Three takeaways from Week 1 of SEC football
Three takeaways from the first weekend of SEC college football games:
1. Georgia is still Georgia
The defending national champions sent an early message they will not give up the crown easily. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs made quick work of the overrated Oregon Ducks, trouncing the Pac-12 members 49-3 at Mercedes Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett completed 25 of 31 passes for 368 yards and two touchdowns while the Bulldogs defense, led by new defensive coordinator Will Muschamp, held Oregon’s offense to 313 total yards and one measly field goal.
Wrote Mike Griffith of Dawg Nation about Georgia getting the better of new Oregon coach Dan Lanning, the former UGA defensive coordinator:
“Third-year offensive coordinator Todd Monken is settled in and knows his pieces well, as evidenced by a brilliant game plan that effectively took what Oregon was giving.
“Lanning wants to take away the interior run game that sets up play-action passes and disrupt Brock Bowers with extra attention?
“No problem, Monken used high-percentage perimeter passes as long handoffs to accomplish some of the same things and deployed explosive open-field weapons Kenny McIntosh (14 touches, 135 yards, TD) and Ladd McConkey (8-89, 2 TDs) on the Ducks.”
2. Brian Kelly is still Brian Kelly
The former Notre Dame coach dropped a heartbreaker in his LSU debut on Sunday night. Down 24-17, LSU’s Malik Nabers muffed his second punt of the night, giving Florida State the football inside the the Tigers’ 10-yard line with a chance to salt the game away. Instead, FSU fumbled at the 1. LSU marched all the way down the field and scored with no time on the clock to make it 24-23. Alas, Florida State blocked the extra point for the victory.
Known for being uncomfortably blunt, Kelly showed after the game that a change in latitude has not changed his attitude. Of Nabers, Kelly said:
“You evaluate him through four weeks of practice and you feel comfortable that with his elite skill set and his mindset that he’s gonna be able to do a great job. And that wasn’t the case. That was a mistake that we made.”
LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels did rush for 114 yards on 16 carries while completing 26 of 35 passes for 209 yards. Daniels is a transfer from Arizona State.
3. Florida is not the same Florida
The Gators showed they have moved on from Dan Mullen by beating No. 7-ranked Utah 29-26 for new head coach Billy Napier. Quarterback Anthony Richardson rushed for 106 yards and three touchdowns on just 11 carries. He also completed 17 of 24 passes for 168 yards.
Wrote Pat Dooley of Gators Wire:
“Richardson was every bit the quarterback Gators fans had hoped for against Utah. He accounted for 274 yards of total offense, 168 through the air on 17-of-24 passing and 106 rushing yards on 11 carries. He scored thrice for the Gators on the ground, including a big 45-yard run that put Florida ahead going into the half.
“Whenever Florida needed him to come up big, Richardson delivered. You need a two-point conversion? Fine, he’ll pump fake the defenders and use his speed to find separation before ultimately hitting a man standing wide open in the end zone to get the job done. That’s a real thing that happened in a competitive football game. Richardson has first-round potential, and the hype doesn’t appear to be overblown.”
Remember, Kentucky visits The Swamp to take on the Gators on Saturday at 7 p.m. on ESPN.
The weekend’s SEC scores
- Tennessee 59, Ball State 10
- Missouri 52, Louisiana Tech 24
- Alabama 55, Utah State 0
- Georgia 49, Oregon 3
- Texas A&M 31, Sam Houston 0
- Florida 29, Utah 26
- Arkansas 31, Cincinnati 24
- Ole Miss 28, Troy 10
- Vanderbilt 42, Elon 31
- Auburn 42, Mercer 16
- Mississippi State 49, Memphis 23
- South Carolina 35, Georgia State 14
- Kentucky 37, Miami (O) 13
- Florida State 24, LSU 23
Saturday’s SEC games
- 12 p.m. - Alabama at Texas (Fox)
- 12 p.m. - South Carolina at Arkansas (ESPN)
- 12 p.m. - Wake Forest at Vanderbilt (SEC)
- 12 p.m. - Missouri at Kansas State (ESPN2)
- 3:30 p.m. - Appalachian State at Texas A&M (ESPN2)
- 3:30 p.m. - Tennessee at Pittsburgh (ABC)
- 4 p.m. - Sanford at Georgia (SEC)
- 7 p.m. - Kentucky at Florida (ESPN)
- 7 p.m. - Central Arkansas at Ole Miss (ESPN Plus)
- 7:30 p.m. - San Jose State at Auburn (ESPNU)
- 7:30 p.m. - Southern at LSU (SEC)
- 11 p.m. - Mississippi State at Arizona (FS1)
This story was originally published September 5, 2022 at 8:23 AM.
