ESPN College Football

No one likes a tease. They ruin a perfectly good time, and in the SEC, we've seen a few teases in the past couple of seasons.

A tease team is a team that looks good during the spring or preseason camp, but somehow implodes during the season. It can also be a team that has high expectations, but just never puts it together.

Could there be one lurking in our midst as we speak? Possibly. If Alabama doesn't compete for a national championship, would you consider the season a failure? Some would. Or what if South Carolina doesn't win the East? That would be considered a major disappointment to a lot of people out there.

Here are some of those tease teams we've seen in this league over the past couple of years:

Georgia: The Bulldogs have been notorious for underachieving. In Mark Richt's second season, Georgia went 13-1, winning the SEC. The Bulldogs repeated as East champs in 2003 and won the SEC again in 2005. During that four-year span, the Bulldogs went an impressive 44-9. Georgia was bringing in some of the best recruiting classes in the SEC and it seemed like the Bulldogs would regularly compete for a national championship. However, Georgia has had double-digit victories just twice since 2005 and hasn't made it back to the SEC championship. Last season was the ultimate low point when the Bulldogs went 6-7, the first losing season since going 5-6 in 1996. This season, Georgia has a slew of talent, thanks to a stellar recruiting class that featured a group of Georgians dubbed the "Dream Team." If not for injuries and attrition on the offensive line and at running back, the Bulldogs would be battling South Carolina for the role of preseason favorite in the East. But there is talent to make a run. Can the Dawgs scrap the underachieving bug in 2011?

Ole Miss: Recent Ole Miss teams have been a little disappointing after that deadly preseason hype. After Houston Nutt's impressive 9-4 first season -- a season in which the Rebels upset eventual national champion Florida and won six straight games to end the season -- many had the Rebels competing for much more than just back-to-back Cotton Bowls. The Rebels entered the season ranked eighth in the country and rose as high as fourth before faltering during the middle of the season and losing to Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl. However, Ole Miss won its second straight Cotton Bowl. Last season, Ole Miss wasn't picked to bring home any trophies, but the 4-8 season was far from what was expected. The Rebels touted a much-heralded defense and brought in former Oregon standout Jeremiah Masoli to run the offense. Neither lived up to expectations and Ole Miss won just one conference game.

Florida: It's not like Florida consistently underachieved under Urban Meyer, but in 2009, everyone and their mother had Florida playing in back-to-back national championships. The Gators had what some considered Florida's best defense ever and had Tim Tebow back for his senior season. Even without Percy Harvin and Louis Murphy, many figured Florida's offense would be fine. Well, the offense was rarely explosive or intimidating and the Gators were eventually blown out by Alabama in the SEC championship. Florida throttled Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl, going 13-1, but most of the Gator Nation's excitement left when those national championship hopes were destroyed. Before 2010, people expected John Brantley to blow up Florida's record books with his passing numbers, while running another explosive Meyer offense. Along with a mighty recruiting class, Florida had the look of a SEC contender. However, Brantley never fit into the spread attack and Florida's offense limped through an 8-5 season that included a blowout loss to Florida State, the first to the Seminoles since 2003.

Read some of these SEC links while you get your afternoon grub on.

• Kristi Dosh of The Business of College Sports writes that LSU's Tiger Athletic Foundation has total assets of more than $265 million.
• Kevin Scarbinsky of The Birmingham News wonders why so many Alabama players signed so much stuff for the owner of T-Town Menswear.
• Linebackers Josh Bynes and Craig Stevens will be tough to replace at Auburn this fall.
• Undrafted Arkansas players are eager to chase their NFL dreams.
• Pat Dooley of The Gainesville Sun writes that this is the last chance for John Brantley and Deonte Thompson at Florida.
• Georgia athletic director Greg McGarity hopes to have the investigation into the eligibility issues Jarvis Jones is facing wrapped up by the end of the week.
• Police say Tennessee linebacker Austin Johnson allegedly tried to engage in a fight and has been accused of hitting parked cars before his arrest early Sunday morning.
• Lane Kiffin hit with failure-to-monitor instead of Tennessee.
• Les Miles isn't "overly concerned" with Russell Shepard's availability.
• Miles may soon finalize a new seven-year contract proposed by LSU.
• Former Rebels Jeremiah Masoli and Jonathan Cornell both sign NFL free agent deals.
• Life is about to get busy for undrafted former Kentucky players.

Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt has three quarterback candidates, all of them transfers, competing to start for the Rebels this season in the place of Jeremiah Masoli, also a transfer.

There is a pattern there, isn’t there? Nutt said he doesn’t have a long record of taking transfers. He took Masoli, kicked off the Oregon team, to fill a hole last season. Masoli, without the benefit of spring practice and with a very young team, led the Rebels to a 4-8 finish.

This season, the candidates are West Virginia transfer Barry Bernetti, Louisville transfer (via Iowa Western CC) Zack Stoudt, and junior college transfer Randall Mackey, who redshirted last season.

Nutt said he would prefer to make a decision early in August instead of late and would prefer to play one quarterback.

It can be awkward for any transfer to knit himself seamlessly into the fabric of a team. When the transfer is a quarterback, who parachutes in to compete for a leadership position, the burden is doubly difficult.

“What I try to tell them,” Nutt said, “is, ‘Hey, be the best teammate you can be. The ball? You’re a good athlete. That’s going to come. If you win your teammates over by being a servant, by being a worker, that’s going to help you slip in. That transition will be so much easier if you do those.’”

Nutt said he has been impressed by how well Brunetti has eased into a leadership role on and off the field. Stoudt, he said, has made great strides. Last week, Nutt went on and on about Mackey’s gifts on the field. Nutt, ever the optimist, sounds confident the Rebels will find a talented quarterback this fall. Coming off a 4-8 season that Nutt said he could see coming when he took the job, the Rebels need to rebound.

DESTIN, Fla. – On paper, you’d assume the Jeremiah Masoli experiment at Ole Miss was a failure.

The Rebels went 4-8, including an embarrassing 49-48 loss to Jacksonville State at home. And while Ole Miss averaged 30.6 points per game, Masoli passed for 2,039 yards with 14 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.

