I don't understand why some people, namely Gary Parrish, refuse to acknowledge Vanderbilt as a top-25 team. They have three legit road wins (Saint Mary's, Alabama, and South Carolina) and no bad losses (Western Kentucky will make the NCAA Tournament and may win a game or two. You can ask Mississippi State too.) A.J. Ogilvy has recently added highlights to his air and, contrary to prior belief, he's added a kind of competitive "mean streak" to go along with his improved play. It's now or never for Ole Miss and Florida. They each have a shot at Devan Downey and South Carolina in Oxford and Gainesville, respectively, and a winnable road game. And Georgia's by far the best 0-3 (conference record, that is) team in the country, and its not even close. Just ask the Mississippi Schools and in-state rival Georgia Tech. Kentucky continues to look vulnerable, but they continue to win, thanks in large part to John Wall playing in a completely different universe compared to everyone else. They will, and yes I'm going on record (or whatever you want to call this) that they will lose the week of February 20 when they go to Starkville and Nashville in back-to-back game because, personally, I don't think they can get up for both games based on recent history, and rest assured, Kentucky gets everyone's best shot home or away. I had thought the SEC might get up to 7 bids, but I'm beginning to think only 5 unless both Ole Miss and Florida return to earlier form.
1. KENTUCKY (18-0, 3-0)
2. VANDERBILT (14-3, 3-0)
3. TENNESSEE (14-2, 2-0)
4. MISSISSIPPI STATE (15-3, 3-0)
5. OLE MISS (13-4, 1-2)
6. FLORIDA (12-5, 1-2)
7. SOUTH CAROLINA (11-6, 2-1)
8. ALABAMA (11-6, 1-2)
9. GEORGIA (8-8, 0-3)
10. ARKANSAS (8-9, 1-1)
11. AUBURN (8-9, 0-3)
12. LSU (9-8, 0-3)
GOOD WINS:
KENTUCKY 89 @ FLORIDA 77
OLE MISS 80 @ GEORGIA 76
GAMES OF THE WEEK:
WEEKDAY: 01/20 SOUTH CAROLINA @ OLE MISS 9:00 ESPN360
WEEKEND: 01/23 TENNESSEE @ GEORGIA 5:00PM
January 18, 2010
January 11, 2010
SEC Men's Basketball Power Rankings Early January '09
College Football's now over (congratulations to Nick Saban's Alabama Crimson Tide for making it four-straight SEC national championships), the NFL play-offs are in full swing (how about that 51-45 Arizona win yesterday decided on a defensive touchdown), and college basketball, at least for the SEC, has finally started. Raise your hand if you thought a short-handed Tennessee team would've knocked off top ranked Kansas. Yeah nice try. Raise your hand if you thought Ole Miss was going to start conference play 0-3 (not a reality yet, but two tough road games await this week). And raise your hand if you thought Kentucky was going to lose its first game to Georgia at HOME (true this didn't happen, but it looked this way up until the last minute or so when DeMarcus Cousins took over).
1. KENTUCKY (16-0) -- They are one of the country two undefeated teams. While Connecticut and North Carolina have had their recent struggles, those are two clearly impressive wins. Louisville (not a surprise) and Georgia (a surprise) each gave Kentucky a good game on Kentucky’s home court. It’s quickly become a matter of when as opposed to a matter of if Kentucky will lose. Watch out for a dangerous Florida team coming off a tough loss at Vanderbilt who hosts Kentucky Tuesday night.
2. VANDERBILT (12-3) -- Vanderbilt’s early season road win against St. Mary’s continues to look better as Saint Mary’s is once again looking to be Gonzaga’s best competition in the West Coast Conference. Vanderbilt also beat Missouri who has gone on to beat Illinois, Georgia, and most recently Kansas State. All three of losses have also looked better as the season has progressed and none of the losses were blowouts. Oh, and Vanderbilt just knocked off Florida who was previously seen as Kentucky’s best competition not only in the East, but also in the conference. However, Vanderbilt has two somewhat difficult road games in Tuscaloosa and Columbia to validate this latest ranking.
