Week 5 SEC Power Rankings: Georgia plummets

Week 4 is in the books! Here is DOTD’s Week 5 SEC Power Rankings.

Another weekend of SEC football has gone by, and as always, there are some big results and storylines that have come to light as a result. Without any more delay, let us dive into our Week 5 SEC power rankings.

14. Vanderbilt (2-2)

Guys, head-to-head wins matters. That is why South Carolina is ahead of Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt had the most impressive win of the SEC bottom dwellers. They beat a good Western Kentucky team this past weekend 31-30 in overtime. However, they lost their only conference game against the next team on this list – the South Carolina Gamecocks.

13. South Carolina (2-2)

The Gamecocks drops a spot after their pitiful loss against Kentucky last Saturday. The Gamecocks got off to a pretty positive start early in Muschamp’s first season in Columbia, but reality has seemed to start to set in. They host an undefeated Texas A&M team (who is No. 9 in the country) this week, so the road does not get any easier.

12. Kentucky (2-2)

Ah, Mark Stoops and Kentucky surprised me. They have won two-straight games and will get rewarded by taking on the No. 1 team in college football – the Alabama Crimson Tide. Good Luck.

11. Mississippi State (2-2)

A week after barely losing to LSU, Mississippi State headed to Foxborough, Mass., to take on UMass last Saturday. They had their hands full as they were down by a point at halftime, but their offense went on a 34-point explosion in the fourth to win by double digits. They have a bye this week before facing Auburn and getting kicked to death. (Newsflash: Daniel Carlson is a good kicker.)

10. Missouri (2-2)

Missouri just broke its own record for points in a game, when it dismantled lowly Delaware State 79-0. Quarterback Drew Lock is hitting his stride as well, as he has thrown for over 1,500 yards (leads the SEC in passing yards) and 14 touchdowns so far this season. Wideout J’Mon Moore has really established himself as an offensive weapon and is the best target Lock has. Moore leads the entire conference with 434 receiving yards.

The Tigers have the No. 1 offense in the SEC so far, and their defense is certainly formidable. Missouri will definitely surprise some teams over the remainder of this season. They face LSU this weekend in Death Valley with a lot of momentum. We will see how it plays out.

9. No. 25 Georgia (3-1)

Georgia dropped three spots in these rankings and seem to be trending downward in general. The Bulldogs got absolutely decimated last weekend by a Ole Miss Rebels club that exposed Georgia for who they are – a very weak team. Jacob Eason is going to be a very good quarterback in the SEC, but he cannot do much when the rest of the team does not help him out. Georgia’s road does not get any easier, as they will face the Tennessee Volunteers fresh off a huge win against Florida. It could get ugly in Athens this weekend.

8. LSU (2-2)

Les Miles, everyone in the conference will miss you dearly. However, change is inevitable, and LSU did what they had to do. Defensive line coach Ed Orgeron steps in as interim head coach. The Tigers hope that Coach O sparks new life in Baton Rouge, as he will lead one of the most talented teams in the SEC. Superstar running back Leonard Fournette’s health status is unknown for the Tigers’ home game against Mizzou this Saturday, but LSU have a lot of firepower besides Fournette. This overlooked game could be on of the best in the conference in Week 5.

7. Auburn (2-2)

Gus Malzahn probably saved his job (for now) with the crazy win over LSU last week in which LSU scored a game-winning touchdown, but it was revoked due to LSU snapping the ball with time already expired. Malzahn had to let out a huge sigh of relief. The Auburn defense is really good, and their kicker Daniel Carlson is absolutely outstanding and scored every point for Auburn last week. The offense is still trying to figure itself out, and QB is still up in the air. Hopefully for Auburn’s sake, they can get this ironed out against Louisiana-Monroe this week.

6. No. 16 Ole Miss (2-2)

The Rebels are one of the best teams in the SEC even though their record does not show it. They handled Georgia with ease last Saturday, as star quarterback Chad Kelly and the Rebels defeated the Bulldogs 45-14. They get a breather against Memphis this week, and Ole Miss should handle the Tigers pretty easily.

5. No. 23 Florida (3-1)

Florida looked like one of the best teams in the SEC on Saturday at least in the first half. They were up 21-3 at the half but collapsed and were outplayed by Tennessee in the second half and ended up losing by ten points. The Gators defense is still a nasty unit, and backup quarterback Austin Appleby looked pretty good (at least in the first half) in his replacement of injured Gator quarterback Luke Del Rio. Florida will be playing a game this weekend against Vanderbilt in which Florida should easily win if they do not have a letdown.

We will all miss you, Dear Les. Mandatory Credit: John Reed-USA TODAY Sports

4. No. 20 Arkansas (3-1)

Arkansas suffered its first loss of the season last week against Texas A&M, 45-24. The Razorbacks are still a formidable opponent and as always, will be a lot better at the tail-end of the season as they seem to do every year under Bret Bielema. Arkansas has a virtual bye this week against Alcorn State, and then host No. 1 Alabama the following week in what should be a very good game.

3. No. 11 Tennessee (4-0)

The Volunteers are very talented. We knew that, but UT had been inconsistent thus far this season up until the second half against Florida last week. They were down by three possessions at the half but came back, dominated the Gators and won 38-28 to break Florida’s 11-game winning streak in the rivalry.

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Credit to Josh Dobbs, he had a great game as he threw for 319 yards and four scores against a staunch Gator defense. Tennessee travels to Georgia this week and should win convincingly. They play Texas A&M and Alabama the next two weeks after that, so we will see how legit this Volunteers team is. Right now, they are the team to beat in the East.

2. No. 9 Texas A&M (4-0)

The Aggies appear to be the primary contender to Alabama this year. Oklahoma transfer quarterback Trevor Knight has thrived so far under center in College Station, Texas, and has thrown for 1,055 yards and seven touchdowns over four games, which featured two matchups with top 25 opposition. The Aggies looked solid in their win over Arkansas last Saturday night and take on a reeling South Carolina team in Columbia, S.C., which should mean an easy victory.

1. No. 1 Alabama (4-0)

Alabama stays at the top spot in these rankings and will remain there until someone can knock them off. Alabama might be better than last year, which is scary to think about. Alabama showed no complacency after getting a big win over Ole Miss the week before and clinically and systematically decimated Kent State 48-0 last Saturday. The Tide are the kings of the SEC, and that is the bottom line.