It just wasn’t a banner year in Oxford.

But when coach Houston Nutt puts the paper down and throws the record aside, he’s very pleased with the job Masoli did in his only season at quarterback with the Rebels.

Arriving under controversial terms after run-ins with the law forced his dismissal from Oregon, Nutt took a ton of ridicule for his decision to recruit and sign Masoli in 2010.

During the first day of the SEC spring meetings in Destin, Fla., Nutt glowed about Masoli and the role he played at Ole Miss last season.

“Not a better guy that I’ve met in just a one-year time,” Nutt said Tuesday. “I’d do it again.

“He was a class act and I know he made mistakes out there [on the field] but boy he came in and helped our locker room.

“He did right by us.”

With a team struggling for leadership last fall, Masoli was the one who stepped up to guide the team behind the scenes. This year, Nutt will be breaking in yet another new quarterback, but the new guy won’t be as experienced as Masoli.

The Rebels will have redshirt junior Randall Mackey, junior college transfer Zack Stoudt and West Virginia transfer Barry Brunetti competing for the starting spot this fall. Mackey and Brunetti are the leaders.

Mackey impressed the most at the beginning of the spring, but Brunetti made the strongest push at the end, leading Nutt to currently favor Brunetti, who has the only Division 1 experience.

“If we played tonight, Brunetti would probably go out there first tonight,” Nutt said. “But we’re not playing tonight.”

Regardless of who gets the nod, Nutt is hoping the new starter takes the path Masoli took when he arrived. Watching how Masoli acted and how he prepared, Nutt said he has a better handle on how to deal with this season’s first-year quarterback.

The first thing Nutt wants to do is drill the notion of enhancing their work ethic into each one. That was the staple of Masoli’s character with the Rebels, and Nutt is hoping that trend continues with his new, younger gunslingers.

“Some of them can handle it,” he said. “Some of them it may be a little bit harder transition.

“[Masoli] wanted to be accepted by his peers and his teammates and he did it with work ethic. I think that’s key.”

Ole Miss is now down to three quarterbacks this spring.

Wednesday night, junior quarterback Nathan Stanley informed coach Houston Nutt that he is leaving the program.

The Jackson (Miss.) Clarion-Ledger first reported Stanley’s decision to leave Ole Miss for unspecified reasons.

Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach David Lee confirmed to ESPN.com that Stanley was leaving, but wouldn’t comment further on why the junior decided to part ways with the university.

Nutt addressed Stanley’s situation in a statement from the university.

“After meeting tonight, Nathan has decided to leave the program,” Nutt said. “I wish him the best and I am going to help him find a new school. I appreciate all that he has done for Ole Miss and the type of student-athlete he has been.”

Stanley won the starting job last spring, before Jeremiah Masoli transferred in from Oregon. Stanley started in the season-opening loss to Jacksonville State, passing for 133 yards and three touchdowns on 6-of-10 passing. However, he lost his starting job to Masoli afterward and played in just three more games, finishing the season with 261 yards, three touchdowns and an interception.

With Masoli gone, Stanley figured to get the majority of the action at quarterback this spring, but improvements by junior college transfer Randall Mackey, who redshirted last season, junior college transfer Zack Stoudt, and West Virginia transfer Barry Brunetti diminished his reps.

Mackey has recently pushed ahead in the quarterback race, while Stoudt and Brunetti continue to make solid strides behind him.

Brunetti, who transferred to Ole Miss in January, is still waiting to be granted a waiver by the NCAA in order to eligible to play this fall.

Lee said that he doesn’t plan to name a quarterback at the conclusion of spring and probably won’t decide on that until the middle of two-a-days this summer.

For now, Lee is anxious to see what his trio can do during Saturday’s spring game.

“I’ve got three unique guys and I’m excited about all three of them,“ he said.

“I’m really excited to watch Brunetti and Stoudt and Mackey this Saturday, with the crowd and some people there. All three of these guys are in the hunt (for the starting spot).”

For many, National Signing Day in college football is more anticipated than the season itself.

It’s just around the corner, Wednesday to be exact.

We’ll start with the Western Division in the SEC and take a look at each team’s recruiting needs:

ALABAMA

Offensive line: Alabama has been swimming in All-America and All-SEC offensive linemen the past three years, but it’s time to replenish up front. With James Carpenter departing, the Crimson Tide need to find a left tackle. Junior college signee Aaron Douglas, who started his career at Tennessee and was a Freshman All-American two years ago, could be the answer.

Receiver: Talents like Julio Jones don’t come around very often, and he’s now headed to the NFL a year early on the heels of a record-setting junior season. Marquis Maze and Darius Hanks will both be seniors next season, so finding a few more playmakers on the perimeter is a priority.

Defensive end: Whether it’s defensive ends or outside linebackers, the Crimson Tide are looking for some finishers in their 3-4 scheme to help improve their pass rush. Defensive end Marcell Dareus declared early for the NFL draft. The Tide’s other starting end, Luther Davis, is also gone, while “Jack” linebacker Courtney Upshaw will be a senior next season. Alabama finished in the middle of the SEC pack this season with 27 sacks.

ARKANSAS

Receiver: There won’t be a more talented receiving corps in the SEC next season. However, Greg Childs, Joe Adams and Jarius Wright will all be seniors. Cobi Hamilton will be a junior, so it’s imperative that the Hogs add some youth to their talented receiving stable.

Tight end: D.J. Williams ended his Arkansas career as one of the best pass-catching tight ends in SEC history. Also gone is Ben Cleveland. Rising junior Chris Gragg had his moments this season, but he’s going to need some help down the road.

Defensive back: The Hogs are losing half of their starting secondary in cornerback Ramon Broadway and strong safety Rudell Crim. Free safety Tramain Thomas and cornerback Isaac Madison return, but both will be seniors next season. Cornerbacks will be at the top of the Hogs’ wish list.

Offensive line: Tackles DeMarcus Love and Ray Dominguez were both seniors along with left guard Wade Grayson. Several of the Hogs’ backups on the offensive line will be seniors next season.

