ESPN College Football

Now that you've seen Chris' top 10, here's mine. Let's see where we were the same and where we differed:

1. LSU's Tyrann Mathieu against Arkansas: Mathieu replaced the injured Eric Reid and played safety for the first time in his career. All he did was record eight tackles, force two fumbles, and recovered a fumble. With LSU down 14-7 in the second quarter, he ignited a dominating run when he returned a punt 92 yards for a touchdown in LSU’s 41-17 win over Arkansas. A loss to the Hogs might have cost LSU a chance at the national title game.

2. Georgia’s Brandon Boykin in the Outback Bowl: Boykin sure went out in style, scoring three different ways in the loss to Michigan State. On Michigan State's first offensive play, he recorded a safety when he tackled Keshawn Martin in the end zone on a pass play. He later scored on 92-yard punt return, which is the longest play in Outback Bowl history, and scored on a 13-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter to give Georgia a 27-20 lead. He also had seven tackles, including two for loss.

3. LSU’s Tyrann Mathieu in the SEC championship game: He saved LSU yet again with his special-teams work. His 62-yard punt return for a touchdown in the second quarter got LSU on the board after trailing 10-0. On Georgia’s first drive of the second half, Mathieu recovered a fumble at the Bulldogs’ 27 to set up the Tigers’ second touchdown. He set up LSU's third score with a scintillating return that left just about every Georgia player's head spinning.

4. Arkansas’ Tyler Wilson against Texas A&M: Wilson not only helped orchestrate a tremendous second-half comeback against the Aggies, but he passed for a school-record 510 passing yards, had three touchdowns and no interceptions on 30-of-51 passing.

5. Alabama’s Trent Richardson against Ole Miss: Richardson couldn't be stopped in Oxford, as he rushed for 183 yards and four touchdowns in Alabama's 52-7 drubbing of the Rebels. Richardson grabbed his signature play as well when he put on a show at the end of his 76-yard touchdown run by literally shaking Ole Miss' Senquez Golsen to the ground with his cut seen round the college football world.

6. Georgia’s Jarvis Jones against Florida: Jones had four sacks in the Bulldogs’ 24-20 win over Florida and forced a fumble at the Gators' 18-yard line in the third quarter that led to the game-tying touchdown. His fourth sack came in the fourth and basically sealed the Bulldogs' win.

7. Arkansas’ Jarius Wright against Texas A&M: Wilson couldn't have done his thing without Wright, who caught 13 passes, which tied a school record, for a school-record 281 yards and a touchdown. Wright surpassed the old record of 204 yards by halftime. He also recovered a fumble in the end zone for a touchdown that tied the game at 35 in the fourth quarter.

8. Florida’s Chris Rainey against Florida Atlantic: Rainey kicked off the Will Muschamp era by scoring touchdowns three different ways in the season opener. He scored rushing, receiving and on a blocked punt. Rainey also registered 146 yards of total offense.

9. South Carolina’s Antonio Allen against East Carolina: Allen started the year off pretty well when he had 16 tackles, forced two fumbles, recovered two fumbles and broke up two passes in a season-opening 56-37 win over East Carolina. He also returned a fumble 25 yards for a touchdown.

10. LSU’s Brad Wing against Alabama Part I: In a game in which kicking mattered, four of his six punts were downed inside Alabama's 20-yard line. One punt was downed at the 5 and another at the 4. His 73-yarder in the fourth quarter saved LSU's defense from having to work with a short field and helped propel the game into overtime.

Here are five more that just missed the cut:

• South Carolina's Melvin Ingram ran for a 68-yard touchdown on a fake punt against Georgia and scored a second touchdown on a 5-yard fumble return. He sealed the Gamecocks' 45-42 win when he recovered an onsides kick.
• Tennessee's Tyler Bray passed for a career-high 405 passing yards, had four touchdown passes and no interceptions in a 45-23 win over Cincinnati. He also had a rushing touchdown and completed 34 of 41 passes.
• Vanderbilt’s Zac Stacy rushed for 184 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-7 road victory over Wake Forest that sent the Commodores bowling. Stacy also became the school’s single-season record holder for rushing yards after his performance.
• Kentucky’s Danny Trevathan registered 17 tackles, including 12 solo and three for loss in a 19-10 loss to Georgia. He also forced two fumbles.
• Arkansas' Joe Adams had one of the best special-teams performance of the season in Week 1 against Missouri State when he had two punt returns for touchdowns of 69 and 61 yards in the 51-7 win. He had a school-record 174 yards on six punt returns.

We’re already looking ahead some to the 2012 season in the SEC, but we haven’t completely forgotten about 2011.

We’re finishing up our postseason position rankings and taking another look at the top 25 players in the league based on what they did during the 2011 season.

Today, we’ll rank the top 10 individual performances from this past season. I’ll go first (That’s what happens when you dominate the picks contest), and Edward will follow.

