For the first time since 1943, Vanderbilt is 5-0 and appears to be well on its way to its first bowl game since 1982. The Commodores have trailed in all five contests this season, but have found a way to win in the second half — and that form held true in Saturday’s win over Auburn.

After the first 15 minutes in this game, it seemed Auburn was going to win relatively easy. Led by running back Ben Tate, the Tigers led 13-0 and the Commodores appeared to be on the edge. Things didn’t get any easier when quarterback Chris Nickson exited with a shoulder injury in the first half. However, junior Mackenzi Adams stepped in and the offense didn’t miss a beat while the defense held Auburn to 25 yards in the second quarter. Adams completed 13 of 23 passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns. With the lack of a consistent rushing attack, Adams had to take it upon his shoulders to lead this team to victory. Scoring strikes to Justin Wheeler and Brandon Barden was just enough for the victory, as the Vanderbilt defense iced the game with an interception of Auburn quarterback Chris Todd with less than three minutes to go.

“Obviously it was a big win for us, and it was a tough battle, but I'm proud of how are guys hung in there, because the first quarter was kind of a scare,” Vanderbilt coach Bobby Johnson said. “But, we came fighting back. But, I thought in the second half our offense started to do some good things and started throwing the ball a little bit more effectively, and won the field position battle in the second half, which was huge since they only needed a field goal to win.”

Barring struggles by Alabama and LSU, Auburn appears unlikely to play for the SEC title. Although the Tiger defense is solid, the offense can’t move the chains. Quarterbacks Chris Todd and Kodi Burns combined to complete 10 of 22 passes for 98 yards and two interceptions. After a couple of subpar performances, it’s clear the Tigers lack the personnel to run coordinator Tony Franklin’s spread offense. Expect to see the Tigers go with more two tight end sets and lean a little more on running back Ben Tate in the coming weeks.

“We've got to turn it around,” Auburn coach Tommy Tuberville said. “We scored two touchdowns tonight. That's about half of what we scored the first three games. We'll go back and we'll look at it and see who's healthy. Our protection broke down when we were throwing the ball. When you can't run the ball, you can't slow them down. In the second half, they got us on our heels and started bring people and we didn't have time to get it off.”

Scoreboard:

Florida 38, Arkansas 7
South Carolina 31, Ole Miss 24
Alabama 17, Kentucky 14
Vanderbilt 14, Auburn 13
Tennessee 13, Northern Illinois 9

Team of the Week: Vanderbilt

It isn’t always pretty, but the Commodores just continue to find ways to win. Auburn, Ole Miss and South Carolina are three impressive wins for the Vanderbilt resume and if the Commodores can defeat Mississippi State in Week 7, they will be bowl eligible.

Disappointment of the Week: Ole Miss

One week after knocking off Florida, Ole Miss suffered a disappointing loss to South Carolina. The Rebels held a 14-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and a 21-17 edge at halftime. However, they were unable to hold either lead and ended up falling by a touchdown. Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead had a chance to rally his team in the fourth quarter, but an interception sealed the South Carolina win.

Player of the Week: Mackenzi Adams, QB, Vanderbilt

Thanks to Adams’ consistent passing and timely rushing, the Commodores improved to 5-0 and sit atop the SEC East. The junior quarterback completed 13 of 23 passes for 153 yards and two touchdowns. With Nickson’s status for Mississippi State unknown, Adams could be called upon again as the starting quarterback.

Freshman of the Week: Florida RBs Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey

With Emmanuel Moody nursing a high ankle sprain and Percy Harvin limited due to an injury, Demps and Rainey picked up the slack in the Florida backfield. Demps totaled 103 yards and two touchdowns on seven carries and Rainey notched 103 yards and a score on 10 carries. Both backs bring world class speed to the field and will be a valuable weapon in Saturday’s match-up against LSU.

Kentucky gives Alabama a scare

Coming off a huge road win against Georgia, Alabama seemed ripe for a letdown. Although the Crimson Tide turned in a lackluster performance, they found a way to move to 6-0. Kentucky used a strong defensive effort to keep things close, but was unable to pickup a late fumble by Crimson Tide running back Glen Coffee or recover an onside kick for a shot at the victory. The Wildcats struggled to run the ball against a tough Crimson Tide defense, but quarterback Mike Hartline kept them in the game with a 241-yard effort. Coffee pounded the Wildcats for 218 yards and a touchdown, which made up for quarterback John Parker Wilson’s 7 of 17 for 106 yards and an interception performance.

“We're certainly happy to win, but we also put on a clinic today on how to keep the other team in the game,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said.

“This was our first chance to go out and play after the team had been recognized on a national level, and that's a different kind of psychological management to handle success, and I would say that we didn't handle it extremely well today.”

Shaky Vols escape Northern Illinois

The grumblings against Tennessee coach Phil Fulmer will get a little louder this week. Although the Volunteers managed a victory against Northern Illinois, it wasn’t pretty. Not to mention, it was less than a full house at Neyland Stadium. Quarterback Jonathan Crompton was benched in favor of Nick Stephens, but the offense had another sluggish performance. Stephens completed 10 of 17 passes for 156 yards and a touchdown, including a 52-yard bomb to Denarius Moore. The Volunteer defense was solid, holding Northern Illinois to 190 total yards.

“We'll take the win,” Fulmer said. “We've been on the short end of a couple of those like that. It was a good football team we played tonight. Defensively, I thought again we played very well. Offensively, we made some steps, I think, in the right direction. We're still not as efficient as we need to be. It seems like everything we do is really hard for us.”

Florida rolls in Fayetteville

It was another blowout loss for Arkansas, but a good win for Florida with a key game against LSU this Saturday. The Gators piled 514 total yards against a porous Arkansas defense and quarterback Tim Tebow had a solid afternoon, completing 17 of 26 passes for 217 yards and two touchdowns.

Arkansas running back Michael Smith rushed for 133 yards and a touchdown, but the Razorbacks have lost their last three games by a combined 108 points and the schedule doesn’t get any easier. The Razorbacks rank 107th in rushing offense, 112th in scoring defense and 114th in turnover margin. Ouch.

South Carolina scores huge road victory, Ole Miss doesn’t capitalize

After knocking off Florida last week, Ole Miss wasn’t able to build on that momentum, even after jumping out to a 14-3 lead. The Rebels had three turnovers, including a fumble that was returned for a touchdown. The rushing game struggled against a solid Gamecock defensive front. Dexter McCluster led the way with 40 yards on eight carries. South Carolina had to be pleased with the effort of redshirt freshman quarterback Stephen Garcia against UAB, but the Gamecocks surprisingly went with Chris Smelley. Smelley responded with one of the best efforts in his career, passing for 327 yards and three touchdowns on 22 of 32 passes. The Gamecocks have a chance to capitalize off their road victory with a date against Kentucky next week, while the Rebels have a bye week to prepare for Alabama.

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