Southeastern Conference Football Scores
It was a day of upsets across the college football landscape. That was also evident as Southeastern Conference teams did battle with one another, looking for a slot in the SEC Championship game. The University of Alabama Crimson Tide now officially has the SEC Western Division crown, with partial thanks to the Auburn loss on Saturday. Of course the Iron Bowl looms in just a couple of weeks ending the speculation there anyway. Georgia defeated the Tigers 13-7.
Other upsets in the SEC on Saturday were pretty big as well. Especially the Ole Miss defeat of the eighth-ranked Texas A&M Aggies 29-28. Oh, not that anyone didn't think it was possible. But great teams play great down the stretch when it's time to show their stuff, and the Aggies didn't show.
The Tennessee-Kentucky game is a toss-up as far as whether or not the 49-36 Volunteer win was an upset or not. But many thought the surging Wildcats would win this one.
Here's a look at all the Southeastern Conference football scores for Saturday, November 12th:
(1) Alabama Crimson Tide 51 Mississippi State 3
(8) Texas A&M 28 Ole Miss 29
(9) Auburn 7 Georgia 13
(24) LSU 38 (25) Arkansas 10
Florida 20 South Carolina 7
Missouri 26 Vanderbilt 17
Tennessee 49 Kentucky 36
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Alabama Crimson Tide Demolishes Mississippi State
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| Alabama Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
This is one of those football games that the vanquished won't soon forget. After coming off an upset win of the fourth-ranked team in the nation in Texas AM, according to the College Football Playoffs rankings, the Mississippi State Bulldogs ran into a buzzsaw when it tried to tackle the top-ranked team in Alabama on Saturday. No mercy was shown. No quarter given in the contest. It really wasn't much of a contest - that's for sure.
And Bama extends its best-in-the-country win streak to 22 games dating back to last season.
The top-ranked team in the country showed why it sits atop every college football poll out there. The Alabama Crimson Tide put a real beat-down on the Bulldogs of Mississippi State on Saturday afternoon to the tune of 51-3 in front of a sellout crowd of 101,821 at Bryant-Denny Stadium. It was a record-setting day for the true freshman quarterback that just loves to put the Hurts on teams this season. Jalen Hurts was indeed the man of the hour(s) on Saturday. Alabama improved its overall record to 10-0, 7-0 in Southeastern Conference play while the Bulldogs fell like a lead balloon to 4-6 overall, 2-4 in the SEC.
Jalen Hurts became the first player in Alabama football history to throw for 300-plus yards (347) and rush for 100 yards in the same contest. He was amazing. Also showing some amazing results was ArDarius Stewart, who was Hurts' primary target of the afternoon, and became the sixth player in Alabama football history to score on three passing/receiving touchdowns in the same game. Stewart ended the day with a whopping 156-yards on eight receptions.
Also getting in on the action was running back Josh Jacobs who picked up 89 yards on just nine rushes, averaging 9.9 yards per carry. Of course give credit to kicker Adam Griffith who nailed all three of his field goal attempts, and all coming in the first half. Griffith hit on 28, 30, and 39 yards on the day.
The Alabama offense rolled up 615 total yards of offense. Powerful. Mississippi State, however, managed to lay only 274 yards on the Tide. Bama led in passing 397 yards to 180 for the Dogs. Rushing was very lop-sided, with the Tide rolling up 218 yards to 94 for Mississippi State. The Tide also won in the first-down department, 26-17.
And what more can be said about the Alabama defense? For Mississippi State it would be as simple, or maybe even more simple, to simply go to the beach and try to hold back the tide, because they sure couldn't stop the Crimson Tide defense at all on Saturday afternoon. Okay, nearly "at all" - the Dogs did manage to sneak in a three-pointer on the day.
Get this. A total of 27 different players had at least one tackle in Saturday's game, including six each from linebacker Reuben Foster, defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick, linebacker Rashaan Evans and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson. And talk about "sack city" - linebacker Ryan Anderson, linebacker Tim Williams and defensive tackle Raekwon Davis all posted big sacks that set the Mississippi State Bulldogs back a combined 29 yards.
With Fitzpatrick being moved from star to the safety position in replacing the injured Eddie Jackson, Saban and the coaching staff played Tony Brown, Anthony Averett and Hootie Jones in the vacated star slot. Though Brown was beaten on a pass that better ball placement could have given State a score, Brown picked it off. Jones showed promise at the position. Time will tell who wins the slot.
Alabama head coach Nick Saban commented, "I think it was a team effort [Saturday]. The offense controlled the tempo of the game, and the defense was able to get stops when they needed to. There was a couple bad field position situations early in the game with a turnover and a kickoff return that the defense went out on and got a stop, which was a real key to the game. I was just really proud of the way our guys competed in the game [Saturday and played in the game today."
