Week 3 was not as kind to the nation’s strongest conference as Weeks 1 & 2. This time around three teams lost non-conference games in difficult matchups. Auburn couldn’t handle the White Out in Happy Valley, Mississippi State found themselves on the wrong end of an officiating fiasco, and Vanderbilt couldn’t hang with Stanford in a 41-23 home loss.
One team impressed even in defeat as the Florida Gators got oh-so-close to toppling the Crimson Tide. Their 31-29 win was the closest any team had come to beating Bama since their SEC Championship duel with them last winter.