AUBURN

Offensive line: The Tigers lose four senior starters on their offensive line. Left tackle Lee Ziemba, right guard Byron Isom and center Ryan Pugh all earned some type of All-SEC honors. Getting tackle A.J. Greene back will help. He was a starter at right tackle until he injured his knee in the third game. The Tigers’ top offensive line signee from last year, Shon Coleman, remains on hold. He’s battling Leukemia.

Defensive line: Most of the guys who played the meaningful snaps up front defensively for the Tigers this season are gone. The big loss was Lombardi Award winner Nick Fairley declaring early for the NFL draft. Rising sophomore end Nosa Eguae will be looking for all the help he can get, even though there are some promising young defensive linemen in the program.

Quarterback: It was only one season, but what a season it was for Cam Newton. The 2010 Heisman Trophy winner will now take his shot at the NFL, leaving Auburn thin in the quarterback ranks. Rising junior Barrett Trotter is probably the guy to beat next season. The Tigers needed a multi-dimensional quarterback in this class and think they scored a perfect fit for Gus Malzahn’s offense in Kiehl Frazier of Springdale, Ark. He’s rated by ESPN as the No. 2 quarterback prospect in the country.

Linebacker: The Tigers have been lacking for depth at linebacker the past two seasons, which is the reason Josh Bynes and Craig Stevens played so many snaps. They’re gone now, and Eltoro Freeman will be a senior next season. Auburn went looking for linebackers last recruiting period and is looking for a few more this year.

LSU

Defensive line: With defensive tackle Drake Nevis graduating, muscle inside is a priority. The same goes for adding some top-flight pass-rushers at end. The return of Sam Montgomery will be a huge plus for the Tigers, who didn’t get to the quarterback nearly as much once he got hurt this season. They’re looking for a few more pass-rushers just like him.

Receiver: Terrence Toliver is gone, and suddenly, Russell Shepard and Rueben Randle will be juniors next season. The Tigers need more firepower on the outside, in particular a deep threat at receiver. They’re hopeful that four-star commitment Jarvis Landry of Lutcher, La., can come in and help provide more big plays next season.

Quarterback: It was a struggle in the passing game all season for LSU, which finished with just 10 touchdown passes and 11 interceptions. Jordan Jefferson did play better toward the end of the season, but he and Jarrett Lee are both rising seniors. It was critical that the Tigers get a marquee quarterback in this class, and they were able to get one at midterm. Former Georgia quarterback Zach Mettenberger is already enrolled and will go through spring practice. The 6-5, 230-pound Mettenberger threw 32 touchdown passes last season at Butler (Kan.) Community College.

MISSISSIPPI STATE

Linebacker: The Bulldogs are losing all three starters, and Chris White and K.J. Wright were their top two tacklers this season. Ferlando Bohanna is one of the 22 freshmen they redshirted last season and will get every chance to win a starting linebacker job in the spring.

Defensive line: In particular, Mississippi State is looking for ends and guys that can get to the quarterback. Pernell McPhee is gone, and Johnathan McKenzie left the team in September. The Bulldogs’ depth up front was also hurt by the tragic death of Nick Bell, who passed away in November after a bout with cancer.

Receivers: Dan Mullen is always looking for more receivers, even though the Bulldogs redshirted four of those guys last season. With the kind of offense Mullen wants to run, it’s important that Mississippi State bring in more guys on the perimeter who can stretch the field.

OLE MISS

Defensive line: The Rebels lost four senior tackles, both starters and both backups, and one of those was Jerrell Powe, one of the best run-stoppers in the league. Kentrell Lockett has applied to the NCAA for a sixth season. Regardless of whether or not he gets another season, the Rebels need more pass-rushers. Wayne Dorsey, a touted junior college transfer, struggled last season.

Receiver: An overall lack of production at receiver really hurt Ole Miss this season, and the Rebels’ two most dependable wide receivers, Markeith Summers and Lionel Breaux, are both gone. They need to find some more playmakers at the receiver position.

Defensive back: The Rebels lost two of the three in their safety rotation, and the one coming back, Damien Jackson, will be a senior. They’re also in need of cornerbacks, and just generally need to beef up a secondary that took its lumps this season. Ole Miss gave up 24 touchdown passes and intercepted only six passes.

Quarterback: Jeremiah Masoli’s year is up, leaving Nathan Stanley and redshirt freshman Randall Mackey, who’s more of a runner. Junior college signee Zack Stoudt is already on campus and will participate in spring practice.

As I said earlier today, you can’t pick just 10 memorable moments from an SEC season. So I’m going to cheat and give you 10 more that deserve mention:

• Cam Newton’s 49-yard touchdown run against LSU was truly mesmerizing. A 6-6, 250-pound quarterback isn’t supposed to be able to run that fast, with that kind of acceleration and with those kind of moves.
• If you’re into acrobatic catches, check out A.J. Green’s one-handed touchdown catch against Colorado in his first game back after a four-game suspension. Green went up high and snatched the ball with his left hand, landing hard on his back in the end zone for a 3-yard touchdown.
• Florida punter Chas Henry, filling in as the Gators’ place-kicker, kicked a 37-yard field goal in overtime to lift Florida to a 34-31 win over Georgia, but only after the Bulldogs called timeout and Georgia defensive coordinator Todd Grantham was caught on camera yelling at Henry that he was going to choke and giving him the choke sign. Henry later admitted that he probably escalated the whole thing by taking his helmet off and blowing Grantham a kiss during the timeout.
• After falling behind 20-7 in the third quarter and Razorback Stadium bursting at the seams in one of the better environments you’ll ever see at a college football game, Alabama came charging back in the fourth quarter to deal Arkansas a heartbreaking 24-20 loss and stretch its winning streak to 18 straight games.
• Kentucky’s Randall Cobb popped wide open in the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown catch with 1:15 to play, capping the Wildcats’ frantic comeback from a 28-10 halftime deficit to stun South Carolina 31-28 the week after the Gamecocks knocked off No. 1 Alabama. It was Kentucky’s first win over a Steve Spurrier-coached team after 17 straight losses to the Head Ball Coach.
• The crowd at Scott Field for the Arkansas-Mississippi State game observed a moment silence in memory of Mississippi State’s Nick Bell, who died earlier that month following a battle with cancer. That silence was broken by Bell’s mother, Linda, ringing her cowbell, setting off a teary-eyed scene where cowbells clanged away throughout the stadium in a moving tribute to Bell.
• It’s not a moment that anybody at Ole Miss will remember fondly. But just a day after quarterback Jeremiah Masoli won his appeal with the NCAA and was cleared to play, the Rebels opened the season by losing a 49-48 shocker to FCS foe Jacksonville State in double overtime in what was easily the upset of the year in the SEC.
• In one of the funnier moments of the season, LSU coach Les Miles was caught on camera eating grass in the fourth quarter of the Tigers’ 24-21 win over Alabama. Afterward, LSU receiver Russell Shepard cracked, “He says there’s a lot of protein in it.”
• Arkansas did everything it needed to win the Allstate Sugar Bowl there at the end with the exception of picking up the ball. The Hogs’ Colton Miles-Nash blocked an Ohio State punt in the final minutes, and it squirted back inside the Ohio State 20. With a host of Arkansas players around the ball, freshman Julian Horton fell on it instead of trying to scoop it up and score. A few plays later, Ryan Mallett threw an interception, and the Hogs fell 31-26 to the Buckeyes -- Ohio State’s first-ever win over an SEC team in a bowl game.
• If it wasn’t the best defensive play of the year in the league, it might have been the most important. Not only did Nick Fairley sack Alabama quarterback Greg McElroy right before the half with the Crimson Tide about to go up 31-7, but Fairley forced McElroy to fumble and was able to scramble and recover the fumble himself. That play kept Auburn in the game, gave the Tigers some momentum heading into halftime and paved the way for the greatest comeback in Iron Bowl history.

» Power Rankings: ACC | Big 12 | Big East | Big Ten | Pac-10 | SEC | Non-AQ

Here’s a look at the final SEC power rankings for the 2010 season.

After Monday night’s Tostitos BCS National Championship Game, there’s not much drama at the top spot:

1. Auburn: The Tigers (14-0) completed a perfect season with their first national championship since 1957. Heisman Trophy winner Cam Newton was the story for most of the season, both on and off the field, but the Tigers proved in their 22-19 win over Oregon on Monday that they could win even when Newton doesn’t play his best football.

2. LSU: After winning 11 games or more for the fourth time in six seasons under Les Miles, LSU (11-2) must now stave off Michigan’s run at Miles. The Mad Hatter is going to listen to what his alma mater has to say. His Tigers beat four teams that finished in the Top 25 of the final BCS standings this season and were 5-2 against nationally ranked foes. They were extremely impressive in their AT&T Cotton Bowl win over Texas A&M.

3. Alabama: As pleasing as it had to be for Alabama fans to see the Crimson Tide (10-3) destroy Michigan State in the Capital One Bowl, they’re probably wondering where that team was all season long. Nobody in the league was more talented than Alabama, but the Tide didn’t always play that way.

4. Arkansas: If only the Hogs (10-3) could have capitalized in the fourth quarter against Ohio State in the Allstate Sugar Bowl, what was a very good season could have been a great season. Arkansas beat four teams that finished in the Top 25 of the final BCS standings and was 3-3 against nationally ranked teams.

5. Mississippi State: The award for the most-improved team in the league goes to the Bulldogs (9-4). They routed Michigan in the Progressive Gator Bowl and promptly sweetened Dan Mullen’s deal. The downer was that defensive coordinator Manny Diaz got away and went to Texas.

6. South Carolina: Once again, the Gamecocks (9-5) bombed pretty badly at the end. And in doing so, Steve Spurrier finished with his sixth straight season of at least five losses or more at South Carolina. All in all, though, getting to the SEC championship game for the first time was a coup.

7. Florida: The Gators (8-5) made sure Urban Meyer went out a winner by taking care of business in the Outback Bowl against Penn State. Otherwise, this was not a season they will remember fondly in Gainesville. The offense hit rock bottom. The Gators finished 10^th in the league in total offense and tried to make a spread quarterback out of pocket passer John Brantley.

8. Georgia: What a pitiful performance by the Bulldogs (6-7) in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl. The only reason they’re not ranked even lower is because they routed Tennessee 41-14 head-to-head this season. Mark Richt is down to one last chance to get this program turned around. If the Bulldogs are not back among the SEC’s elite next year, Richt will be gone.

9. Tennessee: The Vols (6-7) were another one of those Eastern Division teams that finished with a losing record. Four of the six teams in the East had losing seasons. Tennessee didn’t get any help from the officials in its overtime loss to North Carolina in the Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl, but the Vols did win four in a row to get to the postseason.

10. Kentucky: Kentucky (6-7) managed to stink it up even more in its bowl game than Georgia did, if that’s possible. The Wildcats were inept offensively in the 27-10 loss to Pittsburgh without starting quarterback Mike Hartline and weren’t good enough everywhere else to make up the difference. Other than the second-half comeback against South Carolina, it’s a season that fell short of expectations.

11. Ole Miss: About the only thing the Rebels (4-8) won all year was the appeal with the NCAA for quarterback transfer Jeremiah Masoli to be able to play prior to the first week of the season. After that, it was all downhill. The Rebels lost at home to FCS foe Jacksonville State in the opener and also lost by two touchdowns at home to Vanderbilt. Defensive struggles persisted all season long.

12. Vanderbilt: The Commodores (2-10) at least won an SEC game this season after going winless in the league the previous season. Robbie Caldwell was already in a tough spot from the outset, and then the injuries set in. The Commodores struggled at quarterback, couldn’t finish drives and also saw their normally reliable defense suffer. Caldwell stepped down at the end of the season, giving way to former Maryland offensive coordinator James Franklin as Vanderbilt’s head coach.