3. TENNESSEE (12-2) -- Tennessee’s record, ranking, and wins at Memphis and then home against Kansas may be more impressive than Vandy’s, but the 22-point loss to USC, a much weaker overall non-conference schedule, and the lingering questions regarding recently dismissed Tyler Smith and the other three suspended players are all causes of concern that may indicate Sunday was a fluke. Tennessee can notch its third impressive January victory and silence such doubts when Ole Miss comes to Knoxville on Saturday.
4. MISSISSIPPI STATE (13-3) -- The Tennessee schools separate themselves from Mississippi State on the sole basis of a surprising 88-74 home loss to Rider. The other two losses were to Richmond (also beat Florida) and Western Kentucky (also beat Vanderbilt) and both were by only one possession. They’ve gone on the road and beat UCLA, Houston, and San Diego, while also notching a neutral-court victory over Old Dominion, a strong mid-major team. While those are nice victories, it separates itself from Ole Miss by virtue of its second half comeback in which point guard Dee Bost (offensively) and center Jarvis Varnado (defensively) took over the game Saturday in Oxford.
5. OLE MISS (12-3) -- No school has taken a bigger hit, in terms of perception and reality, than Ole Miss. Ole Miss is this month’s Tennessee with too much talent to have this low, but the current resume and current performance don’t match the talent. The close wins against UTEP and Southern Miss continue to look worse as C-USA continues to look more and more like a one-bid league. The victory against Kansas State in San Juan and close losses to Villanova, also in San Juan, and at West Virginia are carrying the non-conference resume. The scorers didn’t score (Chris Warren and Terrico Warren combined for only 24 points) in a disappointing home loss to in-state rival Mississippi State, setting up a crucial two-game road trip this week at much improved Georgia and then Tennessee.
6. FLORIDA (11-4) -- Florida has notched impressive victories against in-state rival Florida State and #9 Michigan State, but they came at the end of November. They have not been the same team since the SEC/Big East invitational loss to Syracuse in Tampa, dropping a home game to a disappointing South Alabama team and its SEC opener at Vanderbilt while beating nobody of note. However, there’s not too much separation from two through six in the league with each having a resume, in my opinions anyways, worthy of a NCAA Tournament bid.
7. ALABAMA (11-4) -- Teams seven through nine in the league, like two through six, are close in terms of talent, resume, and also the opportunity to still play their way into the NCAA Tournament. Alabama’s neutral-court victory against Baylor is the most impressive between these three teams with Baylor having already notched two SEC road victories and a neutral-court win against Xavier. None of the losses are bad after seeing Cornell push Kansas earlier last week. Alabama hosts Vanderbilt Wednesday night giving them yet another opportunity to knock off a quality opponent in Tuscaloosa after nearly beating Purdue and Kansas State earlier this year.
8. SOUTH CAROLINA (10-5) -- The way Alabama dominated LSU compared to South Carolina close battle with Auburn and also South Carolina falling to Baylor compared to Alabama’s triumph separates those two schools. While there is no Baylor or Georgia Tech win on South Carolina’s resume, the wins over Richmond and Western Kentucky impress given these teams’ performances against other SEC teams. They’ve also found a way to overcome the loss of Dominique Archie, playing tough at Boston College and then at home against Baylor before breaking through at Auburn. They, like Alabama, also get a shot at home against Vanderbilt this Saturday. Once again, South Carolina’s season is based more on Devan Downey than any other player’s impact on any other team.
9. GEORGIA (8-6) -- Based on this past week’s performances (73-66 win at home against in-state rival Georgia Tech and a 76-68 loss at Kentucky) and last month’s win against Illinois, Georgia would be in the top half of the SEC, but a home loss to Wofford, a neutral-court loss to St. John’s, and a 28-point loss at Missouri are some reasons to the contrary. Travis Leslie, Trey Thompkins, and the Bulldogs have a chance to continue to climb in the ranking, playing host to Ole Miss and then an away game against the other Mississippi school, Mississippi State.
