FLORIDA: Priority of the week off was to work on pass protection for quarterback Chris Leak, who has been sacked a SEC high 24 times. Florida has scored a total of three touchdowns against Tennessee, LSU and Alabama. The defense is ranked in the top ten nationally averaging 279 yards per game. Reggie Nelson, who has been moved from cornerback to safety, will see more action against Georgia. He has more tackles than starting safeties Kyle Jackson and Tony Joiner. He is tied with Jarvis Moss for the team lead in sacks with four. Coach Urban Meyer admitted this week that he and his staff have not done a good job of molding his scheme to the personnel. Since the Kentucky game, Leak has completed only 35% of his passes, thrown one touchdown, four interceptions and averaged 179 yards passing. Meyer said he has to find ways to make Leak comfortable. ESPN College GameDay will set up in Jacksonville. Florida has been the centerpiece team of the show more than any other team (21 times for record of 12-8). Texas, Missouri, Penn State and Northwestern are using a version of the spread option to win a lot of games this year. The difference is they all have quarterbacks who are good runners. Leak has run for minus 16 yards this season. Tate Casey, Florida’s tight end, has caught only three passes for 28 yards. The Gators are last among BCS schools in tight end production. The Florida defense is allowing 272 ypg, fifth nationally and second in turnover margin. Georgia and Florida are the top two teams in turnover margin in the SEC. (Gatorbait.net)

OLE MISS: Quarterback Micheal Spurlock was 19- of- 38 for 198 yards including a 9-yard scoring pass to receiver Mike Espy in the win over Kentucky. Redshirt freshman tailback Mico McSwain rushed for 104 yards. McSwain has been limited in practice this week. Larry Kendrick has gotten most of the practice snaps. Rebel offensive coordinator Noel Mazzone held the same position at Auburn for three years. Ole Miss has scored just 10- of- 19 times in the red zone. Fullback Robert Lane, the former quarterback, caught three passes in the first quarter of last week’s game. Coach Ed Orgeron said Lane will see more action this week. The Rebels are allowing only 16 ppg. Ole Miss is No. 13 nationally in pass defense (178 ypg) and No. 23 in total defense (320 ypg). Conversely, the Rebels are scoring only 15 ppg, No. 110 nationally. (RebelGrove.com)

AUBURN: Tiger kicker John Vaughn was 1- of- 6 field goals in the loss to LSU. His last attempt hit the left upright. Quarterback Brandon Cox was 16- of- 40 for 221 yards. The receivers dropped seven passes. Tailback Kenny Irons gained 218 yards including a 74-yard scoring run. In the last two games, he has 400 yards on 60 carries, only the fourth Tiger running back to do so. Auburn ran 12 more plays than LSU and outgained them 451 yards to 339. Free safety Steve Gandy gets his first start against the Rebels. Gandy replaces Eric Brock who allowed two crucial plays against LSU, one of them was an 18-yard scoring pass. (Auburnsports.com)

SOUTH CAROLINA: Blake Mitchell was 15- of -27 for 221 yards in the win over Vanderbilt. Mitchell leads the SEC with a 64% completion rate. Syvelle Newton was 3- of- 4 for 46 yards and two scores. He ran for 80 yards on 15 carries. Newton is out for the season after tearing his Achilles tendon. Freshmen Bobby Wallace and Mike Davis will try to fill the void. Receiver Sidney Rice caught eight passes for 132 yards. Jefferson Pilot has selected USC’s game next week at Arkansas. Freshman receiver Travis Lee has dropped out of school. Defensive back Carlos Thomas has moved back to receiver for additional depth. Injured defensive back Tremaine Tyler and Chris Hampton have returned from injuries. The Gamecocks are last in the SEC in rushing. (Gamecockcentral.com)

