A few more teams from the Southeastern Conference could tumble in the next AP college football poll with three games featuring five of the league’s seven that are among the Top 25.
Up first Saturday is No. 18 Auburn at No. 13 LSU (CBS, 3:30 p.m.) – a tussle of Tigers coming off close calls last week. LSU held off Mississippi State; Auburn avoided an upset by Jacksonville State with an overtime win.
Next is South Carolina at No. 7 Georgia (ESPN, 6 p.m.), which could be easier than expected for the Bulldogs with Gamecocks quarterback Connor Mitch out and walk-on Perry Orth in. At least the ‘Dawgs have a strong supporting cast for their hopefully improving QB Greyson Lambert.
When those SEC warmups are out of the way, it’s on to point-crazy Mississippi at No. 2 Alabama (ESPN, 9:15 p.m.) in the league’s Saturday night special. The 15th-ranked Rebels, led by QB Chad Kelly, are averaging 74.5 points per game after blowouts of UT-Martin and Fresno State. The Crimson Tide average less than half at 36 ppg. High scoring? Or will the usually reliable Tide D rise to the challenge? Ole Miss won at home last year, and coach Hugh Freeze says he’s confident his team can do it again – at Tuscaloosa.
“Hopefully,” he says, “we’ll have a chance to win it in the fourth quarter.”