THIS wEEk IN THE

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When: 4 p.m. EDT Saturday. Where: Williams-Brice Stadium,. Columbia, S.C.. TV: SEC Network. Notes: South Carolina leads
THIS wEEk IN THE INSIDE ONE OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL’S PREMIER CONFERENCES | COmPILED BY PaTRICk STEVENS, SPECIaL TO GaTEHOUSE mEDIa BY THE NUmBERS

GamE OF THE wEEk FLORIDA (3-3, 3-2 SEC) VS. NO. 3 GEORGIA (7-0, 4-0)

POwER RaNkINGS

STANDINgS

When: 3:30 p.m. EDT Saturday Where: EverBank Field, Jacksonville, Fla. TV: CBS

Breaking down the SEC

(Through Oct. 21) EAST Team Georgia South Carolina Florida Kentucky Tennessee Vanderbilt Missouri

Conf. 4-0 3-2 3-2 2-2 0-4 0-4 0-4

All 7-0 5-2 3-3 5-2 3-4 3-4 2-5

T25 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 0-2 0-2 0-2

WEST Team Alabama Auburn LSU Texas A&M Mississippi State Ole Miss Arkansas

Conf. 5-0 4-1 3-1 3-1 2-2 1-3 0-4

All 8-0 6-2 6-2 5-2 5-2 3-4 2-5

T25 1-0 0-2 1-0 0-1 1-2 0-3 0-3

1. Alabama (8-0): Jalen Hurts and Co. get two weeks to prepare for LSU again this year. Not good for the Tigers. (Last week: 1)

Georgia running back D’Andre Swift (7) and offensive lineman Justin Shaffer celebrate a win over Missouri Oct. 14 in Athens, Ga. [JOHN BAzEMORE/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS]

2. Georgia (7-0): Notre Dame pummeled Southern Cal, adding to the value of Georgia’s best victory. (LW: 2)

INDIVIDUAL LEADERS (Through Oct. 21) PASSING YARDS Player 1. Shea Patterson, MISS 2. Drew Lock, MIZ 3. Jarrett Stidham, AUB 4. Jake Bentley, SC 5. Danny Etling, LSU

Yds. 2,259 2,190 1,728 1,585 1,452

PASSING TOUCHDOWNS Player 1. Drew Lock, MIZ 2. Shea Patterson, MISS 3. Kyle Shurmur, VAN 4. Jake Bentley, SC 4. Jake Fromm, UGA

No. 23 17 14 12 12

RUSHING YARDS Player 1. Kerryon Johnson, AUB 2. Derrius Guice, LSU 3. Damien Harris, ALA 4. Nick Chubb, UGA 5. John Kelly, TENN

Yds. 723 711 697 688 615

RECEIVING YARDS Player 1. A.J. Brown, MISS 2. J’Mon Moore, MIZ 3. D.J. Chark, LSU 4. Calvin Ridley, ALA 5. DaMarkus Lodge, MISS

Yds. 717 580 535 523 456

SCORING Player 1. Kerryon Johnson, RB, AUB 2. Andy Pappanastos, PK, ALA 3. Daniel Carlson, PK, AUB 4. Daniel LaCamera, PK, TA&M 5. Rodrigo Blankenship, PK, UGA

Pts. 84 81 80 67 61

TEAM STATISTICS (Through Oct. 21) TOTAL OFFENSE Team Alabama Auburn LSU Missouri Georgia Ole Miss Mississippi State Texas A&M Arkansas South Carolina Kentucky Florida Vanderbilt Tennessee

Yds./G 500 462 418 474 454 446 442 402 361 337 337 351 297 290

Pts./G 43.0 36.3 27.4 33.1 37.6 30.7 33.7 32.1 27.4 25.1 24.6 23.7 22.4 19.6

PASSING OFFENSE LEADERS Team Yds. Ole Miss 2,337 Missouri 2,198 Auburn 1,797 LSU 1,612 Alabama 1,608

Yds./G 333.9 314.0 224.6 201.5 201.0

RUSHING OFFENSE LEADERS Team Yds. Alabama 2,390 Georgia 1,980 Auburn 1,902 Mississippi State 1,852 LSU 1,730

Yds./G 298.8 282.9 237.8 264.6 216.3

STaRS OF THE wEEk • QB Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State: Threw for 155 yards and a TD and added 115 yards and two TDs on the ground as the Bulldogs smashed Kentucky. • TB Derrius Guice, Louisiana State: Rushed for 276 yards and a TD as the Tigers drilled Mississippi 40-24 to become bowl eligible. • WR J’Mon Moore, Missouri: Caught 11 passes for 174 yards and a TD to help the Tigers maul Idaho.

STaT OF THE wEEk

68

Points scored by Missouri in its rout of Idaho last week, the Tigers’ third-most ever against an FBS opponent. Missouri previously scored 69 points in victories over Kansas (1969) and Nevada (2008).

’DOGS’ TURN TO PARTY?

