Barring a bizarre chain of events these last two weeks, the SEC can just about lock in two BCS berths.
The SEC championship game winner between Alabama and Florida is ticketed for the BCS National Championship Game, and the loser will play in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
Ole Miss has made up the most ground on the bowl front in the past few weeks. The Rebels’ 25-23 win over LSU likely puts them in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando. The Rebels last played in a Florida bowl in 1991 when they lost to Michigan in the Gator Bowl.
Now, if Ole Miss should lose this Saturday to Mississippi State, it may be a more difficult decision for the Capital One, which gets the top choice out of the SEC after the BCS selections are made.
Arkansas is the other hot team in the SEC and has one of the SEC’s hotter players in quarterback Ryan Mallett. The winner of the Arkansas-LSU game this weekend is likely headed to the Cotton Bowl.
Watch Kentucky, too. The Wildcats have a chance to get to 8-4 if they can beat Tennessee, which would almost certainly send the Big Blue to the Outback Bowl.
The Vols could also end up in the Outback Bowl, but could fall to the Autozone Liberty Bowl if they lose to the Wildcats and wind up 6-6.
The bottom line is that nothing that can be written in pen except for Vanderbilt and Mississippi State being eliminated from bowl contention. The other 10 teams are all bowl eligible.
Can you imagine a final weekend of the regular season that included Mississippi State beating Ole Miss, South Carolina beating Clemson, Kentucky beating Tennessee, Georgia beating Georgia Tech and either Alabama or Florida losing?
Stay tuned, because it never ends up like you think it will.
Here’s the way I see the bowl lineup shaking out heading into the final weekend of the regular season:
The SEC championship game winner between Alabama and Florida is ticketed for the BCS National Championship Game, and the loser will play in the Allstate Sugar Bowl.
Ole Miss has made up the most ground on the bowl front in the past few weeks. The Rebels’ 25-23 win over LSU likely puts them in the Capital One Bowl in Orlando. The Rebels last played in a Florida bowl in 1991 when they lost to Michigan in the Gator Bowl.
Now, if Ole Miss should lose this Saturday to Mississippi State, it may be a more difficult decision for the Capital One, which gets the top choice out of the SEC after the BCS selections are made.
Arkansas is the other hot team in the SEC and has one of the SEC’s hotter players in quarterback Ryan Mallett. The winner of the Arkansas-LSU game this weekend is likely headed to the Cotton Bowl.
Watch Kentucky, too. The Wildcats have a chance to get to 8-4 if they can beat Tennessee, which would almost certainly send the Big Blue to the Outback Bowl.
The Vols could also end up in the Outback Bowl, but could fall to the Autozone Liberty Bowl if they lose to the Wildcats and wind up 6-6.
The bottom line is that nothing that can be written in pen except for Vanderbilt and Mississippi State being eliminated from bowl contention. The other 10 teams are all bowl eligible.
Can you imagine a final weekend of the regular season that included Mississippi State beating Ole Miss, South Carolina beating Clemson, Kentucky beating Tennessee, Georgia beating Georgia Tech and either Alabama or Florida losing?
Stay tuned, because it never ends up like you think it will.
Here’s the way I see the bowl lineup shaking out heading into the final weekend of the regular season:
- BCS National Championship Game: Alabama vs. BCS team
- Allstate Sugar Bowl: Florida vs. BCS team
- Capital One Bowl: Ole Miss vs. Big Ten team
- Outback Bowl: Tennessee vs. Big Ten team
- AT&T Cotton Bowl: LSU vs. Big 12 team
- Chick-fil-A Bowl: Kentucky vs. ACC team
- Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl: Auburn vs. ACC team
- Autozone Liberty Bowl: Arkansas vs. Conference USA team
- Advocare Independence Bowl: South Carolina vs. Big 12 team
- Papajohns.com Bowl: Georgia vs. Big East team
We’re down to this: One more week of football remaining to determine if Alabama and Florida will meet in the SEC championship game as unbeaten teams.
