SEC Power Rankings: Miles-Saban rivalry approaching historic level
Woody Hayes and Bo Schembechler roamed the sidelines during a decade's worth of Michigan-Ohio State contests that would later come to be known as “The Ten Year War.” More often than not, the Big Ten championship and a Rose Bowl berth hung in the balance. While it hasn’t been 10 years, Saturday night’s LSU-Alabama matchup will be the 10th meeting between Les Miles and Nick Saban. The winner of their annual regular-season meeting has played for the national championship on four occasions in the last eight years, including their rematch during the 2011 BCS National Championship Game.
What makes this rivalry all the more rich is the juxtaposition between Saban and Miles. Saban, ever the tactician, preaches “The Process” above all else. Saban is part of the Bill Belichick coaching tree, having served as Belichick’s defensive coordinator in Cleveland. Saban’s demeanor can often mirror that of his former boss.
And then there’s Miles, college football’s version of a riverboat gambler, who goes by the nickname “The Mad Hatter.” Miles played under Schembechler at Michigan and had two stints as a member of his coaching staff. Miles often exudes the kind of passion that Schembechler became famous for, but in a manner that has led many to categorize him as a players' coach.
Schembechler was Hayes' protege, cut from the same cloth. Schembechler was one of many to emerge from the cradle of coaches at Miami (OH), and nearly all of them from Hayes; Ara Parseghian and Jim Tressel ran their programs in similar fashion. In the heart of the SEC, it’s the contrast between Miles and Saban, not the similarity, that makes this rivalry so compelling.
While the bravado of Miles, both as a person and a play-caller, separates him from Saban, their teams are eerily similar this season. Both programs have built their offenses around their star running backs. Derrick Henry is ninth in the country with 1,044 rushing yards and 14 rushing touchdowns. Leonard Fournette bests Henry in both, leading the nation in rushing (1,352 yards) despite only playing in seven games thus far. In addition to their lead backs, both offenses feature highly touted wide receivers, with Calvin Ridley in Alabama and Malachi Dupre at LSU.
Depending on which metric you use, the Tide and Tiger defenses can be viewed as elite. Alabama ranks third in the S&P+ rating and LSU ranks sixth in the country against the run and 22nd overall in the Fremeau Efficiency Index, a rating system based on opponent-adjusted drive efficiency. LSU’s average margin of victory this season has been 16.6 points. Alabama is right there at 15.4 points per game.
Saban is ahead of Miles in the head-to-head series, besting LSU in six of nine meetings and four straight dating back to their 2011 title game rematch. This season, Miles and his Tigers carry their undefeated record into Tuscaloosa hoping to crash the playoff party after being picked to finish fourth in the SEC by the media this July.
When it's all said and done, the 10th incarnation of this impassioned coaching rivalry may very well feature the 78th Heisman Trophy winner, the SEC champion, and the national champion. As if this game needed any added juice, the playoff committee's first rankings come out Tuesday night and we could see both programs nestled inside the top five.
SEC West Power Rankings
1. LSU (Last week: 1)
Brandon Harris will be in the crosshairs Saturday night. Luckily for the Bayou Bengals, the third-year sophomore is playing the best football of his collegiate career. Harris has thrown for 716 yards and seven touchdowns in his last three games while the Tigers have turned the ball over just once as a team during that stretch.
2. Alabama (Last week: 2)
Derrick Henry has scored a rushing touchdown in 13 straight games, the longest active streak in college football and an Alabama record. LSU has only surrendered five rushing touchdowns all season.
3. Ole Miss (Last week: 3)
Ole Miss leaned on Laquon Treadwell in crunch time last week as he became the first player in the SEC to record four straight 100-yard performances with a touchdown since Reche Caldwell accomplished the feat for Florida in 2001.
4. Mississippi State (Last week: 4)
The Bulldogs ran out of gas down the stretch last season in large part due to turnovers. This season, Dak Prescott has done a masterful job cutting down on turnovers and he’ll need to protect the ball Saturday in Columbia if the Bulldogs hope to overcome Missouri's sixth-ranked defense.
5. Texas A&M (Last week: 5)
The full details of the melodrama surrounding Texas A&M’s quarterback controversy remain unclear. What was clear was the play of Kyler Murray on Saturday. The true freshman single-handedly vanquished South Carolina while piling up 379 total yards and two touchdowns.
6. Arkansas (Last week: 6)
The coaching staff tried to send Alex Collins a message by stripping him of his status as the starting running back. He responded with 173 yards on the ground and five touchdowns.
7. Auburn (Last week: 7)
The Tigers put up a great fight against Ole Miss, but Gus Malzahn cares little about moral victories at this point in the season. The Georgia game in two weeks will determine if they'll be bowl eligible.
SEC East Power Rankings
1. Florida (Last week: 1)
In his last two games against Georgia, Kelvin Taylor had 318 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Jim McElwain’s turnaround is astonishing and he’ll garner plenty of votes for Coach of the Year come season’s end.
2. Tennessee (Last week: 3)
The Vols leveled Kentucky in Lexington and seem poised to win out. Tennessee's final four opponents' average Sagarin ranking is 95th.
3. Georgia (Last week: 2)
Georgia hasn’t been the same since Nick Chubb went down. In fact, the Bulldogs haven’t scored a rushing touchdown since their sophomore superstar injured his left knee Oct. 10.
4. Kentucky (Last week: 4)
The good news in Lexington was that most fans were focused on the Breeders' Cup instead of the Wildcats' 52-21 loss to Tennessee. The bad news is that Patrick Towles has lost his way.
5. South Carolina (Last week: 5)
The Gamecocks played well on the road and nearly stole a game from the Aggies. The running game looked impressive, led by Brandon Wilds.
6. Mizzou (Last week: 7)
Maty Mauk has been suspended for the remainder of the season, so it’s hard to picture the Tigers picking up two more wins. It looks like they’ll be home for Christmas for the first time since 2012.
7. Vanderbilt (Last week: 6)
The defense did its best to hold Greg Ward Jr. in check, but the offense was a trainwreck, completing five passes on the night while tossing three interceptions.