Alabama Football: Week Two SEC Power Rankings
By Ronald Evans
No. 9 Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-0) Predicted regular season ceiling – 6 wins
Last week’s ranking undervalued the Bulldogs at No. 13. Mississippi State, after barely escaping with a win over Louisiana Tech the week before, got a big win Saturday. North Carolina State is a solid ACC team. The Wolfpack could finish second in the ACC Atlantic Division. The Bulldogs shut down the NCSU rushing attack, holding Wolfpack running backs to just 50 yards. NCSU moved the ball through the air and out-gained Mike Leach’s team but couldn’t produce enough points in the 24-10 MSU win. The Bulldogs got an early boost from a 100-yard (actually 102 yards) kickoff return touchdown by Lideatrick Griffin.
No. 8 Missouri Tigers (1-1) Predicted regular season ceiling – 7 wins
Last week the Tigers were at No. 8. A one touchdown loss in Lexington did nothing to lower their ranking. As will be obvious in where Kentucky is rated, the Cats and another team are the most improved in the SEC. Missouri is good enough to win this season, against one or two higher-ranked teams. The Tigers’ offense is good. Improvement is needed defensively.
No. 7 Arkansas Razorbacks (2-0) Predicted regular season ceiling – 7 wins
Last week the Razorbacks were ranked No. 10. They manhandled the Texas Longhorns, winning 40-21. The score is misleading. After three quarters, Arkansas led 33-7. Sam Pittman has done an outstanding job bringing Arkansas back. His Hogs are the other, most-improved SEC team. Their upward trend may continue but until Arkansas beats a team better than Texas, they will be ranked in the middle of the SEC pack.