Kiffin, Kirby face off

Lane Kiffin and Kirby Smart, who were on the same Alabama staff for two seasons in 2014-15 as Coach Nick Saban’s coordinators, are preparing to face each other as head coaches for the first time.

Kiffin’s No. 9 Rebels play Smart’s No. 2 Bulldogs on Saturday night at Sanford Stadium in Athens, Ga.

“I have a lot of respect for Lane,” Smart said. “He and I shared seats next to each other [in meetings] at Alabama for two years.”

Before Kiffin joined Saban’s staff, he was a head coach in the NFL with the Oakland Raiders and at Tennessee and Southern Cal.

“He was a head coach at a really young age,” said Smart, who became a first-time head coach at Georgia in 2016. “He taught me a lot of things about what he believes in being a head coach and doing it your way.

“He’s certainly had a unique experience in terms of the places he’s been able to work as a head coach, and he draws on that.”

Smart is 90-15 at Georgia and has led the Bulldogs to back-to-back national championships.

“I just think Kirby’s really smart,” Kiffin said. “And I really enjoy talking to really smart, intelligent coaches that you can bounce things off of or ask them how do they do things? Or how do they deal with a player issue or injury or something?”

The fact Ole Miss and Georgia aren’t in the same division and haven’t played since 2016 likely has helped Kiffin and Smart maintain a close friendship.

“I just really appreciate Kirby,” Kiffin said. “We’re friends in the profession. Coaches don’t, all the time, do that. They may call someone for help on a coaching question, but I really consider Kirby a friend that really helped me in a challenging time in my life. Moving to Tuscaloosa, not being a head coach anymore, family not moving.

“I really appreciate his friendship and help during that time.”

Kiffin has led Ole Miss to a 31-14 record in four seasons.

“He does a great job. He’s extremely intelligent,” Smart said. “He doesn’t overthink things.

“Probably doesn’t get enough credit for that, because he wants to beat you with fundamentals. He wants to beat you with his players doing things within their system.”

Smart was asked on the SEC coaches teleconference if he could share a story about Kiffin from their days together at Alabama, and chose not to offer one. Kiffin obliged when asked for a story about Smart.

“I will tell you, you can ask about the tug-of-war story,” Kiffin said. “When we did tug-of-war on a rope during the players’ fourth quarter drills.

“Me versus him, and I beat him. But he won’t like that story if you ask him.”

Daniels cleared

LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels was set to practice Wednesday in non-contact drills, Tigers Coach Brian Kelly said, after he had been in concussion protocol.

“If all goes well today, he’ll be cleared for contact Thursday,” Kelly said on the SEC coaches teleconference.

Daniels, who leads the SEC with 2,792 passing yards and 27 touchdowns and has rushed for 684 yards and 6 touchdowns, came out of last week’s game at Alabama after taking a hit by linebacker Dallas Turner that resulted in a roughing penalty.

“I don’t know what the specifics are, but it certainly triggered protocol for a concussion,” Kelly said. “I don’t know what the medical bar is for that.

“But I can tell you that [Daniels] moved through these stages to the point that he worked out [Wednesday] morning and ran 20 miles an hour, and today he’ll be able to practice in a non-contact fashion.”

Garrett Nussmeier replaced Daniels in the fourth quarter in Alabama’s 42-28 victory.

Kelly said depending on how much Daniels is able to do in practice the rest of the week, his preparation level compared to Nussmeier’s will determine who starts against Florida on Saturday.

Turner’s hit on Daniels was reviewed by replay officials, who determined targeting shouldn’t be called.

“I can say — nothing against those officials — I was blown away that was not targeting,” Ole Miss Coach Lane Kiffin, a former Alabama offensive coordinator, said this week. “I obviously don’t understand the rules, because that’s not just missing it on the field. That’s having plenty of time to look at it and not [call targeting].

“I don’t know if there’s a more important job for the officials than to protect the quarterback, who’s in a very vulnerable position by how he has to throw the ball.”

Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe understandably was supportive of Turner.

“Well, football is made to be physical,” Milroe said. “Shoot, I got hit a couple of times, looked at the ref like, ‘You ain’t going to call nothing?’ So that’s football.”

Burlsworth semifinalist

Missouri senior running back Cody Schrader is among 10 semifinalists for the Burlsworth Trophy announced this week.