The Crimson Tide and Gators are coming off “scrimmages” and should be rested for their big rivalry games this weekend.
Ole Miss seems to be getting hot at just the right time for the second straight season. They’re just plain hot in Georgia after the Bulldogs’ 34-27 home loss to Kentucky, and who knows what they’re thinking on the Bayou after one of the worst mismanagements of a late-game clock situation by LSU in recent SEC history?
Here’s a look at what we learned in the SEC in Week 12:
1. Running backs galore: It’s been a while since the SEC had this many good running backs putting up these kind of numbers in the same season. Picking the top two for first-team All-SEC honors is going to be a chore. Five guys can stake a claim. Alabama’s Mark Ingram has 1,399 rushing yards, averages 6.8 yards per carry and has 15 touchdowns. Mississippi State’s Anthony Dixon has 1,258 rushing yards, averages 5.5 yards per carry and has 11 touchdowns. Auburn’s Ben Tate has 1,209 rushing yards, averages 5.4 yards per carry and has eight touchdowns. Tennessee’s Montario Hardesty has 1,127 rushing yards, averages 5 yards per carry and has 10 touchdowns. Ole Miss’ Dexter McCluster has 903 rushing yards, averages 6.9 yards per carry and has nine touchdowns. McCluster also has 412 receiving yards. How do you pick just two?
2. It’s a Big Blue world: If Kentucky does this coming Saturday what it’s failed to do every year since 1984 – and that’s beat Tennessee – the SEC Coach of the Year award this season should take its rightful place in Lexington, Ky. The more you watch this team play, the more respect you gain for what Rich Brooks has done. The Wildcats proved yet again in their 34-27 win over Georgia how resourceful they are, how resilient they are and how they simply don’t give up -- sort of like how Brooks never gave up on this program several years ago when everybody else had given up on him. A win over the Vols at home this coming weekend would give the Wildcats their first eight-win regular season since 1984, quite an accomplishment when you consider all the injuries this team has endured this season.
3. Chaotic clock management: You could watch football for a long time (at any level) and not see a worse butchering of an end-of-game situation than what you saw from LSU on Saturday in its 25-23 loss to Ole Miss. And let’s face it: Les Miles has played with fire before in these situations. Remember the touchdown pass to Demetrius Byrd with one second left against Auburn in 2007? He got away with that one, but not this time. There was zero direction on the LSU sideline in that final minute against Ole Miss. Sure, Jordan Jefferson should have never taken that sack on second down, but he never should have been throwing the ball in the first place. Jefferson’s comments afterward were telling. He said confusion reigned and admitted that he “didn’t know what to do.” There were so many mistakes by the LSU offensive staff that the hardest part is trying to figure out where to start. The Tigers wasted 17 seconds before calling a timeout after the third-down play. They inexplicably didn’t try to run the ball after getting to the Ole Miss 32 with 1:04 to play. They didn’t have a plan in place for the final play. And even in the postgame press conference after all the chaos had ended, Miles seemed as lost in trying to explain it all as he did when it was all melting down around him on the sideline. The truth is there isn’t any explaining this one.
4. From bad to worse for Georgia: There was already a black cloud hovering over Georgia’s football program. This season hadn’t been what anybody wanted, but then the Bulldogs went out and lost to Kentucky … at home. Not only did they lose, but they dominated the statistics and still managed to lose. But that’s what happens when you turn the ball over four times in the second half and have 75 penalty yards for the game. The Bulldogs (6-5, 4-4) are staring squarely into the face of their first non-winning regular season since Jim Donnan’s first season in Athens in 1996. The Bulldogs might not be one of the top two most talented teams in the SEC, but they’re certainly one of the top three or four. Talent is not Georgia’s problem. It’s focus. It’s execution. It’s player development and it’s discipline. When you commit as many penalties as the Bulldogs have the past two seasons and turn the ball over as many times as they have this season (26), it’s obvious that there’s a decay in the program somewhere that has to be addressed. Mark Richt has been as classy as they come and as consistent as they come. But if he doesn’t address this decay with more than just cosmetic changes, then it’s going to be addressed for him.
