The day that started crazy with College GameDay going to Cal for the first time just got crazier and crazier.
More than half the teams in the top 11 all lost as the Nos. 1, 4, 9, 10 and 11 were taken down and Missouri was the only one to lose to a ranked opponent.
There’s no taking away that the Tiger loss was bad, but it’s hard to even call it the worst in conference, because …
VANDERBILT 40, NO. 1 ALABAMA 35
As Nick Saban said, “The only place that’s not hard to play in the SEC is Vanderbilt.”
Well I guess it’s harder now than when Saban was in charge of the Crimson Tide.
Say goodbye to that No. 1 ranking Alabama, Missouri dropped two spots after beating Vanderbilt, and that double overtime win looks a little better today.
The Commodores jumped ahead with a Sedrick Alexander 7-yard touchdown, then Randon Fontenette intercepted a Jalen Milroe pass and returned it for a 29-yard touchdown to give Vandy a two-score lead in the first quarter.
A 1-yard Alexander touchdown in the second quarter made it 20-7, then Vanderbilt hit a 51-yard field goal to go up 23-7 with 1:25 left before halftime.
Alabama cut it to 23-20 early in the third quarter and looked for their second consecutive week with a comeback win, but Diego Pavia tossed a 36-yard touchdown to Junior Sherrill to keep the Commodores in front, then made it a two-score game in the fourth with a 6-yard touchdown to Kamrean Johnson.
Pavia was 16-of-22 for 252 yards and two touchdowns, while adding 56 rushing yards to lead the Commodores.
Vanderbilt held off the comeback for the school’s first win against a top-5 opponent in program history and the first win against Alabama since 1906.
Vanderbilt will need new uprights as the old ones made their way into the Cumberland River.
Vanderbilt (3-2, 1-1 SEC) will go on the road to face Kentucky at 6:45 p.m. next Saturday.
Alabama (4-1, 1-1) will return to action hosting South Carolina at 11 a.m. next Saturday.
That’s not it for top-10 SEC losses though …
ARKANSAS 19, NO. 4 TENNESSEE 14
The Volunteers scored 14 third-quarter points to try to come back from a 3-0 halftime deficit, but the Razorbacks had the last laugh, scoring the game’s final 16 points on a Ja’Quinden Jackson 2-yard run, a Matthew Shiply 23-yard field goal and a Malachi Singleton 11-yard touchdown run.
Arkansas outgained Tennessee 434-332, mostly in the air with a 297-156 advantage in passing yards.
Taylen Green was 19-of-27 passing for 266 yards for Arkansas and Singleton completed 2-of-3 passes for 31 yards.
Nico Iamaleave was 16-of-28 for 156 yards for Tennessee.
Dylan Sampson rushed for 140 yards on 22 attempts for the Volunteers, while Andrew Armstrong led the Razorbacks with 132 receiving yards.
Arkansas (4-2, 2-1) is on a bye next week.
Tennessee (4-1, 1-1) will host Florida at 6 p.m. next Saturday.
Now for some more expected scores …
NO. 5 GEORGIA 31, AUBURN 13
Georgia scored a touchdown in every quarter to build a big win and bounce back from its heartbreaking loss to Alabama last week.
Stat wise, Georgia didn’t dominate, but it did convert 7-of-13 third downs and held Auburn to 4-of-12.
Carson Beck was 23-of-29 passing for 240 yards and two touchdowns for Georgia, while Payton Thorne completed 16-of-27 passes for 200 for Auburn.
Jarquez Hunter led the game with 91 rushing yards for Auburn. Trevor Etienne led Georgia with 88 and a touchdown on 16 carries.
KeAndre Lambert-Smith led Auburn with 95 receiving yards. Auburn had nine players catch at least one pass.
Georgia (4-1, 2-1) will host Mississippi State at 3:15 p.m. next Saturday.
Auburn (2-4, 0-3) is on a bye next week.
In a more dominant performance …
NO. 12 OLE MISS 27, SOUTH CAROLINA 3
With all the losses, Ole Miss will certainly work its way back into the top-10 after scoring 24 first-half points to build its three-score win.
Ole Miss beat South Carolina through the air 285-162 and in the red zone, where the Rebels were 4-of-4, while the Gamecocks were 1-of-3. Ole Miss had six sacks as a team.
Jaxson Dart completed 14-of-27 passes for 285 yards for Ole Miss, while LaNorris Sellers was 20-of-32 for 162 yards with an interception for South Carolina.
Henry Parrish Jr. rushed for 81 yards and a touchdown for Ole Miss, while J.J. Pegues had two carries for 2 yards and two touchdowns for the Rebels.
Sellers led South Carolina with 55 rushing yards.
Antwane Wells Jr. had three catches for 96 yards to lead Ole Miss, while Tre Harris had three catches for 81 yards and Jordan Watkins had five receptions for 72 yards. All three would have been the leading South Carolina receiver as the Gamecocks.
Ole Miss (5-1, 1-1) will go on the road to face LSU at 6:30 p.m. next Saturday.
South Carolina (3-2, 1-2) will hit the road to face Alabama at 11 a.m. next Saturday.
And finally going outside of conference play …
FLORIDA 24, UCF 13
The Gators won their second consecutive game for the first time in a year as they put up all their points in the first half and held UCF out of the end zone until the fourth quarter.
Florida outgained UCF 359-273 with most of the advantage coming in the air where the Gators had a 229-165 advantage.
Graham Mertz was 19-of-23 for 179 yards and a touchdown for the Gators before DJ Lagway came on in relief and was 4-for-4 for 50 yards.
KJ Jefferson (a name Missouri fans might recognize from Arkansas) was 12-of-22 for 165 yards with an interception for UCF.
RJ Harvey led the game with 75 rushing yards for UCF.
Chimere Dike was the game’s leading receiver with four catches for 88 yards for Florida.
Florida (3-2, 1-1) will return to conference play with a matchup at Tennessee at 6 p.m. next Saturday.
Also on the conference slate is the first SEC edition of the Red River Rivalry as Oklahoma and Texas face off in Dallas at 2:30 p.m.
With four top-11 teams losing to unranked opponents, Miami’s scare at Cal and Missouri’s loss, today should be pretty interesting when the new rankings come out.
You can discuss the SEC slate and the new rankings over at the Tiger Walk.