SEC week 7: Alabama-Tennessee tops a weekend of ranked showdowns

Things to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:

Game of the week

No. 6 Alabama (5-1, 3-1 SEC) at No. 14 Tennessee (5-1, 3-1), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)

The latest edition of the third Saturday in October rivalry shapes up as a good one between teams with identical records. Tennessee’s lone loss came in a close one at home against then-No. 1 Texas. Alabama is coming off a loss of its own, a 20-17 defeat from new No. 1 Georgia.

Coach Kalen DeBoer is 6-0 coming off a loss at Alabama, but a trip to Neyland Stadium is no easy feat. Alabama is also without leading receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams and may be missing center Racin Delgatty – not an ideal formula when facing a Vols team that leads the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in sacks (25). Five of those sacks and 22 pressures belong to Xavier Gilliam.

It’s also a matchup that could feature two of the most exciting young SEC quarterbacks in Tennessee freshman Faizon Brandon and Alabama sophomore Keelon Russell, whose team is favored by 8.5 points. Brandon is questionable after missing much of the last two games with a shoulder injury.

The undercard

No. 13 Missouri (5-1, 3-1) at No. 9 Ole Miss (4-1, 2-1), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (SEC Network)

The stakes are high for two teams with one loss and playoff aspirations. Mizzou quarterback Austin Simmons was at Ole Miss for three seasons – including a redshirt year – before losing his job to Trinidad Chambliss while injured last season.

Simmons has been a pleasant surprise for Mizzou fans this year, leading the Tigers steadily up the AP Top 25. Running back Jamal Roberts has also impressed, taking full control of Missouri’s run game while standout Ahmad Hardy recovers from a gunshot wound, amassing 828 rushing yards and eight scores.

The Rebels also pose a threat in the run game with Kewan Lacy approaching his second game back after a shoulder injury. The Lacy-Chambliss duo has proven to be a hard one to halt, and Deuce Alexander has 503 receiving yards and five touchdowns.

Ole Miss is a 6-point favorite at home.

Impact players

-– LaNorris Sellers: The South Carolina quarterback led the charge in a 38-19 upset at Florida with 299 total yards and five touchdowns.

–- Peyton Bowen: The safety had seven tackles and a 42-yard pick-6 to help Oklahoma to a potentially season-saving 27-24 defeat of Texas.

–- Joseph Jonah-Ajonye: The Georgia defensive tackle had two tackles, a sack and a forced fumble while helping hold Alabama to 6-of-13 third-down conversions in a 20-17 win.

A look at the numbers

The SEC has nine ranked teams in the AP Top 25: Georgia (1), Alabama (6), Texas (7), Ole Miss (9), Missouri (13), Tennessee (14), Kentucky (15), Mississippi State (16) and LSU (22). … LSU tops the SEC with 524 yards per game on offense while also holding opponents to a conference-low 249.6 yards per game. … Georgia leads the conference in points per game (46.2) and third-down conversion percentage (55%). … Oklahoma’s defense has fared the best on third downs, stopping 77% of attempts. … Missouri has several players atop the national leaderboards. Nicholas Rodriguez is tied for an FBS-high 63 tackles, Roberts ranks second with 828 rushing yards, Daeden Hopkins’ five sacks ties for the third-most nationally and Cayden Lee is fifth in the FBS with 616 receiving yards.

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