SEC temperature check: Alabama, Texas losses headline conference’s weekend

College football’s opening week has arguably never been hotter in the SEC ranks, as temperature checks in Austin and Tuscaloosa would surely verify.

The SEC spent an offseason lobbying the College Football Playoff Selection Committee to incorporate an enhanced schedule metric to ensure its deserving teams make the playoff, only to see two of its marquee programs fall flat on the road in Week 1.

The perception of SEC power went from “Hot,” with 10 teams ranked in the preseason Top 25, to “Not so fast, my friend,” as the now-retired Lee Corso would say on “College GameDay.”

There’s a full season ahead for the SEC to reclaim its pride and dominance, but for now here’s a review of key SEC action:

Hot: Alabama football fans, who with a 31-17 loss at Florida State have seen second-year coach Kalen DeBoer lose four games to unranked opponents in 14 games. DeBoer replaces Nick Saban, who lost four games against unranked foes in 17 years.

Florida State quarterback Thomas Castellanos is cashing in on it, marketing a $45 T-shirt for NIL profit with the phrase “Nick can’t save them.” Castellanos, of course, said of Alabama last summer: “They don’t have Nick Saban to save them.”

Cold: Arch Manning’s Heisman Trophy campaign, after the preseason All-American was just 17-of-30 passing for 170 yards and a TD in a 14-7 loss at Ohio State.

Texas coach Steve Sarkisian is a purported offensive guru, but the Longhorns were just 1-of-5 on fourth-down conversion attempts, including a pivotal play that saw Manning get stopped on fourth-and-goal at the Buckeyes 1. Manning was off target 37% of the time, per ESPN, which represents the worst metric of that kind by a Texas quarterback in 10 seasons.

“The expectations were out of control on the outside,” said Sarkisian, who has sold recruits — including Manning — on the “All Gas, No Brakes” mantra and has a roster it spent $35-$40 million on, according to the Houston Chronicle.

Hot: LSU championship hopes after the Bayou Bengals scored their first season-opening win since 2019 by taking down ACC favorite Clemson on Saturday night.

Garrett Nussmeier looked the part of a steady veteran QB, leading his team back from a 10-3 halftime deficit with a 28-of-38 passing performance that netted 230 yards and a touchdown.

The LSU defense, much maligned last season, came up with a clutch fourth-down stop at its own 15-yard line on Clemson’s final drive.

Preseason All-American linebacker Harold Perkins pressured Cade Klubnik into a rushed, off-target throw to clinch the victory for fourth-year coach Brian Kelly.

LSU has won national titles under its three previous head coaches, and fans in Baton Rouge have been getting restless.

Cold: Georgia as a big favorite, the Bulldogs falling to 0-13-1 when coach Kirby Smart is favored by 38 or more points.

Georgia held a 45-0 lead in the fourth quarter of its home game at Sanford Stadium, but that was before Marshall third-string quarterback Zion Turner came off the bench to complete six of seven passes for 100 yards. Turner, a Louisville transfer, chunked plays of 34 and 44 yards that led to the Thundering Herd touchdown.

The Bulldogs’ backups put up little resistance. The “Fire, Passion and Energy” that Smart had preached on was missing with more than half the stadium empty by that point, tens of thousands having left at halftime with Georgia holding a 24-0 lead.

Hot: Tennessee transfer portal outcome, the Vols appearing to have upgraded at quarterback with UCLA transfer Joey Aguilar filling Nico Iamaleava’s shoes after the previous Big Orange starter bolted for the West Coast to play for the Bruins.

Aguilar, who played the previous two seasons at Appalachian State before his cup of coffee in Westwood and plane ticket to McGhee Tyson Airport, passed for 247 yards and three touchdowns in the 45-26 win over Syracuse.

UCLA fizzled in Iamaleava’s debut, falling by a 43-10 count to Utah. The Tennessee transfer completed 11 of 22 passes for 136 yards with a TD and interception while leading the Bruins with 13 carries for 47 yards.

“It’s the first game and we got punched in the mouth,” Iamaleava said. “The guys in the locker room are still together. We have to be better than that. The only way is up, and we have to continue to be better.”

Hot: Florida football season start after the Long Island University Sharks made their debut against SEC competition, now seven seasons in as an FCS program following the 2018 season.