5. Brantley looks the part: It was only for part of the second half and the Gators were up by something like 22 touchdowns, but this just in: Backup quarterback John Brantley can throw it. He’s a better pure passer than Tim Tebow and will add a dimension to the Gators’ passing game next season that they simply don’t have right now. Again, it was mop-up duty, but you talk to enough people in and around the Florida program, and there’s a quiet confidence about some of the things they’re going to be able to do next season with Brantley at the helm. Of course, you give up Tebow’s third-down prowess and his ability to make all the clutch plays with his legs and arm, and you also give up his incredible will to win and the impact that he's had on the rest of his teammates. But Brantley’s polished enough throwing the football that the Gators aren’t going to go quietly into the night next season when Tebow departs. In fact, Brantley might be the third or fourth best quarterback in the SEC right now.
The Crimson Tide and Gators are coming off “scrimmages” and should be rested for their big rivalry games this weekend.
Ole Miss seems to be getting hot at just the right time for the second straight season. They’re just plain hot in Georgia after the Bulldogs’ 34-27 home loss to Kentucky, and who knows what they’re thinking on the Bayou after one of the worst mismanagements of a late-game clock situation by LSU in recent SEC history?
Here’s a look at what we learned in the SEC in Week 12:
1. Running backs galore: It’s been a while since the SEC had this many good running backs putting up these kind of numbers in the same season. Picking the top two for first-team All-SEC honors is going to be a chore. Five guys can stake a claim. Alabama’s Mark Ingram has 1,399 rushing yards, averages 6.8 yards per carry and has 15 touchdowns. Mississippi State’s Anthony Dixon has 1,258 rushing yards, averages 5.5 yards per carry and has 11 touchdowns. Auburn’s Ben Tate has 1,209 rushing yards, averages 5.4 yards per carry and has eight touchdowns. Tennessee’s Montario Hardesty has 1,127 rushing yards, averages 5 yards per carry and has 10 touchdowns. Ole Miss’ Dexter McCluster has 903 rushing yards, averages 6.9 yards per carry and has nine touchdowns. McCluster also has 412 receiving yards. How do you pick just two?
2. It’s a Big Blue world: If Kentucky does this coming Saturday what it’s failed to do every year since 1984 – and that’s beat Tennessee – the SEC Coach of the Year award this season should take its rightful place in Lexington, Ky. The more you watch this team play, the more respect you gain for what Rich Brooks has done. The Wildcats proved yet again in their 34-27 win over Georgia how resourceful they are, how resilient they are and how they simply don’t give up -- sort of like how Brooks never gave up on this program several years ago when everybody else had given up on him. A win over the Vols at home this coming weekend would give the Wildcats their first eight-win regular season since 1984, quite an accomplishment when you consider all the injuries this team has endured this season.
3. Chaotic clock management: You could watch football for a long time (at any level) and not see a worse butchering of an end-of-game situation than what you saw from LSU on Saturday in its 25-23 loss to Ole Miss. And let’s face it: Les Miles has played with fire before in these situations. Remember the touchdown pass to Demetrius Byrd with one second left against Auburn in 2007? He got away with that one, but not this time. There was zero direction on the LSU sideline in that final minute against Ole Miss. Sure, Jordan Jefferson should have never taken that sack on second down, but he never should have been throwing the ball in the first place. Jefferson’s comments afterward were telling. He said confusion reigned and admitted that he “didn’t know what to do.” There were so many mistakes by the LSU offensive staff that the hardest part is trying to figure out where to start. The Tigers wasted 17 seconds before calling a timeout after the third-down play. They inexplicably didn’t try to run the ball after getting to the Ole Miss 32 with 1:04 to play. They didn’t have a plan in place for the final play. And even in the postgame press conference after all the chaos had ended, Miles seemed as lost in trying to explain it all as he did when it was all melting down around him on the sideline. The truth is there isn’t any explaining this one.
