B&S Week 2 game-by-game recaps 2023
Texas swaggers out of Bryant-Denny with a W, Texas A&M falters in the Sunshine State, and Ole Miss gets a solid road win over #24 Tulane.
By: Bossman Slim, Hammer, Waco Kid
Another tough week for the SEC in big games, but Ole Miss did put together a good win against Tulane after a shaky first half, and Mississippi State and Auburn both disposed of Pac-12 foes who gave them all they could handle.
Here’s how the crew fared this week:
In the name of all that is holy, if you want to win money do not mirror Waco Kid’s picks against the spread. He’s on track for an all-time bad season ATS, and in some countries, they put you in jail for stuff like that.
Let’s hit the recaps.
Bossman Slim: Good pick, Slim. I want to believe in Vandy and I made the SEC homer pick in this one, thinking Vandy could get it done against a Sam Hartman-less Wake Forest team. But they’re not there yet. AJ Swann threw a near pick-six on the Commodores first possession and it didn’t get much better after that. Wake Forest torched the ‘Dores on the ground for 288 yards and a TD, with Wake adding 2 TDs through the air. Turnovers were a real killer for Vandy, but there are some good things they can take away from this game.
Hammer: I thought Vandy had the firepower to keep this one slightly closer, but Wake winning this seemed inevitable. It’s a testament to what Dave Clausen has built in Winston-Salem. Vandy was able to move the ball on Wake Forest, but three costly turnovers prevented them from keeping pace with the Demon Deacons. One thing that really needs to be improved on is the Commodores run defense. They surrendered 288 rushing yards to Wake, who averaged 6 yards per carry. That kind of Swiss cheese run defense will continue to get exposed in the SEC unless Clark Lea and his staff can find a quick fix. Wake is just a better team at the moment. Clark Lea and Vandy hope to become what Wake is, but they have plenty of work ahead of them.
Waco Kid: I gave Vanderbilt the benefit of the doubt based on their first two weeks of the season. But they proved they are still the same old Commodores. Still have issues competing with bigger programs and haven’t quite yet turned that corner into mediocrity. Ball security will be a huge point of emphasis going forward. It does not matter how well your offense is clicking, if you give the ball away three times, it is going to be hard to come back from.
Next up for Vandy: UNLV
Bossman Slim: The Green Wave showed a lot of heart in this one, especially without Michael Pratt at QB who was a late scratch. After the Rebels jumped out to a 7-0 lead in front of a sold-out crowd at Yulman Stadium, Tulane settled down and took a 17-10 lead into halftime. Big props to Lane Kiffin’s team for their resiliency and not flinching on the road, putting up a few scores in the fourth quarter to finally put the Green Wave away. Jaxson Dart completed 63% of his passes and had 267 yards, 2 TDs and an INT, which was much needed as the vaunted Ole Miss rushing attack faltered against the Green Wave front. Dayton Wade stepped up at WR with 7 catches for 106 yards and Tre Harris added another TD. Ole Miss looks solid and are trending upward in the West. They’ll need to focus on shoring up the secondary, who gave up 231 yards through the air to a backup QB.
Hammer: Ole Miss played with their food in this one for a while before pulling out a three-score win on the road thanks to a 20-point fourth quarter. Unfortunately for college football fans, Tulane’s star QB Michael Pratt did not play due to a bum ankle. Who knows if the game would have gone differently but it's too bad Tulane wasn't at full strength. This was not the prettiest game from Ole Miss but they got a win on the road against a good Tulane team so no one should be upset. Plenty of other fanbases would trade places with the Rebs here. Jaxson Dart looked solid but didn’t wow anyone. A potential concern lies with the Rebels offensive line, who couldn't open holes in the run game and struggled in pass protection. Ole Miss only ran for 89 yards on 35 attempts (2.5 ypc) and they surrendered four sacks and eight tackles for loss to the Green Wave front. Tulane’s front seven is solid, but there are much better units in the SEC that Ole Miss will play down the road. Always things to improve on but thankfully for Rebels fans it's after a win and not a loss. Nothing wrong with a 17-point road win against a ranked opponent.
