A rare clash: No. 15 Michigan and No. 18 Oklahoma meet for the first time since 1976
Things to watch this week in the Southeastern Conference:
No. 15 Michigan (1-0) at No. 18 Oklahoma (1-0), Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
Week 2 gives most SEC teams a moment to breathe after an action-packed opening weekend featuring three top 10 games. In a much milder slate of games, No. 15 Michigan at No. 18 Oklahoma is the sole outing between two ranked teams. It marks just the second time the two teams have met and the first since Jan. 1, 1976, when a 14-6 Sooners victory in the Orange Bowl helped them win the second of back-to-back AP national titles.
Michigan comes off a 34-17 win over New Mexico in Week 1, an effort led by running back Justice Haynes with 159 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Oklahoma delivered a convincing 35-3 win over Illinois State behind new quarterback John Mateer, who completed 30 of 37 passes for 392 yards, three TDs and an interception.
Both teams are looking for a tone-setting win before conference play arrives.
No. 20 Ole Miss (1-0) at Kentucky (1-0), Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET (ABC)
No. 20 Ole Miss travels to Kroger Field to take on a Kentucky team that went 1-7 in conference play in 2024 — with that lone win coming against the Rebels. Kentucky relied heavily on the run game to outscore Toledo 24-16 in Week 1. Ole Miss breezed by Georgia State 63-7.
South Florida (1-0) at No. 13 Florida (1-0), Saturday, 4:15 p.m. ET (ESPN)
South Florida heads to the Swamp riding the momentum of a surprisingly easy upset of then-No. 25 Boise State. Both teams will see a better opponent on the other side of the ball after the Gators got three TDs from DJ Lagway in a 55-0 blowout of Long Island.
— Taylen Green: The Arkansas senior quarterback hit six different receivers on Saturday for six touchdowns as the Razorbacks rolled past Alabama A&M. Green made his debut for the Razorbacks in 2024 after transferring from Boise State and threw for 3,154 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions. One game into the season, Green is already 40% toward his 2024 touchdown total.
— Mateer: The Sooners QB had a strong Week 1 performance, but the real challenge comes now against a much stouter Michigan defense. After playing in the Pac-12 for the past three years, Mateer gets his first taste of a Big Ten vs. SEC matchup.
— Arch Manning: A lot of eyes will be on Manning after an underwhelming Week 1 performance against Ohio State. Manning struggled to get anything going offensively against the defending national champs, failing to meet impossibly high expectations. The seventh-ranked Longhorns have a chance to get well against San Jose State.
The SEC went 14-2 in Week 1. Though Alabama and Texas took a tumble, all 10 SEC teams in the preseason poll remained in the Top 25: LSU (3), Georgia (4), Texas (7), South Carolina (10), Florida (13), Oklahoma (18), Texas A&M (19), Ole Miss (20), Alabama (21) and Tennessee (22). ... Mateer’s 392 passing yards leads the SEC. ... Green’s six touchdowns rank first in the SEC and third among FBS schools. ... Alabama receiver Germie Bernard tops the conference in receiving yards with 146. ... South Carolina was one of eight FBS teams to notch a special teams touchdown.
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