SEC Week 2 Preview — The SEC Roller Coaster Continues

The only SEC matchup of the week may get ugly fast. Vanderbilt struggled in a 37-7 loss to Temple last Thursday. Temple only won 2 games last season making the home loss even uglier. Vanderbilt is already on track to finish dead last in the SEC. Ole Miss had its' own struggles against Boise State on the same night after Bo Wallace threw 3 interceptions in the first half. Wallace did bounce back and finish with 300+ passing yards and 4 touchdowns.The Rebels will be a heavy favorite, and for good reason due to the mismatch in overall talent.

Alabama had problems slowing down West Virginia's hurry up offense on Saturday allowing over 300 passing yards to Mountaineer quarterback Clint Trickett. They will not have the same issue this week against Florida Atlantic. The Crimson Tide will use this game to figure out any remaining issues on defense as well as the quarterback situation. FAU had difficulty scoring in last week's 55-7 loss to Nebraska and will face similar issues against Alabama as the Owls try to work through their own quarterback problems. Alabama will jump out early and never let up on the Owls until Nick Saban puts the younger guys in for experience purposes.

Auburn stayed neck-and-neck with Arkansas heading into halftime, but it was all Tigers in the second half. They should continue what they started heading into their matchup with San Jose State. The Spartans can keep it close early behind the strong arm of Blake Jurich, who passed for 250 yards and 3 touchdowns last week while completing 88 percent of his passes. He may give the the opposing defense trouble, but Auburn's offense will be too much for the Spartans to handle. The Tigers will rack up a large amount of points as they usually do in Gus Malzahn's unique style of hurry up offense.

Texas A&M scored 52 points last week on South Carolina. That has to scare you if you are a Lamar coach, player, or fan. The Aggies played like they never even needed Johnny Manziel after new quarterback Kenny Hill threw for 511 yards in his first start. There are too many deep threats at Texas A&M for even a team like Alabama to handle. Asking Lamar to handle their deep threats is asking way too much.The only thing Lamar can hope for is lackluster play from the Aggies because of last week's big win. This one may get ugly in a hurry.

LSU needed a fourth quarter comeback to beat Wisconsin last week. The Tigers looked impressive in many areas, but their comeback win over the Badgers only proves that there are flaws in this team. LSU has to find a rhythm in the passing game if they want to win the SEC West even though they can get by with it in this game. However, Sam Houston State is not your average smalltown football team. They are are currently ranked #13 in the FCS. Sam Houston State can keep it close early like their fellow FCS program Towson did against the Tigers in 2012. LSU should win comfortably, but do not sleep on Sam Houston.

How will the Gamecocks bounce back from last week's loss to Texas A&M? They should respond with a win over East Carolina, but running back Mike Davis being out for this game makes it interesting.  East Carolina's big armed quarterback Shane Carden could give the Gamecocks trouble early on if the defense struggles again this week. The Gamecocks will have to rely on Dylan Thompson who did not have a consistent game last week against the Aggies. South Carolina will pick up a win, but not before being put to the test early.

Missouri will travel to Toledo to take on Gary Pinkel's former team. The Tigers do not have the surrounding talent they had last season making this game one to watch. The Rockets getting home field advantage is another thing to consider when previewing this game. Toledo will be powered behind former Alabama quarterback Phillip Ely who threw for over 300 yards last week. Missouri needs to gain early momentum to prevent this one from getting close. Maty Mauk has enough game experience to stay cool under pressure so the Tigers should come out on top.

Tennessee had a strong showing Sunday night against Utah State in a 38-7 blowout win. The Vols, who already had to rebuild their O-line, lost left tackle Jacob Gilliam for the season to a torn ACL. Arkansas State will have to take advantage of this if they want to knock off Tennessee, but the Red Wolves are operating under a new head coach. It is their 4th consecutive year of having a new head coach which takes a toll on how fast a player can learn a brand new system. This one may be close in the first half. In the end, Tennessee's defense, led by linebacker AJ Johnson, will be the key to a solid victory.

Dan Mullen is trying to make a run with one of the best teams he has had since becoming the head coach of Mississippi State. His hopes may be shattered this weekend. UAB is coming off a solid 48-10 over rival Troy. First year head coach Bill Clark is bringing excitement back into this program. A big upset would be huge for him. Even though the Bulldogs have much more talent, it is hard to motivate any player in this type of game. Dak Prescott and company will wear down the Blazers' defense eventually, but expect this one to be close early.

Florida will start officially start its this Saturday against Eastern Michigan after last week's severe weather forced them to cancel their game against Idaho. Will Muschamp is allowing Darious Cummings, Demarcus Robinson, and Jay-nard Bostwick to return from suspension despite never technically missing a game. The Gators had a rough season last year, but even that team could beat this year's Eastern Michigan. Offensive coordinator Kurt Roper will make his debut at Florida and will do so in style by racking up a lot of points on a helpless Eagles' squad.

Kentucky had a very impressive performance last week. No seriously they did. The Wildcats thumped Tennessee-Martin 59-14. The Wildcats are favorites to win over Ohio, and a win would seal a 2-0 start. Pretty impressive considering that would match last season's win total. The Bobcats had a nice 17-14 win over conference foe Kent State last week. Their quarterback, Derrius Vick, completed 75 percent of his passes in the victory. Ohio has enough talent to win, but Kentucky has the momentum. It would be a true upset if the Bobcats won.

Arkansas played Auburn with more intensity than expected. The Razorbacks were tied up with the Tigers at half before a second half blowout. Arkansas not only has a run game, they now have a passing game behind Brandon Allen. Allen threw for 175 yards and 2 touchdowns in last week's loss. Do not get too excited. The Razorbacks will still be a run first offense. Nicholls State does not have a very good chance of even keeping this close. It is hard to say that a team that went 3-8 will dominate, but a team that went 3-8 last year will dominate.