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SEC Roundup: Week 12 wraps up ahead of rivalry week

Kassidy Stumboby:Kassidy Stumbo•11/21/21•

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(Kevin Cox | Getty Images)

We’re approaching the final week of the college football regular season, BBN. But before we get too ahead of ourselves, let’s talk about what happened in Week 12 across the SEC.

Louisiana Monroe at LSU

After a three-game skid, the LSU Tigers are back on track after a 27-14 win over Louisiana Monroe last night in Baton Rouge.

LSU quarterback Max Johnson completed 22 of 33 passes in the match, ending with 319 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson led a 64-yard drive in the opening minutes of the game to give the Tigers an early 7-0 lead. Johnson found freshman Malik Nabers next on a season-long 67-yard scoring pass to give the Tigers a 17-0 lead.

The Tigers are not yet bowl eligible with a record of 5-6. They will travel to Texas A&M next weekend for a rivalry week matchup with the Aggies, which could be Coach O’s last game. The Tigers have not had a losing season since 1999, when they finished 3-8.

South Alabama at Tennessee

Tennessee is now bowl eligible after a 60-14 win over the South Alabama Jaguars in Knoxville last night. The accomplishment is an impressive one for the Volunteer’s first-year head coach Josh Heupel.

Tennessee quarterback Hendon Hooker had an impressive showing for his team. The senior was 17 of 20 for 273 yards and two touchdowns in the air, as well as one of his own on the ground. Wide receiver Velus Jones Jr. had himself an impressive senior night too. He racked up 246 all-purpose yards, highlighted by a 96-yard touchdown return.

All together, Tennessee collected 561 yards of total offense. But the defense was impressive as well. The Vols held South Alabama to just one third-down conversion out of the 16 they attempted. They also recorded 13 tackles for a loss.

Auburn at South Carolina

The South Carolina Gamecocks and first-year head coach Shane Beamer are officially bowl eligible after a 21-17 win over Auburn last night. Beamer, who many questioned upon his arrival in Columbia, couldn’t hold back the tears after the win.

Auburn jumped out to an early 14-0 lead, but it quickly went downhill after that. South Carolina scored touchdowns on two consecutive drives to tie the game. The first came off a 28-yard touchdown run from senior running back ZaQuandre White on 4th-and-3. The Tigers had a similar showing last week against Mississippi State, when they blew a 28-3 lead.

LSU transfer TJ Finely started for the first time this season for Auburn last night. He went 17 for 32 in his debut, ending with 188 yards. He is starting in place of Bo Nix, who broke his ankle last weekend. Tiger running back Tank Bigsby (what a name) ran for a season best 164 yards on 22 carries last night, but it just wasn’t enough.

Florida at Missouri

This one was fun. Missouri found a way to pull out a 24-23 overtime win at home last night thanks to some gutsy play calling in the final minutes.

Florida got the ball first in overtime and made the most of it. The Gators executed a trick play to perfection when quarterback Emory Jones caught a 6-yard touchdown pass from wide receiver Trent Whittemore. Jones completed 20 of 32 passes in the game for 261 yards and a touchdown.

A 13-yard touchdown run from Tyler Badie brought the Tigers within one point in overtime. Rather than go for the tie, though, Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz opted to go for two points. Quarterback Connor Bazelak was booed by his home crowd throughout the game, but the Tiger faithful switched up when he successfully lobbed the 2-point conversion pass to Daniel Parker Jr. to give his team the win.

Vanderbilt at No. 12 Ole Miss

The 2-9 Vanderbilt Commodores put up a fight last night in Oxford against No. 12 Ole Miss, but eventually fell 31-17 behind a scrappy performance from Rebel quarterback Matt Corral. Corral announced on Friday that he will be entering his name into the 2022 NFL draft.

Corral completed 27 of 36 passes in the game, ending with 326 yards and two touchdowns. Ole Miss struck first off an 8-yard pass from Corral to Jerrion Ealy in the first few minutes. Ealy had 154 yards of total offense, including a 68-yard kickoff return.

The Rebels built a 31-9 lead in the fourth quarter, but Vandy was able to tack on some last minute points to make it a little more interesting. Despite the loss, the Commodores controlled the ball for more than 38 minutes of the match and racked up a total of 454 yards on offense. They were only able to find the end zone once, though, off a run from Rocko Griffin. Griffin finished with 117 yards on 26 carries.