4. From bad to worse for Georgia: There was already a black cloud hovering over Georgia’s football program. This season hadn’t been what anybody wanted, but then the Bulldogs went out and lost to Kentucky … at home. Not only did they lose, but they dominated the statistics and still managed to lose. But that’s what happens when you turn the ball over four times in the second half and have 75 penalty yards for the game. The Bulldogs (6-5, 4-4) are staring squarely into the face of their first non-winning regular season since Jim Donnan’s first season in Athens in 1996. The Bulldogs might not be one of the top two most talented teams in the SEC, but they’re certainly one of the top three or four. Talent is not Georgia’s problem. It’s focus. It’s execution. It’s player development and it’s discipline. When you commit as many penalties as the Bulldogs have the past two seasons and turn the ball over as many times as they have this season (26), it’s obvious that there’s a decay in the program somewhere that has to be addressed. Mark Richt has been as classy as they come and as consistent as they come. But if he doesn’t address this decay with more than just cosmetic changes, then it’s going to be addressed for him.
5. Brantley looks the part: It was only for part of the second half and the Gators were up by something like 22 touchdowns, but this just in: Backup quarterback John Brantley can throw it. He’s a better pure passer than Tim Tebow and will add a dimension to the Gators’ passing game next season that they simply don’t have right now. Again, it was mop-up duty, but you talk to enough people in and around the Florida program, and there’s a quiet confidence about some of the things they’re going to be able to do next season with Brantley at the helm. Of course, you give up Tebow’s third-down prowess and his ability to make all the clutch plays with his legs and arm, and you also give up his incredible will to win and the impact that he's had on the rest of his teammates. But Brantley’s polished enough throwing the football that the Gators aren’t going to go quietly into the night next season when Tebow departs. In fact, Brantley might be the third or fourth best quarterback in the SEC right now.
The big boys, Alabama and Florida, breezed through scrimmages, but there was still plenty of drama in the SEC in Week 12, which means there were several deserving recipients of helmet stickers:
Ole Miss running back Dexter McCluster: Had McCluster been this involved in the Ole Miss offense back in September, we might be talking about the Heisman Trophy front-runner right now. He’s run for a touchdown, caught a touchdown and thrown a touchdown this season. He’s 97 yards away from a 1,000-yard rushing season after racking up 148 Saturday against a rugged LSU defense in Ole Miss’ 25-23 win. He’s 88 yards away from a 500-yard receiving season. Here’s one for the SEC historians: When’s the last time a player had 1,000 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in the same season. Has it ever happened?
Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett: Two of his first 20 passes were interceptions, and Mallett wasn’t as accurate as he had been in his previous three games, but how do you complain with five touchdown passes? The 6-foot-7 sophomore now has 28 touchdown passes on the season, breaking Clint Stoerner’s old record of 26 at Arkansas, and is having one of the best seasons for a first-year quarterback in the SEC in league history. His five touchdown passes went to four different receivers, and he carved Mississippi State apart in a 42-21 victory.
Tennessee defensive tackle Wes Brown: The gritty senior has been the inspirational leader for Tennessee’s defense all season long. He’s fought through aching knees, most of the time unable to practice because of the pain. But Brown has given the Vols everything he has and refused to call it quits. His final play at Neyland Stadium was one he won’t soon forget. He intercepted a Mackenzi Adams pass in the final seconds and dragged a Vanderbilt defender with him for a 25-yard touchdown to cap the Vols’ 31-16 win over the Commodores. “A dream come true,” is the way Brown explained his home finale.
Kentucky linebacker Sam Maxwell: You think Kentucky’s 34-27 win over Georgia meant a little something to Maxwell, a Hartwell, Ga., product? It had been 32 years since the Wildcats had won in Athens, and it’s fitting that a Georgia boy would seal the deal for Kentucky with an interception in the final minutes. Maxwell picked off Joe Cox’s short pass over the middle with 1:45 to play. And before that, he was all over the field for the Wildcats and led them with 11 total tackles.