GEORGIA CAN KEEP CFP HOPES ALIVE WITH WIN OVER GATORS AT COCKTAIL PARTY

KEYS FOR FLORIDA Firm against the run. Georgia QB Jake Fromm had his best game yet as the Bulldogs thrashed Missouri to head into their bye week. While that’s a good sign for the freshman, the formula Georgia is going to use against teams that actually play some semblance of defense is unchanged. The Bulldogs will lean on TBs Nick Chubb and Sony Michel to handle much of the load. String together first downs. Let’s preface this by pointing out that simply achieving one first down per possession will be a chore. Florida is tied for 125th nationally with 99 first downs, and while losing a game due to Hurricane Irma depresses that figure a little, no one

is pretending the Gators’ offense is a juggernaut. KEYS FOR gEORgIA Take care of the ball. If it seems unlikely the Bulldogs are going to give up much ground to the Gators, then it stands to reason Florida’s path to victory is through turnovers and special teams play — either by flipping the field or just scoring nonoffensive touchdowns. If Georgia can simply avoid miscues like fumbles and interceptions and prevent Florida from uncorking long punt and kick returns, it will have a great chance to win. Usual defensive standards. Georgia gave up a season-high 28 points to Missouri in its last outing, and chances are defenseminded head coach Kirby

Smart reminded his team of the fact a few times over the last fortnight. Look for the Bulldogs to get back to their elite play on defense as they badger Florida QB Feleipe Franks from the get-go in this year’s edition of the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party. pREDICTION Georgia 20-7. While this is a chance for the Florida defense to stand tall, it’s worth remembering that the Gators have allowed less than 20 points in both of their last two outings — and lost. Georgia’s elite defense should bottle up Florida’s meager attack, and a ground-andpound approach should net enough points to keep the Bulldogs on track for an SEC East title.

BEST OF THE REST ThIS wEEK’S OThER TOp gAMES

VANDERBILT (3-4, 0-4) at S. CAROLINA (5-2, 3-2)

MISS. ST. (5-2, 2-2) at TEXAS A&M (5-2, 3-1)

TENNESSEE (3-4, 0-4) at KENTUCKY (5-2, 2-2)

When: 4 p.m. EDT Saturday Where: Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, S.C. TV: SEC Network Notes: South Carolina leads series 22-4 and has won eight in a row against the Commodores. The schedule sets up quite well for the Gamecocks the rest of the Bentley way, starting with this date with reeling Vanderbilt. South Carolina plays four of its last five at home, and it is reasonable to anticipate QB Jake Bentley and his teammates securing the program’s first regular season record above .500 since 2013.

When: 7:15 p.m. EDT Saturday Where: Kyle Field, College Station, Texas TV: ESPN Notes: Series tied 5-5, and the home team has won four in a row. The rested Aggies begin a three-game homestand that figures to determine the trajectory of Fitzgerald their season. Dates with Auburn and New Mexico await, but the first priority is handling QB Nick Fitzgerald and the Bulldogs. Mississippi State is coming off back-to-back routs of Brigham Young and Kentucky.

When: 7:30 p.m. EDT Saturday Where: Kroger Field, Lexington, Ky. TV: SEC Network Notes: Tennessee leads series 79-24-9 and has won five in a row and 31 of the last 32 against the Wildcats. Tennessee managed only seven first downs Guarantano and 108 total yards in the loss, and QB Jarrett Guarantano was just 9 of 16 for 44 yards and an interception in the loss. Kentucky is coming its own lackluster performance, a similar 45-7 setback against Mississippi State.

ROUNDING IT OUT ThE REST OF ThE MATChUpS

Time (EDT) SATURDAY Noon 6:30 p.m.

Matchup Arkansas at Mississippi Missouri at Connecticut

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TV SEC CBSSN

3. Louisiana State (6-2): How exactly did these guys lose to Troy less than a month ago? Tigers are on a tear. (LW: 3) 4. Auburn (6-2): The Tigers get a bye week before a November featuring two huge games (Georgia and Alabama). (LW: 4) 5. Texas A&M (5-2): Winners of five of their last six, the Aggies are still in line for a possible 10-win season. (LW: 5) 6. South Carolina (5-2): Possible they leave this weekend as the only team with a chance of wresting the SEC East away from Georgia. (LW: 7)

7. Mississippi State (5-2): Pulverized Kentucky to earn its first conference victory since taking down Louisiana State. (LW: 8)

8. Florida (3-3): The Gators’ offense isn’t pretty, and Georgia’s defense has devoured far lesser attacks so far this season. (LW: 9) 9. Kentucky (5-2): The Wildcats came down to earth with their lackluster showing against Mississippi State. (LW: 6)

10. Tennessee (3-4): Still hope for a bowl game and even a winning record thanks to a manageable remaining schedule. (LW: 10) 11. Mississippi (3-4): The next big development out of Oxford will be when the school names a new coach. (LW: 11) 12. Arkansas (2-5): Saturday’s trip to Mississippi is a backs-againstthe-wall moment for the Razorbacks. (LW: 12) 13. Vanderbilt (3-4): May have a chance at creating some headaches for the Gamecocks with lowscoring grinder. (LW: 13) 14. Missouri (2-5): The Tigers sadly don’t get to face Idaho again this season, but Connecticut isn’t exactly a powerhouse. (LW: 14)