Crimson Tide linebacker Reuben Foster said, ""We prepared right. The team loved the team, and the opponent was great too. We try to limit our mistakes and play hard. We try to please our coach."
Offensive lineman Pierschbacher said, ""We came out, executed, and everyone did their job. The coaches really challenged us this week to execute, and I think we did just that."
Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen had this to say about the Crimson Tide, "Alabama obviously has a great football team. As I said, they have great players from top to bottom. Their guys that aren't even on the field, can't get on the field, they'll probably start for most teams in the country. We knew that coming in, knew we had to play a great game. Just way too many mistakes early on for us, whether it's missed tackles, poor fits defensively, not setting an edge on the perimeter. You know, within a game plan you've got to try to stay balanced and take shots down the field. I think too many dropped passes with some shots down field. We had some opportunities to hit some and win some shots down field and missed those early in the game. But give them credit. They're an excellent football team, and, you know, there's a reason they're No. 1 in the country. They play like it. We've just got to move on and get ready for Arkansas."
The Crimson Tide is now 102-6 (.944) under Coach Saban when leading at the half. Alabama has now had the lead in 19 of its last 24 games, which dates back to the start of the 2015 season, including eight of the 10 games played this season.
| Game Stats | MS | UA |
|---|---|---|
| Total Yards | 274 | 615 |
| Pass Yards | 180 | 397 |
| Rushing Yards | 94 | 218 |
| Penalty Yards | 4-31 | 3-35 |
| 1st Downs | 17 | 26 |
| 3rd Downs | 7-20 | 7-13 |
| 4th Downs | 0-4 | 0-1 |
| TOP | 32:38 | 27:22 |
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
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| Photo Credit: Alabama Athletics |
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Alabama Crimson Tide No. 1 In Amway Coaches Poll
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Associated Press College Football Poll
Alabama Crimson Tide No. 1 In Amway Coaches Poll
1 Alabama Crimson Tide
2 Ohio State
3 Louisville
4 Michigan
5 Clemson
6 Wisconsin
7 Washington
8 Oklahoma
9 West Virginia
10 Penn State
11 Utah
12 Colorado
13 Oklahoma State
14 LSU
15 Florida State
16 Auburn
17 Nebraska
18 Florida
19 USC
20 Washington State
21 Western Michigan
22 Texas A&M
23 Boise State
24 North Carolina
25 San Diego State
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Associated Press College Football Poll
1 Alabama Crimson Tide
2 Ohio State
3 Louisville
4 Michigan
5 Clemson
6 Wisconsin
7 Washington
8 Oklahoma
9 Penn State
10 West Virginia
11 Utah
12 Colorado
13 Oklahoma State
14 Western Michigan
15 USC
--------------------------------------------------------------14 Western Michigan
15 USC
14 LSU
15 Florida State
16 LSU
17 Florida State
18 Auburn
19 Nebraska
20 Washington State
21 Florida
22 Boise State
23 Texas A&M
24 San Diego State
25 Troy
16 LSU
17 Florida State
18 Auburn
19 Nebraska
20 Washington State
21 Florida
22 Boise State
23 Texas A&M
24 San Diego State
25 Troy
What Saban Said In The Post-Game Interview
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| Photo Credit: youtube.com via Bing |
In his opening statement, Saban said, "I was really pleased with the way we got started today. I know it's been a long time since we scored a touchdown in the first quarter after the LSU game. I was worried about a little relief syndrome after that game last week, but I was really pleased with the way our players came out and started fast. Even though we didn't finish the first drive, we moved the ball effectively and really did a good job.
"Jalen (Hurts) had a really good day today. It's one of the things that we've been wanting to do in trying to develop some confidence in the passing game, and obviously, he was able to do that very well today. We got the ball to some of our play-makers down the field, and they had the opportunity to make big plays. ArDarius (Stewart) had a big day today, and also O.J. Howard, so that was really a positive for us. Jalen also having 100 yards rushing is something that's never been done here before with 300 yards passing and 100 yards rushing. That's something that we can be proud of.
"I was really pleased with the way our defense handled Mississippi State's offensive attack, especially their quarterback (Nick Fitzgerald), who is such a good runner on the quarterback run plays. I know they nickeled and dimed us a little bit. There were some third downs that we would've like to get off the field, which extended drives for them. When you're playing against these fastball teams, that's certainly what you don't want to do.
