SEC Football

The latest College Football Playoff rankings were unveiled on Tuesday evening, giving us an idea of who might be in and who might be out come December. There was little movement at the top, as the first seven teams in Week 11's ranking all won their games. Here's a look at the Top 10 teams heading into Week 12.

1. Georgia (10-0)

2. Alabama (9-1)

3. Oregon (9-1)

4. Ohio State (9-1)

5. Cincinnati (10-0) 

6. Michigan (9-1)

7. Michigan State (9-1) 

8. Notre Dame (9-1)

9. Oklahoma State (9-1) 

10. Wake Forest (9-1)

Although last week wasn't too eventful as far as upsets go, we have some crucial matchups in Week 12 that will likely reshape the playoff landscape. The biggest matchup of the weekend is undoubtedly No. 7 Michigan State at No. 4 Ohio State. The winner of this game will have a good chance to represent the East in the Big Ten Championship.

If Ohio State wins, the Buckeyes will move to 8-0 in the East standings, with just Michigan standing in its way on Nov. 27. If Michigan State wins, it would be tied atop the division with Ohio State, but the win over Michigan two weeks ago, along with a win over Penn State on Nov. 27, would send Sparty to Indianapolis. Michigan defeating Ohio State that same week would also give Sparty the Eastern division title. 

Elsewhere, No. 3 Oregon has a major road test against No. 23 Utah on Saturday night. The Utes are 7-3 on the season and have yet to lose a game at home. Utah also defeated the same Stanford team that upset the Ducks 31-24 in overtime on Oct. 2.  

Once again, the committee kept Michigan State behind Michigan this week, despite MSU defeating Michigan at home just two weeks ago. CFP chairman Gary Barta said on the ESPN broadcast that the committee was impressed with Michigan coming from behind (though the largest deficit they trailed Penn State by was three points, which only happened in the first and fourth quarter) in a win on the road.

No. 5 Cincinnati would need both Ohio State and Oregon to lose in front of them to have a shot at cracking the Top 4. This week for Cincy isn't exactly a cakewalk—the Bearcats face 8-2 SMU, though Cincy is currently an 11.5-point favorite.

For Oregon and Ohio State, winning this Saturday certainly gives them a good shot at maintaining their current respective positions. But if Oregon struggles against Utah—or worse, it loses—that would open the door for Cincinnati, Michigan and Michigan State to move up. If Ohio State loses to Michigan State, that would make OSU-Michigan an even more important matchup and improve the necessity of a tiebreaker scenario to decide a Big 10 East champion.

Last but not least, No. 8 Notre Dame and No. 9 Oklahoma State have outside shots at making it in if they see most of the teams above them lose. Per ESPN's Rece Davis, the lowest an eventual CFP team has been ranked at this point in the season is No. 9. Oklahoma State has a game this weekend against Texas Tech before Bedlam in Stillwater on Nov. 27. If Oklahoma State defeats Oklahoma and then wins in the Big 12 Championship game, they would need at least a couple of two-loss conference champions to have a shot to make it in. The same goes for No. 10 Wake Forest, who may end up being a one-loss ACC Champion. 

And, of course, for No. 8 Notre Dame, which moved up one spot this week, if Cincinnati ends up losing twice before the end of the season, the Fighting Irish could have an outside shot at making it in. Like the Cowboys and the Demon Deacons behind them, that would require some more two-loss conference champions.  

The regular season is winding down, and we're one step closer to seeing who will make it into the final Top Four. The monster Saturday coming up will make who that might be even clearer.

Lincoln Riley isn't going to LSU.

The Oklahoma coach addressed speculation that he may be a candidate for the Tigers' head coaching vacancy Tuesday, saying he is happy right where he is in Norman.

“I coach at the University of Oklahoma. You know how I feel about this place and this program. We’ve all been down this road many times before. You guys know where I stand, and that hasn’t changed," Riley told reporters.

Riley has been linked to several coaching jobs over his five-year tenure at Oklahoma but has remained at his post, building one of the most consistently great programs in the country. The Sooners are 54-9 under Rliey and have finished no worse than seventh in the final Associated Press poll.

So let us address the obvious: No college vacancy is going to lure Riley.