Schrader, the only SEC player to make the list, leads the conference in rushing with 162 carries for 919 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The Burlsworth Trophy, named in honor of Arkansas All-American offensive lineman Brandon Burlsworth, is awarded to the most outstanding college player who began his career as a walk-on.

“One of the great awards in college football, because it recognizes heart and toughness,” said Missouri Coach Eli Drinkwitz, who began his career as an assistant at Alma High School. “That’s exactly what Brandon had. He played at Harrison for Coach Tommy Tice and we had many a battle up there at Harrison when I was an Alma Airedale over there by Crooked Creek.

“I think any time you can be associated with a great man like Brandon Burlsworth, be mentioned in the same breath, that’s an awesome thing.

“I do think Cody Schrader fits the mold of what Brandon was all about. Toughness, work ethic. He was never handed anything, earned it all. Then earned his way to play at an extremely high level, being an All-American at Arkansas, and being drafted by the Colts.

“Cody Schrader has kind of done the same things. He’s the leading rusher in the SEC right now and has had to earn everything in his life. I’m incredibly proud of him. I can’t think of a finer young man that would be up for the Burlsworth Trophy than Cody Schrader.”

Other Burlsworth Trophy semifinalists are quarterback Bryson Barnes (Utah), defensive linemen B.J Green (Arizona State) and Joe Evans (Iowa), offensive linemen James Carpenter (James Madison) and Jake Springfield (Oklahoma State), receivers Drake Stoops (Oklahoma) and Sean Atkins (South Florida) and linebackers Austin Moore (Kansas State) and Kyle Thompson (Washington State).

Favorites on course

Georgia and Alabama haven’t officially clinched SEC East and West titles, but in the final season with divisions in the SEC, the Bulldogs and Crimson Tide are on course to meet in the SEC Championship Game for the third time in six years.

Georgia can clinch the East title by beating Ole Miss on Saturday or with Missouri beating Tennessee earlier in the day.

Alabama can clinch the West title by winning at Kentucky or with a Georgia victory over Ole Miss.

Tennessee fans, most of whom despise Ole Miss Coach Lane Kiffin because he left Tennessee after one season to take the USC job, might find themselves in the odd position of having to root for the Rebels.

If Tennessee wins at Missouri, the Vols need Ole Miss to beat Georgia to keep alive hopes of winning the SEC East when Tennessee plays host to the Bulldogs next week.

West road

Kentucky’s 24-3 victory at Mississippi State last Saturday marked the first time in 14 years the Wildcats had beaten a team from the SEC West on the road.

The Wildcats had lost 15 consecutive road games against SEC West opponents since a 21-14 win at Auburn’s Jordan-Hare Stadium on Oct. 17, 2009.

Rocky Topped

Tennessee Coach Josh Heupel, a former Missouri offensive coordinator, has been rough on his former employer.

In Heupel’s two games against the Tigers as the Volunteers’ coach, Tennessee has outscored Missouri 128-48.

Tennessee beat Missouri 62-24 on the road in 2021 and 66-24 at home last season.

The No. 14 Tigers will try to make it more competitive when they play the No. 13 Vols on Saturday at Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo.

Lopsided series

Alabama, which plays at Kentucky on Saturday, holds a 38-2-1 series lead.

Kentucky beat the Crimson Tide 6-0 in 1922 in the second meeting, then had to wait 75 years to win another game in the series with a 40-34 victory in overtime at home in 1997.

The Tide and Wildcats tied 7-7 in 1939.

Alabama, which won its first game against Kentucky 27-0 in 1917, has won seven in a row over the Wildcats since the 1997 loss.

Coach Nick Saban is 8-0 against Kentucky, including 5-0 with Alabama and 3-0 with LSU. Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops is 0-3 against the Tide.

Sorry kids

Missouri Coach Eli Drinkwitz used part of his weekly news conference Tuesday to take responsibility for his sideline behavior in Georgia’s 30-21 victory over the Tigers last week.

“I would like to take a few minutes to apologize for my sideline demeanor during the course of the game,” Drinkwitz said. “During Saturday’s contest there were a few moments where I let the frustrations boil over.

“After reviewing the film, I clearly had inappropriate language that was not reflective of my character, and I need to be better. I need to apologize to my daughters and the officials, too.”