We’ll also have a poll for the fans later today, so you guys will get your chance to weigh in as well and tell us how right or wrong we were.

Please don’t hold back, although you never do.

Here goes:

1. LSU’s Tyrann Mathieu vs. Arkansas: Moving over to safety for the injured Eric Reid, the Honey Badger put on a show for all shows. The only thing he didn’t do was clean up Tiger Stadium afterward in the 41-17 win over the No. 3-ranked Hogs. Mathieu had eight tackles, forced two fumbles, recovered a fumble and returned a punt 92 yards for a touchdown. His punt return tied the game at 14-14, and the Hogs were toast from there.

2. LSU’s Tyrann Mathieu in the SEC championship game: Yep, it’s the Honey Badger again. The Tigers were dead in the water in the first half against Georgia, but Mathieu returned a punt 62 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to get LSU on the board. Mathieu followed that up by recovering a fumble at the Bulldogs’ 27 to set up the Tigers’ second touchdown. He then returned another punt 47 yards, this one even more spectacular than the first, to set up LSU’s third touchdown, and a close game suddenly became a 42-10 rout.

3. Georgia’s Jarvis Jones vs. Florida: It was a case of Jones simply not allowing his team to lose. He racked up four sacks in the 24-20 win over the Gators and forced a fumble at the Florida 18-yard line in the third quarter that led to the game-tying touchdown. His fourth and final sack came on fourth down late in the game and all but finished the Gators, lifting Georgia to just its fourth win over Florida in the last 22 meetings.

4. Arkansas’ Tyler Wilson vs. Texas A&M: With the Hogs trailing 35-17 at the half, Wilson brought them back with a school-record 510 yards passing in a 42-38 victory over the Aggies. Wilson finished 30-of-51 with three touchdown passes and no interceptions. He also had the 2-point conversion run that tied the game at 35-35.

5. Georgia’s Brandon Boykin in the Outback Bowl: The Bulldogs fell to Michigan State 33-30 in three overtimes, but don’t blame Boykin. The senior cornerback scored three different ways. He recorded a safety to open the game, also had a 92-yard punt return for a touchdown and scored on a 13-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter to give the Bulldogs a 27-20 lead. He finished with seven tackles, including two for loss.

6. Arkansas’ Jarius Wright vs. Texas A&M: Don’t forget about Wright in the Hogs’ dramatic comeback win over the Aggies. He tied a school record with 13 catches and set a school record with 281 receiving yards. The old record was 204 yards, and Wright surpassed that by halftime. He also caught a 68-yard touchdown pass and pounced on a loose ball in the end zone in the fourth quarter that wound up being the tying touchdown.

7. LSU’s Brad Wing vs. Alabama: Without Wing’s heroics, LSU doesn’t win that first game against Alabama. It’s just that simple. He kept the Crimson Tide bottled up all night. He punted six times and four were downed inside the Alabama 20-yard line. One was downed at the 5 and another at the 4. His 73-yard punt in the fourth quarter completely changed the game and helped get the Tigers to overtime, where they prevailed 9-6.

8. Alabama’s Trent Richardson vs. Ole Miss: There were so many great performances by Richardson that it’s difficult to pick out just one. But he rolled up 183 rushing yards and four touchdowns in the 52-7 rout of Ole Miss, and they’ll be showing the highlights of his dazzling 76-yard touchdown run for a long time to come. He averaged 10.8 yards per carry that night and finished with 213 all-purpose yards.

9. Tennessee’s Tyler Bray vs. Cincinnati: It’s about as perfect a game as a quarterback could have. Bray lit up the Bearcats in the second week of the season for a career-high 405 passing yards, four touchdown passes and no interceptions. He also had a rushing touchdown and completed 34 of 41 passes in the 45-23 victory. In the second half, Bray completed all but one of his 14 passing attempts, and his 83 percent completion rate set a school record.

10. South Carolina’s Antonio Allen vs. East Carolina: It’s one of the great performances of the season that nobody really remembers because it came in the opener. Allen, the Gamecocks’ “Spur” linebacker/safety, totaled 16 tackles, forced two fumbles, recovered two fumbles and broke up two passes in the come-from-behind 56-37 win over East Carolina.

Here are five more that just missed the cut:

• South Carolina’s Melvin Ingram running for a 68-yard touchdown on a fake punt, scoring a second touchdown on a 5-yard fumble return and recovering an onside kick to preserve a 45-42 win over Georgia.
• Florida’s Chris Rainey rushing for 108 yards and also totaling 104 receiving yards in a 33-23 win over Tennessee. Rainey accounted for 233 all-purpose yards and had an 83-yard touchdown catch to put the Gators ahead 30-7 in the third quarter. He also blocked a punt in the second quarter, leading to a Florida field goal.
• South Carolina’s Connor Shaw passing for 210 yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 107 yards and a touchdown in a 34-13 victory over Clemson. Shaw finished 14 of 20 passing without an interception.
• Vanderbilt’s Zac Stacy rushing for 184 yards and three touchdowns in a 41-7 road victory over Wake Forest that made the Commodores bowl eligible. Stacy had touchdown runs of 40 and 20 yards on his way to becoming the school’s single-season record-holder for rushing yards.
• Kentucky’s Danny Trevathan totaling 17 tackles, including 12 solo stops, for the second week in a row. He had three tackles for loss and also forced two fumbles in the Wildcats’ 19-10 loss to Georgia.