Oklahoma is one of the best half-dozen jobs in the country, and his $7.7 million salary ranks fifth among all coaches. While it's true that outgoing LSU coach Ed Orgeron is one of the coaches with a higher salary than Riley, Orgeron signed his deal in 2020 coming off a national championship—something that's eluded the Riley to this point.

Getting a raise that bumps him into Dabo Swinney territory is likely about as simple as Riley walking into the Oklahoma athletic department with rumors buzzing around his name. With the Sooners set to join the SEC in 2025, there's no added competition bump in heading to LSU, either. It's a lateral move from one school where Riley has built a career to another where he has no ties.

It's not happening.

If anything eventually takes Riley from Oklahoma, it'll almost certainly be an NFL job too good to pass up. Riley has been on NFL radars since his first season as a head coach, and it's not hard to see why. The offensive innovator already boasts two Heisman Trophy winners (Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray) and another finalist (Jalen Hurts); each of Riley's primary starting quarterbacks who have left Oklahoma are currently NFL starters.

The allure of seeing if his offensive genius translates to Sundays may be the only thing keeping Riley from a decades-long tenure with the Sooners. 

Florida isn't planning to fire head football coach Dan Mullen before the regular season ends, according to CBSSports.com's Dennis Dodd.

A number of notable FBS schools have already moved on from their head coaches. Virginia Tech is the most recent to enter the coaching carousel after parting ways with Justin Fuente on Tuesday.

With the Gators sitting at 5-5, many have wondered whether Mullen is living on borrowed time in Gainesville.

Dodd laid out one of the biggest challenges Florida would face if it fired Mullen: the absence of a clear replacement.

No Urban Meyer-like candidate is on the board. When the Gators hired Meyer ahead of the 2005 season, he was a home run hire, and he guided the program to two national championships.

Not only is there a dearth of prominent coaches either out of work or looking to move up in prestige, but the Gators would also be competing with USC, LSU and Washington for the top names available.

Florida's last coaching search showed how difficult it can be to evaluate the suitability of experienced coaches with proven track records.

In 2017, the school pursued Chip Kelly to replace Jim McElwain, only to see him select UCLA instead. The Bruins are 16-25 under Kelly, and his subpar recruiting would've made him a poor fit at a top-tier SEC power. Florida would probably be in a worse position if Kelly had chosen the Gators.

Things aren't going well under Mullen. The Gators haven't closed the gap on Alabama or Georgia, and some have raised concerns about his ability to attract blue-chip talent.

However, the extent to which Florida is struggling could be a blip.

Jim Harbaugh looked to be a dead man walking after Michigan went 2-4 in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Instead, he got an extension that effectively makes it easier to fire him, and the Wolverines are on track to make a New Year's Six bowl at 9-1.

The Gators fired defensive coordinator Todd Grantham and offensive line coach John Hevesy shortly after a 40-17 defeat to South Carolina.

Given the coaching landscape, it might make sense to give Mullen one more year with a new defensive coordinator.

There is an LSU Tigers-sized coaching vacancy in the SEC West for the 2022 season, but Jimbo Fisher plans on returning to Texas A&M for a fifth year.

"I ain't going nowhere. I don't wanna be nowhere else," he told reporters Monday. "I love being right here."

He also pointed to the recruiting class coming in for the Aggies when asked about the LSU rumors and said, "We're gonna recruit an unbelievable class this year. So I'm either the dumbest human being on God's earth, OK, who's going to recruit all these guys to A&M so I can go across over here and go play against them."

Losing Fisher to a division rival would be quite the blow for Texas A&M, so his words are surely encouraging for fans hoping the school will remain competitive with Alabama and others in the SEC for the foreseeable future.

He coached at Florida State prior to joining the Aggies and went 83-23 over the course of eight seasons. He won a national championship during the 2013 campaign in the final season before the College Football Playoff system and then reached the four-team playoff in 2014.

Fisher started his tenure with Texas A&M in the 2018 campaign and is 33-13 overall.

His most impressive season with the Aggies came last year when they were 9-1 and just missed the CFP thanks to their lone blemish in a showdown with the Crimson Tide. They beat Alabama this season but are just 7-3 thanks to losses to Arkansas, Mississippi State and Ole Miss.

