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The SEC slate for Week 6 was supposed to be lackluster. The only top-25 matchup was No. 9 Mizzou at No. 25 Texas A&M.
That’s not exactly the sort of schedule we expect here in the Southeastern Conference. But with off weeks aplenty the past couple of weeks, that’s what we’ve been subjected to.
However, this weekend provided more than its fair share of drama. The Aggies blew the doors off the Mizzou bandwagon. No. 1 Alabama suffered a historic upset against unranked Vanderbilt. No. 4 Tennessee struggled at unranked Arkansas.
All in all, 11 SEC teams played on Saturday, so we have 11 game balls to hand out. Here are the lucky recipients of this week’s prestigious batch of Saturday Down South game balls:
Alabama: Ryan Williams, WR
Even if Alabama loses every other game this season (not likely, but humor me here), I’ll still be tuning in every Saturday to watch Ryan Williams play football. Just look at this play:
This true freshman class of WRs …
Ryan Williams staying in bounds here and scoring is absurd pic.twitter.com/vjDApykwpQ
— Chris Hummer (@chris_hummer) October 5, 2024
He does something like that every week. Even as a freshman, he’s already must-see TV.
Arkansas: Malachi Singleton, QB
Being a backup QB is never easy. Being a backup QB who has to come in during a tough game against a top-5 opponent in the second half is nearly impossible. Singleton handled himself well. He threw for 31 yards on 2-for-3 passing and ran 4 times for 12 yards and the game-deciding touchdown against No. 4 Tennessee. He’s not going to come close to stealing Taylen Green’s starting job, but he did an incredible job coming out of the bullpen on Saturday.
Auburn: Jarquez Hunter, RB
Averaging 7 yards per carry against the Georgia defense isn’t easy, but that’s what Hunter did on Saturday afternoon. He toted the tater 13 times for 91 yards and scored Auburn’s only touchdown. He’s an elite running back, and he showed it once again on Saturday, even though the Tigers lost.
Florida: Jeremy Crawshaw, P
I almost never consider giving the game ball to a punter in a game his team won, but I have to make an exception for Crawshaw. He punted 4 times against UCF on Saturday night at The Swamp, downing 3 of them inside the 20. He had no touchbacks and averaged 45.8 yards per boot. He put his defense in good positions to succeed against UCF’s talented offense and the Gators delivered. A great job by the Florida punter.
Georgia: Trevor Etienne, RB
These are the sorts of games the Dawgs brought Etienne in for. He was the best player on Georgia’s offense on Saturday afternoon, running for 88 yards and 2 TDs. He also added 6 catches for 36 yards, channeling his older brother Travis as a dual-threat back. Georgia’s offense still has a long way to go, but Etienne needs to be a big part of it moving forward.
Kentucky: OFF
LSU: OFF
Mississippi State: OFF
Mizzou: Luke Bauer, P
This was a disaster of a game for Mizzou. Luther Burden III needs to get right mentally. He put up 82 receiving yards to lead the team, but missed several key plays standing on the sidelines and toes the line between confidence and unsportsmanlike behavior way too often. So I’m giving this week’s game ball to the other LB – punter Luke Bauer. He got plenty of work, kicking 5 times and averaging 45.6 yards per punt. He had 1 touchback and 1 punt downed inside the 20. A bleak day for Mizzou, indeed.
Oklahoma: OFF
Ole Miss: JJ Pegues, DL/RB
Tre Harris showed he actually is human, only recording 81 yards as a receiver in this one. Pegues picked up the slack around the goal line. Pegues only had 2 carries for 2 yards, but he scored touchdowns on both of them. Talk about an efficient game! What a weapon for Lane Kiffin and company.
South Carolina: Dylan Stewart, Edge
Stewart is already one of the most impactful defenders in the entire SEC. He kept the Ole Miss offense in check on Saturday. Allowing only 27 points to Ole Miss’s offense is pretty impressive. Stewart had 4 tackles, 3 of which came behind the line of scrimmage and 1 of which was a sack. A great day in what has already become a great freshman season.
Tennessee: Dylan Sampson, RB
Sampson scored the only 2 touchdowns for the Vols on Saturday night in a stunning loss at Arkansas. He was about the only thing working for Tennessee, running 22 times for 138 yards and the aforementioned 2 touchdowns. He might be the best running back this side of Ashton Jeanty.
Texas: OFF
Texas A&M: Le’Veon Moss, RB
Moss has been elite lately. He set career highs with 138 rush yards and 3 touchdowns on Saturday against a top-10 Mizzou team. Amari Daniels scored the touchdowns early for the Aggies, but then Moss got going. And if you’re an opposing team, you don’t want to see the words “Moss got going.” Trust me. I’m a Mizzou grad.
Vanderbilt: Diego Pavia, QB
Who else could we possibly give this game ball to? Pavia is already one of the best players to put on a Vanderbilt uniform in recent memory. He is a nightmare for the state of Alabama, having led New Mexico State to a big win at Auburn last year and guiding Vandy to a 40-35 win over No. 1 Alabama this weekend. He completed 16-of-20 passes for 252 yards and 2 touchdowns. He ran for 56 yards. He didn’t turn the ball over. What a legend.
Adam is a daily fantasy sports (DFS) and sports betting expert. A 2012 graduate of the University of Missouri, Adam now covers all 16 SEC football teams. He is the director of DFS, evergreen and newsletter content across all Saturday Football brands.