TENNESSEE: The Vols gained 109 yards rushing and 144 yards passing in the loss to Alabama. Tailback Gerald Riggs gained 68 yards on 18 carries. He left the game in the fourth quarter with an injury that turned out to be a fractured ankle. Quarterback Rick Clausen was 11- of- 17 for 144 yards. The Vols had four turnovers-an interception and three fumbles. Defensive lineman Parys Haralson has six sacks and 10 tackles- for- loss in the last four games. The Vols have only six touchdown drives this season longer than 33 yards. In six games, they have failed to score in 12 quarters. Amazingly, Florida and Alabama combined to score only one touchdown on Tennessee and the Vols lost both games. Tailback Arian Foster, who gained 53 yards on 14 carries, will replace Riggs. Tennessee is No. 105 nationally in rushing offense and scoring offense. TheVols are No. 6 in rush defense and No. 13 in scoring defense. Tennessee didn’t score a touchdown in a SEC game for only the second time in the Phil Fulmer era. Vol coaches apologized to quarterback Erik Ainge for not playing him more. Tennessee has allowed only 16 ppg, but has lost three of six games. Tennessee has beaten USC 12 straight times. (Volquest.com)

MISSISSIPPI STATE: Tailback Jerious Norwood ran for a single-game record 237 yards in the loss to Houston. State has lost four straight games including losses to Georgia, LSU and Florida. Quarterback Omarr Conner was 14- of- 31 passing for 84 yards. State has 19 straight road losses in the SEC. Their last win was at Kentucky. State is last in the SEC in scoring averaging 14 ppg. (Bulldogblitz.com)

KENTUCKY: The Wildcats are last in the SEC in rushing defense allowing 193 ypg. Kentucky has a SEC high 16 turnovers.

UTAH STATE AT ALABAMA: The Tide was held to 67 yards on 35 rushes in the win over Tennessee. Quarterback Brodie Croyle was 17- of- 27 for 190 yards. Receiver D J Hall caught 10 passes for 139 yards. Kicker Jamie Christensen made two- of- three field goals including the game winner with 13 seconds left. Tide defensive back Roman Harper knocked the ball out of the hands of fullback Cory Anderson on the Alabama 2-yard line and the ball went out of the end zone. Croyle hit Hall on a 43-yard pass a few plays later that set up the winning field goal. Linebacker DeMeco Ryans had 11 tackles, intercepted a pass, and recovered a fumble. Croyle will wear a brace this week starting for the rest of the season. Tennessee sacked Croyle five times. The Tide front four has gone two games without a sack. In the past two games, the Tide offense has scored one touchdown and 19 points since the Tyrone Prothro injury. Tennessee is No. 10 and Ole Miss No.13 in scoring defense. Croyle admitted that he overthrew a wide-open Keith Brown in the second quarter and an open Hall in the third quarter that would have resulted in two potential touchdowns. Utah State’s defense is No. 104 nationally allowing 32 ppg. Backup quarterback John Parker Wilson was back in the yellow jersey this week meaning he is probably off the scout team and through with any disciplinary action due to his DUI. The game at Mississippi State has been selected by CBS for a 3:30 pm kickoff. The punt return candidates are Matt Caddell, Brandon Brooks and Simeon Castille. D J Hall asked to be taken away from those duties after he had trouble fielding punts against Tennessee. The FSU-Alabama game at Jacksonville, Fla., has been set for Sept. 29, 2007. (BOL.com)

ARKANSAS IS OFF: Freshman tailback Darren McFadden ran for 190 yards on 31 carries and two scores in the loss to Georgia. Freshman Felix Jones gained 62 yards on 10 carries. The Hogs gained 216 yards on 49 carries. Quarterback Robert Johnson was 11 of 19 for 116 yards. (Hawgsports.com)

NORTH TEXAS AT LSU: Chris Jackson kicked the winning field goal in overtime in the win over Auburn. Jackson also punted, and kicked off in the game. Tailback Joseph Addai gained 104 yards. Skyler Green returned a punt 65 yards for a touchdown. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell was 16- of- 33 for 190 yards. In LSU’s four game win streak, they have allowed only five touchdowns. The Tiger defense survived over 200 yards rushing and eight third down conversions and one fourth down conversion in the Auburn game. Against Florida, LSU had five turnovers, zero takeaways and 11 penalties. In the Auburn game, there were zero turnovers, zero quarterback sacks, and five penalties. The Tigers have won three games when trailing in the fourth quarter. Russell is recovering from a sprained tendon in his right throwing wrist. Only two freshmen have played for the Tigers this season-linebacker Darry Beckwith and running back Steven Korte. Richard Dickson (6-3, 233), a tight end from Ocean Springs, Ms., has verbally committed to the Tigers. (Tigerbait.com)