That 2022 recruiting class Fisher hyped up checks in at No. 5 in 247Sports' composite rankings after he landed the No. 8 class in 2021.

While LSU is a major job in notable recruiting territory, the future is bright in College Station as a result of Fisher's prowess on the trail. He would lose some of that momentum if he went to the Tigers when Ed Orgeron departs following the season, and that seems to be a deciding factor in his desire to stay put.

Texas A&M will look to improve its bowl outlook with its two final regular-season games against Prairie View A&M and LSU.          

The No. 12 Ole Miss Rebels followed up their win over Liberty last weekend with a 29-19 win over No. 11 Texas A&M on Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. The Rebels are now 8-2 on the season, while the Aggies fell to 7-3.

Saturday's win marked Ole Miss' first over Texas A&M since October 2015. Texas A&M had won the last three meetings.

Quarterback Matt Corral continues to have a significant impact in the Ole Miss offense, but running back Jerrion Ealy was also incredibly impressive Saturday night to give the Rebels their fifth win in their last six games.

Notable Stats

Matt Corral, QB, OLE MISS: 24/37 for 247 YDS, 1 TD, 0 INT

Zach Calzada, QB, A&M: 22/42 for 237 YDS, 0TD, 2 INT

Jerrion Ealy, RB, OLE MISS: 24 CAR for 152 YDS

Devon Achane, RB, A&M: 12 CAR for 110 YDS, 2 TD

Ole Miss Defense Impresses in Limiting Texas A&M Running Game

The Ole Miss defense came to play on Saturday night, and they certainly did not disappoint. Texas A&M entered Saturday's game with the fifth-best rushing offense in the SEC, averaging 191.2 yards per game and 5.4 yards per carry. 

Junior running back Isaiah Spiller has been the third-best running back in the SEC in rushing yardage (873), while sophomore running back Devon Achane ranked seventh in the conference with 706 rushing yards.

However, Spiller and Achane were limited against Ole Miss. In the first half, Spiller accounted for just eight carries for 24 yards, while Achane racked up 21 yards on four carries. 

Spiller was also tackled in the end zone for a safety to put the Rebels up 15-0 before halftime. 

Spiller and Achane finished the game with a combined 151 yards on the ground and two scores. 

Defensive lineman Sam Williams was particularly effective against the Aggies, recording six tackles and one tackle for a loss. He has been among the best pass rushers in the SEC this season. Defensive back Jake Springer was also impressive against Texas A&M, recording five tackles and one tackle for a loss. 

However, Springer was tossed out of the game early in the third quarter for targeting after a helmet-to-helmet hit on Aggies wide receiver Demond Demas. 

Ole Miss entered Saturday's game against Texas A&M with the second-worst rushing defense in the SEC, allowing 194 yards per game on the ground, which makes the Rebels' performance against the Aggies that much more impressive. 

Slow Start for Offense, Two Late Interceptions Cost Texas A&M

The Texas A&M offense got out to an incredibly slow start against Ole Miss on Saturday. The Aggies were limited to just 90 yards and entered halftime down 15-0 to the Rebels. But the tides turned in the second half.

Despite not scoring in the first half, the Aggies bounced back in the third quarter, putting up 10 points compared to the Rebels zero. 

However, things took a turn for the worse for the Aggies when Calzada, down two points, threw an interception with 7:04 remaining in the game. The Ole Miss offense capitalized on the turnover as running back Snoop Conner burst into the end zone for a touchdown.

Calzada then threw a pick-six with 5:56 remaining in the game, essentially sealing the win for the Rebels. 

Saturday's slow start marked the second straight rough first half for the Aggies. Texas A&M scored just three points in the first half of last weekend's win over Auburn before exploding for 17 points in the second half. 

The Texas A&M offense has undoubtedly had its struggles this season. The Aggies entered Saturday's game with the second-worst passing offense in the SEC, averaging just 206.2 passing yards per game. 

Calzada also entered with the worst completion percentage in the SEC (54.9 percent) and the second-worst quarterback rating (120.8), per ESPN Stats. 

The Rebel's ability to limit Texas A&M's potent rushing offense and shut down their passing offense was a big reason why Ole Miss came out with a win. 

What's Next?

Ole Miss will face the Vanderbilt Commodores at home next weekend, while Texas A&M will host the Prairie View A&M Panthers.