Auburn Tigers (13-0) vs. Oregon Ducks (12-0)

Jan. 10, 8:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)

Oregon take by Pac-10 blogger Ted Miller: Oregon quarterback Darron Thomas keeps things mostly close to the vest with reporters. But when a group of them expressed skepticism when running back LaMichael James said people doubted the Ducks, Thomas piped in with one word: "Masoli."

That's fair. When quarterback Jeremiah Masoli was kicked off the team during the offseason, many thought the Ducks’ chances of contending for the national title were no longer an issue. They were still a Pac-10 front-runner, but only by a little. At that point, in fact, most thought senior Nate Costa would win the starting job, not Thomas. But Thomas not only won the job, he gave the Ducks an upgrade at the position. And that has been the key this season.

Thomas and Oregon used the Ducks’ explosive, high-tempo, spread-option offense to wear down foes. They've outscored opponents by nearly 31 points a game this year. Only one team, California, came within single digits of the Ducks.

The Ducks made their first national statement with a blowout win at Tennessee, but their overwhelming 52-31 victory over Stanford proved to be a signature victory, one that grew in stature as the year went on because it would be the Cardinal's only defeat. The Ducks trailed 21-3, but then exploded and ran away with the game.

Oregon has owned the second half this season, outscoring foes 277-77, and it's yielded just 24 fourth-quarter points. The underrated defense is ranked 14th in the nation in scoring.

---

Auburn take by SEC blogger Chris Low: Outside of Florida and the junior college ranks, nobody really knew who Cam Newton was when Auburn opened preseason practice back in August. Even the Tigers’ coaches weren’t completely sure what they had.

Everybody knows now.

Newton, who started his career at Florida and then detoured through Blinn College, was the driving force in leading the Tigers (13-0) to their first-ever appearance in the Tostitos BCS National Championship Game. The front-runner to win the Heisman Trophy, Newton passed for 28 touchdowns and ran for 20 touchdowns, taking turns beating teams with his arm and his legs.

He’s coming off an MVP performance in the SEC championship game where he threw four touchdown passes and ran for two more in Auburn’s 56-17 dismantling of South Carolina. In his last five games, he’s thrown 15 touchdown passes and just one interception.

Auburn has been comfortable outscoring teams all season. The Tigers are sixth nationally in scoring offense, averaging 42.7 points per game.

Their defense has been vulnerable against the pass, as evidenced by the fact that they rank 105th nationally in pass defense. But those numbers are deceiving, because the Tigers have made a living out of coming up with key stops and forcing turnovers in the second half. In their last two games against South Carolina and Alabama, they've given up a total of two field goals in the second half.

Browsing the headlines from around the SEC:

• A University of Alabama staff member was fired after playing unauthorized music over the public address system prior to the Auburn game. Two of the songs played were "Take the Money and Run" and "Son of a Preacher Man," obviously aimed at trying to ridicule Auburn quarterback Cam Newton.
• Auburn cornerback T'Sharvan Bell shakes the image of being soft and delivers a steady diet of big plays for the Tigers.
• Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt says he has no regrets about acquiring quarterback Jeremiah Masoli.
• LSU athletic director Joe Alleva says any coaching changes on the Tigers' staff will be entirely left up to head coach Les Miles.
• Mike Bianchi of The Orlando Sentinel wonders if Florida coach Urban Meyer learned anything about leadership from Tim Tebow.
• Matt Jones of The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette handicaps Arkansas' bowl possibilities.
• "New Monday" has given South Carolina's football team new life.
• Georgia coach Mark Richt says Bulldogs will thrive on his watch and have a tremendous future.
• Temple's Al Golden is on Vanderbilt's head-coaching radar.

Anybody feeling a little hot … or not?

Yep, it’s that time again:

EN FUEGO

South Carolina: Raise your hand if you had the Gamecocks in the SEC championship game this season. I see a lot of hands raised in the Palmetto State and down around Steve Spurrier’s beach home at Crescent Beach, but that’s about it. Nobody’s calling South Carolina a great team. In fact, the Gamecocks have been maddeningly inconsistent this season at times. But they’re definitely a resilient team and talented enough to give Auburn a serious run for the Tigers’ money in Atlanta. You never count the Head Ball Coach out, either, in a big game. He’s always worth a few extra points, just having him on the sideline.

HOT

Tennessee quarterback Tyler Bray: The Vols’ true freshman quarterback has made two career starts and has thrown eight touchdown passes in those two starts.

NOT

Tennessee’s competition: To be fair, Bray has faced the 117th-ranked pass defense (Memphis) and the 95th-ranked pass defense (Ole Miss) the past two weeks. He gets a Vanderbilt pass defense this week that’s tied for 95th nationally with Ole Miss.

HOT

Kentucky receiver Randall Cobb: Coming off a career-high 170 rushing yards last week in the win against Vanderbilt, Cobb now has more all-purpose yards this season (2,047) than anybody in major college football. The more you watch him, the better he gets.

NOT

Auburn defensive tackle Nick Fairley: The guy’s a great player, one of the best interior defensive linemen in the country, but he got away with way too many late hits on Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray last week. A couple of them were borderline dirty.

HOT

Cam Newton’s throwing arm: His ability to run has made him one of the most unstoppable forces we’ve seen in the SEC in some time. But when you watch him make some of the throws he did last week in the win against Georgia (we’re talking NFL throws), all you can do is shake your head in amazement.

NOT

Florida’s offense: The Gators are 84th nationally in total offense after that masterpiece against South Carolina last week in a 36-14 loss. They mustered all of 67 total yards through three quarters and either didn’t or couldn’t make any adjustments as the game progressed. Not only are the Gators bad on offense, but they’ve shown no imagination.

HOT

Arkansas quarterback Ryan Mallett: In what was likely his final game at Razorback Stadium, Mallett went out in style by accounting for six touchdowns. Five of those were touchdown passes, which moved him to the top of the SEC with 24 touchdown passes this season.

NOT

Ole Miss quarterback Jeremiah Masoli: He already had a headache after taking a shot to the head and suffering a concussion a week earlier against Louisiana-Lafayette. But then Masoli came out against Tennessee and threw three interceptions, two of those returned for touchdowns, in an embarrassing 52-14 loss.

