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The SEC is loaded with freshmen who were stud recruits and other underclassmen who could leave early for the NFL, but here at Saturday Down South, we don’t want to overlook the talented seniors who stuck around for a fourth season and are excelling for their teams. Here are five of the top performances from seniors during the 11th week of the SEC football season.
KENTRELL BROTHERS
Missouri finally picked up a nice win, beating BYU in Kansas City and snapping a month-long skid thanks in large part to the play of its seniors. None was more impressive than Kentrell Brothers, the linebacker who has been a bright spot in an otherwise rough season. Brothers reached double-digit tackles again, making 11 stops. That included 1 for a loss. He also broke up a pass and had a fumble recovery as the Tigers responded to the news that head coach Gary Pinkel would retire at the end of the year.
RUSSELL HANSBROUGH
Offensively, Missouri played one of its best games of the year, scoring 20 points, and a big part of that was Hansbrough getting back to where he hoped he’d be this year. Hansbrough has dealt with injuries since the very beginning of the season and hasn’t put up the numbers the Tigers hoped for coming off a great 2014, but he looked like his best self Saturday. Hansbrough carried 26 times for 117 yards and gave the Tigers the steady presence they’ve been missing all season.
REGGIE RAGLAND
The Alabama senior linebacker’s contribution to Saturday’s blowout win at Mississippi State was overshadowed a bit by junior Jonathan Allen and his 3 sacks, but Ragland once again led a stellar defensive effort for the Tide. Ragland was second on the team with eight tackles and also had a pass breakup as Alabama dominated the Bulldogs up front and continued to look like the best, most intimidating defense in the country.
BRANDON ALLEN
The Arkansas quarterback continues to be a huge part of the Razorbacks’ remarkable turnaround during the 2015 season. Allen wasn’t asked to throw the ball a lot on Saturday during the upset of LSU, but he did enough to get the win. Allen completed 9 of 16 passes for 141 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Running back Alex Collins carried the load for Arkansas this week. Allen was simply asked to manage the game, which he did, and it was enough to lift the Hogs to heights that didn’t seem possible in September.
TRA CARSON
The Texas A&M running back is closing out his college career with a fine senior season. He added to it on Saturday against Western Carolina by carrying the ball 17 times for 109 yards and a touchdown. It was only Western Carolina, but the Aggies needed to get their offense back on track, and Carson has to be a big part of that going forward if Texas A&M is going to be successful in the final weeks.
Shane Mettlen is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers Texas A&M, Missouri and Alabama.