Florida head coach Dan Mullen is taking the high road after his team got a scare Saturday before pulling away from Samford in a 70-52 win. 

Speaking to reporters after the game, Mullen said calling any victory disappointing "is disrespectful to the game and our players."

Per Adam Dubbin of Gators Wire, at least one betting sportsbook had the Gators favored by 35.5 points. 

Samford, an FCS program, entered this game with a 4-5 record. The Bulldogs have never beaten an FBS school since bringing back their football program in 1984 (0-25). 

Despite everything seemingly working against Samford, it didn't play scared against an SEC opponent. The Bulldogs led by as many as 14 points late in the second quarter and had a 42-35 advantage at halftime. 

The Gators came alive in the second half with 35 points to secure the win. This marks the first time they have scored at least 70 points in a game since November 2008 against the Citadel (70-19). 

This has been a frustrating season for Florida. It started the year ranked No. 13 in the Associated Press preseason Top 25 poll, played Alabama close before falling 31-29 and climbed to No. 10 in the rankings as recently as Oct. 2. 

Before this weekend, though, Florida was on a three-game losing streak. It was outscored 74-24 in back-to-back losses against Georgia and South Carolina. 

Saturday's win won't change anyone's opinion of Mullen or the Gators in 2021, but they at least have something positive to build on with two games remaining in the regular season.    

Julian Humphrey, a four-star cornerback prospect from Houston, has committed to the Georgia Bulldogs after decommitting from Florida last month, according to ESPN's Tom VanHaaren. 

Humphrey is the second player to commit to Georgia in as many days. He joins wide receiver Raymond Cottrell—another previous Gators commit—who made a pledge to the Bulldogs on Thursday. 

Humphrey committed to Florida in May but decided to switch his committment after visiting Georgia and a few other schools, per VanHaaren. According to The Athletic, he was also considering LSU and Texas A&M. 

Humphrey explained his decision during a live broadcast on CBS Sports HQ, per 247Sports:

“Georgia is DBU," he said. "I think they had (four) DBs drafted last year, that’s like a record. Once I seen that, that clicked instantly—they must be doing something different from all those other schools. I’m like OK, that’s something I would love to be part of for sure, be developed like those guys.”

Humphrey is rated as the No. 94 overall prospect and 12th cornerback prospect in the Class of 2022. National Recruiting Expert Chris Singletary provided the following scouting report, via 247Sports:

"Muscular player with a good broad shoulders. Along with a powerful build lower half you have an athlete with twitch and burst. With his long arms and wingspan his has added tools to his 6-foot-1 build that benefit him in both man and zone coverage. Possessing elite speed with verified track times you see that it is able to translate to the field in his playmaking ability. Good with eye placement in man coverage as well as the ability to stay in phase with the receiver. In zone coverage he shows his instincts to key and diagnose with leverage on the receiver in his area with solid route recognition. Willing tackler that is not afraid to make a play. Solid with ability to flip his hips, cod and transition out of his peddle to break on the ball. He has done a good job of trending upward from his junior year with being more consistent and added strength."

Singletary currently projects Humphrey will be a second- or third-round NFL draft pick. However, it's still early to speculate on his draft stock. 

The Bulldogs' 2022 class is now ahead of Alabama for the top spot in the nation. With Humphrey committed, Georgia now has nine top-100 prospects in the 2022 class, per The Athletic. The school also has two five-star recruits in linebacker Malaki Starks and defensive lineman Mykel Williams.

It's unsurprising that Georgia continues to land the best prospects in football. The Bulldogs are ranked first in the AP Top 25 and are undefeated this season. Florida, meanwhile, is struggling at 4-5 and has the eighth-ranked 2022 prospect pool in the SEC, per ESPN.  

Mississippi State head football coach Mike Leach divulged Wednesday that his call for an open kicker tryout has generated a ton of interest.

According to Andy Kostka of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger, Leach said about 40 students have expressed interest in taking part in the tryout, which is scheduled for "next week sometime."

After a 31-28 loss to Arkansas this past Saturday in which the Bulldogs missed three field goals, Leach announced his plans for an open tryout at the kicker position.

