Week seven SEC West recap and what it means for Alabama football

After week seven, the SEC West became a two-team race. Alabama Football and LSU are primed for a showdown in Baton Rouge on November 3. The rest of the division looks to either regroup or build upon success found.

Let’s review week seven in the SEC West and what the game outcomes mean for Alabama football fans.

LSU vs. Georgia: For LSU, this statement wins leaves the Tigers in control of their own destiny. Barring an upset against Mississippi State next week, the SEC West will be determined on November 3rd against Alabama. QB Joe Burrow elevated his play and led the Tigers to a showcase victory in Baton Rouge.

Alabama vs. Missouri: The story of the game is injuries to Tua Tagovailoa, DeVonta Smith and Henry Ruggs III. Barring missing any time, the offense should remain utterly dominant. The Crimson Tide now must travel to Knoxville and face a Tennessee team that is fresh off beating Auburn on the road.

Auburn vs. Tennessee: The wheels officially came off the Gus bus and any hope to the SEC West when the Tigers lost to Tennessee. Since the opener against Washington, the offense has been out of sync for the Tigers. For Auburn going forward, they must regroup for a trip to Ole Miss. Auburn’s schedule only increases in difficulty as the season goes forward and Gus must find answers to an offense with currently none.

Ole Miss vs. Arkansas: For Ole Miss, they were able to find their first victory in SEC play. They were able to punish Arkansas QB Ty Storey all game and eventually forced his exit on a quarterback scramble. Storey’s departure from the game enabled QB Jordan Ta’amu to engineer a come from behind victory over the Razorbacks. Ole Miss looks to take advantage of an out of sync Auburn team next week.

For Arkansas, the story has to be the injury to Ty Storey. Storey is a very tough quarterback but too many times didn’t slide or get out-of-bounds and took unnecessary hits that eventually forced him from the game. Arkansas is also dealing with injuries to their backfield that is hurting an offense that put 31 points on the Crimson Tide. For Arkansas going forward, they look to regroup and heal up over the coming week in preparation for Tulsa.

TAMU vs. South Carolina: Jimbo Fisher’s squad has continued to build each and every week. Going into South Carolina and leaving with a victory is huge for this young team. QB Kellen Mond has shown substantial growth since last year and is one of the better quarterbacks in the division. TAMU now heads to the bye week in preparation for traveling to Starkville to take on the Bulldogs.

What it all means to Alabama football fans

For Alabama football fans the start to Tennessee hate week begins. The third Saturday in October has lost some luster over the past decade. Going against a team fresh off beating Auburn and facing last year’s defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt will pose a unique challenge to Alabama. However, even more than the date with Tennessee, the date on November 3 is the key to the SEC West. Baton Rouge will hold the keys to Atlanta for both Alabama and LSU. Alabama football needs to get healthy and put away the Volunteers early so they can get to the bye week prep for the hardest game of the year at LSU.

Check in with Bama Hammer frequently. We cover Alabama sports teams and how they compare nationally and in the SEC.