Alabama cornerback Javier Arenas: For a guy who was supposedly too small to play at this level, Arenas has had one dynamite career. He played his final game at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday in a 45-0 rout of Chattanooga and bid farewell with the seventh punt return for a touchdown in his illustrious career. He took one back 66 yards to set an SEC record and also intercepted a pass in his home finale. Arenas might be known more for his punt return skills, but he’s developed into one of the better all-around cornerbacks in the league with his ability to blitz, play the run and the cover the pass.
Ole Miss running back Dexter McCluster: Had McCluster been this involved in the Ole Miss offense back in September, we might be talking about the Heisman Trophy front-runner right now. He’s run for a touchdown, caught a touchdown and thrown a touchdown this season. He’s 97 yards away from a 1,000-yard rushing season after racking up 148 Saturday against a rugged LSU defense in Ole Miss’ 25-23 win. He’s 88 yards away from a 500-yard receiving season. Here’s one for the SEC historians: When’s the last time a player had 1,000 rushing yards and 500 receiving yards in the same season. Has it ever happened?
Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett: Two of his first 20 passes were interceptions, and Mallett wasn’t as accurate as he had been in his previous three games, but how do you complain with five touchdown passes? The 6-foot-7 sophomore now has 28 touchdown passes on the season, breaking Clint Stoerner’s old record of 26 at Arkansas, and is having one of the best seasons for a first-year quarterback in the SEC in league history. His five touchdown passes went to four different receivers, and he carved Mississippi State apart in a 42-21 victory.
Tennessee defensive tackle Wes Brown: The gritty senior has been the inspirational leader for Tennessee’s defense all season long. He’s fought through aching knees, most of the time unable to practice because of the pain. But Brown has given the Vols everything he has and refused to call it quits. His final play at Neyland Stadium was one he won’t soon forget. He intercepted a Mackenzi Adams pass in the final seconds and dragged a Vanderbilt defender with him for a 25-yard touchdown to cap the Vols’ 31-16 win over the Commodores. “A dream come true,” is the way Brown explained his home finale.
Kentucky linebacker Sam Maxwell: You think Kentucky’s 34-27 win over Georgia meant a little something to Maxwell, a Hartwell, Ga., product? It had been 32 years since the Wildcats had won in Athens, and it’s fitting that a Georgia boy would seal the deal for Kentucky with an interception in the final minutes. Maxwell picked off Joe Cox’s short pass over the middle with 1:45 to play. And before that, he was all over the field for the Wildcats and led them with 11 total tackles.
Alabama cornerback Javier Arenas: For a guy who was supposedly too small to play at this level, Arenas has had one dynamite career. He played his final game at Bryant-Denny Stadium on Saturday in a 45-0 rout of Chattanooga and bid farewell with the seventh punt return for a touchdown in his illustrious career. He took one back 66 yards to set an SEC record and also intercepted a pass in his home finale. Arenas might be known more for his punt return skills, but he’s developed into one of the better all-around cornerbacks in the league with his ability to blitz, play the run and the cover the pass.
Arkansas and Ole Miss are both playing some of their best football of the season, and obviously Alabama and Florida are unbeaten.
But what about Kentucky?
The Wildcats, in winning their first game in Athens since 1977, have now won five of their last six games this season. Their 34-27 win over Georgia on Saturday gives them a chance to win eight games in the regular season if they can beat Tennessee at home next week.
Rich Brooks has done a marvelous job of keeping this Kentucky team together despite a glut of injuries, not to mention losing senior defensive end Jeremy Jarmon back in May after he was ruled ineligible by the NCAA.
Once again, it was Randall Cobb and Derrick Locke leading the way on offense. But the Kentucky defense also deserves some serious props for making every play it had to in the second half.
