Alabama (5-0, 2-0 in SEC)
Next game: at Missouri, 3:30 p.m. Saturday, CBS
Huddle up: QB A.J. McCarron has thrown 12 TDs in five games, the best mark in school history. Greg McElroy (2009) and Andrew Zow (1999) each had nine TDs through five games. … Alabama is one of three teams that's perfect in the red zone. The Crimson Tide is 22-of-22 inside the 20 with 16 TDs. Oklahoma State and Buffalo are the others. … DB Dee Milliner, who has two interceptions and leads the nations in pass breakups, has been added to the Chuck Bednarik watch list. … Alabama ranks No. 1 in the nation in scoring defense at seven points per game.
Tweetable fact: Alabama, Air Force and Louisiana Tech are the only teams that haven't thrown an interception.
Arkansas (2-4, 1-2)
Next game: vs. Kentucky, 7 p.m. Saturday, FSSO
Huddle up: DE Tenarius Wright (shoulder) and LB Alonzo Highsmith (foot) were both lost for the season with injuries. Highsmith leads the Razorbacks with 54 tackles — to go with two sacks — and Wright has 28. … DE Trey Flowers is the SEC defensive lineman of the week after he had a single-game SEC high 3 1/2 sacks, to go with five tackles and two pressures in the win over Auburn. Arkansas had eight sacks, tied for the most in the SEC this season and second most in the country.
Tweetable fact: Arkansas held Auburn to 40 yards rushing, the lowest total allowed by an SEC team in a conference game this season.
Auburn (1-4, 0-3)
Next game: at Mississippi, 12:21 p.m. Saturday, WPCH
Huddle up: WR Sammie Coates took issue with some teammates this week, saying: "With me, I think some of us just need to see the picture like it is. Some of these older guys, they want it but they don't want it bad enough. We don't have enough leadership on this team." … Kiehl Frazier and Clint Moseley remain in a battle for the starting QB job. … DB Jonathon Mincy (Southwest DeKalb) led Auburn with eight tackles, and DB Demetruce McNeal (Banneker) added with seven tackles. … Auburn is last in the SEC in scoring, total offense, first downs, pass efficiency, rush defense and sacks allowed.
Tweetable fact: Auburn ranks last in the nation in average turnover margin, with six takeaways and 17 giveaways, including 10 interceptions.
Florida (5-0, 4-0)
Next game: at Vanderbilt, 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPNU
Huddle up: RB Mike Gillislee is the Walter Camp Football Foundation offensive player of the week after he had 34 carries for 146 yards and two TDs against LSU. He leads the SEC in rushing with 109.6 yards per game and has seven TDs. … Florida ranks second in the nation in pass-efficiency defense (88.5) and sixth in scoring (11.4 points). … QB Jeff Driskel had 62 yards of offense in the win over LSU, but ran for five first downs. The Gators rank last in the SEC in passing with 158.6 yards per game. … Florida has a 21-game winning streak against Vanderbilt.
Tweetable fact: Florida's average time of possession is 35:09 per game, second in the nation.
Kentucky (1-5, 0-3)
Next game: at Arkansas, 7 p.m. Saturday, FSSO
Huddle up: Freshman QB Patrick Towles (ankle) will not play, leaving the position to fellow freshman Jalen Whitlow and backup Morgan Newton. … Kentucky has had so many injuries that there are 18 freshmen on this week's depth chart. Kentucky has played 26 freshmen, 12 redshirt freshmen and 14 first-year players. … Freshmen safeties Zack and Daron Blaylock (Walton) have played because of injuries to Martavius Neloms (hamstring), Mikie Benton (ankle) and Ashely Lowery (White County), who has concussion-like symptoms for the second time this season. Zack Blaylock was headed to a redshirt until last week.
Tweetable fact: Three QBs have started for the Wildcats this season for the first time since 1979.
LSU (5-1, 1-1)
Next game: vs. South Carolina, 8 p.m. Saturday, ESPN
Huddle up: LB Kevin Minter (Peachtree Ridge) is the co-defensive player of the week after he had a single-game SEC-high 20 tackles, including a school-record 17 solos, in the loss at Florida. He had three tackles for loss, two sacks and forced a fumble. His tackle total is one short of the school record. … QB Zach Mettenberger (Oconee County) shaved his mustache hoping it would change LSU's offensive woes, but the Tigers had eight first downs and 200 yards in at Florida. … LSU might start two freshmen OL — RT Vadal Alexander (Buford) and G Trai Turner — against South Carolina, which leads the SEC in sacks.
Tweetable fact: LSU has a 21-game home win streak.
Mississippi (3-3, 0-2)
Next game: vs. Auburn, 12:21 p.m. Saturday, WPCH
Huddle up: Bo Wallace remains the starter, even after his two interceptions against Texas A&M, but coach Hugh Freeze hasn't ruled out making a switch to Barry Brunetti. "If he continues to play well, you'll see a combination of both, but if those mistakes like that are occurring early, there will be a change," Freeze told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. … WR Collins Moore (shoulder) is out for the year. … The Rebels haven't won a SEC game since beating Kentucky on Oct. 2, 2010.
