Chizik's debut a success as Auburn tops La. Tech

Auburn's Chris Todd and Terrell Zachery hooked up on a school-record 93-yard touchdown pass to help Auburn beat Louisiana Tech 37-13 in Gene Chizik's debut as head coach.
Todd passed for 255 yards and 2 touchdowns, including the long one early in the third quarter. He had shoulder surgery in December and won the starting job despite missing spring practice in Gus Malzahn's newly installed offense.
Onterio McCalebb rushed for 148 yards and a touchdown to become the first Auburn freshman to run for 100 yards or more in an opener since Bo Jackson in 1982. Ben Tate also rushed for 117 yards.
The fiery Chizik exhorted fans and pumped his fists during the pregame Tiger Walk to Jordan-Hare Stadium. His hiring, after going 5-19 in two seasons as a head coach at Iowa State, drew plenty of fire from fans and the media alike.
The Tigers gained a balanced 556 total yards after having one of the nation's least productive offenses last season, averaging just 302 yards a game. They held Louisiana Tech to 245 yards.
Auburn put it away with Todd's 17-yard pass to Darvin Adams in the right corner of the end zone on a third-and-16 play early in the fourth quarter. McCalebb added a 3-yard touchdown run.
Chizik's first game wasn't always pretty despite dominating the second half 24-3. Auburn committed 87 yards in penalties -- mostly on defense -- and lost two fumbles.
The Tigers turned the momentum with two big plays. First, freshman Darren Bates made a leaping interception at the 2-yard line. On third down, Todd found Zachery streaking down the right sideline after the defenders bit on his fake for a 20-10 lead. It was the longest completion by an Auburn player, topping an 87-yarder from Jason Campbell to Silas Daniels against Louisiana Tech 5 years ago. The SEC Rocks!

Vandy shuts out Western Carolina 45-0

Vanderbilt rushed for 433 yards and cruised to a 45-0 win over Western Carolina in its season opener Saturday evening at Vanderbilt Stadium. The freshman duo of Zac Stacy and Warren Norman both ran for over 100 yards, becoming the first tandem to do so in a game for the Commodores since Kwane Doster and Norval McKenzie against Ole Miss in 1992. The SEC Rocks!

Arkansas Razorbacks year two with Bobby Petrino starts with 447 yards through the air 48-10 over Missouri State.