But what about Kentucky?
The Wildcats, in winning their first game in Athens since 1977, have now won five of their last six games this season. Their 34-27 win over Georgia on Saturday gives them a chance to win eight games in the regular season if they can beat Tennessee at home next week.
Rich Brooks has done a marvelous job of keeping this Kentucky team together despite a glut of injuries, not to mention losing senior defensive end Jeremy Jarmon back in May after he was ruled ineligible by the NCAA.
Once again, it was Randall Cobb and Derrick Locke leading the way on offense. But the Kentucky defense also deserves some serious props for making every play it had to in the second half.
The final play of Wes Brown's home career at Tennessee couldn't have been more fitting?
He's a guy who has persevered all season on bad knees, but has refused to come out of the lineup. He'll definitely remember his last play in Neyland Stadium.
Vanderbilt quarterback Mackenzi Adams was being pressured
in the final seconds and threw one up that Brown intercepted. He lumbered in for the touchdown, carrying a Vanderbilt player with him the final 5 yards and lunging into the end zone.
A sea of orange piled on top of Brown to celebrate with him in the checkerboard end zone.
He's a guy who has persevered all season on bad knees, but has refused to come out of the lineup. He'll definitely remember his last play in Neyland Stadium.
Vanderbilt quarterback Mackenzi Adams was being pressured
in the final seconds and threw one up that Brown intercepted. He lumbered in for the touchdown, carrying a Vanderbilt player with him the final 5 yards and lunging into the end zone.
A sea of orange piled on top of Brown to celebrate with him in the checkerboard end zone.
Georgia's running game has improved dramatically over the last few weeks, and the Bulldogs have leaned hard on their ground game Saturday night.
They had 137 rushing yards at the half against Kentucky, and freshman running back Washaun Ealey has definitely added a spark. It's also helped moving Cordy Glenn inside to guard.
They had 137 rushing yards at the half against Kentucky, and freshman running back Washaun Ealey has definitely added a spark. It's also helped moving Cordy Glenn inside to guard.
Paul Petrino interviewing at W. Kentucky
November, 21, 2009
Nov 21
8:54
PM ET
Paul Petrino, the offensive coordinator at Arkansas and brother of Hogs coach Bobby Petrino, is interviewing for the Western Kentucky head coaching job.
My colleague at ESPN.com, Pat Forde, reports that Petrino traveled to Bowling Green, Ky., on Saturday night following the Hogs' 42-21 victory over Mississippi State.
My colleague at ESPN.com, Pat Forde, reports that Petrino traveled to Bowling Green, Ky., on Saturday night following the Hogs' 42-21 victory over Mississippi State.
Vanderbilt's Norman breaks Walker's record
November, 21, 2009
Nov 21
8:39
PM ET
Vanderbilt's Warren Norman broke Herschel Walker's SEC freshman record for all-purpose yardage in a season in the first half of the Commodores' game with Tennessee on Saturday night.
Walker had 1,805 all-purpose yards in 1980 during his freshman season at Georgia, but Norman moved past Walker with his second kickoff return against the Vols.
Walker had 1,805 all-purpose yards in 1980 during his freshman season at Georgia, but Norman moved past Walker with his second kickoff return against the Vols.
Ole Miss didn't close out the game like it should have, but who's being picky at this point?
The Rebels (8-3, 4-3) have won five of their last six games and three in a row after holding off LSU 25-23 on Saturday and are now the front-runner to be invited to the Capital One Bowl.
Equally important, the Rebels are now playing like everybody thought they would when the season began. They can get to 10 wins by winning next week at Mississippi State and then the bowl game, which would be a sweet way to finish the season after such a disappointing start.
Quarterback Jevan Snead looks so much more comfortable throwing the ball now that Dexter McCluster has rejuvenated the Rebels' running game.
This looks like a completely different offense than the one that bowed meekly, 16-10, at South Carolina back on Sept. 24.