NORTH CAROLINA: The Tar Heels held Virginia to 90 yards rushing and 109 yards passing in last week’s win. Virginia quarterback Marques Hagans was 14- of- 28 for 109 yards and one pick. Ronnie McGill ran for 118 yards and Cedrick Holt had a key interception. UNC held Virginia to 199 total yards. Kicker Conner Barth is only 3-of-11 on the season. Offensive coordinator Gary Tranquill said he will retire after this year. Quarterback Matt Baker has thrown for over 220 yards in four games. Jesse Holley is his favorite target with 21 catches for 307 yards. UNC averages only 104 yards rushing.

MIAMI: Offensive coordinator Dan Werner said quarterback Kyle Wright’s thumb has not prevented him from taking snaps. He said the offensive line has improved, but not to the point where tight end Greg Olsen and the backs still have to be kept in for blocking purposes. Werner likes tailback Andrew Johnson’s speed, but they have not played him much. The Canes got a big commitment from Jason Fox (6-7, 265), an offensive lineman from Crowley (Texas) North Crowley High. (Canesport.com)

SOUTHERN MISS AT N C STATE: The Wolfpack are in last place in the ACC after losing to Wake Forest. Backup quarterback Marcus Stone replaced Jay Davis in the second quarter and threw a pair of scoring passes, but he also threw a crucial interception that was returned for a score. The Wolfpack defense held Wake to only 85 yards on 49 attempts.

MARYLAND: Terp tight ends Vernon Davis and Danny Melendez are the leading receivers. The biggest question for the Terps is whether or not quarterback Sam Hollenbach will play with a bruised shoulder. Backup quarterback Joel Statham beat FSU last year.

FLORIDA STATE: Quarterback Drew Weatherford was 24- of- 32 for 276 yards and two scores. His backup, Xavier Lee was 10- of- 17 for 100 yards and two scores. Receiver Greg Carr caught six passes for 95 yards. He has eight touchdowns this season. For the third straight game, FSU allowed at least 24 points. Duke had scored only 24 points in their previous four ACC games. Inexperience at cornerback continues to plague the Noles. Sophomore J R Bryant has been named the starting boundary cornerback across from Tony Carter. Senior Gerard Ross moves to a backup role. FSU has seven picks on the season, none against Virginia and Wake Forest. All seven have been from linebackers or safeties. Wake and Duke averaged 219 ypg rushing against the Noles. Duke collected 274 yards on kick returns. Chris Hall has averaged 30 yards per punt in his last two games, 10 less yards than the first several games. The Noles are last in touchback percentage on kickoffs. Freshman Greg Gano might have a chance to kickoff. Conversely, the passing attack has improved to 334 ypg. Through seven games, 13 players are in double-digit receptions. The offense has more touchdowns (31) through the first seven games than the team had in 12 games (30) last year. Freshman safety Clarence Ward is transferring closer to his Texas home. (Warchant.com)

WAKE FOREST AT DUKE: Wake defenders took two interceptions back for touchdowns in the win over N C State. In the past two weeks, the Demon Deacons have forced eight turnovers, three for scores. Tailback Chris Barclay ran 36 times for 117 yards.

CLEMSON: The Tigers are averaging just less than 400 yard of offense per game, nearly one hundred yards better than last year. Freshman running back James Davis could play Saturday. He fractured his wrist against N C State on Oct. 13. Redshirt freshman Aaron Kelly is the team’s leading receiver. He caught seven passes last week for 155 yards in the win over Temple. The game against Tech has been delayed until 3:30 pm.

GEORGIA TECH: The Yellow Jacket defense has produced 14 turnovers.

BRENT BEAIRD IS A SPORTS WRITER FOR THE CLAY COUNTY LINE IN ORANGE PARK, FL.
HE ALSO WRITES FOR RIVALS.COM AND SAMSPORTSLINE.COM.
HE CAN BE HEARD AT 6:20 P.M. ON MONDAYS AND THURSDAYS ON 930 THE FOX IN JACKSONVILLE, FLA.