Week one of the Southeastern Conference Football season was underway this past weekend, with all fourteen members competing on the field of glory. Some did better than others, while three programs lost embarrassingly. Others played in lesser competition cupcake games that provided an extra boost of confidence heading into the meat of the schedules. Playing cupcake teams to open the season should be reserved for the Spring Football season instead of playing a Spring Game against your team, but that alone is a different topic for another day. However, with games over the weekend come overreactions and takeaways from a jam-packed weekend of Southeastern Conference Football.

First, it’s crucial to talk about the purple elephants in the Southeastern Conference board room ahead of week two. Florida, South Carolina, and LSU embarrassed the Conference over the weekend with the lack of effort in their week one matchup against teams in the ACC and Pac 12. Florida started it off Thursday night with a painful outing on the road at Utah. Florida had chances to win on the road, but the Gators got dominated by a Utah team that Florida should have been able to deal with on an athletic level. If Florida were to play to the level they played on Thursday night, then a long season is staring down the pipe of the Gators as they approach the harsh reality of Southeastern Conference Football. South Carolina and LSU faced ACC programs that made the two representatives from the Southeastern Conference look like chopped liver. First, it was South Carolina on Saturday night in Charlotte, North Carolina, where the Gamecocks made excuses while the Tar Heels took them to the woodshed in a lopsided 31-17 game. After the beatdown, Head Coach Shane Beamer blamed the chain gang for eating hot dogs and not giving the Gamecocks the correct yardage. For LSU, the Tigers got outgunned on Sunday night. Florida State came into the Camping World Classic looking to turn the Tigers into an example of what not to do against the Seminoles. Florida State Head Coach Mike Norvell ran circles around LSU Head Coach Brain Kelly on Sunday night, leaving Kelly and his Tigers confused en route to a 45-24 loss.

Second, the annual beatdown of FCS cupcake opponents happened over the weekend for ten Southeastern Conference programs. All ten Southeastern Conference members combined for 518 points while giving up 102. It’s hard to tell anything from the cupcake games, but it gave ten Southeastern Conference programs enough film to prepare for a massive week two across the Conference.

Third, all across the Southeastern Conference, attendance at games was a positive for most programs. People were excited to have Southeastern Conference Football back as the stands across the footprint filled with people eager to celebrate the last season of Southeastern Conference Football as we know it. Combined with decent weather across the south and the love for Southeastern Conference Football, this weekend was a success for those fans.

Overall, week one was a decent weekend for the programs of the Southeastern Conference; however, week two will provide clarity for many that week one could not deliver based on the quality of adversary on the other sideline. Week two will give the Southeastern Conference matchups like Alabama and Texas, Mississippi State and Arizona, Auburn and Cal, Texas A&M and Miami, and Ole Miss and Tulane. A sweep in those and attitude towards the Southeastern Conference will flip to favorable in national perception.