Eight Days From SEC Football! - Part III

The final games of the first weekend of SEC football are below, including huge matchups with potential College Football Playoff implications.

All games are EST and rankings are from the Associated Press Top 25 .

You may read Part I HERE and Part II right HERE .

August 31

Furman at #6 Ole Miss, 7:00 PM, SEC+/ESPN+

Quarterback Jaxson Dart will pass to a plethora of playmakers returning to the Rebels or transferred into the program. Expect offensive play-calling guru Lane Kiffin to take advantage and light up the scoreboard against an undermanned Furman team.

More valuable to know, how well does the Rebel defense play the run and does it give up big passing plays? There are several new faces on that side of the ball including ultra-talented defensive tackle Walter Nolan from Texas A&M.

Alabama A&M at Auburn, 7:30 PM, ESPN+/SEC+

Former Penn State wide receiver KeAndre Lambert-Smith and four freshmen receivers are what Auburn fans want to see this season. Alabama A&M will definitely be defending against the deep ball from that group, with freshman Cam Coleman possibly being the best receiver on the team already.

Quarterback Payton Thorne is certainly happy to have them in addition to a very talented tight end room led by Rivaldo Fairweather, too. One could still argue that left tackle and former Mississippi State player Percy Lewis is the most important transfer. He has an NFL future.

Auburn went to the Transfer Portal to land several defensive players and none may be more important than former A&M nose guard Isaiah Raikes. He’s been quite impressive in fall camp and the expectations are high for the 6-foot-1 and 323-pound senior.

#7 Notre Dame at #20 Texas A&M, 7:30 PM, ABC

This is a game with irony. Former A&M and Notre Dame defensive coordinator Mike Elko is now the head coach of the Aggies. Plus, while being the head coach for Duke, his starting quarterback would be Riley Leonard. He’s now the starter for the Irish.

The two biggest questions for this game are as follows. Can the Irish overcome the issues at left and right tackle due to early departures of Joe Alt and Blake Fisher to the NFL? It’s been dicey at left tackle at least during fall camp. ND will face one of college football’s best fronts. Good luck.

As for the Aggies, how does quarterback Conner Weigman returns after playing in just four games due to a leg injury last season. Will he be mentally ready to take on Notre Dame’s defense that projects to be one of the nation’s best? This should be a tremendous football game and go down to the wire.

Southern Miss at Kentucky, 7:45 PM, SEC Network

After all the grumbling from Mark Stoops to his boosters and administration about NIL donations, could the Wildcats just please take to the field and play some SEC football?

As for UK’s defense, there might not be a better nose guard at making big plays than Deone Walker. His 12.5 tackles for loss came despite being consistently double-teamed. If the Wildcats are to improve their record he will need another outstanding season before heading to the NFL.

September 1

#23 Southern California versus #13 LSU (Las Vegas), 7:30 PM, ABC

After losing the #1 overall NFL Draft pick Caleb Williams to the Chicago Bears and still going just 8-5 with the talented passer, what does USC look like against LSU?

Yes, LSU’s defense is coming off an awful season and the #2 pick in the NFL Draft would former Bayou Bengals quarterback Jayden Daniels. Still, USC better play far more soundly on defense than it did last year. Newly hired defensive coordinator D’Anton Lynn comes over from UCLA with rave reviews.

Former Missouri defensive coordinator Blake Baker is now on the LSU sidelines as well. With so many new faces, this game could come down to Miller Moss of the Trojans outsourcing Garrett Nussmeir of the Tigers. Look for an up-and-down game that will be exciting football.