SEC Power Poll - Week 4ish

Comments on every SEC team, courtesy of Garnet and Black Attack...

1. Georgia, 247 points (11 first-place votes)

2. Florida, 245 (8)

3. LSU, 232 (3)

4. Alabama, 199.5

5. Auburn, 167.5

6. Vanderbilt, 161

7. Kentucky, 111

8. Mississippi, 100

8. South Carolina, 100

10. Tennessee, 86

11. Mississippi State, 34

12. Arkansas, 33

...and forth.

Georgia and Florida's back-and-forth battle for first place continues. Week 1 brought us first-place Florida. Week 2, first-place Georgia. Week 3, first-place Florida. And this week, two points give the spelling-challenged Dawgs the nod for No. 1. These teams have essentially been deadlocked the whole season, and unless one gets upset, the argument won't be settled until they meet in Jacksonville on Nov. 1. LSU isn't far behind; Alabama has a ton of ground to make up. Auburn and Vanderbilt round out the top half.

Then comes a yawning 50-point gap before Kentucky comes in. By contrast, only 25 points separate the Wildcats in 7th place and the Volunteers in 10th.

And Arkansas has now fallen into possession of the "Worst of the Best" Cup, as Mississippi State's dominated performance against Georgia Tech isn't quite enough to underwhelm Arkansas' self-immolation against Alabama. This race should also go down to the end, as each team looks to one-down the other.

Voters expand upon these thoughts after the jump.

GEORGIA

Still working out some issues with penalties and leaky kickoff coverage, but clearly the most complete team in the league so far this season.--The Dead Guy

For years now I've been asking Santa, "Please bring me a game-breaking receiver for Christmas," and when I got to Tempe ... he finally came.--Hey Jenny Slater

The Dawgs went from posting a minus-37 total yardage deficit at Carolina to a plus-249 surplus at Arizona St. Fair to say Georgia's doing its part in making the SEC look good.--Joe Cribbs Car Wash

FLORIDA

While the defense is markedly better than the 2007 version, there may be some concerns for the offense. The coaches in the SEC are the best in the country and they're developing ways to slow them up.--The Dead Guy

What, precisely, are we to take from Saturday's conquest, though? The first downs were even at 16 apiece; had the Big Orange held the ball for two fewer seconds, the time of possession would have been divided equally between the two combatants; the home team outgained the visitors from Gainesville in total yards (258-243). Three Tennessee turnovers and a 78-yard punt return allowed this one to get altogether out of hand, but how good are the Gators? Considering that they converted over 60 per cent of their third downs against U.T., I'm going to err on the side of saying they're pretty good.--Dawg Sports

The vaunted offense has been coasting through most of the games so far, and UF has won by 46, 23, and 24 points. The defense and special teams have been championship caliber.--Year 2

LSU

Impressive win in Auburn. Maybe Les is smarter than we give him credit for. That onsides kick was brilliant.--Garnet and Black Attack

So much for the lingering effects of the Ryan Perrilloux Xperience. Anyone who thought that the QB situation might be enough to sink LSU this year might want to start exploring other options.--Hey Jenny Slater

If Jarrett Lee's second half on the Plains isn't a fluke, the rest of the West can start heading for the exits. Everything is, infuriatingly, in place.--Joe Cribbs Car Wash

ALABAMA

When, oh when, will SEC teams stop scheduling so many cupcakes? Oh, wait...--Save the Shield

Convincing victory made even more impressive when you factor in the number of freshmen and sophomores Saban is playing.--The Dead Guy

I'm really surprised with the Crimson Tide so far. They are top 15 in all of the key defensive statistics with the exception of third down defense, and they're No. 16 in that.--Rocky Top Talk

AUBURN

They need to figure out this offense. I know they are in a transitional phase, but 1.9 ypc against LSU is awful, I don't care how good LSU might be up front.--Alligator Army

The Tigers fought down to the end against LSU, but couldn't stop the Hat. The defense was strong, and the offense showed signs of life. Auburn is a good team and lost to another good team. No shame.--Gate 21

The Plainsmen clearly have some problems, and not just on offense, as evidenced by the fact that their once-smothering defense allowed an inexperienced sophomore QB to turn into a hero Saturday night.--Hey Jenny Slater

VANDERBILT

Somehow managed to clip Ole Miss despite a less than stellar performance. Are they opportunistic or just lucky? We'll see next week against Auburn.--Save the Shield

4-0. 4-0. No, it's not their GPA, it's their record.--Pelican State Sports

It's like the 'Dores saved up all their luck over the last 20 years just for this season.--Joe Cribbs Car Wash

KENTUCKY

Pass efficiency defense ranked 11th and rush defense ranked 5th. Offense, though, is atrocious, statistically speaking.--Rocky Top Talk

Here's an SAT question for you: "Choose the best answer. The Kentucky Wildcats have not: A. lost to anybody, or B. beaten anybody." Every answer is right, but every answer is also profoundly wrong.--Red Solo Cup

Who knows? Unless they struggle against Western, we figure to have to wait until their trip to Tuscaloosa to know anything.--A Sea of Blue

MISSISSIPPI

Somehow managed to lose to Vandy despite outgaining them by almost 200 yards.--Garnet and Black Attack

For the next several days Jevan Snead will keep waking up in a sweat at 3 am, thinking that Ryan Hamilton just picked off another pass.--Save the Shield

Jevan Snead is teetering on the edge of the abyss that is the Ole Miss Quarterback position A.E. (After Eli)--Deep South Sports

SOUTH CAROLINA

Unimpressive Wofford win, but 'Cocks' two close SEC losses don't look so bad, and the NC State win looks a lot better.--Save the Shield

A 10-point win over Wofford? Isn't Wofford an English soccer team?--Alligator Army

After tuning up with *Wofford*, I suspect that Spurrier continues his prodigious offensive revolution against UAB.--Loser With Socks

TENNESSEE

The Clawfense is befuddling Crompton, leading to a curious lack of production for an offense with lots of good players. If they lose to Auburn this weekend, which they should, they might have to battle to stay out of the East cellar.--Georgia Sports Blog

The Vols' defensive stats are fine. Offensively, they're still struggling, but much of that is probably attributed to productivity-killing mistakes.--Rocky Top Talk

The death march has begun. No more blaming things on assistants. No more rebuilding years. The Vol Navy is in shambles. Knoxville is burning to the ground.--UK Wildcat Country

MISSISSIPPI STATE

MSU's offense has taken a major step backwards this year, which is tough considering how bad it was last year. You've got to think that Woody McCorvey's days in Starkville are coming to an end.--The Dead Guy

Sly continues to croom himself.--Loser With Socks

If you were a child psychologist and asked a six-year-old to draw a picture of "sad," the result would probably look a lot like MSU's offensive playbook.--Hey Jenny Slater

ARKANSAS

Casey Dick impressed me with 190 yds passing, but he threw more passes to the other team than he did to his own. If he keeps throwing 4 picks a game he's going to have to work harder on his tackling.--Gate 21

Hey, at least Casey Dick had 3 Touchdown passes. Two of them were to the opponent, but let'snot get worked up about who we're tossing it to since Arkansas needs something to build from.--Tide Druid

On the bright side, everyone agreed that the halftime show was very nice.--Razorback Expats