We're So Back Vs It's So Over: An SEC Football Vibes Rankings

CBS Sports

Welcome to the first installment of the SEC Vibes Rankings! (Ignore the fact that I waited until the midpoint of the season to start this.)

Everyone's season began the same: with hope abounding; mean tweets at the national media for "disrespecting" your team when they projected them to--once again--win only eight games; a belief that your quarterback could be a dark horse Heisman contender.

It was supposed to be your year, after all.

Well, as it turns out, nobody knows anything.

Following Georgia's dominant win over Texas, no undefeated SEC teams are left standing. However, some one-loss teams are feeling better than others and a few two-loss teams are gearing up to play spoiler.

As for everyone else, well, it might be time to turn the page towards basketball season.

Without further ado, here are the first weekly SEC Vibes Rankings.

We're So Back: Georgia

The Georgia defense used the Texas offense like a speed bag last Saturday, putting the (formerly) No. 1 Longhorns through a special kind of hell.

It got so bad offensively for Texas that head coach Steve Sarkisian temporarily benched quarterback Quinn Ewers for backup sensation, Arch Manning.

Unfortunately for Manning, he quickly found out that playing Louisiana Monroe is not the same as playing an angry Georgia team.

After Georgia's loss to Alabama (and 'Bama's subsequent pratfalls), many began to worry about the Bulldogs. Were they not as good as we thought they were? Is the defense not the same? Does the offense not have enough playmakers?

While some of the worry was warranted after giving up 41 in the aforementioned 'Bama loss and 31 to Mississippi State--the worst team in the conference--the last thing you want to give Kirby Smart is bulletin board material.

Remember, this is the same maniac who convinced his national title-winning team a few years ago that pundits believed they would go 7-5.

The defense took the disrespect personally and gave up only 15 points and 259 total yards of offense. The offense, meanwhile, wasn't perfect but made enough big plays when it had to.

Quarterback Carson Beck is still shaky at times (he threw for 175 yards, no touchdowns, and three picks), so his progress is certainly something to watch out for. Although, if the defense continues to perform like this, it might be enough to disguise any offensive misgivings.

With upcoming match-ups against Tennessee and Ole Miss, they better hope for the same consistency.

It's So Over: Alabama

It was inevitable that Alabama would have a bit of regression after Nick Saban retired. Even at a program with the immense history of the Crimson Tide, the train doesn't just keep chugging, business as usual.

Despite this, it looked like 'Bama would be fine.

They'd been shaky but still had a win over Georgia on their resume.

Flash forward three weeks later: The Crimson Tide have now incurred a historical loss to Vanderbilt, barely hung at home against a South Carolina team who probably should've beat them, and now, have suffered a heartbreaking defeat to their rivals in Knoxville.

'Bama had plenty of chances to put this game away. But drive after drive the offense stalled, allowing Tennessee and the voodoo of Neyland Stadium to eventually take over.

The problem for the Tide is that the same problems continue to persist.

The defense, once again, gave up over 400 yards (the third time over their past four games), and if Nico Iamaleava could've been more accurate on his deep shots, it could've been closer to 500.

Jalen Milroe--once thought to be a Heisman contender--seems to be regressing in Kalen DeBoer's offense. The Tide rank 85th in offensive red zone percentage and Milroe is becoming a turnover magnet.

Alabama still has a chance to save their season, but their margin for error is lower than it's ever been in the CFP era.

We're So Back: Tennessee

After a loss to Arkansas a few weeks ago, things were looking dire on Rocky Top. While the defense continued to look like the '85 Bears, the offense looked more like recent incarnations of the New York Jets.

To make matters worse, the Vols needed overtime at home to defeat a putrid Florida team. Even in victory, Smokey seemed almost ready to tuck his tail between his legs and go home to dream about the '90s.

Throughout the first half against Alabama, it was much of the same: For the third straight week, the offense was held scoreless in the first half, Iamaleava missed wide-open targets, and the running game struggled to get going.

However, one constant remained: the vaunted Tennessee defense.

The Volunteer defense is still yet to give up more than 19 points in a game this season and did just enough to give their offense time to get going.

With a defense this talented and an offense still more than capable of finding its way, watch out for Tennessee. Throw in the fact that only two teams on their remaining schedule have winning records, the Volunteers just need to avoid a non-Georgia-sized hiccup to likely make the College Football Playoff.

It's So Over: Oklahoma

An almost surefire sign that a coach is on the hotseat is when they fire a coordinator mid-season.

Well, the Oklahoma Sooners did just that.

On Sunday, following a blowout loss at home against South Carolina, head coach Brent Venables relieved offense coordinator Seth Littrell of his duties.

This is not to say Venables should be on the hot seat--the guy did just win ten games last season--but people have short memories in college football. The Sooners look like one of the worst teams in the conference (especially in the trenches) and arch-rival Texas looks like one of the best.

That means a lot in Norman.

With upcoming matchups against Ole Miss, Missouri, Alabama, and LSU, Oklahoma could be staring down the barrel of their worst seasons in recent memory and prompt some tough decisions.

We're So Back: LSU

Midway through their game against Ole Miss, LSU was almost ready for the other side of this blog. The Rebels outplayed the Tigers but refused to make sure they were dead, prompting LSU to do their best Michael Myers impression to save the season.

Now, after a dominant shellacking of a surging Arkansas team, everything seems on the table for the Tigers.

Their loss to USC will still have many scratching their heads, but LSU now looks like one of the best teams in the country.

Next up: a date with Texas A&M in front of a raucous Kyle Field. If Garrett Nussmeier and company can handle business and take full possession of first place in the SEC, watch out.

These Tigers have teeth and will have the toughest stretch of its season behind them.

It's So Over: Auburn

Auburn can't seem to get out of their own way, can they?

Missouri did everything it could to hand Auburn this game; Missouri quarterback Brady Cook even had time to take a trip to the hospital to get an MRI before coming back to lead the game-winning drive.

Alas, the Tigers, once again, squandered another winnable game.

Looking at the rest of their schedule, Auburn doesn't have a sure-fire win remaining. The Ghost of Christmas Past (Diego Pavia and Vanderbilt) comes to town and a potential Ghost of Christmas Future (Louisiana Monroe) will also be there, hoping to give Auburn another loss to a mid-major at home.

Things are dire for Hugh Freeze and they don't seem to be getting any better.

We're So Back: Vanderbilt

You might be asking yourself why Vanderbilt is on this list after beating lowly Ball State. The Cardinals are far from the Crimson Tide, after all.

However, the most Vanderbilt thing ever would be to lose this game (they already gave us an appetizer at Georgia State). For a while, they almost did too. It was tied 14-14 late until the Commodores pulled away for a 24-14 victory.

Despite this, any chance to put Vandy on this list is a win with their recent history. Plus, any win for Diego Pavia is a win for America.

Next up: a date at home against Texas.

The Commodores are undefeated at home this year. Could we be in for more magic?

It's So Over: Kentucky

What a fall from grace for Mark Stoops.

Just a few short months ago, he was set to be the next head coach for Texas A&M--until Aggie fans and boosters revolted.

Flash forward to today, and that mutiny may have been warranted.

The Wildcats now stand at 1-4 in conference play with back-to-back losses against Vanderbilt and Florida.

Stoops has still led Kentucky to (by far) their most success in decades. However, some are beginning to wonder if he has taken the Wildcats as far as he can take them.