Save the Shield! A Vanderbilt sports blog

 
Just because I don’t feel like writing about Vanderbilt football doesn’t mean I can’t vote about SEC football.
1. Alabama - Old CW: Failure to close out games in second half will bite them.   New CW: Blowing it open at Neyland Bryant-Denny-in-the-Smokies showed them to be a strong second-half team.   The fourth quarter may yet be [...]

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Rushed at the last moment again….

Alabama - Still the league’s top team, but letting teams back into games in the second half will bite them if they keep doing it.
Florida - Off week to magnify the impact of that LSU blowout in our memory.
Georgia - Not quite as impressive as Florida lately, but equally effective.    [...]

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Here’s the consensus of SEC bloggers this week:

VU-specific stuff after the jump: 

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This week’s sucks because I haven’t written my comments yet.   Too depressed after my trip to eastern Mississippi, I guess.   Maybe comments will pop up later tonight.

Alabama
Florida
Georgia
LSU
Vanderbilt - Big drop-off from #4.   Maybe that non-offense isn’t enough to win SEC games after all.   Let’s try a QB change….
South Carolina - Public opinion rightly recognizes how [...]

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This week I decided to say, “Screw it,” and use an accomplishment-based approach without mixing in my predictions.   In other words, I don’t think Vanderbilt will finish 3rd, but they’ve accomplished more than all but two teams so far.

Alabama - They earned the right to have a bit of a letdown.
LSU - Unexpectedly challenging Kentucky [...]

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Alabama - No denying it now: Saban’s at least a year ahead of schedule.   Interesting question now: another November swoon?
LSU - Consider this belated recognition of their win at Auburn.
Georgia - May be the best team in the country at digging out of a 31-point halftime hole.
Florida - Being an offensive genius means you don’t [...]

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Georgia - This is the last week with a tough decision at #1.   If they beat ‘Bama I can keep them here with no pangs of conscience.
LSU - Squarely in the mix for #1 now.   Auburn is the single biggest win of anyone in the SEC, and has their fans dreaming about a repeat MNC.
Florida [...]

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Naturally there’s some Vanderbilt-related stuff from Ole Miss:

At Red Solo Cup praises DJ Moore to the skies
At Hotty Toddy Blog, Seth reviews the statistical comparisons.

Regarding the stats, always keep in mind the context.   I can make a case that OM’s schedule has been slightly easier than VU’s to this point.   Wake was an impressive near-miss, [...]

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Georgia - Tempting to punish the ‘Dawgs for their struggles at Columbia, but Carolina might really be decent.
Florida - Open date was about as informative as LSU, Alabama, Ole Miss, or Tennessee’s weekend.
LSU - Walloping one of the worst teams in I-A + no one else convincing = third place
Alabama - Their One Big [...]

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Let’s capitalize on the adrenaline rush from the UCLA win to get our picks in for this week.

Florida - We learned little about them in Week 1.
Georgia - ” ” ” ” ” ” ” ” “.
Alabama - Alabama started out impressively last season, too.   But for now, the Tide has the best win of [...]

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