NEW ORLEANS -- We are only a couple of minutes into the game, but you can already tell that noise is going to be a major factor in tonight's Allstate BCS National Championship Game.

Fans from both sides are letting the opposing offenses know that they are here. LSU quarterback Jordan Jefferson has already struggled with trying to get plays changed and fumbled a snap with his back right up to Alabama's section.

This place erupted when Jefferson fumbled and it might have been even louder when Alabama wide receiver Marquis Maze was pushed out of bounds on a booming punt from Brad Wing. Both of these quarterbacks' ears will be ringing for days after this one.

NEW ORLEANS -- You've already read about the five plays that got Alabama to the Allstate BCS National Championship, so now it's time to take a look at how LSU ended up in Monday's title game:

1. Eric Reid's interception: With Alabama sitting on LSU's 28-yard line early in the fourth quarter, Tide coach Nick Saban reached into his bag of tricks and pulled out a play in which wide receiver Marquis Maze was supposed to take the ball and throw it to tight end Michael Williams. Maze, who was bothered by a sprained ankle, threw the ball up, but Reid wrestled it away from Williams at LSU's 1-yard line. Alabama never got inside LSU's 35-yard line again until overtime.

2. Morris Claiborne's kick return: After West Virginia scored to get within six of the Tigers late in the third quarter, Claiborne put the game away with some magic in the return game. On West Virginia's ensuing kickoff, Claiborne dazzled his way through Mountaineer players for a 99-yard touchdown return that put LSU up 34-21. That touchdown put LSU on a 20-0 run to close the game.

3. Brad Wing's punt: The drive after Reid's interception, LSU's offense failed to get much of anything backed up inside its 10-yard line. A normal punt would have given Alabama ideal field position to make up for its blown opportunity on the last drive, but Wing launched a kick from inside LSU's end zone that eventually traveled 73 yards to Alabama's 18-yard line after some very favorable rolling.

4. Tyrann Mathieu's return: Down 14-7 to Arkansas in the second quarter, the Honey Badger came through in the clutch on special teams. He took Dylan Breeding's punt 92 yards to the house and sent Tiger Stadium into a frenzy. That play paralyzed Arkansas, and led to a 34-3 run by LSU on the last Saturday of the regular season.

5. Mathieu's second return: Like the Arkansas game a week earlier, LSU was in need of a spark against Georgia in the SEC championship game. Down double digits early for the second straight game, Mathieu provided the momentum builder LSU needed when he took a punt 62 yards for a touchdown that made it 10-7 in the second quarter. The score, which sparked a 42-0 run, should have actually been overturned because replay showed that Mathieu clearly flipped the ball to the ref and out-of-bounds before he crossed the goal line.

NEW ORLEANS -- With every bomb LSU punter Brad Wing launches from his left foot, the American football culture gap shrinks in Australia.

The freshman’s meteoric rise this season has a nation in his birth land captivated by a sport that still is a little confusing to those back home.

“The way it’s progressing is just really crazy,” Wing said.

Wing, who is originally from Melbourne, Australia, has no one to thank but himself. From his taunting penalty that negated a fancy touchdown run against Florida, to his marvelous 73-yard punt against Alabama that helped put that game in LSU’s favor, Wing has become sort of a national celebrity (both here and abroad) and even the co-face (with the "Honey Badger" himself, Tyrann Mathieu) of LSU football.

Did I mention he’s a punter?

Wing gets girly catcalls when he’s walking around campus and is sometimes the first one noticed in a football posse patrolling Baton Rouge, La. Kicker Drew Alleman said girls even revert to elementary school ways of embarrassingly whispering Wing’s name when he passes by.

His game seems to be on another level on and off the field.

“There are a few people around that are starting to know my face, and I guess that’s a compliment,” Wing said.

No, what’s really a compliment is that Wing now can throw his hat into the ring of random, made up dances, as his premature celebration against Florida inspired a simplistic dance that's safe, effortless and, most importantly, funny to look at.

“It’s a pretty easy dance, but it’s funny as crap,” defensive end Barkevious Mingo said.

But where Wing really makes his mark is back home. Thousands of miles away, Wing’s fame is catching on, even if his hobby is still very foreign to family and friends. Wing said people in Melbourne are slowly starting to understand American football because of the airtime he’s getting in Australia.

Wing said six or seven of LSU’s games have been broadcast live there, and it’s helping to increase American football’s popularity. Some are still getting lost in translation with the sport, Wing said, and he still has to explain to a few of his brother’s friends that he’s playing in college, not the NFL.

