SEC report

Change at top for Malzahn

Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn reacts to a targeting call during the first half of an NCAA college football game against LSU, Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016, in Auburn, Ala. (AP Photo/Butch Dill)

Auburn Coach Gus Malzahn wore his headset over a white cap instead of his usual visor when the Tigers beat LSU 18-13 on Saturday night in Jordan-Hare Stadium.

It was an odd sight considering that going back to Malzahn's high school coaching days in Arkansas he's worn a visor in tribute to Steve Spurrier, who won a combined 122 games as an SEC coach at Florida and South Carolina.

Malzahn said on Wednesday's SEC coaches teleconference that he decided to wear a cap at the urging of his daughters, Kylie and Kenzie.

"My two daughters have been getting on me that I'm getting bald up top, and they suggested I wear a hat instead of a visor," Malzahn said. "So that's where that came from."

Malzahn chuckled when asked whether he's going to wear a hat instead of a visor the rest of the season.

"I don't know," he said. "I was a little uncomfortable to be honest with you. But we won, so we'll see."

Malzahn's change in headgear wasn't his only surprising switch against LSU. He also turned over play-calling duties to offensive coordinator Rhett Lashlee -- who played quarterback for Malzahn at Shiloh Christian and was a walk-on at Arkansas.

"This is a first," Malzahn said of not calling plays. "I thought it was really good the way it worked out Saturday.

"I think it'll be a really good thing moving forward. We've got a really good offensive staff that I think will do a great job."

Malzahn said that after the Tigers' 1-2 start -- including losses to Clemson and Texas A&M and a victory over Arkansas State -- he determined he should hand off play-calling to Lashlee.

"I felt like I was too negative the first couple of games," Malzahn said Tuesday at his weekly news conference. "That's probably the best way to put it.

"I was living and dying with every play."

Malzahn said he believes it's best for him and his team that he delegate game preparation and responsibilities to his assistant coaches.

"The biggest difference is I'm not going to be in that film room for 20 hours a day," Malzahn told reporters in Auburn. "I'll still be on top of things and involved, but it's going to allow me there for my players more. I think that's the biggest thing."

Good start for Crockett

Damarea Crockett, a freshman from Little Rock Christian, is leading Missouri in rushing with 210 yards on 34 carries through four games. He's averaging 6.2 yards per carry and 52.5 yards per game, and he has scored 3 touchdowns, including a 26-yard run against Eastern Michigan. He also has one reception for 9 yards.

Missouri Coach Barry Odom said Crockett, 5-11 and 225 pounds, has a style that fits the Tigers' scheme, and the freshman realizes he can't simply run away from defenders the way he did in high school.

"Damarea has got good speed, but he doesn't have great speed," Odom said. "So it's been a learning process for him to be able to know when to put his foot in the ground and head north and south, get his pad level right.

"He's picked up the offense. His football IQ is really, really high."

Missouri running backs coach Cornell Ford said Crockett, who has gained 15 pounds since last season, is showing a little bit more of what he can do each week.

"He just needs to be more consistent," Ford told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. "But, man, he's a very talented kid."

Crockett has impressed his teammates.

"He's an energetic dude," Missouri sophomore guard Kevin Pendleton told the Post-Dispatch. "He's a fireball of energy and loves having the ball in his hands and helping the team any way he can.

"He's a guy that will step in and pass protect if he needs to, go out in the flat and catch a ball ... and he'll put his head down, run behind his pads and run some guy over and stick it in the end zone."

Odom said Crockett works the right way throughout the practice week to earn playing time in games.

"He understands this team is leaning and relying on him," Odom said. "He's going to play meaningful snaps as we move forward."

Familiar spot

Ed Orgeron, named LSU's interim head coach after Les Miles was fired Sunday after the Tigers' 2-2 start, has some experience in this type of situation.

Orgeron, an assistant strength coach at Arkansas in 1986-87, took over as USC's interim coach in 2013 after Lane Kiffin was fired five games into the season.

In Orgeron's eight games leading USC, the team went 6-2, including victories over No. 5 Stanford, Arizona and California. The two losses were at Notre Dame and to UCLA.

Orgeron, who was 10-25 as Ole Miss' coach from 2005-2007, said he's applying a lot of what he did as USC's interim coach to what LSU will do moving forward in terms of practice schedule and game-day operations.

"We were able to hit the ground running," he said. "We've had a lot of energy at practice."

LSU plays Missouri on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium.

"I would expect our team to play very emotional and play with a lot of energy and make plays," Orgeron said. "Obviously, there'll be some tough spots in the game that we'll have to push through, but I want to see them play as a team.

"It's not about offense, it's not about defense, it's not about special teams. One team. One heartbeat."

Tough stretch

Tennessee's 38-28 victory over Florida was the first of four consecutive games against nationally ranked teams for the Vols.

The Vols play at No. 25 Georgia on Saturday, at No. 9 Texas A&M on Oct. 8 and against No. 1 Alabama on Oct. 15 after an open date.

Tennessee Coach Butch Jones said it's the toughest four-game stretch he can recall facing.

"I think most teams in all of college football would be hard-pressed to find a four-game stretch like that," Jones said. "But that's also what happens when you compete in the SEC.

"The thing you have to do is take a day-by-day mentality with that. You can't look up at what's coming down the road. You just have to focus on winning each particular day.