Second-year head coach Bobby Petrino and the University of Arkansas Razorbacks got a head start with a 21-point first quarter to begin a 41-10 rout of the Missouri State Bears before a sellout crowd at War Memorial Stadium.
The Razorbacks, passed for a school record 447 yards behind the efficient work of sophomore Ryan Mallett and freshman Tyler Wilson. Both quarterbacks had sustained touchdown drives for the Razorbacks as Arkansas combined to hit 30 of 41 attempts with a lone interception. The Razorbacks took control of the game at the kickoff as Dennis Johnson took Matt Hottelman’s opening kick off 91 yards for the 1st touchdown of the 2009 season. The PAT from Alex Tejada gave Arkansas a 7-0 lead 18 seconds into the game and led the way for the first 21-point quarter of offense in the Petrino Era at Arkansas.
Cody Kirby managed a first down after the Razorback kickoff, but under pressure from Freddie Burton hurries his pass and was picked by Wendel Davis. Mallett opened his Razorback career with a completion, and guided Arkansas to a short 6-play, 46-yard drive capped by a 15-yard untouched draw from Michael Smith for the touchdown.
Missouri State managed to get on the board when Hottleman connected on a career-long 53-yard attempt with 3:16 left in the first quarter. The Razorbacks responed before the end of the quarter with a one-yard touchdown run by Broderick Green, set up by a pair of receptions from Mallett to Jarius Wright.
Petrino went to his backup quarterback, Tyler Wilson, for the next series, and the 6-3 freshman led Arkansas to its fourth touchdown of the night. Wilson’s drive saw two fourth down conversions, including the two-yard TD pass to Van Stumon.
Trailing 28-3, Missouri State put together its first touchdown drive of the night, aided by a fourth-down pass interference penalty in the Razorback end zone. After the flag, Jonathan Davis punched the two-yard run in for a 28-10 deficit.
Mallett returned to the game, and took his consecutive pass completions to nine before his first miss. Moving the Hogs inside the Bears’ four yard line, Tejada came on with 14 second left in the half to pick up his first field goal of the season with a 20-yarder to send the teams to halftime at 31-10.
Wright closed the first half with more receiving yards, 123, than the entire Missouri State offense as the Bears put up only 120 total yards. The Razorbacks had 290 yards in the first half, mostly through the air thanks to a 16-of-20 overall effort for 251.
Each time it appeared MSU could find life, notably three penalties that extended Bear possessions, Arkansas would deliver another crushing blow.
After an interception of Kirby at the Arkansas one yard line by Tramain Thomas, the Razorbacks proceded to march 99 yards in just 94 seconds to score. A 40-yard rambling weave through the Bear secondary by Joe Adams facilitated by key downfield blocks by his fellow receivers ended the lighting drive, and put Arkansas up 38-10 early in the third.
Missouri State couldn’t even win a video challenge from the Razorbacks, as a late fourth quarter punt was ruled to not touch an Arkansas player, giving the ball back the Hogs.
Arkansas’ offense was almost perfect, going until the final 1:43 of the game before a turnover as Wilson was picked off by Antonio Brown of MSU. The Bears could muster no further offense, closing the game with only 205 total yards.
Arkansas racked up 591 as a team, adding 144 on the ground. Ronnie Wingo, Jr., led the team with 50 net yards, but Smith used his four carries to rack up 43 yards and a touchdown, a 10.8 yards per carry average.
Wright closed with 139 yards on six receptions to lead the Razorbacks. Three other Razorbacks – Joe Adams, Cobi Hamilton and Greg Childs – had four catches.
On the evening, Mallett finished his first start for the Razorbacks by hitting 17 of 22 for 309 yards and one touchdown. Wilson was 13 of 19 for 138 yards. By comparison, MSU’s Kirby managed only 13 of 22 with two interceptions and just 205 yards. The SEC Rocks!

Florida begins title defense with 62-3 win

Florida opened its season with a near-perfect performance.
Florida quarterback Tim Tebow (15) runs past Charleston Southern cornerback Chris Kuzdale (24) to score a touchdown on a 1 yard run in the 2nd quarter of an NCAA college football game in Gainesville, Fla., Saturday, Sept. 5, 2009
The top-ranked and defending national champion Gators didn't even care that it came against an overmatched team from the Football Championship Subdivision.
Tim Tebow accounted for 2 touchdowns, Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps had scoring runs, and Brandon James ended the school's longest dry spell for the special-teams in a 62-3 victory over Charleston Southern on Saturday night.
Florida, an overwhelming favorite to repeat as national champs, accomplished everything it wanted to in the opener. The Gators unveiled some new wrinkles, won the game in convincing fashion and avoided any major injuries.
Tennessee visits Gainesville in 2 weeks, we'll see what's shaken then. The Volunteers beat Western Kentucky 63-7 in coach Lane Kiffin's debut Saturday. The SEC Rocks!
___

"Bama vs VT Update

VT has caught every break possible. Kickoff return touchdown, then a interference penalty by 'Bama, Then a DOUBLE penalty by 'Bama to the 6 yardline for 'Bama for thier other touchdown. And the only reason VT has a field goal was because they intercepted the ball on 'Bama 30, then lost yardage before kicking 3 points. The SEC Rocks!

Arkansas V.S. MO State

Arkansas:48
MO State:10

Update at Char Southern at Florida

4th Qtr 15:00
Score
Char Southern
3
(1) Florida
55
1st Quarter
Florida Touchdown - 9-yard run by Jeffrey Demps. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 11:05 Remaining.
Florida Touchdown - 76-yard run by Chris Rainey. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 4:34 Remaining.
2nd Quarter
Florida Touchdown - 1-yard run by Tim Tebow. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 14:22 Remaining.
Florida Touchdown - 24-yard run by Jeffrey Demps. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 11:39 Remaining.
Florida Touchdown - 28-yard pass from Tim Tebow to Aaron Hernandez. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 7:55 Remaining.
Char Southern Field Goal - 38-yarder by John Paglia. 5:37 Remaining.
Florida Touchdown - 85-yard kickoff return by Brandon James. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 5:24 Remaining.
3rd Quarter
Florida Touchdown - 7-yard pass from John Brantley to Justin Williams. (kick failed). 12:39 Remaining.
Florida Touchdown - 9-yard pass from John Brantley to Cade Holliday. (Jonathan Phillips kick). 0:24 Remaining.
4th Quarter
No Scoring

Scores,Score,Scores!!!