Wing might have reached celebrity status in college football, but you wouldn’t know it looking at him. Outside of his slender, nonimposing frame, Wing is extremely humble. It takes his teammates to brag about him. And even then, Wing’s story grows.

Wide receiver Russell Shepard said Wing shows a lot of skill on the football field, but his real talent lies in the rap game.

“He’s in love with Lil Wayne. He loves Lil Wayne,” Shepard said. “He can tell you every Lil Wayne verse that Wayne has written, and he didn’t listen to Wayne when he was in Australia.”

(Any viral video of Wing spittin’ Wayne over his highlights would be YouTube gold!)

In the end, it’s Wing’s foot that jump-started his popularity. He has deadly accuracy and a cannon for a left leg. Wing averaged 44.1 yards per punt, pinned 23 inside the opposing 20-yard line, with 11 landing inside the 10, and had 18 punts of 50-plus yards this season.

Forty-six percent of his punts were downed inside the 20, yet he wasn’t even a finalist for the Ray Guy Award, which is given to the nation’s best punter. He was a first-team All-American, but getting slighted in the Ray Guy race is something Shepard said still eats at Wing.

“He feels like he should have won the Ray Guy Award,” Shepard said. “As his teammates, we feel like he’s the best punter in the country. Brad has a chip on his shoulder, and Brad feels like he needs to show everybody in the world that he is the best and why he is the best.”

For Wing, talk of accolades and snubs can wait. He isn’t focused on impressing; he’s focused on winning on the biggest stage of all: the Allstate BCS National Championship Game.

“We’re still on a journey,” he said. “This season is not over. We’ve got one game left, and this game has been in our sight for the whole year.”

Editor’s Note: Tune into the “AT&T ESPN All America Team Show” on Saturday (ABC, 1:30 p.m. ET) to see who ESPN’s writers and experts selected.

Constructing an all-conference team is never easy. There are always players you second-guess or just remember at the last minute.

The tough decisions have to be made and that means not everyone can make the team.

We just don't have enough room for hundreds of players.

We struggled with a couple of decisions, starting with the quarterback position. We gave the nod to Aaron Murray over Tyler Wilson. We understand that Wilson led the SEC in yards (3,422), but Murray did more with less. Wilson was working with four top-tier wide receivers, while Murray simply wasn't. He still led the SEC with 32 touchdown passes, threw 19 them in the last six games and led Georgia back to the SEC title game.

It was also hard to leave Zac Stacy off this list. Michael Dyer was Auburn's most valuable player, and that 7-5 record might not have been possible without him. He was second in the SEC in rushing (1,242) and was the only back besides Trent Richardson to average more than 100 yards in SEC games. But Stacy was great, too. He averaged a yard more per carry (5.7) than Dyer in SEC play, had more total touchdowns (13) and averaged 126 yards in each of his last six games.

We also decided to go with a 3-4 defense because we felt linebackers deserved a little more love this year.

Here's our team:

OFFENSE

TE - Orson Charles, Georgia
OL - Barrett Jones, Alabama
OL - Will Blackwell, LSU
OL - Cordy Glenn, Georgia
OL - Rokevious Watkins, South Carolina
C - William Vlachos, Alabama
WR - Jarius Wright, Arkansas
WR - Rueben Randle, LSU
QB – Aaron Murray, Georgia
RB – Trent Richardson, Alabama
RB – Michael Dyer, Auburn
AP - Chris Rainey, Florida

DEFENSE

DL - Melvin Ingram, South Carolina
DL - Fletcher Cox, Mississippi State
DL - Sam Montgomery, LSU
LB - Jarvis Jones, Georgia
LB - Courtney Upshaw, Alabama
LB - Dont'a Hightower, Alabama
LB - Danny Trevathan, Kentucky
DB - Morris Claiborne, LSU
DB - Tyrann Mathieu, LSU
DB - Mark Barron, Alabama
DB - Bacarri Rambo, Georgia

SPECIAL TEAMS

PK - Caleb Sturgis, Florida
P - Brad Wing, LSU
RS – Joe Adams, Arkansas

ATLANTA -- LSU has taken the SEC title and is headed to the national championship with its 42-10 win over Georgia. Here is the instant analysis:

How the game was won: After LSU showed the country how to not play offense in the first half, it rebounded in the second to go on one of its patented runs. Things started with Tyrann Mathieu's 62-yard punt return for a touchdown in the second quarter, and ended with LSU just wearing down and laying a beating on Georgia's rush defense. LSU ran for 203 yards in the second half, scoring three rushing touchdowns in the process. LSU's defense also smothered Georgia after the first quarter. The Bulldogs gained 134 yards in the first quarter, but finished with 296 and turned the ball over three times.

Turning point: LSU had no life until Mathieu's return in the second quarter to make it 10-7 Georgia. The play shouldn't have been ruled a touchdown, as video evidence showed Mathieu pitched the ball to the referee before he crossed the goal line. The ball looked like it went through the end zone, so Georgia should have gotten the ball back. The play was never reviewed and LSU scored 42 straight points and sucked the life out of Georgia.