Bowled over?

Florida’s 39-36 overtime loss to Arkansas last week at The Swamp might ultimately cost the Gators an opportunity to play in a bowl game.

The Gators are 5-4 and need to win just one more game to get bowl eligible, but their next two games are on the road at No. 19 LSU and No. 14 Missouri, then they close the regular season at home against No. 4 Florida State.

Super seniors

Georgia will celebrate its senior class on Saturday when the Bulldogs play their final home game against Ole Miss. Georgia’s seniors have played on teams that combined for a 46-3 record.

SEC TOP TO BOTTOM

Ranking(prev);record;comment

1. (1);Georgia;9-0;Kiffin visiting Kirby

2. (2);Alabama;8-1;Rare road trip to Kentucky

3. (3);Ole Miss;8-1;Three in a row over Aggies

4. (5);Missouri;7-2;Tennessee tough on the Tigers

5. (4);LSU;6-3;Hopeful Daniels can play vs. Florida

6. (6);Tennessee;7-2;Looking for fifth in a row over Mizzou

7. (9);Kentucky;6-3;Stoops gets first win at Mississippi State

8. (8);Texas A&M5-4How long can Jimbo hang on?

9. (10);Auburn;5-4;Offense is getting better

10. (13);Arkansas;3-6;Celebrates first win at The Swamp

11. (7);Florida;5-4;Gators fans not happy with Napier

12. (11);Mississippi State;4-5;Hoping for upset at Aggieland

13. (12);South Carolina;3-6;Win over those other Gamecocks

14. (14);Vanderbilt;2-8;Still winless in SEC heading to Carolina

PLAYER TO WATCH

Georgia WR Ladd McConkey, Jr., 6-0, 185 pounds

With All-American tight end Brock Bowers sidelined by an ankle injury, McConkey has become the Bulldogs’ go-to receiver.

McConkey missed the first four games with a back injury, and in five games since returning against Auburn, he has 22 catches for 337 yards and 2 touchdowns. In the two games Bowers has missed, McConkey had 6 receptions for 135 yards against Florida and 7 for 95 against Missouri.

Last season McConkey was one of the Bulldogs’ top receivers with 58 catches for 762 yards and 7 touchdowns.

GAME OF THE WEEK

No. 9 Ole Miss at No. 2 Georgia

6 p.m. Saturday, ESPN

RECORDS Ole Miss 8-1, 5-1 SEC; Georgia 9-0, 6-0

LINE Georgia by 11 1/2

Ole Miss and Georgia are playing with both teams ranked in the top 10 for the first time in 37 meetings. It’s only the fifth matchup with both teams ranked in the AP poll. Their most recent game was in 2016 when No. 21 Ole Miss beat No. 11 Georgia 45-14 at Oxford, Miss.

Georgia is looking to extend its winning streak to 27 consecutive games and improve on its 43-4 home record under Kirby Smart, including 12-1 against ranked teams.

Ole Miss is off to an 8-1 start in back-to-back years for the first time since 1961-62 . The Rebels want to avoid fading as they did in 2022 when they lost their final four games to finish 8-5.

BY THE NUMBERS

2012 Last time Ole Miss played at Georgia. The Bulldogs won 37-10.

227.8 Rushing yards per game by Tennessee to lead the SEC

46-5 Nick Saban’s record against SEC East teams at Alabama going into Saturday at Kentucky

+8 SEC-best turnover margin for Ole Miss. The Rebels have 14 takeaways and have lost the ball 6 times.

1,152 Receiving yards this season for LSU’s Malik Nabers.

OVERHEARD

“I just have a ton of respect for Coach. He has been successful for a long, long time. He has his methods, his way. He’s like a machine.”

Kentucky Coach Mark Stoops on Alabama Coach Nick Saban

“The last head coach that beat them there I can’t really call and ask, because he’s now on their staff. There’s not a lot of answers out there on how to beat these guys at home. A lot of people have tried.”

Ole Miss Coach Lane Kiffin on Georgia defensive coordinator Will Muschamp being the last visiting coach to beat the Bulldogs at Sanford Stadium when he was at South Carolina in 2019

“I think it’s probably the most disruptive front seven in all of college football.”

Mississippi State Coach Zach Arnett on Texas A&M’s defense, which has 34 sacks