10. AUBURN (9-7) -- While like LSU, they dropped its SEC home opener to South Carolina and has its share of disappointing losses, specifically Sam Houston State by 18, their marquee win, a home victory against Virginia, is slightly better than LSU’s and their ability to compete and score the basketball make this team more promising. They get their chance to turn their season around much as Georgia could do when they host Kentucky on Saturday.
11. LSU (9-6) -- LSU has one impressive win which is one more than Arkansas, thus this ranking. This win, however, was at home to mid-major Western Kentucky and is impressive because this same team also won at Vanderbilt and beat Mississippi State. Beyond that LSU shamed itself in Madison Square Garden, losing by 26 to Connecticut and 19 to Arizona State, followed by a 24-point loss at Xavier and a dropping its SEC home opener to Alabama 66-49. With only three players than can realistically score, this ranking may get worse, but its doubtful to improve unless other teams find ways to collapse in a similar manner.
12. ARKANSAS (7-8) -- While maybe a higher ranked team based on talent alone, especially with guard Courtney Fortson returning with a 19-point performance against Texas in an 11-point defeat, there’s no other reason whatsoever why to rank this team higher. A 30-point loss to Louisville, a 20-point loss at Oklahoma, a 23-point home loss to Baylor, and home losses to bad Morgan State, East Tennessee State, and South Alabama teams are why this is so.
1. KENTUCKY (16-0) -- They are one of the country two undefeated teams. While Connecticut and North Carolina have had their recent struggles, those are two clearly impressive wins. Louisville (not a surprise) and Georgia (a surprise) each gave Kentucky a good game on Kentucky’s home court. It’s quickly become a matter of when as opposed to a matter of if Kentucky will lose. Watch out for a dangerous Florida team coming off a tough loss at Vanderbilt who hosts Kentucky Tuesday night.
2. VANDERBILT (12-3) -- Vanderbilt’s early season road win against St. Mary’s continues to look better as Saint Mary’s is once again looking to be Gonzaga’s best competition in the West Coast Conference. Vanderbilt also beat Missouri who has gone on to beat Illinois, Georgia, and most recently Kansas State. All three of losses have also looked better as the season has progressed and none of the losses were blowouts. Oh, and Vanderbilt just knocked off Florida who was previously seen as Kentucky’s best competition not only in the East, but also in the conference. However, Vanderbilt has two somewhat difficult road games in Tuscaloosa and Columbia to validate this latest ranking.
3. TENNESSEE (12-2) -- Tennessee’s record, ranking, and wins at Memphis and then home against Kansas may be more impressive than Vandy’s, but the 22-point loss to USC, a much weaker overall non-conference schedule, and the lingering questions regarding recently dismissed Tyler Smith and the other three suspended players are all causes of concern that may indicate Sunday was a fluke. Tennessee can notch its third impressive January victory and silence such doubts when Ole Miss comes to Knoxville on Saturday.
4. MISSISSIPPI STATE (13-3) -- The Tennessee schools separate themselves from Mississippi State on the sole basis of a surprising 88-74 home loss to Rider. The other two losses were to Richmond (also beat Florida) and Western Kentucky (also beat Vanderbilt) and both were by only one possession. They’ve gone on the road and beat UCLA, Houston, and San Diego, while also notching a neutral-court victory over Old Dominion, a strong mid-major team. While those are nice victories, it separates itself from Ole Miss by virtue of its second half comeback in which point guard Dee Bost (offensively) and center Jarvis Varnado (defensively) took over the game Saturday in Oxford.
