It's Only SEC (but I like it....)
GEORGE SOMERVILLE – THE TOUCHDOWN SEC CORRESPONDENT
week 3
Hey folks, we are already at week 3 of SEC football – yes week 3! And so far there have been more thrills and spills than you can shake a gator at!
So, early in the season, SEC football has shown us the rollercoaster that is living life in the South East. Another week of SEC football gives us even more to talk about this week!
So, welcome y’all to our weekly round-up of life in the Southeastern Conference.
Here are this week’s headlines….let’s get started!
this weeks sec headlines
Perkins switches position (again)
Baton Rouge, LA
I think we all agree that LSU’s linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. is one of the best players in the SEC, right?
Well, yes and no. There is no question about Perkins’s ability, but sadly, Perkins hasn’t always shown how good he is on the field. While LSU fans grumbling about head coach Brian Kelly & LSU’s results start to gain traction, the criticism of how the LSU staff have used Perkins is loud and getting louder.
LSU fans were extremely vocal last year about the Tiger’s very poor defense. Part of that criticism was how defensive coordinator Matt House used Perkins. So bad was the LSU defense last season that House was replaced at the end of the year by Blake Baker.
Tigers fans were hopeful that Baker would kickstart the defense’s resurgence with Perkins in a starring role. Sadly, in the two games we have seen so far, Perkins’ usefulness has been limited, which has had LSU fans tearing their hair out again.
So, will 2024 be more of the same for Perkins and LSU? Well, change is afoot with the news this week that Kelly and Baker are moving Perkins to Star for the South Carolina game. During practice, local reporters have noted that Whit Weeks, who Kelly has singled out as LSU’s best-performing linebacker – is set to play at linebacker, with Perkins taking snaps at Star. So could Perkins move to star for the Gamecocks?
Certainly, the Gamecocks’ game plan against Kentucky was run-heavy. Perkins’s being at star would allow him to use his athleticism and help stop the South Carolina run game. Generally, moving Perkins outside seems to have LSU fans excited.
Could this be a change in LSU’s fortunes? Tune in on Saturday.
Gators to play with dual QB's?
Gainesville, FL
It’s not news, but Florida head coach Billy Napier is a coach under pressure. We know this.
Napier also has something of a key decision to make this weekend ahead of the Gator’s match-up with Texas A&M in Gainesville. Quite frankly a heavy defeat to the Aggies will have Napier’s future in serious doubt. Yet, there is some optimism in the Swamp. Last week, with QB Graham Mertz out injured through concussion protocol, backup QB and wonderkind DJ Lagway took to the field.
Lagway made an impression. He is already a fan favourite, and hopes are already high for Lagway, who was heavily recruited by Florida and was the top-rated dual-threat quarterback in the 2024 class.
Lagway is compared to a mix of Anthony Richardson and Tim Tebow -which is quite the reputation to live up to. Forced to play as backup when QB1 Graham Mertz was sidelined after game one with a concussion, Lagway made his debut in week two. Lagway threw for 456 yards against Samford in his debut as a Gator. He is athletic, but that’s not all of his game. He is powerful and has a strong arm. This has got Gator fans excited, and they want to see more.
Mertz is fit enough to return against Texas A&M this weekend and is expected to play. But Lagway remains very much in the mix.
“Look, let’s not get out in front of ourselves here,” Napier said Monday during his weekly press conference. “This is a team game.” said Napier trying to slow the Lagway hype.
“I don’t want to put the playbook on the streets here,” Napier continued, hinting that Lagway will feature in some way.
But the hype is now real, and Napier’s job is hanging by a thread. The reality of Lagway playing some of the game against the Aggies is strong. Napier knows that Lagway might be the one to save his job this season.
This is going to be a fascinating watch on Saturday.
Bill O'Brien returns to the SEC
Columbia,MO
In what is quite probably the game of the day, the Missouri Tigers will face the 2-0 Boston College in CoMo this weekend.
Yes, I did not mistype. This could easily be the game of week three.
Missouri is a top-ten team and is heavily tipped to make it to the college football playoffs. In Chestnut Hill, the unexpected arrival of new head coach Bill O’Brien has had surprising results. People are talking about the Eagles, and they, too, are ranked at #24 after starting their season 2-0.
The other twist is that O’Brien is returning to the SEC for the first time since leaving as Alabama’s offensive coordinator.
Which makes for tasty viewing
“I mean, it’s the best team we’ve played. No question about it,” O’Brien told local media Tuesday in Chestnut Hill. “Probably the best team we played, BC-wise, in a couple years, to be honest with you. So, yeah, this can be a big challenge.”
O’Brien knows that Mizzou has the players to justify their current hefty #6 ranking.
“Very, very good at wide receiver. I’d say at least three or four of their wide receivers will play in the NFL,” O’Brien said. “So we’ve got a big challenge ahead of us.”
O’Brien sees this as a good opportunity to gauge how his team has progressed during his short time in charge.
“We’ve got a Southeastern Conference team that’s ranked (sixth) in the country. I mean, they’re a really good football team. Eli (Drinkwitz) has done a great job with that program. They’re ahead of us as a program, you know? So, let’s see. It’s a pretty good measuring stick early in the season of our first season. So, we’ll see how it goes.”
Yes Bill, let’s see how it goes.
Wide Retriever
Columbia, SC
With Kentucky losing last weekend and South Carolina winning, the College Gameday and SEC Nation lottery was thrown into some chaos. The schedule suggested that Kentucky hosting Georgia would be the game of the weekend that the pregame shows would migrate towards. Instead, College Gameday is heading to South Carolina for the Gamecocks game against LSU. It is not quite the headline game it could have been in Lexington, but it is still a tasty matchup.
If you’ve watched Gameday thus far, you know that Kirk Herbstreit’s trusty sidekick, his retriever Ben, is making the trip to each Gameday location with Kirk.
Ben’s appearance has now become a thing, and Herbstreit’s trusty sidekick has now become an accredited member of the media. For games so far, Ben has received his own media pass, and his visit to the Gamecocks is no exception. I have to say that “Wide Retriever” is a clever and nice touch.
Ray Tanner to step down
Columbia, SC
Ray Tanner has been the athletic director at the University of Southern Carolina since 2012. Prior to that, he was the successful head coach of the Gamecocks baseball team, which won two national championships during his tenure.
So it came as something of a surprise this week when Tanner announced that he was stepping down.
“there was going to be a time to change” said Tanner to the media.
“When I coached baseball I didn’t leave the baseball program because I didn’t think it was good anymore to become the athletic director. It was time. And I knew it was getting close to time in this role as well”.
Tanner will continue in his role until his successor arrives on campus. The search for his replacement will start in earnest in November. Once transitioned, Tanner will take up a role at the University as a special advisor to the President.
Tanner has been a mainstay at South Carolina and in the SEC for nearly three decades. He has overseen the hugely successful period for the Gamecocks’ women’s basketball team, while the football team has been less successful during this time.
It will be interesting to see what the Gamecocks administration is looking for in a new AD and what the new AD thinks of the football program!
GEORGE SOMERVILLE
COLLEGE FOOTBALL WRITER
GEORGE IS A LONG STANDING FANATIC OF LIFE AND FOOTBALL IN THE DEEP SOUTH AND WRITES HIS WEEKLY COLUMN CALLED “IT’S ONLY SEC” FOR THE TOUCHDOWN. HE IS ALSO CO-HOST AND ONE THIRD OF THE COLLEGE CHAPS PODCAST, THE UK’S FIRST PODCAST DEDICATED TO THE COLLEGE GAME.