SEC power rankings, Week 5: Kentucky, South Carolina secure big wins

Alabama and Georgia seem destined to stay atop the SEC power rankings for the entire season, but Kentucky makes another big jump this week.

Everyone at the top of the SEC standings handled their business this week. Alabama made quick work at home of Texas A&M and Georgia survived a tricky road test at Missouri. That doesn’t mean the middle of the league went according to plan though.

Instead, it was madness for the middle of the pack. Kentucky continues to show everyone this may be their best team in recent memory. They didn’t just beat Mississippi State, they dominated them. It was an emphatic 28-7 victory for the Wildcats.

South Carolina secured an important road victory too. Again, they didn’t just beat Vanderbilt, they dominated the Commodores. Will Muschamp’s team is miles away from Georgia and Alabama, but they may not be that far away from the next tier of SEC teams.

Let’s dive right into the rankings with a familiar team retaining their spot at No. 14.

No one really expected Chad Morris’ team to trouble Auburn on the Plains, but they might have hoped to score more than a single field goal. Ty Storey endured a particularly poor game. Going 13 for 31 for just 141 yards passing isn’t going to help this team win any SEC games.

If you’re inclined to look for a bright side, the defense did hold up pretty well against the Tigers. They held Jarrett Stidham to just 134 yards through the air. No Auburn running back rushed for more than 49 yards. Then again, when your defense plays that well and you still give up 34 points it’s a pretty big cause for concern.

Any hope the Volunteers had of pulling off the home upset was dependent on winning the turnover battle. That didn’t happen. Jarrett Guarantano entered the game with zero interceptions on the season and threw two. Even worse, the Volunteers fumbled the ball four times and lost each one. This game was over before it truly began.

The most concerning thing for the Volunteers is that Jeremy Pruitt was brought in to eliminate these types of mistakes. The early signs of his tenure in Knoxville are not encouraging. There’s plenty of time to turn things around, but there’s a lot of work to be done if Tennessee wants to be competitive in the SEC anytime soon.