SEC PRIMER (SEC Championship edition): What is everybody playing for?
Compiled by GRAHAM DUNN
Let’s get this out of the way.
Alabama will make the 2020 CFP Playoff.
Even if the Florida Gators find a way to pull the upset, the Crimson Tide will make it to the next round.
And people will cry loudly, just as they are right now because they think teams like Cincinnati, Coastal Carolina and (fill in the blank) are being treated unfairly.
It’s the same dance every year. It’s TCU one year. It’s Baylor the next. Central Florida…
There is a martyr every year.
And every year, it really doesn’t matter who gets the shaft because the committee has done the job of putting the four best teams in the semis.
In 2020, the case is almost closed. There could be a disturbance in the Force should Notre Dame beat Clemson a second time or, as said previously, Florida finds a way to upend the Tide. But, at the moment, the four best teams are sitting 1-4.
That’s not what folks at Texas A&M want to hear. Or Iowa State or Cincinnati.
At this point, that’s what is set up and you will have to learn to like it.
Yes, that result includes Ohio State. Most of us in the South don’t like the Buckeyes, probably as much as folks north of Kentucky don’t like Alabama. But they’ve been good nearly every year. They are the closest example of an SEC team in the Big 10 and they play like it.
They have an SEC quarterback in Justin Fields. Their roster is peppered with players from the south. They play like it too.
That’s not a prerequisite for making the playoffs but it usually helps.
There is a raging argument over how a team that will finish with six wins gets a pass for this playoff. In fact, River Region Sports has deemed this year’s postseason the “Ohio State Invitational” since this feels like one of those golf tournaments where Jack Nicklaus is the host and he can invite whom ever he wants to play.
All Ohio State has to do is win. Everything else will take care of itself.
Even if the Buckeyes weren’t very good, they’d get a pass.
It’s a big reason why so many “experts” are upset about how the playoff committee selects the participants. There is an “eliteness” in its style and that has about 90 percent of the college football fans enraged – as usual.
But here are the facts: The Buckeyes would beat just about everybody in the CFP Top 25, except maybe the three teams in front of them. They would be favorites against everybody except Alabama, Clemson and Notre Dame.
They will have an advantage since they haven’t played a grueling 10-game schedule like everybody else. But that may not matter, especially if they draw the Tide, who no doubt is the team to beat.
There is a faction that wants chaos this weekend. They might get it if Notre Dame beats Clemson. That would open another spot in the Top 4. Who gets it will be up for debate and it will include a few teams with two losses.
(If you didn’t already know, no team with two losses has ever made the playoff.)
So, get ready for what could be an interesting weekend… or one of the most boring in terms of what the playoff might look like when it’s over.
VOICE OF SEC
Rodney Orr of TiderInsider.com provides a look at Alabama’s recruiting class plus what he sees happening with Saturday’s SEC Championship game.
Dec. 19 Schedule/Notes
GAME CANCELLED
Vanderbilt (0-9) at Georgia (7-2) – Will not be rescheduled
IDLE
Arkansas (3-7) – season completed
Auburn (6-4) – season completed
Kentucky (4-6) – Season completed
South Carolina (2-8) – Season completed
SEC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Alabama (10-0) vs. Florida (8-2)
7 p.m. CST (CBS)
Mercedes-Benz Stadium – Atlanta
Series: BAMA, 27-14 (Last: 2016 SEC Championship - BAMA, 54-16)
SEC Championship Meetings: BAMA, 5-4
Last Week: Alabama def. Arkansas, 52-3; LSU def. Florida, 37-34
10 Things about BAMA/UF
Since halftime of the Georgia game, Alabama has allowed a total of 53 points or 8.2 points per game, as well as 265 yards per game. The defense recorded 13 sacks in the last two games against LSU and Arkansas.
Alabama’s longest drive of the season took place to open the second half of the Arkansas game when the Tide went 14 plays in 7:24 with a 4-yard rush for a TD by Brian Robinson capping the drive.
Kyle Trask’s passing efficiency went from 193 to 187 after his performance against LSU. It is the first time that number dipped below 190 this year.
Mac Jones’ efficiency also dropped from 210 to 204 after last Saturday’s game against Arkansas. He is the lone QB in the SEC over 200.
Nick Saban has not lost an SEC Championship game since the 2008 loss to Florida (6-1).
Dan Mullen is coaching in his first SEC Championship as a head coach.
While Florida has thrown for more TDs than any other team with 42, the Gators have rushed for eight scores, led by Damian Pierce with three.
Florida has been in the Red Zone 53 times and scored 37 TDs, 29 by pass. They have kicked 12-of-12 field goals.
Alabama has been in the Red Zone 54 times and scored 41 TDs, 28 by rush. They have kicked 8-of-8 field goals and have five turnovers.
Defensively, Alabama has allowed 19 scores in the red zone (26 attempts) with 11 touchdowns scored. That ranks first in the conference. Florida has allowed 21 TDs in 35 trips in the red zone.
RRS PREDICTION: Alabama 45, Florida 30 (Bama favored by 17)
Texas A&M (7-1) at Tennessee (3-6)
11 a.m. CST (ESPN)
Neyland Stadium - Knoxville, TN
Series: UT, 2-1 (Last: 2016 - @A&M, 45-38)
Last Week: Tennessee def. Vanderbilt, 42-17; Texas A&M did not play (postponed)
3 Things about UT/A&M
A&M leads the SEC in seven different catagories and second in five more.
Tennessee ended a six-game losing streak last week with 540 yards in total offense.
A&M QB Kellen Mond is four TDs away from breaking the school record (93).
RRS PREDICTION: Texas A&M 35, Tennessee 24 (A&M favored by 14)
Ole Miss (4-4) at LSU (4-5)
2:30 p.m. CST (SEC Network)
Tiger Stadium – Baton Rouge, LA
Series: LSU, 63-41-4 (Last: 2019 - LSU, 58-37)
Last Week: Florida, 37-34; Ole Miss did not play (postponed)
3 Things about LSU/OLE MISS
The win over Florida continued a streak for LSU with at least one win over a Top 10 opponent for four consecutive seasons and 10 of the last 11 years.
Ole Miss has won three straight games for the first time since 2014.
The home team has won six of last eight games in the series.
RRS PREDICTION: Ole Miss 35, LSU 31 (Ole Miss favored by 2.5)
Missouri (5-4) at Mississippi State (2-7)
2:30 p.m. CST (SEC Network Alternate)
Davis Wade Stadium – Starkville, Miss.
Series: MIZZOU, 2-1 (Last: 2015 - @MISS ST, 31-13)
Last Week: Georgia def. Missouri, 49-14; Auburn def. Miss St., 24-10
3 Things about MIZZOU/MISS ST
Will Rogers is the first Miss St QB to complete 30 or more passes in four consecutive games.
Mike Leach has met Missouri as a head coach four times while at Texas Tech (1-3 record).
Missouri leads the league in Red Zone offense, scoring 93 percent of the time (28 of 30 -17 TDs).
RRS PREDICTION: Missouri 24, Miss St 20 (MIZZOU favored by 1.5)