"It may sound like coach-speak, but that's really the truth."

Makes sense

Mississippi State Coach Dan Mullen said Florida's decision to hire Scott Stricklin as its athletic director wasn't a surprise given the Bulldogs' success in football since Stricklin became athletic director at his alma mater in May 2010.

"We've won more games than Florida [in that span]," Mullen said. "So you look at the kind of success we're having and you can see why a school like Florida would really want to try to get someone like Scott."

Mississippi State is 52-30 since 2010 compared to Florida's 50-31 record.

Two-minute drill

• Texas A&M safety Armani Watts was named SEC defensive player of the week for his performance against Arkansas, which included forcing and recovering a fumble by Rawleigh Williams at the Aggies' goal line and tackling Keon Hatcher for a 5-yard loss on a fourth-and-goal play from the 1.

• Two of the SEC's top tailbacks -- LSU's Leonard Fournette and Georgia's Nick Chubb -- are questionable for games against Missouri and Tennessee because of ankle injuries.

• Ole Miss' 45-14 victory over Georgia was the Rebels' largest margin of victory over a ranked opponent since beating No. 3 Tennessee 38-0 in 1969.

• LSU and Missouri are facing each other for the second time. Missouri won the only previous meeting 20-15 at the 1978 Liberty Bowl in Memphis.

• Texas A&M will wear throwback 1956 uniforms against South Carolina to honor Coach Bear Bryant's team that finished 9-0-1.

• Kentucky had lost 39 consecutive games in which it trailed at halftime before beating South Carolina 17-10. The Wildcats rallied from a 7-3 halftime deficit.

• Texas A&M's Josh Reynolds' 92-yard touchdown catch against Arkansas wasn't the longest of his career. He had a 95-yarder against Vanderbilt last season.

SEC TOP TO BOTTOM

Rank;(previous);record;comment

1;(1)Alabama;4-0;Should have little problem with Kentucky

2;(2)Texas A&M(2);4-0;Sumlin 5-0 against Hogs

3(7);Tennessee;4-0;Beats Florida for first time since 2004

4;(8)Ole Miss;2-2;Hangs on to big lead against Georgia

5;(4);Arkansas;3-1;Should roll in Rock against Alcorn State

6;(3);Florida;3-1;Second-half collapse at Tennessee unsettling

7;(9);Auburn;2-2;Gus doesn't want to coach angry

8;(5);LSU;2-2;Time runs out on Miles' tenure in Baton Rouge

9;(6);Georgia;3-1;Rebels embarrass Kirby Smart's defense

10;(10);Mississippi State;2-2;Open date before hosting Auburn

11;(12);Missouri;2-2;Not sure what to expect at LSU

12;(14);Kentucky;2-2;Tough road trip to Alabama

13;(11)South Carolina;2-2;Will try to hand Aggies first loss

14(13);Vanderbilt;2-2;Beats Western Kentucky in OT

PLAYER TO WATCH

TENNESSEE QUARTERBACK JOSHUA DOBBS

It looked like Tennessee was going to suffer a 12th consecutive loss to Florida last week, but Dobbs rallied the Vols to a 38-28 victory after they fell behind 21-0 in the first half.

Dobbs accounted for five touchdowns against Florida and earned SEC offensive player of the week honors. He had 235 of his 319 passing yards and all 4 of his touchdown passes in the second half. He also rushed for 80 yards and a touchdown.

Tennessee will look for another big game from Dobbs at Georgia on Saturday, which would help the Vols maintain control of the SEC East race.

Dobbs has completed 61 of 107 passes for 805 yards and 10 touchdowns and rushed 54 times for 241 yards and 4 touchdowns on the season.

GAME OF THE WEEK

Tennessee at Georgia

WHEN 2:30 p.m. Saturday (CBS)

WHERE Sanford Stadium, Athens, Ga.

RECORDS Tennessee 4-0, 1-0 SEC. Georgia 3-1, 0-1

RANKINGS Tennessee is ranked No. 11 in both The Associated Press and USA Today polls. Georgia is ranked No. 25 and No. 20.

LINE Tennessee favored by 3½ points

Tennessee is looking to beat the Bulldogs in Athens for the first time since 2006, when the Vols won 51-33.

A Tennessee victory could knock Georgia out of the SEC East race early after the Bulldogs opened conference play with a 45-14 loss at Ole Miss.

Back-to-back victories over Florida and Georgia would go a long way toward helping Tennessee win its first SEC East title since 2007.

BY THE NUMBERS

4,389 -- Days between Tennessee victories over Florida. The Vols' 38-28 victory over the Gators on Saturday marked the first time Tennessee had won in the series since beating Florida 30-28 on Sept. 18, 2004.

114-34 -- Les Miles' record as LSU's coach.

6 -- SEC record-tying field goals by Auburn's Daniel Carlson to account for all the Tigers' points in an 18-13 victory over LSU.

OVERHEARD

"It makes me look skinnier."

-- South Carolina Coach Will Muschamp on why he wears all black on game days.

"When I heard the news, my stomach literally got sick."

-- Ole Miss Coach Hugh Freeze on his reaction to Les Miles being fired at LSU.

"He does not look like a freshman."

-- Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops on Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts.

Sports on 09/29/2016