgia plays Georgia Tech this weekend in an in-state rivalry which should be quite the lopsided game while UK hosts Louisville. Both teams should emerge victorious but if we’ve learned anything from Big Blue, it is that they are extremely inconsistent from week to week.
South Carolina 63 - #5 Tennessee 38
Bossman Slim: Rumor has it, the Gamecocks are still scoring. This is a preview that will live in infamy for me, and I’ll own it. From my preview: “South Carolina does not have a chance in this game, let’s get that out of the way right off the bat.” Great picking there, Bossman. As you can see above, Spencer Rattler had a night like he hasn’t had since high school, playing like a man possessed, ripping off six TD passes and 438 yards passing in one of the most improbable performances we’ve seen all year. This one truly came out of nowhere, as Rattler had struggled all season to this point. That’s college football for you - things happen when you least expect it. I should have known. Tennessee imploded on defense as Rattler and the Gamecocks exploited this weak Vols secondary all night long and gave them a taste of their own medicine. On the other side, Tennessee’s offense looked good and likely could have put up more points, but losing Hendon Hooker in the third quarter was a dagger. Overall, this was just the Gamecocks night. Great win for this program that continues to build brick by brick under Shane Beamer.
The Hammer: Shane Beamer strikes again! This was one of the most surprising results I can remember given how much was on the line for Tennessee (a CFP berth) and how poor South Carolina’s offense has been all year. If you had told me South Carolina was going to win this game beforehand, I would have assumed the Gamecocks got a few non-offensive touchdowns and squeaked out a win in the 20s or maybe 30s. That at least sounded plausible. But South Carolina’s offense exploding for 63 points and over 600 yards of offense was impossible to predict. Results like this are why we love college football, unless you are a Vol fan. The unpredictability week to week is unmatched. Hats off to Spencer Rattler as well. That kid gets a lot of criticism, and rightfully so, but he balled out on Saturday. After having a pretty bad year overall in his first season at South Carolina, Rattler absolutely eviscerated the Vols to the tune of 438 yards and 6 TDs on 30/37 attempts. A performance he and the Gamecock faithful will never forget. Tennessee’s offense moved the ball extremely well in this one as expected, but even they could not keep pace with the surprising Gamecock offense. We also need to point out that Hendon Hooker went down in the 3rd quarter with a torn ACL. His injury did not impact the result of the game, but it's a real shame seeing that young man’s season ended prematurely due to injury. Hooker was playing as well as any QB in the country and has been a great story all year. By all accounts he is a fantastic leader and person off the field as well, so we hate to see him suffer a major injury and wish him a speedy recovery. Unfortunately for the Vol faithful, one thing that will not recover after this loss is Tennessee’s playoff hopes.
The Waco Kid: Wow, just wow. I cannot believe Spencer Rattler had the game that he did against the fifth-ranked Volunteers. It was literally the game of a lifetime for Rattler and the Gamecocks. He ended the night with 438 yards passing and 6 touchdowns. You read the right, 6 scores by a guy that has barely been able to hold on to the ball all season long. This game just proves even a blind squirrel can find a nut every once in a while. USC also added three rushing touchdowns en route to scoring 63 on the Tennessee defense. Neither team seemed to show up defensively but South Carolina out-sprinted UT and never took their foot off the gas. The worst loss of the night, however, may have been Hendon Hooker tearing his ACL and effectively ending his college football career two games shy of a fairy tale ending. The Vols will have to find a way to win next week and in a bigger bowl game without their colonel leading the charge. Luckily they play Vanderbilt next week and may have a chance to ease their back up into game mode but then again Vandy has become a trap game for East teams this year. South Carolina has a chance to knock off another top team next week when they play Clemson. That should be a good one but on rivalry week anything can happen.
Arkansas 42 - #14 Ole Miss 27 (Ole Miss -2.5)
Bossman Slim: Another one I missed badly. Basically, just flip my score and you would have nearly had it right. The one thing I was worried about in this game was the headspace of the Ole Miss locker room as they continue to hear speculation about Lane Kiffin-to-Auburn rumors. Kiffin insisted that this team was not distracted all week, and then they got out on the field. This one was pretty much over by halftime, as the Razorbacks took a 35-6 lead into halftime, then extended that lead to 42-6 on a 68-yard Rocket Sanders TD run early in the third quarter. This was a total dismemberment of the Rebels, who made the score look a little better than this game actually was with a 21-point fourth quarter. It’s hard to fathom a team putting up 703 yards of total offense like Ole Miss did and losing a game by 15, but that’s exactly what the Rebs pulled off. With rumors still swirling about Lane’s potential move to Auburn, we may see the Rebels lay another egg in the Egg Bowl on Thursday. Arkansas gets Mizzou Friday on CBS.
The Hammer: Another game, another upset. This was only a 2.5-point spread in favor of Ole Miss, so not a major upset by Vegas standards. But this game wasn't close either. Arkansas whipped Ole Miss up and down the field until garbage time when Ole Miss scored a few touchdowns. The Hogs led 42-6 until Ole Miss scored three TDs in the 4th quarter. This game was insane from start to finish, with neither defense being able to stop their opponent. KJ Jefferson returned to the lineup and was quite effective, going 17/22 for 168 yards and three touchdowns. Rocket Sanders continued his electrifying season by rushing for 232 yards and three TDs on 24 carries. Despite the Reb’s defense getting run over, their offense was unstoppable. For all the flack Kiffin is getting for not having this team ready, they moved the ball offensively but had 3 costly turnovers. Ole Miss had over 700 yards of offense, including 453 yards rushing. Zach Evans and Quinshon Judkins both rushed for over 200 yards. It was a track meet, but those turnovers came back to cost Ole Miss the game. With Kiffin’s future in Oxford up in the air, who knows how it is impacting the team, but they certainly looked shell-shocked early on in this one. They need to get their minds right by Thanksgiving if they want to win the Egg Bowl.
The Waco Kid: This was a game I said may be on upset alert and Arkansas did just that. The Razorbacks jumped out to a huge 35-6 first-half lead and that was enough to put even the high-powered Ole Miss offense away for good. I think we all knew Lane Kiffin was going to drop the ball at least one more time this season and with all of the whispers of his departure for the Plains circling the locker room, there may have been too much outside distraction for the Rebs to really prepare for this game. Of course, Kiffin will tell you that’s not the case and yes he continues to win wherever he goes but the circus always seems to follow and screw up a few games for whatever team he is in charge of. In this one, KJ Jefferson and Raheim Sanders were just too overwhelming for the land shark defense. Rocket rushed for over 230 yards and three touchdowns while Jefferson threw for another three showing off a perfectly balanced Piggie attack. Mississippi’s backs still put up outstanding numbers rushing for over 420 yards between the pair of Evans and Judkins but when your game plan is to run the ball and you are down by 29 in the first half, it usually does not turn out well. There is not enough time on the clock to play catch up with the rush game. This ultimately led to Ole Miss’s third loss of the season. Lane Kiffin hosts Mike Leach and the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Egg Bowl on Saturday which I am sure will be an exhilarating rivalry game while Arkansas plays cross-river and conference rival Missouri. Pencil in the Razorbacks for the dub and circle the Egg Bowl on your calendar for a good ol’ fashioned brawl.