2026 Monday AM Quarterbacking
For reasons beyond my control today’s blog is a little later. Partly due fo the Louisville Ole Miss nail biter last night. You can see why I continue to blow Jeff Brohm’s horn at U of L. That was a great football game which came down to a winning field goal as time expired. Ole Miss was lucky to get the win.
According to my resident football expert, my wife, she said this was the first time since 1997 that EVERY SEC team won their first game. Auburn and Ole Miss barely slipped by.
Let’s look at some of the new coaches at their SEC teams
BY far, the most impressive start was in LSU. Lane Kiffin proved that he could pit all the off-field hoopla on the back burner and proceed to curb stomp Clemson. Dabo’s bullheadedness about staying clear of the transfer portal and NIL, has caught up with him.
Suddenly, LSU looks like a top 5 team. Money talks big time in college football today.
Florida, Kentucky, Arkansas, Ole Miss, LSU and Auburn got their initial wins with their new coaches. Arkansas had to struggle a little against my Master’s alma mater, North Alabama. Proud of my Lions.
At Auburn. Coach Golesh pulled one out at the end when Baylor went for 2 and was stopped short. Baylor bailed them out. When they lined up to go for two, Auburn had 12 men on defense. Instead of the Bears running a quick “free” play, they called timeout. This is like fingernails on a chalkboard to me. Surely one of the 20 analysts in the press box would have caught it. If not, somebody should be walking back to Waco.
From a positive standpoint, the picture-perfect tackle came from continuous angle tackling drills. This drill begins at the junior high level. Saturday, it paid off.
Byrum Brown showed some great flashes but his throwing motion and slow release caught up with him. On a deep skinny post, the weakside safety was able to read the ball in flight and intercept from the other hash. The angle of release makes a huge difference. Brown is 6-3 BUT when you throw sidearm, it’s the same as being 6 feet tall. A short quarterback that throws over the top plays much taller.
Auburn seemed to play with more enthusiasm than they did under the last two coaches. I think Auburn made the right choice. Overall Grade: B.
As for Alabama and their win over East Carolina, the Keelon Russell QB regime has begun. You can see why he was the top quarterback coming out of high school. Russell made a number of plays with his legs and seemed to be in control of the offense.
The most obvious observation was the elite athletes, especially at the running back position. If the right side of the offensive line keeps progressing, the running game that’s been missing might come around. DeBoer is going to play the waiting game for CJ Crowell to start, but he showed his balance on a short run that only gained 8 yards. As for our All- SEC wide receiver, there will come a time, when William’s dropped passes is going to cost Bama. He had two drops, right in his hands. For older Tide fans, it reminds me of Julio Jones. He would make an acrobatic catch then drop one in his hands.
The defense, especially in the secondary has a chance to be outstanding. They had one blown coverage but otherwise, played really good. Former coaches always get a feel just by observing that the players know how to get lined up correctly. Overall Grade: A-.
Most football fans thought the pay for play, NIL and transfer portal was going to balance out the talent. Here were some of the winning point totals this weekend:48, 52, 56, 63, 59, 56,50. 56, 66, 49, 59, 59, 57,55, 45, 49, 71, 49, 73, 62, 66 and 80. So much for balancing out the playing field.
Think back on the number of fans who said they were giving up on college football since it is now a semi-pro league. Wrong, pigskin breath.
Let’s kick off our shoes and watch Florida State host SMU tonight. If Coach Norvell and FSU loses at home, you might want to buy stock in United Van Lines in Tallahassee.
The game has never been better.
For all of us Monday Morning quarterbacks.