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Georgia’s demolition of Texas reminded “The List” of Waylon Jennings singing “I can run with the big dogs.”
I can run with the big dogs,
or lay on the porch,
lay here and not even move,
I’ve been over the road,
and under the house,
I ain’t got nothin’ to prove.”
Texas signed up for this. A College Football Playoff team a season ago and a national champion (2005) and national finalist (2009) this century, the Longhorns chose to get off the porch and hunt.
Everything went just fine until they ran into the buzzsaw that was the SEC’s nastiest set of Dawgs on Saturday night in Austin.
After the game, Kirby Smart talked about how no one believed in Georgia — how a whole network of 4 letter talking heads wrote off the Dawgs. We can debate the merits of whether anyone would write off a team led by the best coach in the sport and packed with more talent than almost anyone in college football, but Sassy Kirby is the scariest Kirby, right?
A motivated, mad Georgia– which the team that rolled Texas in Austin was in spite of referee controversy and student body shenanigans — is the best product in college football. Full stop.
Coming from the biggest state and having always fancied itself as the biggest dog, Texas got a taste of running with the biggest dog on Saturday night. They left DKR-Texas Memorial Stadium with the No. 1 ranking gone and plenty still to prove, unlike Waylon.
Speaking of running with the big dogs, “The List” realizes that Oklahoma also signed up for this, though after Saturday’s latest SEC humiliation, maybe they should have stayed on the porch.
Credit Shane Beamer’s guys though. It’s been quite a turnaround for the Gamecocks, who are a good set of referees (against LSU) and a couple of plays (against Alabama) from being 6-1.
One team that isn’t a couple plays from 6-1 is Auburn.
Hugh Freeze lost for the 12th time in 20 games as Auburn’s coach, blowing another 4th-quarter lead at Missouri. I tweeted this before John, but we’ll let him provide the visual on where we’re at on The Plains.
Bryan Harsin through 20 games: 9-11 (4-8)
Hugh Freeze through 20 games: 8-12 (3-9)
Harsin, of course, was fired after his 21st game.
— John Talty (@JTalty) October 19, 2024
On the bright side, there’s always the fact that Hugh doesn’t blame his players for their struggles and any parent would want to send their kid to play for Hugh, right? Oh, wait.
Auburn isn’t the only team from Alabama that has descended into the spiritual realm of despair that accompanies disappointment in SEC football. Since Paul Finebaum praised Kalen DeBoer as “potentially one of the greatest hires we’ve ever seen,” Alabama has lost to both SEC football programs from the state of Tennessee and needed a late stop on defense to escape with a home win over South Carolina. DeBoer didn’t forget how to coach, but this rough stretch and the accompanying crescendo of noise in the system is a reminder that (1) it’s brutal replacing a legend anywhere and (2) Nick Saban made it easy to forget how hard it is to win in the SEC.
Credit Tennessee, especially that salty defense and Nico Iamaleava, who battled through injury to deliver Josh Heupel a second big rivalry win in as many weeks. I didn’t look up when the last time Tennessee beat Alabama and Florida in the same season was (my editor did, though — oh, 2022?), but it was good enough for a small change on “The List” as we enter Week 9.
“The List” can’t remember a season with this much movement in our top 10, which either speaks to the wide open nature of the SEC or to just how difficult it is to rank the top 10 players in the SEC. Based on reader comments, it can’t be the second one. Most of them could rank the 10 best players in the SEC easily!
As always, last week’s list is here and we only name a maximum of 2 honorable mention players per school, so if your favorite player isn’t there, he should play better or I should stop disliking him so much, whichever makes you as the reader feel better. That rule explains plenty — like why we don’t have Florida running back Jadan Baugh on “The List” after running over, around, and through Kentucky’s defense for 5 touchdowns on Saturday night in The Swamp.
Alabama: Jihaad Campbell, LB; Deontae Lawson, LB. Arkansas: Joshua Braun, OL; Marquise Robinson, DB. Auburn: Jalen McLeod, Edge; Eugene Asante, LB. Florida: Jake Slaughter, C; Jeremy Crawshaw, P. Georgia: Jared Wilson, C.; Trevor Etienne, RB. Kentucky: D’Eryk Jackson, LB, Deone Walker, DT. LSU: Bradyn Swinson, Edge; Whit Weeks, LB. Mississippi State: Isaac Smith, S. Missouri: Corey Flagg, LB; Armand Membou, OT. Oklahoma: Robert Spears-Jennings, S; Gracen Halton, DL. Ole Miss: Chris Paul Jr., LB; Walter Nolen, DT. South Carolina: Dylan Stewart, Edge; Jalen Kilgore, DB. Tennessee: Cooper Mays, C; Jermod McCoy, CB. Texas: Kelvin Banks, OT; Anthony Hill, Jr., LB. Texas A&M: Rueben Fatheree II, OT; Shemar Turner, DL. Vanderbilt: Eli Stowers, TE; CJ Taylor, S.
10. Jahdae Barron, CB (Texas)
Barron did his best to will Texas past Georgia in a losing effort on Saturday night, intercepting 2 Carson Beck passes and breaking up another in defeat. On the season, Barron grades out among the top 5 cornerbacks in the country, per PFF. The Texas offense is a work in progress, especially given their inability to consistently run the football. Barron and the defense are the team’s strength, ranking No. 1 in the country in total defense and success rate defense.
