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Like last week, the only two SEC teams taking on non-conference opponents are Ole Miss and Mississippi State.
Unlike last week, Saturday should not be as relaxing.
A week ago, Mississippi State disposed of Troy in easy fashion while the Rebels blew out New Mexico State. This isn’t last week, folks.
Louisiana Tech, led by former Florida quarterback Jeff Driskel, heads to Starkville while Ole Miss makes the short trip to Memphis to play the undefeated Tigers, who are ranked No. 22 in the Coaches Poll this week. (They are just outside the Associated Press Top 25.)
Each team has players who will be in the NFL soon. Here is a look at who fans might want to keep an eye on as they battle SEC teams:
Paxton Lynch, Memphis, 6-foot-7, 245 pounds, QB, RJr.: The Deltona, Fla., native is a fixture on draft boards as the second-highest-rated dropback quarterback available.
The Landsharks will have to get to him, but more than that, they have to get him down. Lynch is huge and stands tall in the pocket. He has completed 103 of 146 passes this year with 10 touchdowns and no interceptions. He is averaging 307 yards per game.
Kenneth Dixon, Louisiana Tech, 5-foot-10, 213 pounds, RB, Sr.: Dixon is Louisiana Tech’s all-time leading rusher. He was a preseason all-Conference USA pick and on the Doak Walker and Maxwell Award watch lists. He was also a freshman All-American in 2012.
This season, he has rushed for 583 yards, averaging 6.1 yards per carry, and has scored six touchdowns. He averages 116.6 yards per game to compliment the Bulldogs’ passing attack. Dixon also has caught 15 passes and averages 10 yards per reception.
Jake Elliott, Memphis, 5-foot-10, 170 pounds, K, Jr.: This guy makes teams feel like they are being beaten up with a sack of feathers. They really don’t feel it, but it is just as effective. The Western Springs, Ill., native has kicked off 42 times this year, with 31 resulting in touchbacks.
“We don’t really worry about kickoff returns,” Memphis assistant athletic director for communications Ron Mears said. Elliott also has made 7 of 8 field goal attempts, with a long of 52 yards.
Beau Fitte, Louisiana Tech, 6-foot, 218 pounds, LB, RSr.: Fitte is a tad undersized, but he more than makes up with that with his speed and agility. He leads the Bulldogs with 46 tackles, has 3.5 tackles for loss, has forced a fumble and recovered one.
Fitte already has more tackles this season than he had in any of his first three seasons. He had 45 in 2013. Mississippi State quarterback Dak Prescott will need to identify where Fitte is before each play because the linebacker could make it a long day for MSU otherwise.
Jackson Dillon, Memphis, 6-foot-6, 245 pounds, LB, Jr.: Dillon is the leader of an underrated Tiger defense. He was named to NFL.com’s all-bowl team last year after Memphis’ 55-48 double-overtime win against Brigham Young in the Miami Beach Bowl.
He is officially listed as the Tigers’ “Dawg” linebacker. That moniker means he can either line up at outside linebacker or defensive end. Ole Miss quarterback Chad Kelly will need to keep an eye on this guy. In 30 career games, Dillon has 91 tackles, 15.5 of them for loss. He has also forced two fumbles, recovered one, accounted for 4.5 sacks and blocked two kicks.
Steve Barnes is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football.