"I think it was a team effort today. The offense controlled the tempo of the game, and the defense was able to get stops when they needed to. There was a couple bad field position situations early in the game with a turnover and a kickoff return that the defense went out on and got a stop, which was a real key to the game. I was just really proud of the way our guys competed in the game today and played in the game today. We sort of told them that there are 10 units here. Whether it's O Line, D Line, linebackers, secondary or coaches, all those units need to work together, and that would make us strong. A lot of the leadership on the team really stepped up this week and knew that we would be a little bit vulnerable. I was glad that the guys all responded and did well. It's a good win for us.
"We're going to take an extra day off this week and not practice on Monday and try to get some guys healed up. (Running back) Bo Scarbrough will be okay very shortly. We would have been pushing the envelope a little bit today to put him back out there. We did not want to play him today unless we absolutely had to, and we never needed to do that. From an injury standpoint, I know we had a couple guys come out of the game, but I don't think we had anything serious to really report on."
When asked about the status of Lester Cotton, Saban said, "I think I said the other day that we're trying some people at that position, and Lester (Cotton) missed some reps because of his concussion a few weeks ago. He was in a black shirt all this week, and we knew that he could play in this game but he didn't take as many reps in practice, so we said we're going to take a look at some of those other guys that can play that position right now. He was cleared to play in the game, and he did play some in the game. We've been wanting to try [Korren] Kirven in there all year just to see how he would do, and it will be interesting to see how those guys did at right guard."
Concerning who he'd give the game ball to, Saban answered, "I'm not big on doing that kind of stuff. We did give Eddie [Jackson] the game ball last week after the LSU game. The players wanted to do that, and I wanted to do it. He went on the trip with us because the team means a lot to him, and we miss him a lot. I guess if you went on statistics you would have to say the quarterback did a really good job today, but I think he would be the first guy to tell you that the other 10 guys that he plays with did a really good job too. We talk about standard, we talk about team, we talk about togetherness, and we talk about everyone doing their job. We're not big on singling out people when I feel that there were a lot of people that did a really good job today."
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Dan Mullen, Mississippi State Talk About Loss To Bama
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| Mississippi State head coach Dan Mullen Photo Credit: thebiglead.com via Bing |
It didn't go at all the way Mississippi State head football coach Dan Mullen thought it would. Thinking it might at least be a little closer, Mullen saw his Bulldogs chained as well as caged in Saturday's 51-3 whipping by the Alabama Crimson Tide football team.
Here's what Mullen had to say in his press briefing following the game:
In his opening statement, Mullen said, "Alabama obviously has a great football team. As I said, they have great players from top to bottom. Their guys that aren't even on the field, can't get on the field, they'll probably start for most teams in the country. We knew that coming in, knew we had to play a great game. Just way too many mistakes early on for us, whether it's missed tackles, poor fits defensively, not setting an edge on the perimeter. You know, within a game plan you've got to try to stay balanced and take shots down the field. I think too many dropped passes with some shots down field. We had some opportunities to hit some and win some shots down field and missed those early in the game. But give them credit. They're an excellent football team, and, you know, there's a reason they're No. 1 in the country. They play like it. We've just got to move on and get ready for Arkansas."
When asked what he could say to his team to help ease this big loss Mullen commented, "We are going to move on and go on to Arkansas at this point. There
are things I told them to just be critical and to go watch themselves
and evaluate some things on the film. They will see some opportunities
that were missed for us in the game. They have to just realize you've
got to have the confidence to make those plays, especially when you're
playing a great team. You are capable of executing at a very high
level."
Concerning the way the Alabama defense handled his team Mullen commented, "We had five dropped passes in the first half. That's not good when
you're playing a great defense. It's not good when you're playing a bad
defense, but when you're playing a great defense you cannot do those
things."
Mullen was asked about the punishment his quarterback, Nick Fitzgerald, took at the hands of the Crimson Tide and how he would be able to come back from this. Mullen said, "We know they are a great team, so we knew that. He made some great
throws during the course of the game and I think he will grow as a
leader. He was put in some tough situations, made some great throws but
missed a couple of throws, too. I think he will learn from this moving
forward."
Mississippi State linebacker Richie Brown, in talking about Crimson Tide quarterback Jalen Hurts, said, "He is a fast guy and a great decision maker. He knows when to tuck it and run and he made some good plays today."
Concerning the emotional state of the team following the game, Brown commented, "It's tough, but we are kind of forced to put it behind us and keep
moving forward because we have two games that we have to play our best
football. So we need to put it behind us and learn from our mistakes."
Bulldog wide receiver Donald Gray commented on the Tide's pass defense, saying, "I have to give credit where credit is due. Their DBs are pretty
fast and have great closing speed. We got beat. The best man wins and
they obviously won."
