12. Ole Miss
The good news is a Rebels defense held Memphis to 15 points. The bad news is a Rebels offense mustered only 10 points against the same Memphis team. If you thought Matt Luke was on the hot seat after his first season as permanent head coach, things are getting downright toasty after his team’s 15-10 loss last Saturday.
It’s only one game, but what Luke may be most remembered for in Oxford is making what appears to be the head-scratching hire of OC Rich Rodriguez. This is a squad that couldn’t muster 200 yards against a team whose defense was mediocre at best in 2018.
Running back Scottie Montgomery is supposed to be the bright spot of the team this season, but even he only gained 62 yards on 19 carries. Turnarounds have happened before, but this Ole Miss team looks like a dumpster fire in the making.
The Rebels surely can eke out a victory this Saturday against Southeast Louisiana.
13. Vanderbilt
It’s a tough season opener for anyone, let alone the perpetual cellar dwellers of the SEC.
The disappointing part of it is that head coach Derek Mason’s defense did a good job of limiting Jake Fromm through the air, but allowing the Dawgs to rush for over 300 yards doesn’t help much either.
The Commodore offense did as well as you would expect them to do against Georgia, meaning they totaled 225 yards.
The East doesn’t look overly imposing and Mason knows how to prepare his teams, but a cross-divisional game with LSU certainly doesn’t make his life any easier.
The ‘Dores travel to West Lafayette to take on Purdue this Saturday.
14. Tennessee
They know what they did. Dragging down the reputation of SEC football is not appreciated by the rest of the league.