Player of the game: When LSU needed a big play on special teams, Mathieu delivered with the touchdown. On Georgia's first drive of the third quarter, Mathieu recovered a fumble at the Bulldogs' 27-yard line and set up the Tigers' second touchdown of the game. After a quick three-and-out, Mathieu returned a punt for 47 yards that led to LSU's third score. He also disrupted Georgia's passing game with blitzes and by blanketing receivers.

Unsung hero of the game: With a first half consumed with atrocious offense from LSU's side, the player who made sure Georgia didn't get into good position to score was LSU punter Brad Wing. He punted the ball seven times in the first half and averaged 54.1 yards per kick, including a long of 67 yards. He pinned Georgia inside its 20 once and the Bulldogs recorded zero yards on four returns.

What it means: LSU will now play for the Allstate BCS National Championship Game, and it will likely do so against Alabama, which the Tigers beat 9-6 in Tuscaloosa, Ala., earlier this year. LSU is now 13-0 for the first time in school history and will compete for its second national title in five years. Georgia is now most likely headed to the Outback Bowl.

LSU punter Brad Wing is easily the most popular Aussie on the Bayou these days, and he knows a bad impression of an Australian accent when he hears one.

He’s heard some real winners ever since his starring role last Saturday in LSU’s 9-6 overtime conquest of Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

People that Wing doesn’t even know have been coming up to him on campus and trying out their “G’day mate … great kick.”

And, yes, his teammates have been getting into the act, too.

For the record, freshman receiver Odell Beckham has the best fake Aussie accent. Junior receiver Russell Shepard has the worst, and apparently, it’s not even close.

“Russell’s is shockingly bad,” Wing said. “I tell Odell we could probably pass for brothers over in Australia, but maybe not.”

Wing said even LSU coach Les Miles will take a crack at it every once in a while.

“His is OK. We’ll just leave it at that, but Russell takes the cake for the worst one ever,” Wing said.

Of course, with the way Wing is punting the ball, he could be speaking in Russian and nobody would mind.

“I can’t tell you what a weapon it is when you have a punter like (Wing) who can put the ball where he can,” LSU defensive coordinator John Chavis said.

How good has Wing been this season for the Tigers?

He’s punted the ball 37 times, and 19 of those have been downed inside the 20-yard line. LSU opponents have been limited to a total of 7 punt return yards all season.

Against Alabama, Wing kept the Crimson Tide pinned in deep just about the entire game. He sailed one punt out of bounds at the Alabama 5, had another one downed at the Alabama 4 and a third one fair caught at the Alabama 11.

But it was Wing’s 73-yard punt in the fourth quarter that was the big blow for the Tigers. LSU was backed up on its own 9-yard line in a 6-6 game, and it looked like Alabama was about to get the ball near midfield.

Wing, standing in his own end zone, had other ideas. He launched a missile that just kept going and landed well over Marquis Maze’s head, rolling all the way down to the Alabama 18.

“I hadn’t hit any like that in the games,” Wing said. “Back in high school, I hit one like that. It was just good to do it in the game.”

Prior to this season, Wing had played just two years of American football. He grew up playing Australian Rules Football, but came to Baton Rouge prior to his senior year in high school as part of an exchange program.

His father, David Wing, punted for the Detroit Lions in 1990 and also punted in NFL Europe.

In just one season at Parkview Baptist in Baton Rouge, Wing showed enough promise that LSU offered him a scholarship.

Initially, he was planning to be in the United States for only one year, but that all changed when the Tigers offered the full ride.

“It’s all happened so fast,” said Wing, who’s averaging 43.4 yards per punt. “In two years, my life has taken a complete turn. Just to be a part of a program like this is unbelievable. To come from Australia and be a part of the No. 1 team in the country is crazy. It’s like a dream come true.”

The best news for the Tigers is that he’s just getting started.

A redshirt freshman, Wing has been kicking a ball since he was 5 years old. But he didn’t kick a football until two years ago. For that matter, he knew very little about American football, period, and what he did know was about the NFL.

“I probably could have named three or four quarterbacks,” Wing said. “I definitely didn’t know about college football. I’m still learning all the rules. I still don’t know them all, but we’ll get there, I think.”

Wing had a 44-yard touchdown run on a fake punt nullified against Florida earlier this season when he briefly stuck out his arms to celebrate before crossing the goal line.

Even though the call was borderline at best, Wing is quick to add, “I learned that rule pretty quick. I’ve got that one down.”

He’s still adjusting to the spiral style of punting, but has the pooch kicks down pat.

“That kick is my Australian kick, the kick we use to pass around to one another, so I’m very comfortable with that kick,” Wing said. “That’s the type of kick I’ve been doing ever since I could stand up. That’s why I look so relaxed.

