SEC links for Monday:
- Mike Bianchi writes in the Orlando Sentinel that Urban Meyer embarrassed Steve Spurrier in a way once thought unimaginable. “Seeing Spurrier coming back to The Swamp and getting clobbered was like watching an aging Sinatra returning to the Sands and forgetting the words to ‘My Way.’”
- Gainesville Sun columnist Pat Dooley writes that this Florida roll is the greatest we’ve ever seen. “You talk all week about how tough a game it’s going to be and — BAM! — you look up and it’s 21-0. You worry about the guy in the visor and staying focused and — BAM! — nobody’s going to catch him and it’s 35-3. You spend the week with a sick feeling in your stomach because you’ve been watching this amazing South Carolina defense and — BAM! — you’ve won the game by half-a-hundred.”
- In the Gainesville Sun, Robbie Andreu writes that Florida is trying to keep perspective during its streak of smashing foes. “Meyer has given much of the credit for his team’s focus and intensity during this remarkable streak to the work the Gators have put in every week on Tuesday and Wednesday, especially Tuesday, the hardest and most physically demanding practice of the week.”
- Kevin Scarbinsky of the Birmingham News writes that Alabama’s dream season is about to meet its worst nightmare. “At the end of the day, at the end of the regular season, at the end of every Alabama person’s worst nightmare, there’s Auburn. There’s Auburn, going the distance on the first snap and going crazy, stacking bodies and sacks on the Alabama quarterback, raising one finger after another and sending the blood pressure of Alabama players, coaches and supporters to the moon.”
- Also in the Birmingham News, Ray Melick writes that it was too bad either Georgia or Auburn had to win their game. “Then there are games such as Auburn-Georgia, a game so full of mistakes that the winning coach, the Bulldogs’ Mark Richt, said afterward: ‘Neither team played good enough to win.’”
- Jeff Schultz of the AJC writes that Georgia lacks coaching, discipline. “They don’t play smart. They sputter too often on offense. They miss tackles on defense. They commit so many infractions it’s a wonder no official has suffered a torn rotator cuff from throwing so many penalty flags.”
- Maurice Patton writes in The Tennessean that getting that sixth win, over UK, probably locks up a bowl invite for Vanderbilt. “That means there’s a good chance there won’t be enough qualified SEC teams to fill all of the bowl tie-ins. In that environment, their 5-0 start and underdog story line makes Vanderbilt an attractive option for bowl officials, said Perry Winstead, chief financial officer for the Liberty Bowl, to be played Jan. 2 in Memphis.”
- Drew Edwards reports in the Knoxville News-Sentinel that Jonathon Crompton will start at quarterback for Tennessee against Vandy. “Crompton has played in each of UT’s last two games and engineered UT’s lone scoring drive in a 13-7 loss to Wyoming on Nov. 8. Against the Cowboys, Crompton was 11-of-27 for 91 yards and a touchdown.”
- Randy Rosetta writes in The Advocate that LSU could use its comeback win over Troy as a springboard. “Now what remains to be seen and what could become a huge factor in the final two chapters of LSU’s 2008 season is how do the Tigers respond from their biggest rally in the modern era?”
- The State reports that Penn State spoiled the debut of new USC women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley. “In the first half, the Gamecocks suffered from poor shooting, hitting 5-of-28 from the field. ‘Coming into the season, I knew we would struggle to score,’ Staley said.
- And in the Herald-Leader, Chip Cosby writes that UK needs the bye week to heal some bruises. “Brooks said that the Wildcats will be without two defensive regulars for the Tennessee game. Starting free safety Marcus McClinton is out with a severe laceration on his quadriceps, while backup defensive tackle Ricky Lumpkin will miss the game with a high ankle sprain.”
