Fetch Football Forum: Week 3 Recap

Opinion, Team FYN Sports

Week three of the college football season saw several moments in SEC play, including the Tide rolling over the Razorbacks, the Gators taking over in the fourth quarter for the second straight week, and the Wildcats wondering if they should even bother still fielding a football squad.
Alabama: 52-0 victory over Arkansas. Those who thought that the Crimson Tide would be rebuilding this year have been proven dead wrong so far this year, and last Saturday’s game was no different, as they completely dominated a Razorbacks squad that was ranked #8 a week prior to this matchup. It looks like it’s going to take either an upset or a great showing by the Bayou Bengals on November 3rd to knock off Alabama in the regular season.

Florida: 37-20 victory over Tennessee. Although this didn’t fit the category of a marque win for Will Muschamp, it certainly doesn’t hurt to beat a Top 25 team on the road. Gators quarterback Jeff Driskel and the rest of the offense got the job done in the fourth quarter yet again, as they outscored the Volunteers 10-0 in the final fifteen minutes to secure the win.

Missouri: 24-20 victory over Arizona State. The Sun Devils—led by noted slimeball Todd Graham–are no pushover, and a thirteen point outburst in the fourth quarter almost proved it to the Tigers. However, Missouri and backup QB Corbin Berkstresser did enough to get the win in the end.

Texas A&M: 48-3 victory over SMU. Aggies quarterback Johnny Manziel did his part in the team’s routing of the Mustangs, as he racked up a combined 418 yards and six touchdowns through the air and on the ground. If he can keep up this type of play as the Aggies get deep into SEC play, you could definitely see A&M in the hunt for a few big upsets.

LSU: 63-14 victory over Idaho. LSU, we get it: you guys are really good. With that fact in mind, can you please leave these terrible WAC teams alone? It’s Week 3, for goodness sakes!

South Carolina: 49-6 victory over UAB. While this game was pretty much forgettable, one notable fact that cannot be overlooked is that Gamecocks starting QB Connor Shaw left in the second quarter due to injury. Gamecocks head coach Steve Spurrier has said that Shaw will start this Saturday against Missouri, but it will be interesting to see if the Tigers try to make the most out of Shaw’s issues and go after him like there’s no tomorrow.

Georgia: 56-20 victory over Florida Atlantic. Aaron Murray broke a school passing record with 342 yards along with a pair of touchdowns in a game that was surprisingly tied at 14 early in the second quarter. However, the Bulldogs woke up in the second half and proceeded to blow out their Sun Belt opponent, something these SEC teams have had issues with lately (see below).

Vanderbilt: 58-0 victory over Presbyterian. The Commodores, led by former Wyoming starting quarterback Austin Carta-Samuels, completely annihilated a Blue Hose (yes, that is the team’s name) squad that was fresh off a 59-3 loss to Georgia Tech. On a side note, am I the only one that thinks that it is a bit sacrilegious to run up the score in a game like this?

Mississippi State: 30-24 victory over Troy. The Bulldogs survived a late rally by the Trojans, which gives them their first 3-game winning streak to start a season since 1999. While the good start for Mississippi State shouldn’t exactly be looked over, come back around mid-November if you really want a look at how good this team really is.

Auburn: 31-28 OT victory over UL-Monroe. The Tigers just narrowly avoided an embarrassing loss to a fiery Warhawks squad thanks in part to Kiehl Frazier’s Hail Mary pass for a touchdown just before halftime. Hopefully, those who scream “War Eagle” on Saturdays will be savoring this win for a little bit, as there is no chance they will be able to do so on Saturday, when they take on the#2 LSU Tigers. Auburn fans, you may want to shield your eyes for this one.

Tennessee: 37-20 loss to Florida. Remember all that talk about how Derek Dooley can’t beat a quality opponent and how Tyler Bray has never performed on a national level? Well it’s still alive and kicking, as the loss put Dooley’s record against ranked teams to 0-12 and showed everyone that Bray still has quite a ways to go if he will ever be considered an “elite” college quarterback (my assumption is that he will bolt for the NFL before we ever get a definitive answer on that one).

Ole Miss: 66-31 loss to Texas. Everyone who pays attention to Rebels football knew that this year would be a wash in the first season of the Hugh Freeze era in Oxford, so the blowout should be taken as a learning experience for all those involved. Who learned the most, you might ask? My money is on Longhorns wide receiver Marquise Goodwin, who found out that military men aren’t exactly ecstatic when you try and shush their team’s crowd.

Arkansas: 52-0 loss to Alabama. The John L. Smith experiment in Fayetteville has gone horribly, horribly wrong, and starting quarterback Tyler Wilson’s accusations that the team quit doesn’t help matters. If I’m Jeff Long, I am currently calling potential candidates for this job (my money is on Kirby Smart) and focusing on 2013.

Kentucky: 32-31 OT loss to Western Kentucky. First off, a message to all SEC athletic directors: DO NOT SCHEDULE ANOTHER SUN BELT TEAM FOR THE NEXT FIVE SEASONS. Hilltoppers head coach Willie Taggart miffed some people the week before this game when he said that he was sick and tired of seeing Kentucky gear around WKU and that “the reason they’re at WKU is probably they couldn’t get into UK”. Although this quote had the potential to be disastrous, winning always cures foot-in-mouth syndrome, so much so that Taggart is a legitimate target to be the Wildcats next head coach when (not if) Joker Phillips is fired, although my prediction is Taggart passes and stays at his alma mater.

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