5. OLE MISS (12-3) -- No school has taken a bigger hit, in terms of perception and reality, than Ole Miss. Ole Miss is this month’s Tennessee with too much talent to have this low, but the current resume and current performance don’t match the talent. The close wins against UTEP and Southern Miss continue to look worse as C-USA continues to look more and more like a one-bid league. The victory against Kansas State in San Juan and close losses to Villanova, also in San Juan, and at West Virginia are carrying the non-conference resume. The scorers didn’t score (Chris Warren and Terrico Warren combined for only 24 points) in a disappointing home loss to in-state rival Mississippi State, setting up a crucial two-game road trip this week at much improved Georgia and then Tennessee.
6. FLORIDA (11-4) -- Florida has notched impressive victories against in-state rival Florida State and #9 Michigan State, but they came at the end of November. They have not been the same team since the SEC/Big East invitational loss to Syracuse in Tampa, dropping a home game to a disappointing South Alabama team and its SEC opener at Vanderbilt while beating nobody of note. However, there’s not too much separation from two through six in the league with each having a resume, in my opinions anyways, worthy of a NCAA Tournament bid.
7. ALABAMA (11-4) -- Teams seven through nine in the league, like two through six, are close in terms of talent, resume, and also the opportunity to still play their way into the NCAA Tournament. Alabama’s neutral-court victory against Baylor is the most impressive between these three teams with Baylor having already notched two SEC road victories and a neutral-court win against Xavier. None of the losses are bad after seeing Cornell push Kansas earlier last week. Alabama hosts Vanderbilt Wednesday night giving them yet another opportunity to knock off a quality opponent in Tuscaloosa after nearly beating Purdue and Kansas State earlier this year.
8. SOUTH CAROLINA (10-5) -- The way Alabama dominated LSU compared to South Carolina close battle with Auburn and also South Carolina falling to Baylor compared to Alabama’s triumph separates those two schools. While there is no Baylor or Georgia Tech win on South Carolina’s resume, the wins over Richmond and Western Kentucky impress given these teams’ performances against other SEC teams. They’ve also found a way to overcome the loss of Dominique Archie, playing tough at Boston College and then at home against Baylor before breaking through at Auburn. They, like Alabama, also get a shot at home against Vanderbilt this Saturday. Once again, South Carolina’s season is based more on Devan Downey than any other player’s impact on any other team.
9. GEORGIA (8-6) -- Based on this past week’s performances (73-66 win at home against in-state rival Georgia Tech and a 76-68 loss at Kentucky) and last month’s win against Illinois, Georgia would be in the top half of the SEC, but a home loss to Wofford, a neutral-court loss to St. John’s, and a 28-point loss at Missouri are some reasons to the contrary. Travis Leslie, Trey Thompkins, and the Bulldogs have a chance to continue to climb in the ranking, playing host to Ole Miss and then an away game against the other Mississippi school, Mississippi State.
10. AUBURN (9-7) -- While like LSU, they dropped its SEC home opener to South Carolina and has its share of disappointing losses, specifically Sam Houston State by 18, their marquee win, a home victory against Virginia, is slightly better than LSU’s and their ability to compete and score the basketball make this team more promising. They get their chance to turn their season around much as Georgia could do when they host Kentucky on Saturday.
11. LSU (9-6) -- LSU has one impressive win which is one more than Arkansas, thus this ranking. This win, however, was at home to mid-major Western Kentucky and is impressive because this same team also won at Vanderbilt and beat Mississippi State. Beyond that LSU shamed itself in Madison Square Garden, losing by 26 to Connecticut and 19 to Arizona State, followed by a 24-point loss at Xavier and a dropping its SEC home opener to Alabama 66-49. With only three players than can realistically score, this ranking may get worse, but its doubtful to improve unless other teams find ways to collapse in a similar manner.
12. ARKANSAS (7-8) -- While maybe a higher ranked team based on talent alone, especially with guard Courtney Fortson returning with a 19-point performance against Texas in an 11-point defeat, there’s no other reason whatsoever why to rank this team higher. A 30-point loss to Louisville, a 20-point loss at Oklahoma, a 23-point home loss to Baylor, and home losses to bad Morgan State, East Tennessee State, and South Alabama teams are why this is so.