9. Le’Veon Moss, RB (Texas A&M)
Moss powered his way for 76 total yards (65 rushing, 11 receiving) and 2 touchdowns in Texas A&M’s 34-24 win at Mississippi State on Saturday. The bellcow of a great backfield, Moss ranks No. 2 in the SEC in rushing yards, 4th in rushing success rate and 5th in rushing touchdowns — 1 of only 2 backs in the league to rank in the top 5 in all 3 categories.
https://twitter.com/cjzero/status/1842626357530116299
Moss also has 14 explosive runs this season, ranking 3rd among SEC running backs. A College Football Playoff contender test looms Saturday night when LSU visits Kyle Field.
8. Kyle Kennard, Edge (South Carolina)
Kennard continues to lead the SEC in sacks (8.5) and picked up another in Saturday’s blowout win over Oklahoma. He’s playing his way up draft boards too, showcasing he’s more than just an outside edge rusher.
Is Kyle Kennard playing his way into being a top NFL prospect? This inside rush shows he’s more than just an outside edge guy. pic.twitter.com/Ma2PMJohPq
— Matt O'Brien (@mattobrien31) October 12, 2024
It isn’t just inside pass moves, either — Kennard grades out as South Carolina’s best edge player against the run, per PFF. On Saturday, South Carolina’s defense stuffed Oklahoma’s power run game, limiting it to just 53 yards. The Gamecocks are a work in progress on offense, but this is one of the SEC’s best defenses, ranking 15th in success rate defense, 21st in SP+ defense and 16th in total defense. Kennard’s consistency is a huge reason that’s the case.
7.Will Campbell, OT (LSU)
Campbell has not allowed a sack this season protecting the blindside of quarterback Garrett Nussmeier for an LSU offense that ranks 8th in passing offense and 10th in passing success rate offense. Campbell did not allow a hurry all night against a formidable Arkansas defensive line in LSU’s 34-10 rout in Fayetteville. All-SEC honors for Campbell are inevitable — the question is simply which All-American team he lands on (first-, second-, or third-team).
6. Ryan Williams, WR (Alabama)
The Crimson Tide freshman was a bright spot in Alabama’s loss to Tennessee, catching 8 passes for 74 yards and a touchdown. Williams leads Alabama in receiving in receptions (31), yards (649) and touchdowns (7), which is more than half of Alabama’s total (13). He is the centerpiece and best piece in an Alabama offense that as we’ve seen is good enough to beat anyone in the country when they are playing well and Jalen Milroe limits mistakes.
5. Nick Emmanwori, S (South Carolina)
Emmanwori returns to “The List” after a brief absence following a SEC Defensive Player of the Week performance against Oklahoma. Emmanwori had a season-high 11 tackles, showcasing his chops in run support. He also intercepted 2 passes, one that set up a Gamecocks touchdown and the other which he took back for 6 points himself.
https://twitter.com/JimNagy_SB/status/1848501026648625362
Emmanwori was the highest graded safety in college football in Week 8, per PFF (90.9), the second time this season he’s managed that feat. An All-American season has a star in full bloom in Columbia.
4. Tre Harris, WR (Ole Miss)
The Biletnikoff frontrunner had a bye last week as Ole Miss readied for a stretch run that includes games against Oklahoma, Alabama, Florida and the Egg Bowl on Black Friday. Even with the bye, Harris leads the SEC in receptions by 14 catches and yards by a staggering 338. It’s a level of dominance we haven’t seen at the position from a statistical standpoint since DeVonta Smith’s 2020 Heisman campaign, which also saw Smith finish atop “The List.”
3. Jalon Walker, LB (Georgia)
Walker returns to “The List” as well this week after dominating Texas to the tune of 3 sacks, 7 quarterback pressures, 3 quarterback hurries, 8 tackles and 3.5 tackles for loss. Walker helped Georgia limit Texas to just 29 yards rushing, rendering Quinn Ewers and Arch Manning’s effectiveness by making Texas one-dimensional. On the season, Walker has 17 pressures, 5 sacks and 8 quarterback hurries for a defense that ranks 9th in SP+ defensive efficiency and 20th in success rate defense. Georgia’s 7 sacks also helped the Dawgs join rival Florida as 1 of 2 teams in the past 20 years to record 7 sacks in a game against the nation’s No. 1 team.
2. Diego Pavia, QB (Vanderbilt)
Pavia was excellent again for the Commodores as they escaped upset-minded Ball State 24-14 on Saturday in Nashville. Pavia threw for 275 yards and a touchdown, and rushed for 82 yards and another score. He also made this stupendous play that should help everyone understand why Vanderbilt enters the Texas game ranked in the Top 25 for the first time since the James Franklin era.
What are they feeding Diego Pavia pic.twitter.com/OPF3tzDfbG
— PAIN (@tealbeagle904) October 20, 2024
Pavia remains the only SEC quarterback leading his team in passing and rushing, but his value in making Vanderbilt fun and legitimately competitive is the primary reason he looks prime to contend on “The List” all season.
1. Dylan Sampson, RB (Tennessee)
Another game, another Tennessee win where Dylan Sampson is the biggest reason the Volunteers won. Sampson powered his way through the Alabama defense for 139 yards on 26 carries, adding 2 touchdowns to his already immense season total which now sits at 17 through 7 games.
https://twitter.com/Mr_Rutherford/status/1848392836208623726
Sampson graded out as 1 of the SEC’s best 2 running backs for the 5th time this season, a testament to his consistency and why he’s comfortably on pace for the SEC rushing title with 838 yards, over 150 more than Le’Veon Moss of Texas A&M, who ranks No. 2. Already the Volunteers’ single-season modern era (post-integration) rushing touchdown record holder, Sampson could hold a host of Tennessee records if he maintains this pace. A Heisman Trophy ceremony invite may need to follow.
Neil Blackmon covers Florida football and the SEC for SaturdayDownSouth.com. An attorney, he is also a member of the Football and Basketball Writers Associations of America. He also coaches basketball.