“I’m still working on the consistency of the longer kick, but am more comfortable with the end-over-end kick.”

Just in the last few weeks, Wing’s family moved to Baton Rouge from Australia to be with him during his college career. His father along with his mother, Kathleen, and younger brother, Tom, are digging the whole college football experience every bit as much as Wing.

“They’re beginning to understand just how big a deal college football is in the United States,” Wing said.

That’s fitting because it didn’t take Wing long to understand just how big a deal the kicking game is at LSU.

“Special teams are huge around here,” Wing said. “We start off every single day with special teams. Coach Miles really holds special teams in high regard, and we take it just as serious as an offensive or defensive snap.

“Guys are fighting to get on special teams here, and we take huge pride in it.”

The fake Aussie accents are a different story.

1. Punting statistics don’t begin to explain a punter’s value to his team. Take LSU freshman Brad Wing, the hero of the No. 1 Tigers’ 9-6 overtime victory over No. 3 Alabama. Wing ranks only 21st nationally, with an average of 43.9 yards per. However, Wing has dropped 19 of his 37 punts this season inside the opponents’ 20-yard-line. He is a big reason the Tigers have allowed a total of 7 return yards all season. And that is yet another reason the Tigers are No. 1.

2. Florida State (6-3, 4-2) and Miami (5-4, 3-3) play Saturday with absolutely no fanfare outside the rivalry. It is no secret that the ACC needs this rivalry to return the forefront of the sport. It is also no secret that this is the third time in the past five years that neither team has been ranked when they kicked off. Here’s hoping the game stays in November. The last time they played in this month: 1991, when the No. 2 ‘Canes upset the No. 1 Seminoles, 17-16, in Wide Right I.

3. The Colorado Buffaloes are 1-9 and oh-for-the-Pac-12 as they prepare for their final home game this season against almost-as-lowly Arizona (2-7). Colorado ranks in the bottom 10 in scoring, scoring defense and rushing, just to name three categories. But here’s the funny thing: as inept as the Buffs have been, they have only 12 turnovers in 10 games. In fact, they have played four games without a turnover at all. But the larger problem is on the defense, which has allowed 31 points or more in nine of 10 games.

I’d say the Bayou is still hot and rocking.

Who else is hot (or not)? As we do every Monday, we find out:

GLOWING EMBERS

Les Miles: He’s starting to become a cult hero in addition to being one of the best football coaches out there. What’s not to like about Miles? He wins big games. He’s genuinely a nice man. He chooses family over football. He tells on himself when one of his players knocks him down on the way to the field. He’s must-see TV any time he’s speaking. No, he’s not perfect and has had his moments where we’ve all scratched our heads and written it off as a “Les moment.” But, boy, does he look like a barrel of fun to play for, and his players swear by him. Here’s the other thing: He’s guided this team through one land mine after another this season, and the Tigers are in great shape now to play for their second national championship in the past five years. There might have been a time when even the LSU faithful weren’t quite sure about Miles. But they’d all agree now: The Hat is hip.

HOT

LSU punter Brad Wing: His idea of football might be a little skewed coming from Australia, but where would this LSU team be without him? Wing’s 73-yard punt changed the complexion of the game in the 9-6 overtime victory against Alabama, and he kept the Tigers in it by pinning the Crimson Tide inside their 5 twice.

NOT

Alabama’s discipline: Everybody’s going to blame the Alabama place-kickers, but the Crimson Tide made too many mistakes to win the LSU game. They had two interceptions, a costly penalty on Mark Barron’s interception return, and go back and look at how many times they had penalties or negative plays any time they moved inside the LSU 40.

HOT

Arkansas receiver Jarius Wright: Always a good player, Wright has become a great player for the Hogs and is having just a fabulous season. He caught two more touchdown passes in the win over South Carolina to go along with 103 receiving yards and leads the SEC with nine touchdown catches.

NOT

South Carolina’s defense: After going five consecutive games without giving up more than 16 points, South Carolina came back to reality against Arkansas. The Hogs rolled 44-28 and piled up 435 yards of total offense. One of the touchdowns was a kickoff return, but the Gamecocks were just never able to consistently stop the Hogs.

HOT

Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray: Throwing five touchdown passes in one game is always an accomplishment. But Murray threw five in the second quarter last week in the win over New Mexico State. Murray, a sophomore, now has 47 touchdown passes for his career. The SEC career record is 114 by Florida’s Danny Wuerffel. The Georgia career record is 72 by David Greene.

NOT

SEC quarterbacks: This won’t be a season to remember for overall quarterback play in this league. Injuries have played a big part. Throw in some youth, too, and then in some cases, teams simply haven’t been able to recruit and/or develop enough good quarterbacks. Playing against some of the defenses in this league isn’t a quarterback’s idea of nirvana, either.