The kicking game has been the Achilles' heel for Mississippi State this season, as the Bulldogs have missed eight of their 17 field-goal attempts.

Senior Brandon Ruiz is 5-for-9 on the season with a long of 44, while freshman Nolan McCord is 4-for-8 with a long of 39.

On Saturday, Ruiz missed 23- and 46-yard attempts, and McCord missed from 40 yards out on a kick that would have forced overtime had it been good.

Ruiz, who began his college career at Arizona State, had been a solid kicker prior to this season.

He went 19-for-27 and 18-for-22 on field goals in his first two seasons with the Sun Devils, and he made 10 of his 12 attempts for Mississippi State last season.

Ruiz has missed some time because of injury this season, however, which could partially explain his dip in effectiveness. As a result, special teams coordinator Matt Brock said he is taking it "day-by-day" with Ruiz in terms of whether he will be available to kick field goals.

While Leach is keeping all of his options open at kicker, it seems likely Ruiz and McCord will be the top kicking options Saturday when the 5-4 Bulldogs face the 6-3 Auburn Tigers.

Mississippi State won't be able to add any new kickers to the roster until next week at the earliest ahead of the Nov. 20 game against Tennessee State.

Given the kicking conundrum, Leach could be more inclined to go for it in fourth-and-manageable situations Saturday, as the Bulldogs look to pull off a road upset against No. 17 Auburn.

Georgia Bulldogs linebacker Adam Anderson has been charged with rape by the Athens-Clarke County police department, per Seth Emerson of The Athletic.

His lawyer said in a statement that Anderson "voluntarily surrendered" on Wednesday and "is innocent of the charge brought against him and intends to vigorously defend himself in court."

Per Jake Rowe of 247Sports, a 21-year-old woman filed an incident report about two weeks ago, saying that Anderson raped her while she was asleep on Oct. 29. The woman told police she had a few drinks, fell asleep and when she woke up, Anderson was penetrating her. She said it was not consensual.

Georgia suspended Anderson indefinitely in light of the allegations.

"We are aware of the report, and we don't comment on law enforcement matters, but I've been clear about the high standards we have for our student-athletes on and off the field," head coach Kirby Smart said last Thursday. "I will be working closely with our administration to ensure we cooperate fully with all law enforcement and campus protocols."

Anderson's lawyer, Steve Sadow, said last week that the woman's allegations were "unfounded and unsupported" and that she "apparently made inconsistent claims."

Sadow requested last week that Anderson be reinstated to the team.

"In the interest of justice and fairness, Adam hopes and prays the UGA community and the public keep an open mind and not prejudge him based on inconsistent, unsubstantiated and baseless accusations," he added.

The senior outside linebacker has registered 5.5 sacks and 32 tackles this season for the top-ranked Bulldogs.

Florida quarterback Anthony Richardson injured his knee dancing at the team hotel Friday prior to the Gators' 40-17 loss to South Carolina on Saturday.

Head coach Dan Mullen said Monday that the redshirt freshman would have been available to play against the Gamecocks if the circumstances required it. An MRI on Richardson's knee didn't show any significant damage.

To some extent, the arc of Richardson's season mirrors that of his team.

The 6'4" signal-caller threw for 192 yards and two touchdowns while running for 275 yards and two scores in Florida's first two games. Some were already calling for him to replace Emory Jones as the starting quarterback.

Richardson was unavailable against Alabama as the Gators fell 31-29 and maintained a level of respect in a losing effort.

Mullen's squad has since gone into a tailspin, and a 34-7 defeat to Georgia seemed to show the head coach was justified all along in waiting to turn the reins over to Richardson.

With less than three minutes left in the first half, Florida was trailing 3-0. Richardson lost a fumble and threw two interceptions on three successive drives as the Gators suddenly found themselves down 24-0 at halftime.

Perhaps things would've gone differently against South Carolina if Richardson had been healthy, but Jones put together a good enough stat line (17-of-30, 258 yards, two touchdowns and one interception).

Mullen could've had Tom Brady under center and it wouldn't have helped a defense that allowed the Gamecocks to gain 459 yards, including 284 on the ground. The performance cost defensive coordinator Todd Grantham his job.

The circumstances surrounding Richardson's injury add to a season Mullen and Florida fans will soon want to forget.