Tweetable fact: Mississippi has more sacks (17) and TDs (25) than it had all of last season (13 sacks, 24 TDs).
Mississippi State (5-0, 2-0)
Next game: vs. Tennessee, 9 p.m. Saturday, ESPN2
Huddle up: Coach Dan Mullen hasn't been happy with his offense, which has scored more than 30 points once this season (56 against Jackson State, a FCS team). "It's hard to score in this league. So when you have those opportunities to make big plays, you have to take advantage of those," he told the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal. … CB Johnthan Banks has allowed 15 catches and no TDs on the 24 passes thrown to the receivers he's covered. … WR Chad Bumphis has 18th career TD receptions to pass Eric Moulds and Justin Jenkins for No. 1 on the school's career list.
Tweetable fact: Mississippi State is one of 15 undefeated teams in the FBS.
Missouri (3-3, 0-3)
Next game: vs. Alabama, 3:30 p.m. Saturday, CBS
Huddle up: With QB James Franklin out with a knee injury, redshirt freshman Corbin Berkstresser will make his second career start. … WR Dorial Green-Beckham will be back after his one-game suspension resulting from his arrest on charges of marijuana possession. LB Torey Boozer and WR Levi Copelin also missed last week's loss and will return. … Alabama coach Nick Saban and Missouri coach Gary Pinkel both graduated from Kent State, and Pinkel replaced Saban as coach at Toledo in 1991. … TB Kendial Lawrence had a career-high 21 carries (92 yards) against Vanderbilt.
Tweetable fact: Missouri defeated Oklahoma 36-27 in 2010, the last time a No. 1-ranked team played at Memorial Stadium.
South Carolina (6-0, 4-0)
Next game: at LSU, 8 p.m. Saturday, ESPN
Huddle up: Ace Sanders is the co-special teams player of the week after he returned a punt 70 yards for a TD in the win over Georgia. It was his second career return for a score. … The Gamecocks have held opponents to 83.8 yards rushing per game, ninth in the nation. … DE Devin Taylor's 17 career sacks are second to Georgia's Jarvis Jones (18) among current SEC players. … Three of the six TDs that South Carolina has allowed have come in the final minutes of blowout victories. … This is the highest the Gamecocks have been ranked since they were No. 2 on Nov. 13, 1984.
Tweetable fact: South Carolina ranks fourth in the nation in scoring defense, allowing an average of 10.5 points per game.
Tennessee (3-2, 0-2)
Next game: at Mississippi State, 9 p.m. Saturday ESPN2
Huddle up: Derek Dooley will coach from the coaches box while he's recovering from Tuesday's surgery to repair his fractured right hip. It had been bothering him for a couple of months, and he had a MRI on Friday. Doctors recommended immediate surgery. … The Volunteers have six sacks in five games, last in the SEC. Mississippi State QB Tyler Russell has been sacked three times. … Tennessee has averaged 506.6 yards per game, second in the SEC and 17th in the nation. The Volunteers led the SEC and are 10th nationally in passing at 329.2 yards.
Tweetable fact: Tennessee's next three opponents are No. 19 Mississippi State, No. 1 Alabama and No. 3 South Carolina.
Texas A&M (4-1, 2-1)
Next game: at Louisiana Tech, 9:15 p.m. Saturday, ESPNU
Huddle up: Texas A&M and Louisiana Tech were unranked when they were scheduled to meet in the opener Aug. 30, which was postponed by Hurricane Isaac. The Aggies are ranked No. 22, and the Bulldogs (5-0) are No. 23. … Texas A&M is 10-0 all-time against Louisiana Tech. … It's unknown if DB Deshazor Everett (shoulder) will play Saturday. He was injured last week. … The Aggies had a season-high six turnovers — four fumbles and two interceptions — against Mississippi. … RB Ben Malena's 142 yards rushing set a career high.
Tweetable fact: Texas A&M has scored a SEC-high three defensive TDs this season.
Vanderbilt (2-3, 1-2)
Next game: vs. Florida, 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPNU
Huddle up: Vanderbilt hasn't scored 20 points against a FBS opponent this season. The Commodores scored three against Georgia, 13 against South Carolina and Northwestern and 19 in their win over Missouri. … WR Chris Boyd (Roswell) on his 40-yard catch to help Vanderbilt move into range for a fourth-quarter field goal in the win over Missouri: "I couldn't really find it until the end. I stuck my hand out there, and I'm glad I held on to it." … Richard Kent (Walton) is the co-special teams player of the week after he averaged 45.2 yards on six punts and had two downed inside the 20. He's fourth in the SEC with a 45.1-yard average.
Tweetable fact: Vanderbilt hasn't defeated Florida since 1988.