Tennessee State at No. 25 Mississippi State

Nothing much to see here. Coming off an impressive win at Auburn last weekend, the Mississippi State Bulldogs rolled over the Tennessee State Tigers for an easy 55-10 win yesterday afternoon.

Bulldog quarterback Will Rogers was crucial for his team yet again. Rogers went 28 for 34 in the air, ending the game with a whopping 391 yards and five touchdowns. With the effort, Rogers broke several records. In the first quarter, he broke the school single-season passing record for yards and for touchdowns. Both were previously held by Dak Prescott.

The sophomore from Brandon, Mississippi now has over 4,000 passing yards on the season. Yesterday was his ninth straight 300-yard passing game. That seems pretty good, right?

Charleston Southern at No. 1 Georgia

This one wasn’t much more interesting. The Georgia Bulldogs remained perfect on the season after demolishing the Charleston Southern Buccaneers 56-7 in Athens. It is Georgia’s first 11-0 start since 1982.

Starting Bulldog quarterback Stetson Bennett threw an interception on Georgia’s opening drive, but it didn’t prove to be much of an issue. The ‘Dawgs scored touchdowns on seven of their final eight drives in the first half. Bennett, who started his college career as a walk-on, played just over a quarter before being replaced by JT Daniels.

The running game looked good, too. Led by Zamir White’s 83-yard performance, Georgia rushers combined for a total of 233 yards in the game. Needless to say, this Georgia team is going to be hard to beat.

Prairie View A&M at No. 16 Texas A&M

Another beatdown here, as No. 16 Texas A&M beat Prairie View A&M 52-3 at home. This was an absolutely dominant performance from the Aggies, who scored on their first seven drives; six touchdowns and one field goal.

Sophomore Zach Calzada led the Aggie offense. The sophomore quarterback finished with 150 yards and two touchdowns on 10 completions before being replaced by freshman Blake Bost. The Aggies racked up 279 rushing yards as well, led by Amari Daniels and Isaiah Spiller who each finished with 70.

The Aggies totally locked down the Buccaneer passing game, allowing only seven yards in the air throughout the entire game. Prairie A&M found a little more success on the ground, though. Running back Jaden Stewart led with 100 yards on 24 carries, and the team combined for a total of 147.

No. 21 Arkansas at No. 1 Alabama

This one proved to be a little closer. Nonetheless, the Crimson Tide found a way to win, defeating the Razorbacks 42-35 in Tuscaloosa.

‘Bama quarterback Bryce Young was absolutely phenomenal. Young completed 31 of 40 passes for an unbelievable 559 yards and five touchdowns. With the effort, Young broke the Alabama single-game passing yard record. The previous record was set in 1969 by Scott Hunter in the Iron Bowl.

KJ Jefferson was impressive for Arkansas as well. Jefferson went 22 of 30 for 326 yards and three touchdowns, keeping the Razorbacks competitive until the end. Jefferson found Raheim Sanders for a 17-yard touchdown with just over a minute to play to bring Arkansas within one score. The Razorback onside kick attempt bounced out of bounds, however, and the Tide took two knees for the victory.

With the win, the Tide has officially clinched the SEC West Division Title and will meet No. 1 Georgia in the SEC Championship in two weeks.

New Mexico State at Kentucky

Sure feels good to be winning again, doesn’t it? The ‘Cats finished their season at Kroger Field with a 56-16 win over New Mexico State yesterday afternoon to move to 8-3 on the year.

Not gonna lie, BBN, I was a tad nervous at the beginning of this one. New Mexico State struck first after Will Levis fumbled a bad snap and an Aggie recovered it in the end zone. Levis remained calm, though. The senior ended the game with four touchdowns and a career-high 419 yards.

Quandre Mosley got some time on the big screen on his senior day. The defensive back snagged a pass from Aggie quarterback Jonah Johnson and found the end zone, giving the ‘Cats a 14-7 lead midway through the first quarter.

Wan’Dale Robinson set a career-high as well. The junior from Frankfort had eight receptions for 181 yards. The performance put him over 1,000 yards on the season; the first receiver to reach that milestone under Mark Stoops and only the sixth in program history. Chris Rodriguez racked up 119 yards of his own, pushing Kentucky to a season-high 707 yards of total offense

Some of the younger guys got time, too. Sophomore Beau Allen replaced Levis in the fourth quarter, leading to his first touchdown in a Kentucky uniform.

Oh, and happy Louisville Hate Week.

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2025-04-25