Things to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:
No. 1 Ohio State at No. 4 Texas, Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
No. 1 Ohio State heads to No. 4 Texas for a Saturday night rematch of last year’s season opener. Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin and Texas signal-caller Arch Manning each bring a year of starting experience to the field this time. Both quarterbacks come off 3-plus touchdown performances in a pair of dominant Week 1 wins over Group
of Six teams.
The Week 1 loss a year ago left Texas fighting an uphill battle for much of the season last year with little room for error. This matchup offers the slightly favored Longhorns a chance to get it right this time with an early resume booster in Manning's revenge tour for a College Football Playoff bid.
No. 11 Oklahoma at Michigan, Saturday, noon ET (FOX)
Oklahoma and Michigan entered their season debuts as more than 27-point favorites, but that’s where the similarities end. As Oklahoma rolled past UTEP with a 51-0 win, the Wolverines relied on a second-chance Hail Mary to beat Western Michigan 13-12.
Michigan now has a talented Sooners team to prepare for, and quarterback Bryce Underwood has a job to fight to keep.
Oklahoma entered the season with 14 returning starters, including quarterback John Mateer, who picked up where he left off with a 225-yard and three-touchdown performance in Week 1.
— Nate Frazier: The Georgia running back only needed five minutes to notch two rushing touchdowns in the Bulldogs’ 63-3 rout of Tennessee State. The 5-foot-10 running back finished with 72 yards and three touchdowns — on four carries.
— Deuce Alexander: Ole Miss’s 41-38 win against No. 24 Louisville was a coming-out party for Alexander, who was named SEC Offensive Player of the Week after connecting with quarterback Trinidad Chambliss for 159 yards and two touchdowns on five receptions.
— Faizon Brandon: The freshman Tennessee quarterback accounted for 294 total yards and five total touchdowns in his debut for the Volunteers. Brandon was 13-of-17 for 226 passing yards and three touchdowns, the ran for more 68 yards and two more scores.
The SEC was undefeated in Week 1 for the first time since 1997, going 16-0. ... Mississippi State accounted for a conference-high 762 yards of offense in its 62-13 win against Louisiana-Monroe. ... SEC teams outscored opponents by 602 points or an average of 37.6 points in Week 1. ... Florida running back Jadan Baugh leads the conference with 160 rushing yards. ... Deuce Alexander's 159 receiving yards were the most among SEC teams in Week 1. ... Tennessee's Xavier Gilliam had a conference-high three sacks and five tackles for loss vs. Furman.
No. 12 Alabama and Kentucky kick off conference play, with the visiting Crimson Tide 10.5-point favorites. Alabama leads the all-time series 39-2-1 dating back to 1917.
No. 18 Tennessee visits Georgia Tech and hopes to avoid a trap as nearly two touchdown favorite. The Yellow Jackets have a strong roster on paper and plenty of newcomers looking to put the pieces together and change the narrative after a brutal 14-13 loss to Colorado.
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