FREEZER BURN

The Chicken Curse: I am hereby proclaiming the Chicken Curse as being officially dead, six feet under, tucked away eternally in some morgue, never to return. It was a dark, powerful force in the realm of South Carolina athletics for longer than anybody cares to remember in that state. We’re talking inexplicable losses, one mediocre season after another, coaches coming and going and generally more heartbreak than one fan base should have to endure. But with the baseball team winning the national championship in June and the football team going to its first SEC championship game in history, that dreaded curse has been purged forever. May it burn in you know where.

A look at what we learned in the SEC in Week 11, as both divisional champions were crowned -- Auburn in the West and South Carolina in the East:

1. No stopping Newton: The Georgia players said afterward they don’t think Auburn’s Cam Newton can be stopped. Granted, Georgia has failed to stop a lot of people this season, but Newton is without a doubt the most dominant offensive force to come through the SEC in a long while. Nobody’s suggesting he’s a better player than Tim Tebow. That will all sort itself out. But where Newton separates himself from anybody who’s played football in the SEC in a long time is his ability to beat you so many ways. He demoralizes defenses with long runs for touchdowns like he did against LSU and several other teams this season. He wears defenses down by pounding on them for 30 carries like he did Saturday in Auburn’s 49-31 win over Georgia, and just when you think you might have him bottled up, he makes a couple of NFL throws for touchdowns like he did against the Bulldogs. What kind of defense do you play against the guy?

2. Tight-lipped Tigers: Don’t look for any revelations from Auburn concerning what all took place last week in deciding to play Newton amid the NCAA investigation into his recruitment and allegations swirling that his father, Cecil Newton, sought money for him to sign at Mississippi State. Cam Newton wasn’t made available to the media following the Georgia win, and Auburn’s official comment on the matter has become “no comment.” The Tigers are off until they travel to Alabama on Nov. 26, and these next 13 days are sure to provide some more drama off the field. In the meantime, don’t expect to hear too much from the Auburn side of things.

3. Lattimore is special: The word “special” is over-used in the world of sports when we start talking about athletes, especially first-year athletes that burst onto the scene and demonstrate greatness right away. In the end, it’s the long haul that makes that determination. I say without reservation, though, that South Carolina freshman running back Marcus Lattimore is special, and he’s special in every way. He hadn’t been healthy the past several weeks, juggling a sprained ankle and bruised knee. But when the Gamecocks needed him during the biggest game of the season, he was right there for 40 carries and a season-high 212 yards. Lattimore also had 31 receiving yards, giving him a total of 243 yards for the game. Single-handedly, he outgained the entire Florida offense, which managed just 226 yards. Yes, that says a lot about how lousy Florida is on offense. But for Lattimore to perform the way he did on such a big stage Saturday tells you even more about what kind of football player he is and tells you why he was such a priority for the Gamecocks last year during the recruiting process.

4. Hogs in the upper crust: Arkansas is playing well enough right now that the Hogs have an excellent chance to finish this season among the top three or four teams in the league. That’s a goal of any team in this league, to be a top-tier program. The 58-21 thrashing of UTEP on Saturday was Arkansas’ fourth straight win. The Hogs have averaged 46.5 points during their four-game winning streak, and there’s no question that their defense has improved significantly since last season. Sure, they’d like to have back the fourth quarters of those Alabama and Auburn games, but this is a talented team that’s held it together since those disappointments and is playing at an extremely high level heading into these final two weeks of the season. Bobby Petrino and his staff, as well as the leaders on this team, deserve a lot of credit for not letting this thing go south after the Hogs were eliminated from the SEC race.

5. Ole Miss is reeling: Even though Ole Miss has won two more games overall than Vanderbilt this season, you can make a strong case that the Rebels are the worst team in the league. After all, Vanderbilt beat Ole Miss by two touchdowns in Oxford. A more convincing case, though, played out in Knoxville on Saturday. The Rebels quit in the second half against a previously winless Tennessee team in SEC play and were humiliated 52-14. Jeremiah Masoli, coming off a concussion, probably wishes he’d watched from the sideline. He threw three interceptions, and two of them were returned for touchdowns. The defense, even though nose guard Jerrell Powe is a beast in the middle, has been shredded for much of this season. The Rebels give up big plays the way most of us dump pennies in the change tray at the convenience store. It looks like they’ve also given up on this season.

It's the Friday edition of SEC lunch links:

• Mark Bradley of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says Auburn should sit Cam Newton for Saturday's game against Georgia.
• Mark McCarter of The Huntsville Times pens an open letter to Cam Newton.
• Cam Newton's father, Cecil Newton, says reporters are looking for roaches in the corner.
• Alabama running back Trent Richardson is doubtful for the Mississippi State game with a knee injury.
• Florida's Chris Rainey is doing his best to make the most of his second chance.
• South Carolina's players juggle their emotions as Saturday's Eastern Division showdown nears.
• Ole Miss has its fingers crossed that quarterback Jeremiah Masoli will be cleared medically for Saturday's Tennessee game.
• The second quarter has been Vanderbilt's nightmare during the Commodores' four-game losing streak.
• Arkansas defensive tackle Byran Jones is likely to play Saturday after missing last week's game with an ankle injury.

