After first SEC Saturday, Mike Leach is the talk of the league

Some Monday morning SEC notes and links:

▪ Mike Leach and K.J. Costello had memorable SEC debuts as the former Washington State coach and former Stanford quarterback led Mississippi State to a 44-34 win at defending national champion LSU, reports Tyler Horka of the Clarion-Ledger. Leach sent a warning shot to the rest of the SEC, writes Pete Thamel of Yahoo Sports. David Cobb of CBS Sports agrees. David Hale of ESPN compares Leach’s upset win to Oklahoma’s upset loss.

▪ Former UK coach Hal Mumme reacts to former UK assistant Leach’s big win, courtesy of Saturday Down South.

▪ The SEC is now a pass-happy league, writes Pat Dooley of the Gainesville Sun. Robbie Andreu of the Gainesville Sun has five takeaways from Florida’s 51-35 win over Ole Miss. Kyle Trask gives Florida a big advantage, writes Edgar Thompson of the Orlando Sentinel. Parrish Alford of the NE Mississippi Daily Journal has some day-after observations from the Rebels’ loss to the Gators. Ole Miss’s offense showed potential for greatness, writes Nick Suss of the Clarion-Ledger.

[SEC football 2020 in a Google Sheet]

▪ Mike Griffith of Dawg Nation reports that Vegas sees Georgia as a touchdown-favorite in the Bulldogs’ showdown with visiting Auburn this Saturday. The Columbus Ledger-Enquirer has a first-look at the Georgia-Auburn matchup. Stetson Bennett gave Georgia’s offense a jolt in win over Arkansas, says the Athens Banner-Herald.

▪ Tom Green of AL.com writes that Auburn has the nation’s best red zone defense thanks to its 29-13 win over Kentucky. Giana Han of AL.com writes that Auburn’s offensive line is putting together a puzzle. Josh Vitale of the Montgomery Advertiser says Auburn’s defense played all 60 minutes in the win over the Wildcats. Auburn is dealing with several injuries, reports Auburn Rivals.

▪ Alabama’s quarterback order is clear following its 38-19 win at Missouri, writes Cecil Hurt of the Tuscaloosa News. Mac Jones is the starter. Cecil also wrote that Bama’s victory was impressive but incomplete. Alabama Rivals breaks down the win over Mizzou.

▪ There’s no such thing as an ugly win for Tennessee, writes Blake Toppmeyer of the Knoxville News-Sentinel after the Vols’ 31-27 victory at South Carolina. Tennessee came up clutch to beat the Gamecocks, says John Adams of the News-Sentinel. Vols aren’t perfect but they are 1-0, says Mark Wiedmer of the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

▪ Ben Breiner of The State has the good and the bad from Mike Bobo’s first game as South Carolina’s offensive coordinator. USC snatched defeat from the jaws of victory, says David Cloninger of the Charleston Post and Courier.

▪ Texas A&M picked up a 17-12 win over Vanderbilt, but struggled in all areas, says Robet Cessna of the Bryan/College Station Eagle. Vandy claims this isn’t the same Vandy, reports Teddy Rhydquist of Saturday Down South. Some extra points from the Texas A&M win, via Brent Zwerneman of the Houston Chronicle.

▪ Souichi Terada of the Kansas City Star on what new Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz liked and didn’t like about his team’s loss to the Crimson Tide. There were silver linings in the loss, says Ben Frederickson of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.

▪ Matt Jones of Whole Hog Sports has some observations from Arkansas’ 37-10 loss to Georgia. Arkansas’ defense held its own, says Bob Holt of the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.

▪ Brooks Kubena of The Advocate in Baton Rouge goes inside LSU’s secondary problems against Mississippi State’s passing game. LSU faces a long list of corrections, reports Kubena. The Tigers do lead the nation in run defense, points out David Paschal of the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

▪ SEC football is a September winner, says Pat Forde of Sports Illustrated.

AP Top 25 college football

1. Clemson
2. Alabama
3. Florida
4. Georgia
5. Notre Dame
6. Ohio State
7. Auburn
8. Miami
9. Texas
10. Penn State
11. UCF
12. North Carolina
13. Texas A&M
14. Oregon
15. Cincinnati
16. Mississippi State
17. Oklahoma State
18. Oklahoma
19. Wisconsin
20. LSU
21. Tennessee
22. BYU
23. Michigan
24. Pittsburgh
25. Memphis

This story was originally published September 28, 2020 at 9:31 AM.

John Clay

Lexington Herald-Leader

859-472-4218

John Clay is a sports columnist for the Lexington Herald-Leader. A native of Central Kentucky, he covered UK football from 1987 until being named sports columnist in 2000. He has covered 20 Final Fours and 42 consecutive Kentucky Derbys. Support my work with a digital subscription