January 3, 2010
SEC Basketball: Week in Review 1.0
Picked three straight games correct (Virginia Tech, Northwestern, and LSU) to improve my SEC prediction record to 3-2. Kind of, sort of picked Florida and Ole Miss. So I'm looking as my SEC bowl previews as a success. Big week for SEC sports with Alabama playing Texas in the National Championship Thursday night and basketball entering conference play this weekend. I'm going to continue to hype my upcoming Ole Miss Football: Year in Review and expect a lot of praise for Dexter McCluster and the opportunistic "landsharks" on defense. Anyways, here's SEC Basketball: Week in Review (a weekly feature including updated power rankings, key games in review, and a look ahead to the upcoming week). In addition, expect a monthly review similar to the Christmas Eve edition with some analysis sometime in mid-to-late January.
1. KENTUCKY (14-0)
2. OLE MISS (11-2)
3. FLORIDA (11-3)
4. VANDERBILT (10-3)
5. MISSISSIPPI STATE (12-2)
6. TENNESSEE (10-2)
7. ALABAMA (9-4)
8. SOUTH CAROLINA (8-5)
9. GEORGIA (7-5)
10. LSU (8-4)
11. ARKANSAS (7-7)
12. AUBURN (8-6)
GOOD WINS:
TENNESSEE 66 @ MEMPHIS 59
MISSISSIPPI STATE 77 @ SAN DIEGO 68
BAD LOSSES:
BAYLOR 70 @ SOUTH CAROLINA 47
LSU 65 @ XAVIER 89
GAMES OF THE WEEK:
WEEKDAY: 01/04 MISSISSIPPI STATE @ WESTERN KENTUCKY 8:00PM
WEEKEND: 01/09 FLORIDA @ VANDERBILT 12:00PM ESPN
1. KENTUCKY (14-0)
2. OLE MISS (11-2)
3. FLORIDA (11-3)
4. VANDERBILT (10-3)
5. MISSISSIPPI STATE (12-2)
6. TENNESSEE (10-2)
7. ALABAMA (9-4)
8. SOUTH CAROLINA (8-5)
9. GEORGIA (7-5)
10. LSU (8-4)
11. ARKANSAS (7-7)
12. AUBURN (8-6)
GOOD WINS:
TENNESSEE 66 @ MEMPHIS 59
MISSISSIPPI STATE 77 @ SAN DIEGO 68
BAD LOSSES:
BAYLOR 70 @ SOUTH CAROLINA 47
LSU 65 @ XAVIER 89
GAMES OF THE WEEK:
WEEKDAY: 01/04 MISSISSIPPI STATE @ WESTERN KENTUCKY 8:00PM
WEEKEND: 01/09 FLORIDA @ VANDERBILT 12:00PM ESPN
January 1, 2010
Tennessee vs. Memphis Post Game Thoughts
After taking in the Vols vs. Tigers match up first hand yesterday, several things became obvious about each squad. First, neither of these teams is a marquee team--they simply don't have the talent depth to make a serious run in March.
Memphis:
- This team just isn't the Memphis we're used to from the past four years. While this team does have a definite pro prospect in Elliot Williams, it lacks any kind of depth. There are only eight scholarship players, and one of them is freshman D.J. Stephens who averages less than ten minutes a game. This leaves Memphis with a real rotation of just seven guys. That lack of depth can be exposed easily, as it was yesterday when Williams was relegated to the bench for most of the first half due to foul trouble.
- Elliot Williams has to get better with his right hand. He is way too left hand dominant and is clearly uncomfortable driving the ball with his off hand. Tennessee exposed this by shutting down the drive to the left and forcing Williams into his lowest point total of the season (13) on just one of seven shooting from the floor.
- Will Coleman isn't quite ready for big time college basketball...yet. There's no doubt the junior is an athletic freak and has all the tools to develop into a dominant big man, he's just not there yet. Coleman has only been playing organized basketball since his junior year of high school, and that really shows up. At times, he looks lost in the offensive set and unsure of what to do when he does get the ball.