A little bit of this and a little bit of that as we point toward Week 11 in the SEC:

• Auburn is the only team in the country to have beaten four teams currently ranked in the Associated Press’ Top 25 -- No. 5 LSU, No. 14 Arkansas, No. 17 Mississippi State and No. 22 South Carolina.
• Auburn quarterback Cam Newton has been at his best this season against nationally ranked teams. He’s averaging 193.7 rushing yards, completing 70.6 percent of his passes and has accounted for 11 touchdowns in the Tigers’ games against Arkansas, LSU and South Carolina.
• Georgia has scored 30 or more points in its past five games. That’s the school record for consecutive 30-point games. The Bulldogs have won four of those games. Their only loss came two weeks ago to Florida in overtime.
• Saturday's game at Jordan-Hare Stadium will pit the SEC’s fifth-best pass offense (Georgia) against the conference’s second-worst pass defense (Auburn). The Bulldogs pass for an average of 240.9 yards per game, while the Tigers give up 241.3 yards per game through the air. Only South Carolina (264.7) allows more passing yards per game than Auburn.
• The winner of Saturday’s Florida-South Carolina game will go to the SEC championship game. The Gamecocks have never played in the SEC championship game. The Gators have played in it 10 times, the most of any SEC team.
• South Carolina sophomore receiver Alshon Jeffery is the third player in school history to go over the 1,000-yard receiving mark in a single season, joining Sidney Rice (2005 and 2006) and Sterling Sharpe (1986). With 110 more yards, Jeffery will set the all-time school record for yards in a season, passing Rice’s 1,143 yards in 2005.
• South Carolina has already beaten two nationally ranked teams this season -- Alabama and Georgia. The Gamecocks have never beaten three ranked teams (according to the Associated Press poll) in the same regular season.
• Florida has won 18 of the past 19 meetings in this series. Prior to South Carolina’s win in 2005, the Gamecocks hadn’t beaten the Gators since 1939.
• Florida coach Urban Meyer has a career 20-7 record against head coaches with a national championship on their résumé. Meyer is 4-1 against Steve Spurrier.
• Florida quarterback John Brantley has struggled to throw the ball down the field this season. On passes thrown 15 yards or longer, he’s completing just 39.5 percent of his throws.
• Jordan Reed, Florida’s redshirt freshman quarterback/tight end, has thrown for a touchdown, caught a touchdown and run for a touchdown this season. He’s only the fifth Gator since 1990 to accomplish that hat trick. The other four were Andre Caldwell (2007), Travis McGriff (1998), Doug Johnson (1998) and Jacquez Green (1997).
• Starting with Alabama’s game at South Carolina on Oct. 9, the Crimson Tide’s final six SEC games are against teams that had a bye the week before. So far, Alabama has split the first four games.
• Nick Saban has lost only 10 games since becoming Alabama’s coach, and seven of his 10 losses have come against teams that had an extra week to prepare, which includes the 2009 Sugar Bowl against Utah.
• Mississippi State enters Saturday’s contest on a six-game winning streak, its longest winning streak since 1999 when the Bulldogs started 8-0. The 1999 season was also the last time the Bulldogs won eight regular-season games.
• Turnover margin has played a big role in Mississippi State’s season. The Bulldogs were minus-4 in their first five games, compiling a 3-2 record. In their past four games, they are plus-11 with a 4-0 record.
• Tennessee has started as many as 10 true freshmen at different points this season and has 21 first-year players in its two-deep depth chart.
• Ole Miss quarterback Jeremiah Masoli had still not been cleared to play following Thursday's practice after suffering a concussion in last week's game. Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt said Masoli has improved each day throughout the week and is hopeful Masoli will get medical clearance sometime Friday or even Saturday morning.
• LSU has won 32 straight regular-season nonconference games, the longest such active streak among FBS teams. The last time the Tigers lost a regular-season nonconference game was the 2002 season opener at Virginia Tech.
• Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino will go against an old mentor of his Saturday in UTEP coach Mike Price, who gave Petrino his first coaching job. Price hired Petrino as a graduate assistant at Weber State in 1984, and Petrino worked with the quarterbacks that season.
• Kentucky linebacker Danny Trevathan leads the SEC and ranks eighth in the nation with 110 tackles. He’s had double-figure tackle totals in six straight games, the first Wildcat to achieve that feat in 18 years.
• The last seven Kentucky-Vanderbilt games have been decided by 12 points or less. The Wildcats have won five of those games.

It's time for a blogger debate! And it doesn't get much better than when we match the SEC and Pac-10.

Our topic: No. 1 Oregon and No. 2 Auburn. Who's better and why?

Both are unbeaten, and if the season ended today, they'd play for the national title.

We've got lots of football left, and probably many more plot twists in the hunt for the national title, but there's no reason we can't engage in a hypothetical, is there?

So the Pac-10 blog -- Ted Miller -- and the SEC blog -- Chris Low -- have decided to meet for some civilized debate on Auburn versus Oregon.

Ted Miller: Chris, since things are so quiet in the sleepy SEC, I think we should spice things up with a Pac-10-SEC blogger debate! It seems like a long time since we last had a debate between our two conferences. How’d that one go? Let’s see I championed Taylor Mays and you celebrated Eric Berry. Wait. Why did I bring that up?

Anyway, our topic is Oregon and Auburn: Who’s better and why.

This is a potential national title game between the No. 1 Ducks and No. 2 Tigers, who are both unbeaten and feature Heisman Trophy candidates leading high-powered offenses.

You get first blood. Tell me about Auburn. It seems like it wasn’t too long ago that Jay Jacobs was getting hounded for hiring Gene Chizik. Guessing that’s died down a wee-bit.

Chris Low: No doubt, Ted. I wonder where that obnoxious guy is now, the one yelling at Jacobs as he was leaving the airport after finalizing the deal with Chizik? Maybe Jacobs knew what he was doing after all. The guy with the 5-19 record at Iowa State has done all right by himself on the Plains. He has a Heisman Trophy-caliber quarterback and the SEC's leading rusher in Cam Newton, a 6-foot-6, 250-pound freak of nature who runs like Bo Jackson and also has an NFL arm. Keep your eyes, too, on freshman running back Mike Dyer, who they haven't had to lean on much this season, but is oozing with talent and has fresh legs for this stretch run. The Tigers' defensive numbers are nothing to write home about, but they do have the kind of dominant interior defensive lineman, Nick Fairley, who can take over games. Georgia coach Mark Richt said Fairley's the closest thing he's seen to Warren Sapp. Auburn's calling card defensively has been making plays at key times in the fourth quarter. The Tigers have been a serviceable defense through three quarters this season, but they've been a championship-caliber defense in the fourth quarter -- which is why they're 10-0.

So tell me about Oregon?