Waco Kid: Tulane kept this one close up until the fourth quarter. I thought the Green Wave could pull it off but the depth of Ole Miss was ultimately the difference maker in this one. That and the fact that hours before the game it was announced the Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt would not be participating in the contest. This came as a shock to college football fans, and most would immediately have written Tulane off. But to their credit, they fought the whole game and even went into halftime with a lead behind a backup quarterback. At the end of the day, a program like Mississippi has the luxury of having two to three deep at every position while the Wave may have a decent backup but that is it. A score on defense late in the fourth solidified the Rebs as the victors. This was Lane Kiffin’s first real test of the season and it only gets harder from here.
Next up for Ole Miss: Georgia Tech
Bossman Slim: “To live is to suffer, to survive is to find some meaning in the suffering.” –Friedrich Nietzsche. Such is the existence of Aggies, who year in and year out must look in the mirror and ask why God chose them to suffer so greatly. We have the resources! We have the money! We have 150 5-stars! For all of your money and labor, here’s an embarrassing double-digit loss to unranked Miami in a half-full Hard Rock Stadium. The A&M offense did some good things and Conner Weigman is absolutely a dude at QB. But 10 penalties for 115 yards, a costly Amari Daniels fumble as the Aggies were taking back momentum, a 100-yard kick return for a TD, and back-breaking mistakes in the secondary cost the Aggies the game. They got worked, plain and simple. Miami looks like a contender in the ACC and a much-improved team. I’m looking forward to November 11th when the Hurricanes meet up with Florida State in Tallahassee. That one could be like old times. As for the Aggies, they watched their biggest rival waltz into Alabama and come out with a monumental win - a win they should have had last season when they came up one play short. Crushing day for A&M fans, but it’s a long season. We’ll see if the Aggies can turn it around, but don’t hold your breath. College Station should come up with a new city motto: “Life is Pain.”
Hammer: Oh boy, we have problems yet again in College Station. This is truly baffling what is happening there. The offense, which plagued the Aggies for years, played pretty well. Coming into this game if you told me A&M scored 33, I would have thought they’d win that game. Not so fast, my friend. Miami and Tyler Van Dyke torched the Aggies secondary all day. The Aggie secondary got exposed in coverage and they struggled to tackle Hurricane receivers, allowing them to run wild after the catch. Van Dyke went 21/30 for 374 yards and five TDs, and he made it look easy. Conner Weigman was hardly the problem for A&M, throwing for 336 yards with two TDs and two interceptions (one was due to his WR slipping). Weigman did not play great by any means, but he was under constant pressure from an aggressive Miami defense, who blitzed on 33 of Weigman’s 57 dropbacks. The Hurricanes got pressure on 26 of those, causing early and often inaccurate throws. That was the story of the game. Miami was the aggressor. They got after A&M on both sides of the ball and the Aggie defense looked really passive and reactive. They were not aggressive and they did not dictate anything. DJ Durkin has some soul-searching to do because that was a pitiful performance from his defense and the lack of aggression allowed Tyler Van Dyke to carve them up. It seems to be one thing after the other in College Station.
Waco Kid: Texas A&M in Week 1 looked like a revitalized program under OC Bobby Petrino. They were nearly unstoppable against the New Mexico defense. The Aggies that showed up on Saturday were a completely different team. The O-line couldn’t block a pop-up if they were a pop-up blocker and the offense just looked blah all game. Still, A&M jumped out to an early lead due to some errors on the Miami side. The ‘Canes quickly turned it around and after halftime decided to rid themselves of mental errors and play fundamental football. And that is exactly what they did. Tyler Van Dyke was hitting receivers all over the field and made the maroon secondary look like freshman who had never played a down of college football. This was a tough loss for Jimbo and we will see how he gets his team to respond. As of now, this loss looks like it could begin a spiral in College Station but if they can come out firing against ULM next week, they could enter SEC play on a high note and ride that momentum throughout the rest of the season. UM looks impressive and could be a top-ten team so we will see how this win translates for the Hurricanes going forward.