- Roburt Sallie has to start knocking down open threes. This team needs him to make those shots to loosen up defenses. He was expected to a major contributor entering the season and just hasn't produced. Sallie does play some of the hardest and best defense on the team, however.
Tennessee:
- This team does not deserve to be in the top 25. Memphis played perhaps their worst offensive game of the season yesterday, got out rebounded by 19 and was still down by only four with 37 seconds left. Tennessee relies far too much on individual one on one match ups to be a an elite team. I expect they will lose at least four or five SEC games, most of them coming on the road.
- J.P. Prince may be the most hated local player in Memphis history. After growing up in Memphis and being a star at White Station under Terry Tippett, Prince has very few supporters left in Memphis. During pre-game introductions, he received the loudest boos of any of the Tennessee starters. Prince then lived up to expectations by jawing with Elliot Williams right before the tip off.
- Bruce Pearl is one of the great promoters of the game, love him or hate him. He came out onto the floor an hour and a half before tip off just to say hello and greet everyone. I'm personally not a fan of the guy, but he's good at marketing a program, just like Calipari is.
December 31, 2009
New Year's Day Primer
With so many coaching changes and the continued controversy (although not compared to Mike Leach’s in Lubbock, Texas at the moment) on both sides of the field, I would not touch this game with a 49-and-a-half foot pole. However, if you have a gambling problem I recommend you seek professional help or, if you must, go with the Gators because this still the SEC’s Florida Gators and the Big East’s Cincinnati Bearcats and based on talent it should be a Georgia-Hawaii Sugar Bowl repeat from two years ago, but with so many question marks it might turn into last year’s Alabama-Utah matchup.
I’m not picking the Ole Miss-Oklahoma State Cotton Bowl because of a conflict of interest (maybe, maybe not, but either way I don’t want to jinx the Rebels’ bid for back-to-back bowl wins. However, I will include a Cotton Bowl recap in my Ole Miss season-in-review after the season is over.). Preston McClellan will also soon be posting a recap from today’s Memphis-Tennessee basketball showdown and also preview the upcoming Liberty Bowl, pitting the C-USA’s champion East Carolina and the SEC’s Arkansas.
There will be bowl games on all day tomorrow, but I also suggest checking out the NHL’s Winter Classic from Fenway Park (Boston vs. Philadelphia) and also a top-10 battle of unbeatens in college basketball between Purdue and West Virginia. Here’s to an entertaining day in sports to begin a new year and also a new decade.
I’m not picking the Ole Miss-Oklahoma State Cotton Bowl because of a conflict of interest (maybe, maybe not, but either way I don’t want to jinx the Rebels’ bid for back-to-back bowl wins. However, I will include a Cotton Bowl recap in my Ole Miss season-in-review after the season is over.). Preston McClellan will also soon be posting a recap from today’s Memphis-Tennessee basketball showdown and also preview the upcoming Liberty Bowl, pitting the C-USA’s champion East Carolina and the SEC’s Arkansas.
There will be bowl games on all day tomorrow, but I also suggest checking out the NHL’s Winter Classic from Fenway Park (Boston vs. Philadelphia) and also a top-10 battle of unbeatens in college basketball between Purdue and West Virginia. Here’s to an entertaining day in sports to begin a new year and also a new decade.
December 30, 2009
January 1 11:00 ESPN Outback Bowl - Northwestern vs. Auburn
Chris Todd threw for nearly 250 yards a game and 11 touchdowns on a five-game winning streak to open the season, including a 26-22 victory over Tennessee. Rushing for 224 yards and passing for another 235 yards, the Tigers built a 23-6 fourth quarter lead and had to weather 16-point fourth quarter effort from the Volunteers to preserve the win in Knoxville.
In the following three games, however, Kentucky beat them with the run (combined 235 rushing yards between Randall Cobb and Derrick Locke), LSU beat them with the pass (Jordan Jefferson passed for 242 yards and two touchdowns), and Arkansas beat them with the run and the pass (Michael Smith ran for 145 yards and a touchdown while Ryan Mallett threw for 274 yards and two touchdowns).
