SEC
Southeastern ConferenceWe are going to rank the SEC teams on how they looked in week one. This is a power-of-perception ranking, and remember, beauty is in the eye of the beholder (record and Saturday's opponent in parentheses; all times EDT).
1. Texas A&M (1-0; vs. Lamar, 7:30 p.m.)
Was that destruction of South Carolina about the good A&M did or the bad Carolina did? The answer is some of both, but we know this: You can't underestimate the explosiveness of the Aggies offense after losing three NFL first-round offensive players to the 2014 draft and watching A&M shred the Gamecocks. We have frequently said that Nick Saban is worth every penny of his $7 million salary. Maybe we need to start looking at how Kevin Sumlin -- who has fashioned an offense that makes stars of whoever is pulling the trigger -- is worth every penny in his $5 million deal.
2. Georgia (1-0; off)
Is Todd Gurley the Heisman front-runner? Yep. And know this, while Georgia has a slew of talented backs and strives for balance offensively, the Bulldogs staff needs to remember to feed the beast. If you have four really nice cars, but one of them is like Knight Rider's KITT, well, nice cars are nice, Todd Gurley is KITT -- dude can do it all.
3. Auburn (1-0; vs. San Jose State, 7)
Can Auburn average 45 points per game? We think yes, if not more. The Tigers got 45 against a better-than-expected Arkansas effort and did it in a variety of ways. Know this: Auburn ran for a touch more than 300 and passed for a touch more than 290. How's that for balance?
4. Alabama (1-0; vs. Florida Atlantic, noon)
Is this a quarterback debate, discussion or dilemma? It's still up in the air at this point, but the longer the Crimson Tide venture into the season with two starting QBs will be the more apparent that they have zero starting QBs. And yes, Blake Sims was better than OK Saturday, but he was just 1-of-4 on throws longer than 15 yards.
5. LSU (1-0; vs. Sam Houston State, 7:30)
How good can the Tigers be? We don't know and neither does anyone else. LSU is deep and talented and has potential stars all over the field. That said, if Les Miles doesn't call the fake punt in the second half to flip momentum and get his team jump-started, LSU does not rally to beat Wisconsin.
6. Mississippi State (1-0; vs. UAB, 2)
With all the other higher-profile games around the conference, was Mississippi State's domination of Southern Miss the best overall performance? Possibly -- a 49-0 win over Southern Miss that wasn't that close -- but the fact remains that Southern Miss is awful. Still, these Bulldogs handled their business and are going to beat someone they're not supposed to this year.
7. Ole Miss (1-0; at Vanderbilt, 4:30)
What did we learn about the Rebels? Opening on the grand stage of Thursday night in the Georgia Dome, we learned Ole Miss may have more talent than any recent version of the Rebels in a generation. We also learned that Ole Miss fans will ride the mercurial ways of quarterback Bo Wallace more so than any ranked team in the country.
8. Tennessee (1-0; vs. Arkansas State, noon)
Was that fun or what? You bet it was. Tennessee looked faster than it has in a decade. It looked like a team that actually had practiced some defensive principles, something that apparently was not allowed during the Derek Dooley tenure. Yes, the paltry rushing numbers are cause for concern, but after the best -- and most fun -- UT showing in recent memory, let's just enjoy the good for this one week. There are plenty of potholes and concerns down the road -- the quick, undersized defensive front that worked against Utah State will be a liability in SEC play, for one -- but let's focus on the good.
9. Kentucky (1-0; vs. Ohio, 3:30)
On the subject of overachieving in week one, what is UK's ceiling now? Well, after torching an overmatched UT-Martin team, the Wildcats looked the part of potential spoiler. Nice showing in the Year 2 opener for Stoops and Co.
10. Missouri (1-0; at Toledo, noon)
What did we learn from the Tigers' 38-18 win over South Dakota State? Well, that Missouri may have lost more than we thought.
11. Florida (0-0; vs. Eastern Michigan, 4)
Was the rainout a good thing for Florida? We say no, especially since the new offense of coordinator Kurt Roper could use every chance to work through the kinks before the SEC slate starts.
12. South Carolina (0-1; vs. East Carolina)
What was that? We're still not sure. We'll quote the man Steve Spurrier here, who told reporters: "We are still and always will be embarrassed by our performance this weekend." Ouch-standing.
13. Arkansas (0-1; vs. Nicholls State, 4)
Will Arkansas be better? We think so. The offense will be better than expected, but the defense is thin. We know this from being professionally invested in the ways of the Tennessee program: This is a tough league in which to rebuild.
216. Vanderbilt (0-1; vs. Ole Miss, 4:30)
What's on the Rushmore of horrible debuts? We'll go "Ishtar," Kevin Federline's debut album "Playing with Fire," New Coke and Derek Mason's coaching debacle that completely erased the James Franklin era. Wow. It was that bad.