Next up for Texas A&M: ULM
Bossman Slim: Texas fans to the B&S Crew: Eat your heart out! Incredible. What a win for Texas. Not many who enter Bryant-Denny Stadium leave with the sword of the GOAT. The Longhorns did just that on Saturday night, with former Tide assistant Steve Sarkisian walking out with a convincing victory over his old boss. Texas was the better team all night, looking like the superior team in the trenches on both sides of the ball. In our B&S Preview Show with Steven Willis of the Locked on Ole Miss Podcast (Live on Twitter/YouTube Thursday at 7 p.m. CT), I noted that the matchup I was watching was an experienced Texas offensive line vs. the talented but inexperienced front of Alabama. The Horns got the better of that matchup, giving Quinn Ewers nice pockets most of the game (0 sacks or the Tide) and helping the Horns ground attack go over 100 yards. On the other side of the ball, Texas sacked Jalen Milroe five times and racked up nine TLFs. Texas looked like an SEC power on Saturday night, not Alabama. The biggest difference was QB and it was obvious for all to see. Quinn Ewers worked the Alabama secondary for 349 yards and three TDs with 0 INTs, while Milroe had 2 TDs but also threw two picks that turned into 10 points for Texas, the difference in the game. Bama now has no more margin for error if they want to make the College Football Playoffs. Milroe is uber-talented, but his decision-making needs to improve at ludicrous speed. For those who said Texas isn’t ready for the SEC, time to throw those takes out the window.
Hammer: I was wrong so much this last weekend, and the Tide fooled me in this one too. I did not think Texas had the physicality and mental toughness to get a win at night in Bryant-Denny. Oh, but they did. The Longhorns took it to Alabama all night, mostly with Quinn Ewers slicing up the Bama secondary. Steve Sarkisian called a fantastic game, and Ewers was accurate all night, throwing for 349 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers on 24/38 attempts. It was clear the Texas game plan was to make Jalen Milroe beat them with his arm, and it worked. The Longhorns bottled up the Tide’s run game, only allowing 107 yards on 35 attempts (3.1 ypc). Thus, Milroe was left to try and beat them from the pocket, and he was not able to deliver going just 14/27 for 255 yards, two touchdowns and two costly interceptions. Simply put, Texas was the better and more physical team. Quinn Ewers was not sacked and the vaunted Crimson Tide defensive line only tallied two tackles for loss. Meanwhile, Texas sacked Milroe five times and had nine tackles for loss. Impressive win for Texas, proving myself and many doubters wrong. The Tide has a lot of question marks moving forward and it appears the offseason question marks are still that…question marks.
Waco Kid: This is the game that really killed the weekend for me. Texas is a talented team but not as good as they appeared on Saturday. It seemed like Alabama struggled with everything defensively and UT took advantage. Now we get to hear about how Texas is back for the next few weeks until they inevitably drop to teams like Kansas and Baylor. Bama has to find themselves and if they cannot beat Tennessee and win out, their playoff dreams may already be over.
Next up for Alabama: South Florida
Bossman Slim: How ‘bout them Bulldogs! Mississippi State gutted out a hard-fought win in Starkville against an upstart Arizona team. I actually nailed this score right on the money, so there’s one thing I got right this weekend. It’s honestly crazy that this game was close considering the Wildcats turned the ball over FIVE times in regulation, but State was unable to capitalize on all those mistakes and let Arizona hang around, even though they went up 14-0 after picks on back-to-back possessions by ‘Zona QB Jayden de Laura. The Bulldogs were balanced on offense again, notching 162 yards passing and 145 yards rushing. Cowboy Will Rogers is Mr. Steady, going 13/17 for 162 and three TDs. State did allow 431 total yards, 340 of which came through the air. While they did nab four picks, Zach Arnett will want to clean up the back end going into SEC play or it will be difficult for the Bulldogs to win games in the SEC.