Tennessee:63
W Kentucky:7

Kentucky:42
Miami O:0

Georgia:10
OK St:24

MSU:45
JSU:7

Mississippi State Blows Past JSU In Historical Season Opener, 45-7

Mississippi State ushered in the Dan Mullen era with great success and in commanding fashion Saturday afternoon, as the Bulldogs ran past Jackson State at Scott Field, 45-7.
This historical outing, delayed at the start by 30 minutes due to lightning in the area, marked the first meeting on the gridiron between teams from the SEC and SWAC and was viewed by a nationally televised ESPNU audience and sell-out crowd of 54,232, the 3rd-largest in school history.
The Bulldogs (1-0), who travel to Auburn next week looking for their 2nd-straight win at Jordan-Hare Stadium, now stand at 75-33-2 in lidlifters in their 110th season of action.
But few have been as dominating as this showdown turned out to be.
Mississippi State wasted little time in flexing its muscles. On their 2nd possession of the game, the Bulldogs parlayed a bobbled punt snap by the Tigers into a touchdown 4 plays later when backup quarterback Chris Relf connected with true freshman Chad Bumphis for a 15-yard scoring strike with 9 minutes, 12 seconds left in the 1st quarter.
After State's offensive production was momentarily hampered by fumbles, penalties and 2 missed field goals, it found its rhythm again right before the half when Relf took a keeper around the right end from the 5 for a 14-0 advantage with just 48 seconds left on the clock.
It was the spark MSU was seeking and one that didn't fizzle out.
Coming out of the locker room to start the 2nd half, State quickly jumped on the Tigers (0-1) and swelled its lead to 21-0 when sophomore running back Robert Elliott, back from a knee injury he suffered last year at LSU, scored from the 7.
State, which outgained JSU in total yards 359-194, struck 2 more times in the 3rd when Relf hit Marcus Green and Bumphis from 19 and 7 yards out, respectively.
Then in the 4th, MState made it a 38-0 affair when Sean Brauchle nailed a 25-yard field goal with 13:47 remaining.
Jackson State finally found the end zone midway through the 4th when Terrence Davis broke free for a 16-yard scamper.
However, the final points of the day belonged to Mississippi State. With 3:34 left, defensive back Corey Broomfield returned a Trae Rutland interception 43 yards for the score. It was the 1st INT returned for a touchdown since the 2007 season against Alabama, when Anthony Johnson took a John Parker Wilson pass 100 yards for the score in State's 17-12 stunner.
Broomfield's play capped a stellar performance by the defense. The Tigers managed just 7 1st downs and 62 yards rushing, while Rutland was 8 of 19 for 132 yards, with 52 coming on 1 completion in the first half.
The Bulldogs, however, manufactured 20 first downs and 202 yards on the ground, paced by Relf's 82. He also completed 7 of his 10 passes for 75 yards, while starter Tyson Lee was 8-of-13 passing for 82 yards.
As for Mullen, he became the 4th-straight MSU coach to win in his debut, joining the likes of Sylvester Croom, Jackie Sherrill and Rockey Felker! The SEC Rocks!