The Rebels (8-3, 4-3) have won five of their last six games and three in a row after holding off LSU 25-23 on Saturday and are now the front-runner to be invited to the Capital One Bowl.
Equally important, the Rebels are now playing like everybody thought they would when the season began. They can get to 10 wins by winning next week at Mississippi State and then the bowl game, which would be a sweet way to finish the season after such a disappointing start.
Quarterback Jevan Snead looks so much more comfortable throwing the ball now that Dexter McCluster has rejuvenated the Rebels' running game.
This looks like a completely different offense than the one that bowed meekly, 16-10, at South Carolina back on Sept. 24.
I’m not sure it’s possible to butcher a late-game situation any worse than LSU did Saturday in its 25-23 loss to Ole Miss.
Where do you start?
Let’s start with Brandon LaFell’s 26-yard catch, which gave the Tigers a first down at the Ole Miss 32 with right around a minute to play.
With two timeouts remaining, and the Ole Miss defense on its heels, the Tigers didn't attempt another run. They tried to pass the next two plays, on second down, quarterback Jordan Jefferson was sacked from the back side for a 9-yard loss.
The Tigers tried a screen pass on third down that was stuffed for lost yardage, and LSU wasted about 17 seconds before calling their final timeout.
Left with just nine seconds, Jefferson completed a deep ball to Terrance Toliver on fourth-and-26 down to the Rebels’ 6-yard line.
The clock stopped with one second to play to reset the chains, and the Tigers looked lost. They weren’t ready to send their field goal team out. So instead of attempting another play and trying to score a touchdown, Jefferson tried to spike the ball, and the clock ran out.
There just seemed to be a lot of confusion on the LSU sideline those final few seconds, and even the Tigers’ play-calling on their failed two-point conversion try minutes earlier was questionable.
A penalty on Ole Miss moved the ball just outside the 1, and with the Rebels showing blitz, the Tigers tried a low-percentage fade pass into the corner of the end zone that was incomplete.
The Tigers have won a bunch of games under Les Miles in the final seconds.
This time, it was a clinic in what not to do in the final seconds.
Where do you start?
Let’s start with Brandon LaFell’s 26-yard catch, which gave the Tigers a first down at the Ole Miss 32 with right around a minute to play.
With two timeouts remaining, and the Ole Miss defense on its heels, the Tigers didn't attempt another run. They tried to pass the next two plays, on second down, quarterback Jordan Jefferson was sacked from the back side for a 9-yard loss.
The Tigers tried a screen pass on third down that was stuffed for lost yardage, and LSU wasted about 17 seconds before calling their final timeout.
Left with just nine seconds, Jefferson completed a deep ball to Terrance Toliver on fourth-and-26 down to the Rebels’ 6-yard line.
The clock stopped with one second to play to reset the chains, and the Tigers looked lost. They weren’t ready to send their field goal team out. So instead of attempting another play and trying to score a touchdown, Jefferson tried to spike the ball, and the clock ran out.
There just seemed to be a lot of confusion on the LSU sideline those final few seconds, and even the Tigers’ play-calling on their failed two-point conversion try minutes earlier was questionable.
A penalty on Ole Miss moved the ball just outside the 1, and with the Rebels showing blitz, the Tigers tried a low-percentage fade pass into the corner of the end zone that was incomplete.
The Tigers have won a bunch of games under Les Miles in the final seconds.
This time, it was a clinic in what not to do in the final seconds.
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Chris Low
Low joined ESPN.com in 2007 after 10 years with The (Nashville) Tennessean covering the University of Tennessee and SEC. The Rock Hill, S.C., native lives with his wife in Knoxville and has three sons.
SEC SCOREBOARD
Saturday, 11/21
Final Mississippi State 21 Arkansas 42 Final Chattanooga 0 2 Alabama 45 Final Florida International 3 1 Florida 62 Final 8 LSU 23 Mississippi 25 Final Vanderbilt 16 Tennessee 31 Final Kentucky 34 Georgia 27