Hammer: Man, thank goodness the Bulldogs pulled this one out, otherwise the SEC would be in complete shambles getting worked in the non-conference. It's possible the SEC just isn't that good this year, but this is about Mississippi State not the conference as a whole. And the Bulldogs are 2-0 under new coach Zach Arnett, which is great news but like most SEC teams, questions remain. This is yet another example of an SEC team not being able to impose their will at the line of scrimmage against an out-of-conference foe. The Bulldogs were only able to run for 145 yards on 39 attempts (3.7 ypc) and it's clear this new-look offense wants to run the dang ball. Cowboy Will Rogers was only able to unload his clip 17 times in this game, but he looked great in those attempts, completing 13 of them for 162 yards and three touchdowns. The real story in this game was Arizona QB Jaden de Laura throwing four picks because Arizona was able to move the ball all night. They outgained Mississippi State 431 to 307 but ultimately could not overcome the four picks and a fumble. When you win a game in overtime in which you were +4 in the turnover battle means there is still plenty of work to be done. Hats off to the Bulldogs for figuring out a way to win, but you can’t expect to be +4 in turnover margin each game.
Waco Kid: This was actually a pretty good game. A little closer than expected but the Bulldogs pulled it out in Starkville and showed they know how to finish a game. Will Rogers lit it up through the air with three passing touchdowns and stuck with the game plan of a balanced offense. Running back Jo’Quavious Marks rushed for over 120 yards and added another score. With that balanced of an offense it is hard to scheme defensively. You have to consider both the passing and rushing aspects of the game and for most teams, you can game plan against one or the other and shut it down. This may have been close but I think Mississippi State has something special with this team and will continue to give teams a fit with a top QB and RB in the backfield.
Next up for Mississippi State: #14 LSU
Bossman Slim: I thought this game could be a struggle due to the late start and long travel for Auburn, but it was even uglier than I had envisioned. Hugh Freeze is known for his offensive prowess, but Saturday night was all about Auburn’s defense who held Cal to 10 points and 273 total yards and gave the Tigers a chance to win. Payton Thorne was dismal under center, posting just 94 yards passing and a 56.9 QBR, though he did throw two TDs - Auburn’s only two touchdowns of the game. Auburn ran the okay and it was good to see Jarquez Hunter back as the feature back. There is a ton for Hugh Freeze and the coaches to pinpoint and work on after this one, particularly in the passing game, but ain’t nobody complaining about a P5 road win. 2-0 to start the Freeze era sounds pretty nice back in Alabama where the trees donned toilet paper decorations once again.
Hammer: A win is a win and Auburn is now 2-0 unlike many of their SEC counterparts. Was it pretty? No. Did the Auburn offense look good? Not at all. Plenty of questions and uncertainties are coming out of this game, but it's better to be 2-0 with questions and 1-1. After flattening UMass in the opener, Auburn was in a dogfight against the Cal Bears. This was no easy road trip going across the country for a late-night start on Pacific Time. It seems like we are reverting back to 2004 with some of these SEC box scores. Many of the SEC offenses seem to be in grind-it-out mode and Auburn fits that bill perfectly. Payton Thorne only attempted 14 passes while the Tigers ran the ball 39 times. Given Thorne’s numbers (9/14, 94 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT), I can see why they kept trying to pound the rock, although that didn't do much either. Jarquez Hunter was back in the lineup for Auburn and he looked solid carrying the ball 11 times for 53 yards, but otherwise, this run game was stuffed, only rushing for 136 yards on 39 attempts. Robby Ashford only ran for 8 yards so Cal did a great job of bottling up the Auburn offense. Luckily for Auburn, their defense came to play, and Cal has been terrible on offense in recent years. They put up 58 points in their opener against North Texas, but that is an outlier. The Auburn front seven worked Cal up front, only allowing 2.8 yards per carry on 40 runs. Auburn fans never rest easy, even after a win, and they won’t after escaping the Bay Area with this close win either. Hugh has plenty of more work to do on the Plains.
Waco Kid: What a snooze of a game. Any contest that ends 14-10 is one that I can go without watching. Yes, it’s sound to watch defensively but hard to view as a fan. We want to see high-flying, high-scoring offenses that can move the ball with ease. That’s just modern-day football. This was not the matchup for that. Payton Thorne ended the night with two passing scores but when that is all you can muster against Cal, it may be time to go back to the drawing board. I think Robby Ashford will get another chance to be the guy this season, even though the Tigers are winning games. They cannot score 14 and expect to win in many SEC matchups.
Next up for Auburn: Samford
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