Kentucky Routs Miami, 42-0

Mike Hartline threw 2 touchdowns Saturday, 1 of them to former quarterback rival Randall Cobb , to lead Kentucky to a 42-0 victory in Michael Haywood's debut as head coach at Miami (Ohio).
Kentucky left the bluegrass state to play its opener at Paul Brown Stadium. Brown played at Miami, coached Ohio State to a national championship, turned the Cleveland Browns into a pro football power and founded the Cincinnati Bengals, now run by his descendants.
Hartline briefly lost the starting job last season to Cobb, who has been moved to receiver. Coach Rich Brooks put the offense back in the hands of a junior who grew up in Canton, Ohio, and has an older brother who played at Ohio State. Hartline came through, going 18 of 27 for 222 yards in little more than 3 quarters.
Cobb caught a 27-yard pass for Kentucky's 1st touchdown. He also took a direct snap from center and ran 11 yards for a 3rd-quarter touchdown. The versatile sophomore had 7 catches for 96 yards.
Miami suffered its most lopsided season-opening loss since a 61-0 drubbing at Pittsburgh in 1931.
Kentucky needed only 1 quarter to get a feel for how the RedHawks would look under Haywood, who was Notre Dame's offensive coordinator for the last four years. To get prepared, Brooks spent a lot of time watching Notre Dame video. He warned his team to be ready for anything.
They saw a little bit of everything, including a fake punt that worked and a flea-flicker that was intercepted and set up Kentucky's 1st touchdown. Hartline's 27-yard pass to Cobb hit the receiver in stride and got Kentucky in its comfort zone. Hartline's 21-yard pass to Chris Matthews made it 21-0 at halftime.
Kentucky fans were a clear majority in the crowd of 41,037, and they liked what they saw from Cobb and company. The receivers bumbled last season - Brooks was being kind when he called their performance "less than impressive" but they looked good during summer workouts. With Hartline getting plenty of time to throw, the receivers had little trouble getting open or catching the ball.
Haywood saw firsthand what he's up against in rebuilding a program known as the Cradle of Coaches. A pair of 2-10 seasons in the past 3 years prompted Miami to do something it hadn't done in more than a half-century: Hire someone with no ties to the school.
The RedHawks started 4 true freshmen and got pushed around. They wasted their only scoring chance, a 34-yard field goal attempt by Trevor Cook that was wide left. The SEC Rocks!

Kiffin Era starts with offense, defense: 63-7...5 TDs for Crompton

The Lane Kiffin Era opened with a bang Saturday, a 63-7 Tennessee rout of Western Kentucky at Neyland Stadium.
Jonathan Crompton threw 5 touchdown passes and the Vols scored 28 points in both the 2nd and 4th quarters.
Montario Hardesty and Bryce Brown each rushed for more than 100 yards. Brown was one of 3 true freshmen scoring touchdowns in their debut. David Oku rushed for 2 scores and Marsalis Teague caught a Crompton TD pass.
Luke Stocker caught 2 touchdown passes, Brandon Warren and Quintin Hancock 1 each.
The Vols gained 658 yards of total offense while holding the Hilltoppers to 83. The SEC Rocks!

Bulldogs Fall To Cowboys, 24-10

Zac Robinson threw 2 touchdown passes to star receiver Dez Bryant and also scored on a quarterback sneak as No. 9 Oklahoma State beat No. 13 Georgia 24-10 on Saturday. The Cowboys capitalized on a 4th-quarter fumble by new Georgia starting quarterback Joe Cox to seal the season-opening win on a 12-yard touchdown pass from Robinson to Bryant. The 2 also hooked up on a 46-yard score in the 1st half that got Oklahoma State's offense going after a sloppy start. Robinson finished with 135 yards on 11 for 22 passing, and Bryant made the most of his 3 catches for 77 yards. Cox was 15 for 30 for 162 yards with 1 touchdown and 1 interception.

Upcoming Games

Alabama V.S. VA Tech

Arkansas V.S. Mo St.

Auburn V.S. La Tech

LSU V.S. U Wash

MSU V.S. JSU

Ole Miss V.S. Mem

Florida V.S. Char

Georgia V.S. Ok St

Kentucky V.S. Miami O

Tennessee V.S. W Ken

Vandy V.S. W Car

Antonio Coleman Selected As Candidate For Lowe's Senior CLASS Award

Auburn senior defensive end Antonio Coleman has been named a candidate for the 2009 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior in the Football Bowl Subdivision and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - classroom, character, community and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of classroom, character, community and competition.
"The Lowe's Senior CLASS Award candidates for football are the best of the best in NCAA Division I athletics," said Bob Gfeller, Lowe's senior vice president of marketing. "They have set high standards for themselves throughout their collegiate careers and have consistently risen to the highest levels in the classroom and in their communities." The SEC Rocks!

