SEC report

Shocking start for Auburn

Auburn coach Gus Malzahn watches players warm up for an NCAA college football game against Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018. Mississippi State won 23-9. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
Auburn coach Gus Malzahn watches players warm up for an NCAA college football game against Mississippi State in Starkville, Miss., Saturday, Oct. 6, 2018. Mississippi State won 23-9. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)

Auburn's 21-16 victory over Washington to open the season Sept. 1 seems like 10 years ago.

Beating the preseason Pac-12 favorites moved the Tigers up to No. 7 in The Associated Press Top 25 poll.

Auburn now has fallen out of the poll completely after losing at home to Tennessee 30-24.

The defending SEC West champion Auburn is now 4-3, including 1-3 in conference play.

"This is a complete shock," Tigers senior linebacker Deshaun Davis said, according to Auburn 247Sports. "If I was a betting man, and you would have told me to put everything I ever owned that we were 4-3 in Week 7, I'd be naked under a bridge somewhere. Completely.

"This is something that we have to fix."

That doesn't figure to be easy considering the Tigers are 93rd nationally in total offense (376.1 yards per game) and 83rd in rushing (158.4 yards).

"It's really disappointing, obviously, because we had very, very high expectations coming into this year," Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham told reporters. "We've lost three games to this point, and quite honestly, I think we should've won all of them. We just keep shooting ourselves in the foot."

The Tigers also have lost to LSU 22-21 on a last-second field goal and 23-9 at Mississippi State.

"Right now, my feelings are I'm disappointed for our team," Auburn Coach Gus Malzahn said after the Tennessee game. "We're going to watch the film, and we're going to get this thing corrected. That's my responsibility as a head coach.

"Whatever it takes to get us corrected and finish this thing the right way, I'm going to do."

Malzahn signed a 7-year, $49 million contract after last year's SEC Championship Game loss to Georgia -- and would be owed a $38 million buyout if fired. He was asked Tuesday at his weekly news conference whether he feels as though he's coaching for his job.

"No, I feel like I'm coaching for my players for the next game," Malzahn said. "We have to finish this thing the right way. I really expect us to do it."

Qualifying for a bowl game isn't a given for Auburn considering the Tigers' remaining SEC schedule has road games against Ole Miss, Georgia and Alabama, with a home game against Texas A&M.

The only sure victory on the schedule is Liberty.

"Continue to work. That's what it's all about," Stidham said. "Every week, every day, I'm going to go to work, get better, and I'm going to keep fighting for those guys in that locker room.

"That's what it's completely about for me. I don't care about the future. I don't care about the past. I don't care how great or bad I did last year. I don't care how great or bad I have done up to this point.

"I'm going to continue to fight for my teammates."

Fighting words

Vanderbilt Coach Derek Mason and Florida Coach Dan Mullen got into a heated verbal exchange in the second quarter of last week's game in Nashville, Tenn., that the Gators rallied to win 37-27.

The Commodores punted with a 21-10 lead, and Gators linebacker James Houston leveled Vanderbilt defensive lineman Dare Odeyingbo -- who didn't see Houston coming at him -- with an illegal blindside block.

Odeyingbo's helmet was knocked off, and he fell to the ground writhing in pain a few yards in front of the Florida bench.

Mason said that when he came out to check on Odeyingbo, a Florida player yelled at him.

When Mason responded, Gators defensive coordinator Todd Grantham began yelling at him. Mason yelled back, then Mullen jumped in the air and began yelling.

Officials restrained the coaches and eventually play resumed.

"Their player from the sideline said something, and he directed it at me," Mason said. "I said something back, and Dan got mad."

Houston was ejected. Odeyingbo later re-entered the game after being checked on by Vanderbilt's medical staff.

After the game, Mason and Mullen met at midfield and shook hands.

"Derek's a great, really close friend of mine," Mullen said. "And I think, our sideline, we've got to make sure we're cleaner in that situation, and he probably thinks the same thing."

Mason said he has a lot of respect for Mullen, but that the coaches are extremely competitive.

Asked whether he regretted becoming so emotional, Mason replied that he did not.

"What's to regret about being emotional?" Mason said. "Football's an emotional game. When it's all said and done, if you don't play football with emotion, then what are you doing?

"That's just part of the process in games. You see emotions from the coaches all the time. That just happened to be one instance."

Mason and Mullen won't be punished by the SEC office.

"Any discussion about decorum among the coaches will be handled privately between the conference office and the participating institutions," SEC associate commissioner Herb Vincent said in a statement. "Both coaches appeared to put this issue behind them in their post-game midfield meeting and post-game comments."

Cigar for Jones?

Butch Jones was 0-5 against Alabama as Tennessee's coach, but he'll be on the other side of the game Saturday when the Vols play the Crimson Tide.

After being fired at Tennessee, Jones is now an analyst for Alabama.

Winning players in the game traditionally smoke cigars, and Tide running back Josh Jacobs said the Alabama players want to make sure Jones is lighting up a stogie after Saturday's game.

"He's never smoked a cigar before," Jacobs said with a laugh in talking with reporters this week. "We're trying to make that a goal of his."

Alabama, which is going for its 12th consecutive victory over Tennessee, beat Jones' Vols by a combined 192-61, including 45-7 last season.

LSU fined by SEC

After LSU beat No. 3 Ole Miss 10-7 in 2014, fans stormed the Tiger Stadium field, resulting in LSU being fined $50,000 by the SEC for a first violation the conference's safety policy.