Auburn used 31 unanswered points, including a Walter McFadden pick six, to ambush Ole Miss 33-20 on Halloween and came up just short in Athens, falling to Georgia 31-24. Auburn played its most complete game in the Iron Bowl in which the Tigers used trick plays and an onside kick to mount a 21-14, but Alabama’s Greg McElroy willed his team to 12 unanswered points as he passed for 218 yards and two touchdowns (game-winning TD pass with 1:24 left) in the contest to pull out a 26-21 win.
Prediction time now: Despite valiant efforts against Georgia and Alabama, Auburn still finished the regular season losing five of six (the first team to do so and still play in a New Year’s bowl game). Northwestern recovered from a pedestrian 2-2 loss, including a disastrous 37-34 loss at Syracuse, finishing on a three-game winning streak to finish the season 8-4. Down 10-0 and playing with a backup quarterback, the Wildcats rallied with 17 unanswered points to end Iowa’s unbeaten season, surprisingly in Iowa City. With a New Year’s Day bowl game on the line, Northwestern notched another road win at in-state and rival Illinois 21-16 and then won their regular season finale 33-31 against a solid Wisconsin team.
Northwestern hasn’t won a bowl game since 1948 and considering last year’s overtime loss to Missouri in the Alamo Bowl, the Wildcats are beyond due to win of these, and comparing Auburn and Northwestern’s performance in big games and the way each team finished, Northwestern will actually win one of these for the Big 10.
December 29, 2009
January 1 1:00 ABC Capital One Bowl - Penn State vs. LSU
Mixing things up and starting with the Penn State-LSU previews to hopefully recover from a 0-2 start on my SEC bowl predictions. 9-3 LSU would’ve likely been in the BCS if there wasn’t a rule that only two teams from a conference could get in. An exchange of questionable excessive celebrations overshadowed running back Charles Scott’s game-winning 33-yard touchdown with less than a minute to go in LSU’s 20-13 road win over Georgia. Following a disappointing 13-3 home loss to Florida in which the Tigers only managed 162 yards of total offense, LSU responded with the opening 24 points in a 31-10 win against Auburn.
LSU took a 15-10 lead into the fourth quarter at Alabama, but the eventual National Champion participant scored 11 unanswered to regain a 21-15 lead. An apparent Patrick Peterson interception would’ve given LSU one final chance at the upset bid, but he was ruled out of bounds and Alabama’s Leigh Tiffin kicked a 40-yard field goal, preserving a 24-15 victory.
LSU’s match-up with Ole Miss appeared to be a defacto Capital One Bowl play-in game and when the time ran out on Les Miles and his driving offense in a 25-23 loss in Oxford, but when Ole Miss disappointed in a 41-27 loss at Mississippi State, LSU had yet another chance at spending New Year’s in Orlando. In what was probably the game of the year in the SEC, LSU defeated Arkansas 33-30 on a late, well orchestrated fourth quarter scoring drive and in overtime, this year’s Chinese Bandits forced a missed 36-yard field goal in the first overtime.
Prediction time now: In their two biggest games of the year, both in Happy Valley, Penn State collapsed in a 21-10 loss to Iowa and then dropped a 24-7 decision to Ohio State. While LSU didn’t fare much better in the win-loss column, the Tigers were more competitive in their losses to Florida and Alabama and the Auburn and Georgia wins are more impressive than any of Ohio State’s.
Coupled with this year’s results, Les Miles’s LSU teams have outscored football powerhouses Miami, Notre Dame, Ohio State, and Georgia Tech a combined 157-44 en route to a 4-0 bowl record over the last four years. If this was a regular season game with the normal week of preparation, Penn State would have the advantage, but given more than a month of preparation LSU’s talent, particularly on the defensive side of the ball, will showcase itself in a mild Vegas upset.
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