Conference play has begun, and the season’s most anticipated matchup has already come and gone. Ole Miss held on to defeat their former head coach, Lane Kiffin, and his new LSU Tigers team.
Mississippi State came back from an early 16-0 hole on the road to beat South Carolina. Meanwhile, Texas A&M took a gut-wrenching blow as the Kentucky Wildcats waltzed into Kyle Field and knocked off the Aggies.
Three Biggest Winners In Week 3 Of The SEC
Plenty of winners in the SEC, but three stand out as the teams that won the week. From big upsets to dominant performances and last-second finishes, the SEC was full of action in week three.
Ole Miss Rebels
The storyline was written last season when Kiffin got on a plane bound for Baton Rouge and left the Rebels ahead of the college football playoff. In an exit that mirrors the ugliness of his prior exit from Tennessee, it was not long before Kiffin had to head back to his old stomping ground.
Ole Miss quarterback Trinidad Chambliss, who was brought to the university by Kiffin, had a day against his former coach. Chambliss threw for 363 yards and two touchdowns, en route to winning 32-24 in a Magnolia Bowl that had a little extra fire added to this year’s game.
Kentucky Wildcats
Kentucky played a competitive first half against the Alabama Crimson Tide at home last week, but is one of the week’s biggest winners. The Wildcats stormed into the biggest stadium in the SEC and dropped the No. 9-ranked Texas A&M Aggies to the tune of a 31-21 victory.
This is the third road top-10 victory for Kentucky in the last four seasons. Kentucky was the second team out of the AP Top 25 for Week Four.
Mississippi State Bulldogs
The Bulldogs have a strong resume already, defeating the Minnesota Gophers on the road in Week Two, and going into Columbia, South Carolina, to defeat the South Carolina Gamecocks.
This win got the Bulldogs into the Top 25, and it keeps them building momentum as SEC play continues next week against the No. 19 Missouri Tigers.
The Bulldogs were in a 16-0 hole before Kamario Taylor started to dismantle the Gamecock defense. Taylor answered back with four touchdowns in the 41-34 victory.
Three Biggest Losers In Week 3 Of The SEC
Some of the biggest winners also caused the biggest losers; between unappetizing offensive performances and disappointing losses, plenty of losers in Week Three.
Texas A&M Aggies
The Aggies entered the week with a No. 9 ranking and leave with a No. 23 next to their name. They very well could have fallen out of the AP poll this week, but they hang on by a hair.
Marcel Reed had two total touchdowns, one through the air and one on the ground. He also threw two interceptions in the game. Texas A&M has dug a hole that they must climb out of with the remainder of their conference schedule.
The Aggies might be the biggest loser of the week because of the massive upset that occurred at Kyle Field on Saturday, and next week is not an easy contest heading down to Baton Rouge to take on the LSU Tigers, who have a lot to play for after losing to Ole Miss.
Oklahoma Sooners
The Sooners find their way into the losers category despite winning their matchup with New Mexico.
The Oklahoma defense is going to keep them in games, but the offense is suspect. After a loss to an unranked Michigan the week prior, the Sooners needed a strong performance from their offense.
Oklahoma had 299 yards of total offense in the game. Not a promising stat line for the Sooners, the defense was strong once again and will keep them in games, but the offense is a red flag entering conference play, when they head to Sanford Stadium to take on the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs.
LSU Tigers
This is more of a big loss for Kiffin than for the Tigers. When Kiffin left for greener grass in Baton Rouge, he left a program that he had built from the ground up and got them near the mountaintop. He left before he got the chance to finish what he started for a perennial powerhouse in LSU.
Kiffin had to watch his old team welcome him back to Oxford with a big win and vault the Rebels to the No. 4 spot in the AP Poll. The season is not over for the Tigers, but the road is not easy, and there is little room for error.
Biggest Winners And Losers Of SEC Week 3