FREEZER BURN

Nutt’s end: For a guy who’s spent 14 seasons in the SEC as a head coach, this isn’t the way it was supposed to end for Houston Nutt. He’s not being retained by Ole Miss after four seasons, although he will coach these final three games. Two losing seasons in a row is what did him in, not to mention a 12-game SEC losing streak. There are few places in the SEC where anybody could survive back-to-back losing seasons when they’re in Year No. 4 on the job and still be around for Year No. 5. The unfortunate thing for Nutt is that he guided the Rebels to back-to-back nine-win seasons his first two years on the job, including Cotton Bowl victories each year, but it’s doubtful many people will remember those first two seasons. They will remember how it all ended for Nutt, who’s been successful before and will be again. He’ll get another shot somewhere else and deserves another shot.

It's time to take a look at the stars from the weekend in the SEC:

Jeff Demps, RB, Florida: Florida needed some sort of offensive spark this weekend against Vanderbilt and it was Demps who provided it. He carried the ball 23 times for a career-high 158 yards and two touchdowns. Without Chris Rainey in the lineup, Demps was left to carry the rushing load for the Gators, and he more than did his part as Florida racked up 197 rushing yards in the Gators' 26-21 win over the Commodores.

Aaron Murray, QB, Georgia: The Bulldogs were without a slew of running backs, so Georgia dismantled New Mexico State through the air. Murray showed off his arm by getting 238 yards through the air and five touchdowns. All of Murray's touchdowns came during a second quarter in which the Bulldogs scored 42 points in their 63-16 win over the Aggies.

Danny Trevathan, LB, Kentucky: Trevathan continued to play like one of the top linebackers not only in the SEC, but in the country during a 30-13 win over Ole Miss. He entered the game leading the conference in tackles and left with 17 total tackles, including 1.5 for a loss of 9 yards. He also matched his jersey number with an interception that he returned 22 yards in the second quarter.

Dennis Johnson, RB, Arkansas: Johnson's consistency has been an issue this season, but he was every bit the running back Arkansas needed to keep the offense balanced during a 44-28 win over South Carolina. He carried the ball 15 times for 86 yards, and while he didn't get in the end zone on the ground, he kept drives going with his feet. But he wasn't kept out of the end zone completely, as he returned a kickoff 98 yards in the first quarter.

Brad Wing, P, LSU: It's not every day that a kicker makes this list, let alone a punter, but Wing had a special day against Alabama. He punted six times, with four being downed inside the Crimson Tide's 20-yard line. One of his punts was downed at Alabama's 5-yard line and one at the 4-yard line. He also saved the Tigers with his 73-yard punt that completely changed the game in the fourth quarter of game they won 9-6 in overtime.

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- In a game that didn’t feature a single touchdown, No. 1 LSU defeated No. 2 Alabama 9-6 on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.

Here’s an instant analysis:

How the game was won: LSU’s defense made one stand after another, giving up some yardage between the 20s during the game, but stiffening any time Alabama would get close. And then in overtime, the Tigers won it on Drew Alleman’s 25-yard field goal. Alabama had the ball first in overtime, but quarterback AJ McCarron was sacked on third down, and Cade Foster’s 52-yard field goal attempt was no good. Alabama missed four field goals in the game, all from long distance.

Turning point: The Crimson Tide were driving midway through the fourth quarter thanks to a spectacular 24-yard run by Trent Richardson down to the LSU 28-yard line. On the next play, the Crimson Tide had receiver Marquis Maze throw a pass out of the Wildcat formation, and it was intercepted at the 1 by LSU’s Eric Reid.

Stat of the game: Neither team scored a touchdown. LSU has now gone its past five games without allowing the opposition to score more than 11 points.

Unsung hero: LSU punter Brad Wing kept Alabama pinned in deep all game and then launched a 73-yard punt in the fourth quarter to completely change the field position. Two of Wing’s punts were downed inside the 5.

Best call: The Tigers’ option play in overtime to Michael Ford, who popped open to the left side and put Alleman in position for his game-winner.

What it means: LSU now moves into the driver’s seat to play in the Allstate BCS National Championship Game. The Tigers still have two SEC games remaining against Ole Miss and Arkansas. Ole Miss is on the road and Arkansas at home. For Alabama, it’s going to be difficult to climb back into the race. The Crimson Tide will need a lot of help. LSU’s win also keeps Arkansas in the hunt. If the Hogs can beat the Tigers the last weekend of the regular season, it could create a three-way tie, and the highest ranked team in the BCS standings would go to the SEC championship game.

BATON ROUGE, La. – LSU defensive end Barkevious Mingo has had some crazy ticket requests for Saturday’s game with Alabama.

He and his teammates are allotted four tickets for friends and family, but he said Monday that he’s had at least 20 requests for tickets, including one from a cousin who lives near Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Mingo thought the high number of requests was a little extreme, but it was nothing like the wild request sitting on ticket website Stubhub.com.

As of Monday, there were two Alabama-LSU tickets available for $10,423.14 … each.

Let that process for a second. Tickets for a college football game at the beginning of November are worth more than $10,000. This isn’t the Super Bowl. This isn’t the national championship. This isn’t even the SEC championship.