The fine was doubled to $100,000 after LSU fans again stormed the field after the Tigers beat No. 2 Georgia 36-16 on Saturday.

"While Saturday's win was a moment for the LSU family to remember, on-field celebrations can be unsafe," LSU Athletic Director Joe Alleva said in a statement. "We share the conference's concerns for the safety of fans and the security of players and staff."

So what happens if LSU beats No. 1 Alabama on Nov. 3 in Tiger Stadium and fans again storm the field?

A third violation will result in a $250,000 fine.

Alleva can't say it publicly, but it's a fine he'll no doubt gladly pay if it means knocking off Alabama.

Tua: I'm fine

Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who left last week's game against Missouri after aggravating a right knee injury, said he'll be ready for Saturday's game against Tennessee.

"I'm fine," Tagovailoa said Monday night during an interview on ESPN at halftime of the Green Bay-San Francisco game. "I'm a lot better actually than I was last week after the Arkansas game."

Tagovailoa suffered the injury in the Tide's 65-31 victory at Arkansas, but Alabama Coach Nick Saban didn't mention it until the next week.

Saban said after the Missouri game that Tagovailoa could have stayed in the game, but was held out as a precaution as the Tide rolled to a 39-10 victory.

Beating West team

Tennessee broke a 15-game losing streak to SEC West teams when the Vols won 30-24 at Auburn.

It was Tennessee's first victory over a West team since beating Ole Miss 52-14 on Nov. 13, 2010 at Neyland Stadium.

The Vols also won their first road game against a West opponent in exactly 11 years -- since they beat Mississippi State 33-21 at Starkville, Miss., on Oct. 13.

Metcalf out

Ole Miss receiver D.K. Metcalf suffered a season-ending neck injury against Arkansas last week.

"It's a little more serious than we thought," Rebels Coach Matt Luke said as his weekly news conference. "He'll be done for the season.

"Long term, he's going to be fine. But I think it's going to require surgery. We're still looking to make sure that we have the very best care and everything for him.

"It has nothing to do with the spinal. It's all vertebrae."

Metcalf has 26 catches this season for 569 yards and 4 touchdowns.

Going for it

LSU was 4 of 4 on fourth-down conversions against Georgia, including a 1-yard quarterback sneak by Joe Burrow in the first half that gave the Tigers a 10-0 lead.

"We were going to be as aggressive as we can," Coach Ed Orgeron said after the game. "We were going to take shots. Go for it. Played to win the game the whole time."

SEC TOP TO BOTTOM

Rank;(prev);record;comment

1;(1);Alabama;7-0;Looking to continue winning streak vs. Tennessee

2;(3);LSU;6-1;Pounds Georgia in Tiger Stadium

3;(2);Georgia;6-1;Fake field goal backfires against LSU

4;(4);Kentucky;5-1;Fans still excited about football

5;(5)Florida;6-1;Big comeback at Vanderbilt

6;(6)Texas A&M;5-2;Open date to get ready for Mississippi State

7;(7);Mississippi State;4-2;Road trip to LSU

8;(13);Tennessee;3-3;Pruitt gets first SEC victory at Auburn

9;(8);Auburn;4-3;Offensive struggles continue for Gus

10;(9);South Carolina;3-3;Offense, QB Bentley struggling

11;(11);Ole Miss;5-2;Snapped 4-game skid to Arkansas

12;(10)Missouri;3-3;Getting break from SEC with visit from Memphis

13;(12);Vanderbilt;3-4;Can't hold 18-point lead in loss to Florida

14;(14);Arkansas;1-6;Hopes to stop the bleeding vs. Tulsa

Player to watch

Alabama sophomore Jerry Jeudy is tied for 11th in the SEC with 26 receptions, but it's more about the quality than the quantity of his catches.

Jeudy has become the Crimson Tide's top deep threat and leads the SEC with 705 receiving yards -- a 27.1-yard average -- and 9 touchdowns.

In Alabama's 65-31 victory at Arkansas, Jeudy had 4 catches for 135 yards and touchdowns of 42 and 60 yards.

Game of the week

Mississippi State at LSU 6 p.m. Saturday (ESPN)

WHERE Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge

RECORDS Mississippi State 4-2, LSU 6-1

RANKINGS LSU is No. 5 in The Associated Press poll, Mississippi State is No. 22

LINE LSU by XXXXX

LSU will play its fifth game against a nationally-ranked opponent when the Bulldogs visit Baton Rouge.

The Tigers will be out to avenge a 37-7 loss at Mississippi State last season and avoid a letdown after beating Georgia 36-16.

By the numbers

8-0 -- LSU's record under Coach Ed Orgeron after a loss

2006 -- Last time Tennessee beat Alabama, 16-13, at Neyland Stadium

145 -- Receiving yards on 7 catches by Texas A&M tight end Jace Sternberger against South Carolina

Overheard

"I think we've got to look at everything right now."

-- Auburn Coach Gus Malzahn on how the Tigers will approach their game at Ole Miss after losing to Tennessee 30-24

"I hear they're as good as any, and they get fired up and get after you. They're into the game and are going to make it a challenging atmosphere. I think that's the thing I'm most excited for."

-- Mississippi State Coach Joe Moorhead on LSU's fans as he prepares for his first game at Tiger Stadium

"Every opportunity we had before the game is still in front of us."

-- Georgia Coach Kirby Smart after the Bulldogs lost 36-16 at LSU

Sports on 10/18/2018

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