Fansided

SEC power rankings, Week 7: Florida, Mississippi State, Texas A&M making moves

By Rucker Haringey

GAINESVILLE, FL - OCTOBER 06: Head coach Dan Mullen of the Florida Gators celebrates with fans following a 27-19 victory over the LSU Tigers at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on October 6, 2018 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
GAINESVILLE, FL - OCTOBER 06: Head coach Dan Mullen of the Florida Gators celebrates with fans following a 27-19 victory over the LSU Tigers at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on October 6, 2018 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /
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ATHENS, GA – OCTOBER 06: Vanderbilt Commodores Quarterback Kyle Shurmur (14) passes the ball during the game between the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Georgia Bulldogs on October 06, 2018, at Sanford Stadium in Athens, GA. Georgia defeated Vanderbilt 41-13. (Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
ATHENS, GA – OCTOBER 06: Vanderbilt Commodores Quarterback Kyle Shurmur (14) passes the ball during the game between the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Georgia Bulldogs on October 06, 2018, at Sanford Stadium in Athens, GA. Georgia defeated Vanderbilt 41-13. (Photo by Jeffrey Vest/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

No one expected Vanderbilt to waltz into Athens and pull the upset, but they didn’t trouble Georgia in the slightest. That’s why they’ve fallen one spot this week to No. 12 in our power rankings.

The defense, in particular, wasn’t up to the task against the Bulldogs. They didn’t stop Georgia from doing anything. Giving up 341 yards in the air and 219 on the ground is a really good way to get beat. Derek Mason’s team needs to rediscover their defensive identity if they want to climb back into the SEC’s middle class.

Some might be surprised to see Ole Miss move up after a win over Louisiana-Monroe, but the Rebels looked really good doing it. Putting up 70 points against another FBS opponent is always going to garner positive attention.

Jordan Ta’amu completed 21 of his 24 passes for 374 yards and three touchdowns, but he wasn’t the most impressive signal-caller on the day. His backup, Matt Corral went 10 for 10 for 143 yards and two scores. Suffice it to say, the Ole Miss passing game was clicking on Saturday.

This goes down as a real missed opportunity for the Tigers. Playing at South Carolina is always a challenge, but Jake Bentley missed out for the Gamecocks. Unfortunately for Missouri, South Carolina backup Michael Scarnechhia actually outplayed Drew Lock in this one.

Missouri’s highly touted NFL prospect put in one of the worst games of his career. He only managed to go 17 of 36 for 204 yards and two costly interceptions. It’s fair to say the Tigers would have won this game with an average performance from Lock.

On the plus side, the offense did rush for 286 yards against the stingy Gamecocks defense. It was a really weird game for Missouri, but it still goes down as another SEC loss.

Nick Fitzgerald and company were in real danger of watching their season go down the toilet before the Auburn game on Saturday night. Then the Bulldogs rushing attack got cranked up and delighted the fans in Starkville.

Rushing for 349 yards at home is a really good formula for winning football games. That’s exactly what Mississippi State did in this one. Fitzgerald racked up 195 yards on 28 carries and Kylin Hill went for 126 on 23 touches. Dominating the opposition on the ground will be the plan for the Bulldogs moving forward.

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