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SEC Power Rankings following Week 3 of 2018: Vols still near bottom

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Quarterback Kai Locksley #1 of the UTEP Miners tries to avoid a tackle from Defensive back Micah Abernathy #22 of the Tennessee Volunteers and Linebacker Jonathan Kongbo #99 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half of the game between the UTEP Miners and Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 24-0. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Quarterback Kai Locksley #1 of the UTEP Miners tries to avoid a tackle from Defensive back Micah Abernathy #22 of the Tennessee Volunteers and Linebacker Jonathan Kongbo #99 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the second half of the game between the UTEP Miners and Tennessee Volunteers at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2018 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Tennessee won the game 24-0. (Photo by Donald Page/Getty Images) /
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Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images
Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images /

The Missouri Tigers could be higher. They are undefeated with wins over two FBS teams, including a Power Five team. We could take that into account. However, their second half defense against the Purdue Boilermakers was enough for us to keep them at No. 9 in our SEC Power Rankings three weeks into the season.

Drew Lock is an elite quarterback, and former Vols head coach Derek Dooley is putting together a high-powered pro-style offense in Columbia. Getting to 3-0 is a good thing no matter what. But Barry Odom is a defensive guy, and that side of the ball keeps coming up short.

As a result, we don’t know what to make of this team yet despite being 3-0. Remember, Purdue fell to 0-3 with that loss and did not take the next step that everybody expected under Jeff Brohm. That means Mizzou still doesn’t really have an impressive win yet, and it forces us to keep them low on our list for now.

Nonetheless, there’s a great chance the Tigers are the second best team in a weak SEC East this year. We’ll find out if that’s the case on Saturday when they get set to host the Georgia Bulldogs. That will finally give us a read on how good this offense is and whether or not they have the horses to compete with the big boys. Just being in the game will mean something. But they need to lay it all out there Saturday.

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