LSU football can make Rece Davis' head explode by beating Georgia, passing Tennessee | Toppmeyer
Rece Davis and David Pollack engaged in a borderline contentious disagreement on ESPN’s television set, and I don’t blame them, because a college football rankings show without debate is just a televised list.
The talking heads considered Tuesday what the College Football Playoff selection committee might do if it must choose between No. 5 Tennessee (9-1, 5-1 SEC) and No. 6 LSU (8-2, 6-1) for the final playoff spot if the Tigers upset No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship game on Dec. 3.
For Davis, Tennessee’s 40-13 Oct. 8 win at LSU would trump LSU’s conference championship and its wins against Georgia and Alabama. The Vols also beat Alabama.
“LSU can get in – but not before Tennessee. … (The Vols) beat them senseless on their home field,” Davis said.
And yet, if LSU runs the table, its résumé would include a conference championship, the nation’s best victory (beating Georgia), and a win against top-10 Alabama.
Pollack doesn't buy that the committee should take two SEC teams, Georgia and Tennessee, but not an 11-win SEC champion, which would have just defeated the nation’s No. 1 team.
“If LSU is an SEC champion and beats Georgia, which Tennessee wasn’t able to do, … you’re saying that doesn’t change your mind?” Pollack pressed Davis.
Davis looked as if his head might explode at the insinuation that the committee would select LSU over the Vols, in spite of their head-to-head result.
Brace yourself, Davis, because I think that’s exactly what would happen.
TOPPMEYER:If SEC is serious about Tennessee football, LSU fans not storming the field, then target the beer
ADAMS:'Rocky Top' nauseates Missouri fan. Tennessee football defense, basketball sicken others
SLURP IT UP:Chicken broth for LSU's soul? Brian Kelly explains why players sipped soup on sideline
The committee clearly loves LSU’s résumé, even before the SEC Championship. Toss in a neutral-site victory against the nation’s top-ranked team, and I think the committee would be swayed.
Davis’ head-to-head argument runs into a wall for this reason: If the Tigers win the SEC Championship, then Georgia, LSU and Tennessee each would have a 1-1 record in the round-robin triangle of these teams.
Subscribe to SEC Football Unfiltered
iTunes | Google Play | Spotify
In Davis’ perspective, Tennessee beat LSU, so how could the Tigers be in over the Vols?
Well, Georgia beat Tennessee, so how could UT be in over the Bulldogs?
Well, LSU, in this scenario we're considering, would have a win against Georgia, so how could the Bulldogs be in over the Tigers?
LSU would be the only two-loss team among this trio, but it also would be the only conference champion in the group. And the committee favors conference champions.
See the problem?
That’s why LSU beating Georgia is the committee’s nightmare scenario. The committee could have three SEC teams for two spots, with no undebatable solution.
Well, hold up, maybe a solution exists.
Step 1: No. 7 Southern Cal (9-1) loses another game, leaving the Pac-12 with a two-loss champion.
Step 2: No. 4 TCU (10-0) loses.
Step 3: No. 2 Ohio State beats No. 3 Michigan.
Voila!
Georgia, Tennessee and LSU each can make the playoff then, alongside the Buckeyes. Davis and Pollack can breathe more easily, while fans outside the SEC’s footprint fume.
Camouflage for Lane Kiffin?
Lane Kiffin is no fan of cold weather. The Ole Miss coach has spent much of his career in temperate climates like Los Angeles or Boca Raton, Florida.
Kiffin’s No. 14 Rebels (8-2, 4-2) will play at Arkansas (5-5, 2-4) on Saturday (6:30 p.m. CT, SEC Network). Forecasted evening temperature: 19 degrees.
[ WANT MORE OPINIONS FROM BLAKE TOPPMEYER? Sign up for the SEC Unfiltered newsletter for exclusive columns delivered straight to your inbox ]
Kiffin has been in contact with the folks at Realtree, and they’re supplying him with “heated hunting gear” to wear underneath his Ole Miss garb.
Deer season is under way in Arkansas. I’m trying to envision Kiffin in a deer stand. I can’t see it.
Jimbo Fisher as the fashion police
Nothing gets past Jimbo Fisher.
Yes, Texas A&M (3-7) is in the midst of its first six-game losing streak in 50 years, but Fisher operates a snappy dress code.
Wide receiver Moose Muhammad III, one of the Aggies’ best players, tweeted after the 13-10 loss to Auburn on Saturday that he was benched for wearing sleeves. During a night game. When temperatures dipped into the 40s.
The nerve of that guy!
The Houston Chronicle reported that Aggies coaches believe wearing sleeves in cold conditions increases the risk of fumbles.
Not wearing sleeves in cold conditions increases the risk of being cold.
“We’ve addressed it, and we’ve all talked about it, and (we’re) moving on,” Fisher told reporters.
I wonder how many Aggies players will move on after this abysmal season.
Mike Leach will critique officiating – for a fee
A reporter tried to bait Mike Leach into criticizing officials during the SEC teleconference, but the Mississippi State coach was having none of it. Criticizing officials through the media can elicit a fine, so Leach is wisely withholding his assessment – unless the reporter ponies up cash for a quote.
“That’s a ridiculous question and you know it," Leach said. “You go ahead and mail me a check. I think $30,000 would cover it, although I’d need to check the market. You go ahead and mail me a check, and I’ll give you an answer.”
A smart man would take $10,000 from that check and purchase an I-bond.
Email of the week
James writes (in response to my column suggesting the SEC restrict a school’s alcohol sales as penalty, if fans rush the field): It's obvious you have zero clue what you write about and should be FIRED for the puritan trash you wrote. Alcohol sales has nothing to do with and anyone that ever went to game instead of layup (sic) in a frat house would know that. Study the history little boy and you might learn something.
My response: The emailer doth protest too much, methinks.
Three and out
1. If you’re unhappy with the playoff committee’s latest rankings, you’re probably operating off some sort of bias. The committee’s latest top five – Georgia, Ohio State, Michigan, TCU and Tennessee – matches the order of what it would be if the BCS rankings were still in place, according to the latest simulation of BCS rankings.
2. If the 12-team playoff were in operation this season, Gus Malzahn’s UCF Knights would be positioned to claim the Group of Five’s bid. Imagine that, Malzahn is still piling up victories, and Auburn is searching for a football coach – should have kept the guy who compiled eight consecutive winning seasons at AU and beat Nick Saban three times.
3. A check on the latest 247Sports Composite rankings for the 2023 recruiting class: 1. Alabama, 2. Georgia, 3. Notre Dame, 4. LSU, 5. Ohio State, 6. Texas, 7. Oklahoma, 8 Florida.
That’s four SEC schools, plus two schools that will enter the conference by 2025.
Blake Toppmeyer is an SEC Columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.
The "Topp Rope," is his twice-weekly SEC football column publishing throughout the USA TODAY Network. If you enjoy Blake’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it. Also, check out his podcast, SEC Football Unfiltered, or access exclusive columns via the SEC Unfiltered newsletter.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY NETWORK: LSU football can make Rece Davis' head explode by beating Georgia