And if that doesn’t break your piggy bank, the $16.95 shipping charges if you want that ticket shipped overnight might.

Oh, and these aren’t even close to being the best seats out there. They are in the lower level of the end zone and in row 25. You can choose between seat 17 or 18. That doesn’t come with catered food or secure you from sitting behind someone who you might consider a giant.

When Mingo heard about such craziness, he was stunned. He paused for a few seconds before even delivering an answer – and even that had to be pieced together with glue.

“That’s pretty incredible,” Mingo said. “Ten thousand dollars? I’m speechless, man. Who would pay $10,000 for a football game?

“I don’t even think national championship tickets go for that much.

“That’s just crazy to me.”

We should be shocked by such a nutty request, but there is a part of all of us familiar with SEC football that can’t help but shrug at this. As if it isn’t terribly out of the realm of possibility that someone would actually try to sell tickets for this price or that someone would actually buy one – or both.

LSU punter Brad Wing, who spent 15 years playing Aussie Rules Football in Melbourne, Australia, before heading to LSU last year, met the question about the tickets with astonishment before interjecting some laughter.

“I think a Grand Final ticket in Australia might be 200 bucks,” Wing said. “That’s crazy.

“They love their football down here, huh?”

LSU safety Brandon Taylor said he heard the cheapest ticket was going for around $375 in the nosebleeds. So, $10,000 had Taylor laughing in disbelief.

“That’s a lot of money,” Taylor said. “That’s a car for me.”

Mingo knew the magnitude of this game would be monumental, but he never expected something like this. He couldn’t even fathom having the money right now to buy such a ticket. But if he did, Mingo said he would buy a cheap truck, head to Best Buy and use the rest of the money to buy a TV to watch the game on.

Even if he had the money to spare and he could take any woman in the world with him, Mingo said he wouldn’t do it. Recently divorced Kim Kardashian (after 72 days of true bliss) wouldn’t even stand of a chance of being his date for such an expensive event.

“I wouldn’t even take her. I wouldn’t even go,” he said.

“Ten thousand dollars? Come on. Are you serious?

“That’s SEC football for you.”

BATON ROUGE, La. -- It's felt like hours, but we're finally at halftime here at Tiger Stadium with LSU leading Florida 24-3.

Stat of the half: Florida's front seven was gutted by Trent Richardson and Alabama's running game for 226 yards a week ago. Today, LSU is looking to duplicate that effort after pounding away at Florida's front seven on the ground. The Tigers entered the half with 128 yards and two touchdowns by Spencer Ware. Ware leads all rushers with 63 yards on 12 touches. LSU has eight more rushing yards than Florida has total yards at the half.

Best call: With LSU up 14-0 in the first, Les Miles reached under his magical hat and pulled out a fake punt after back-to-back 5-yard penalties on the Tigers. Florida's punt unit tore away from the line as fast as it could, leaving nothing but green grass for LSU punter Brad Wing. Instead of punting, Wing sprinted down the left side of the field 54 yards and into the end zone. However, the touchdown was negated after he foolishly flashed the ball to a Florida defender, triggering a personal foul call for taunting.

What Florida needs to do: The Gators' offense came alive on its last drive once bruiser Mike Gillislee started getting the ball. Honestly, he should have gotten the ball from the start with his size and strength. Outside runs with small backs like Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey aren't working, so continue to hand the ball off to Gillislee. Also, let Jacoby Brissett throw the ball. He has thrown a couple of nice balls here and there, but Charlie Weis should give him more chances to throw the ball around if Florida wants a shot at getting back in this game.

What LSU needs to do: The Tigers just need to run the ball. There is no point in throwing the ball too much to risk turnovers. This game is very much in LSU's hands right now, so there is no point in letting the Gators creep back into this game. Putting more pressure on Brissett will certainly help that as well.

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Florida's front seven was supposed to keep the Gators in this one, but it didn't even come close in the first quarter.

LSU just sliced and diced Florida's defense with running backs Spencer Ware and Alfred Blue, who combined for 61 yards and a touchdown on 10 touches.

On Ware's first couple of touches he just seemed to bounce right off of Florida defenders. It looked unfair at times.

Florida's front seven was carved up by Alabama's Trent Richardson last week, and it hasn't had a great start to this one either, which could spell doom for a team struggling to move the ball on offense.

In other news, we saw yet another Les Miles classic on a fourth-and-long. Punter Brad Wing looked like he was all set to punt and as Florida dropped way back into coverage, Wing just calmly sprinted down the left sideline. He even showboated a little before the end zone, extending the ball out to taunt a Florida player. Because of the new taunting penalty, that touchdown was negated, enraging the Tiger faithful.

But it might not matter at this point. Sure, a punter scoring is a fun story for the grandchildren, but LSU settled for a field goal to go up 17-0 shortly after the second quarter started and with the offense Florida has today, 17 might be enough.