SEC coach power rankings: Has Dan Mullen caught up to Nick Saban?

Arkansas looked a little iffy at times against Rice in the Razorbacks’ season opener, but things have been great for Sam Pittman’s team ever since. It’s hard to win at Arkansas, but Pittman and company have found a way to make the Razorbacks into a team that can punish a blue blood like Texas and make it look easy. The Razorbacks still have a tough schedule ahead of them, but right now Pittman’s team looks capable of competing with really good teams.

Bryan Harsin’s Auburn Tigers are far from being perfect, but they sure looked sharp on the road against Penn State. A few questionable decisions from the Tigers and a few horrible calls from the SEC referee crew ended up being what many wanted to talk about after the game was wrapped up, but more attention should be paid to how Harsin already has this team developing into a potential SEC contender. They’re likely not winning the conference this season, but the Tigers could create some chaos for those who could win it all this year.

After a rough trip to Denver where it seemed like the Colorado Buffaloes found some weaknesses on Texas A&M’s offense, Jimbo Fisher’s Aggies went out and made it clear that they want some respect this season. The Aggies took care of New Mexico despite not having quarterback Haynes King to lead things. That should be an encouraging sign for Texas A&M fans as this team looks to keep itself in the SEC West race this year.

The Georgia Bulldogs cruised to yet another victory. After using a strong defensive showing to grind out a win against Clemson in week one and then throttling UAB in week two, the Bulldogs blew out the South Carolina Gamecocks this past week. Kirby Smart’s Bulldogs started off hot and then never looked back, beating South Carolina without any issues. UGA was able to get JT Daniels back out on the field and he thrived again in Todd Monken’s offense, making the hire of that particular offensive coordinate seem great once again for Smart and this bunch.

Few coaches put their teams in position to succeed quite like Lane Kiffin has done for the Ole Miss Rebels. This season has started admirably for Kiffin and the Rebels as Ole Miss is now 3-0 on the season. Despite a weather delay and less than ideal weather conditions during the game, the Rebels went out and put up 61 points on Tulane. It’s worth pointing out that Ole Miss looked better against Tulane than Oklahoma did a couple of weeks ago. Kiffin’s team looks dangerous and there are plenty of other teams in the SEC that should be paying attention to what’s happening in Oxford.

Things looked rough early on for Dan Mullen and the Florida Gators. When Alabama leapt out to a 21-3 lead, Florida had the chance to crumble. The Gators did the exact opposite of that and slowly, methodically worked their way back into the game. Mullen and his staff deserve a ton of credit for that. Outside of the first quarter, Alabama was outscored 26-10. In the entire game, the Crimson Tide’s offense was out-gained 439 yards to 321. Florida wasn’t able to get the win, but the Gators showed plenty of potential in a game many expected to be a huge and easy win for Alabama. Maybe we can get a rematch in the SEC Championship Game.

He’s perennially the best coach and has the best players on his teams every season, but this year it looks like folks aren’t necessarily afraid of Nick Saban and Alabama. After the Florida Gators surprisingly went toe-to-toe with the Crimson Tide, it looks like Saban and his coaching staff have some work to do. Alabama didn’t look perfect on the road and future opponents might look at this game film to figure out where the Crimson Tide are most vulnerable. Saban is a savant and should be able to make the necessary adjustments, but he’s absolutely going to have to coach up his team after that close call on the road.

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