Razorbacks ready for Saturday kickoff

The Razorback football team practiced for just under 2 hours on Thursday as they finished their preparations for their season opener against Missouri State on Saturday, September 5. Arkansas and Missouri State kick off their respective seasons at 6 p.m. at War Memorial Stadium in Little Rock, Ark. The following is a transcript of some of head coach Bobby Petrino's comments following Thursday's workout.
On the final practice "We had a good practice today, things were sharp. Special teams were sharp, offense; defense part of it was good. The two-minute drill that we do we were executing that well, so I was happy about that. Now what we do is, tomorrow we get down there and have a walk through. Review what went on in today's practice, what mistakes we need to correct, do a little bit more of the goal line, short yardage stuff. Have our meetings Friday night, Saturday morning we have another walk through, use up some of the time in the day and then go to the stadium a couple of hours before kickoff." The SEC Rocks!

Javier Arenas Selected as Finalist for Lowe's Senior CLASS Award

Alabama defensive back Javier Arenas was selected as one of 30 finalists for the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award, which was announced on Friday by Lowe's.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Arenas has volunteered more than 50 hours of community service throughout the Tuscaloosa community. He has spent time in the local school systems speaking to children about the dangers of bullying and the positive effects of teamwork. Arenas has also attended birthday parties of physically challenged children and reached out with phone calls to children battling cancer.
On the field, he is one of the most dangerous return men in the county and an All-SEC cornerback, Arenas will factor heavily into the Crimson Tide defense and special teams as a senior in 2009. His 650 punt return yards led the nation and set an Alabama single-season record while he also registered 63 tackles at corner. The Tampa, Fla. native was selected as a preseason Playboy All-American, but his accomplishments in the classroom and in the community are bringing him accolades off the field as well. The SEC Rocks!

Bulldog's QB Cox says He Will Play in the Opener

Georgia quarterback Joe Cox said this afternoon that he is feeling better after battling flu-like symptoms for a couple of days. “I will be playing tomorrow,” Cox vowed.
Despite suffering flu-like symptoms, Bulldog quarterback Joe Cox says he will play in Saturday's opener against Okalahoma State.
Cox said by phone that he did not fly with the team to Oklahoma City this afternoon, but he said he would make the trip “later today.”
“I’ll be there,” he said.
Georgia opens its season Saturday afternoon against Oklahoma State in Stillwater, Okla.
Cox said he began feeling ill in the middle of the night Wednesday with symptoms such as “fever and stuff.”
“I don’t know what it is,” he said.
As of this afternoon, Cox said, “I feel pretty good. A lot better than I did.” The SEC Rocks!

OLE Miss vs Memphis Sunday Showdown

After 6 consecutive wins to end the season, there was no shortage of votes for Ole Miss.
That's the case again to begin 2009, and the No. 8 Rebels hope to live up to their highest ranking in nearly 40 years beginning Sunday when they go to Memphis looking for a 5th straight season-opening win over the Tigers.
Nutt's 1st season in Oxford following a 3-9 record in 2007 that saw Ole Miss go winless in 8 SEC games.
A stunning 31-30 win at Florida on Sept. 27 seemed to show the Rebels were progressing, but losses in their next two games dropped them to 3-4.
Ole Miss (9-4) began its turnaround Oct. 25 at Arkansas, where Nutt spent the previous 10 years as coach with a 23-21 win, and didn't look back. The Rebels averaged 37.0 points in winning their final 6 games, finishing with a 47-34 Cotton Bowl win over then-No. 8 Texas Tech that vaulted Nutt's team to No. 14 in the final AP poll and has raised expectations in 2009.
Ole Miss hasn't been this high in the AP poll since the 1970 season, which it entered with the No. 5 ranking.
"Last year, I didn't know if we were going to get them to believe in themselves, it took us that long," Nutt said. "This year is different because our guys haven't been in these uncharted waters. But I'd rather it be this way." The SEC Rocks!