SEC Football Week 9 Breakdown
It is becoming increasingly difficult to consider the Southeastern Conference anything more than a two-horse race. In the past, the SEC would be the default answer to anyone’s question of what the best conference in all the land was. Now? You can still make that case just based off of the top heaviness and yet, it would be generous to consider the other 10 SEC teams as anything other than bystanders. LSU won by 35 points last week. Alabama won by 31 points. They both played conference foes, trying to avoid what Oklahoma could not: looking ahead. Now our matchup is set, our precious BCS Championship semi-final play-in between Louisiana State and the Alabama Crimson Tide. We just have to wait one more week for it.
Saturday, October 29
1st ranked Alabama: Open date
2nd ranked LSU: Open date
There is no SEC conference game this week that matches the excitement, build-up and potential fallout of simply waiting for Alabama and LSU to play each other. Some pundits feel like the National Championship could be a rematch of this November 5 tilt but that seems highly unlikely. Especially with so many current undefeated teams, forcing a one loss team into a rematch with a team that had already beaten them for the title seems even beyond the BCS’ capabilities.
Therefore, a game pitting the very best team in the land against the second best team in the land (who the hell knows which is which at this point) is a literal elimination, playoff game at the same time. The winner will most assuredly go on to the SEC Championship and, barring an upset there, playing for the national title. The loser will be relegated to second class status: no conference title game, no national championship game, probably a Fiesta Bowl. Most other team’s dream season will be a sorry sack of disappointment for either Alabama or LSU following next Saturday’s game.
Other notable matchups:
Saturday, October 29
24th ranked Georgia vs. Florida
Even with Georgia’s slow (to be kind) start, the Bulldogs have positioned themselves, with the help of Marcus Lattimore’s torn knee, to play for the SEC Championship. They currently reside in a tie atop the SEC East with South Carolina, a team missing its offensive rock for the remainder of the season. Georgia’s situation is complicated by the fact that their lone conference loss came to those very men from South Carolina, meaning a tie goes to the Gamecocks.
No matter though because, although Georgia has beaten nobody this year and lost to both of the competent teams they have faced, their remaining schedule looks much more pleasant than South Carolina’s. Where UGA has Florida, Auburn and Kentucky, all at home, to close out conference play, USC faces Tennessee, Arkansas and those same Gators, with only the latter at home. It remains to be seen how South Carolina will play without Lattimore as they had a bye last week but the season is certainly shaping up nicely for Georgia to beat no one all year long and wander their way into the conference championship game, to get their souls handed to them by either LSU or Alabama.
Games of no particular note or significance whatsoever:
Saturday October 29
10th ranked Arkansas vs. Vanderbilt
Auburn vs. Ole Miss
Mississippi State vs. Kentucky
13th ranked South Carolina vs. Tennessee
A couple remaining thoughts on the rest of these games: The Razorbacks must wish things were different. After all, a top ten BCS finish and a one loss record with that lone loss possibly coming against the eventual National Champion could get them nothing more than a trip to a December bowl game. Just not your year boys, just not your year. Well, on second thought, they travel to LSU for the final game of the year. Go out and earn your BCS bowl berth why dontcha!
Week 9 Football Breakdown Page