Ted Miller: Speaking of coaches: How about Oregon’s Chip Kelly? How could he possibly expect to top winning the Pac-10 and playing in the Rose Bowl his first season? How about contending for a national title in his second? The Ducks, however, expected to be here when the 2009 season ended because just about everybody was coming back from the Pac-10 champions. That is until a guy you are now familiar with -- quarterback Jeremiah Masoli -- got caught up in some off-field issues and eventual got himself booted from the team. That seemingly left a void behind center, but sophomore Darron Thomas has not only filled Masoli’s shoes, he’s gone up a few sizes: He’s 15th in the nation in passing efficiency and 21st in the nation in total yardage. Meanwhile, speedy running back LaMichael James is the top Heisman alternative to your guy, Newton. As for the defense, it’s like the offense: Extremely fast. It ranks 13th in the nation in scoring defense and it has forced 28 turnovers, second-most in the nation. Folks often underestimate the Ducks' defense because it gives up some yards -- it ranks 29th in the nation in total defense -- but that’s because the offense scores so quickly: The nation’s No. 1 offense ranks 115th in the nation in time of possession. But the Ducks only give up 4.45 yards per play. Our factoid of the day is that number would rank No. 1 in ... wait for it ... the SEC!

Obviously, we're talking about two very good teams that have done impressive things on their way to remaining unbeaten. I know we both have Oregon ahead of Auburn in our power rankings, but give me the case for Auburn.

Chris Low: Ted, I think what separates Auburn is Newton. Nobody has been able to stop him. If you commit to taking away the run, he's proved he can beat people throwing the ball. And if you come after him and/or don't have enough people in the box, he's been magic running the ball. Keep in mind, too, that we're not talking about a 220-pound guy running the ball. We're talking about a 250-pound guy who's physical, tough and doesn't run out of bounds. In the red zone, he's the great equalizer, because he gains 3 yards when he falls forward and has the size and the strength to push the pile. On top of it all, he's always a threat to throw the ball. Similar to Oregon, Auburn doesn't flinch if somebody puts 30-plus points on the board, because the Tigers' mentality is that they're going to score 50. Their offensive coordinator, Gus Malzahn, will make you defend everything -- reverses, throwback passes, passes to the backs, even passes to Newton. He caught a touchdown pass two weeks ago against Ole Miss. The Tigers also play at a tempo on offense that has opposing defenses gasping for air in the fourth quarter. But when they have to, they can put teams away and finish games by running the ball. They're fourth nationally (one spot ahead of Oregon) this week in rushing offense with an average of 307.2 yards per game. Auburn's top four rushers -- Newton, Dyer, Onterio McCalebb and Mario Fannin -- are all averaging at least 6.4 yards per carry. Do the Ducks have any answers for that running game?

Ted Miller: That’s what’s so interesting about this as a potential national title game match -- there’s an odd familiarity that both teams will have with each other despite never crossing paths. My guess is Malzahn and Kelly already have studied each other, just in terms of mutual admiration. And both defenses will be familiar with up-tempo, no-huddle, spread-option offenses that can power you and finesse you and throw downfield. Further, the Ducks have played against a number of big, fast, capable quarterbacks with NFL futures: Washington’s Jake Locker, Ohio State’s Terrelle Pryor and Stanford’s Andrew Luck. The results have been mixed. Last year, Luck and Pryor got them. Luck beat the Ducks with uncanny downfield accuracy, which is why he’ll go No. 1 in this spring’s NFL draft. Pryor shocked them with the best passing game of his career in the Rose Bowl. Locker missed this year’s game, but he’s never had much luck against Oregon. In general, Oregon has a good run defense: Opponents are averaging 3.38 yards per rush. But the Ducks are undersized. A physical Stanford team had some success, rushing for 177 yards. But one thing about Oregon on both sides of the ball: It is masterful with halftime adjustments. They shutout Stanford, owners of the nation’s No. 5 scoring offense, in the second half, and have given up just 48 points in the second half this year -- just seven in the fourth quarter!

Obviously, two very good teams that have done impressive things on their way to remaining unbeaten. I know we both have Oregon ahead of Auburn in our power rankings, but give me the case for Auburn if it played Oregon in the national title game. How do you see it going?

Chris Low: Well, if that happens, the first thing we all better make sure we have is a calculator. That and make sure there's no danger of a power surge to the scoreboard. You're right about Oregon. Nobody in the country has been better in the second half. The Ducks' ability to score points in bunches is amazing, but the Tigers are equally adept at going on head-spinning scoring sprees. Just ask Arkansas, which saw Auburn roll up 28 points in the fourth quarter in Xbox-like fashion. I have no doubt that an Auburn-Oregon matchup would be played in the 40s. I think the difference, though, would be Auburn's ability to put the breaks on the track meet and run the football in the fourth quarter, especially with Newton being so good at converting on third down. So I'm going Auburn 45, Oregon 41 in a game that rates up there with the Texas-USC classic to decide the 2005 national title.

Ted Miller: That's clearly something we can all agree on: This likely would be a highly entertaining, offensively driven national title game if these two teams manage to get themselves there. Further, I think, after never getting a USC-SEC title game, folks on both coasts would enjoy an SEC-Pac-10 matchup. No trash-talking there, right? And I do see a clear advantage for Auburn: It has been tested. It's played five games decided by eight points or fewer, and three decided by a field goal. The Ducks closest game? An 11-point win at Arizona State. But that's also why I'd pick Oregon in this one. Oregon beat the No. 6 team in the nation, Stanford, by 21 points. It shut Andrew Luck out in the second half. And I look at all of Auburn's close games: Mississippi State, Clemson, South Carolina, Kentucky and LSU, and think: None of them would be within 10 points of the Ducks. Maybe LSU, because any game Les Miles touches is surprising. And I think Vegas would agree with me. So if we ended up with an Oregon-Auburn national title game, my guess is the Tigers would go TD for TD with the Ducks in the first half, then the Ducks would pour it on late for a 50-35 win. But I reserve the right to change my mind, particularly because I think the Tigers' toughest test -- Alabama -- is ahead.

Moreover, both teams should be advised: You probably should get to the Jan. 10 date in Glendale before you start trash-talking each other. At least before you use your best stuff.