Tennessee v South Carolina
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We are already 20% through the 2020 SEC season, which means it's time for the conference title picture to begin to come into focus. Make no mistake -- it will, especially in the East Division.

The highly-touted matchup between Nick Saban and former offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin -- one of the most anticipated coaching matchups since Kiffin was named the head coach at Ole Miss -- will go down on Saturday, two top 25 matchups define the landscape of the season and the Mike Leach roller coaster will continue roaring down the tracks.

Let's take a spin around the conference in this week's edition of SEC Smothered and Covered.

Appetizer: Alabama and everyone else ... for now

It's clear through the first two weeks that No. 2 Alabama is on a different level. While other teams have pressing issues they either need to address or can't address, it's business as usual for the Tide on both sides of the ball. The speed in the front seven, including veteran linebacker Dylan Moses and freshman edge threat Will Anderson Jr., looks like it's going to be a major problem for every offense. 

Speaking of offense, quarterback Mac Jones isn't a game-manager -- he's a difference-maker. Try these numbers on for size: passer rating of 222.07 (first nationally), 13.4 yards per attempt (first nationally) and a completion percentage of 74.5% (third nationally). Oh, and he found a "third option" at wide receiver in John Metchie III last weekend. The Crimson Tide are the only complete team in the conference … and it really isn't close.

What about this weekend? Can Saban's former pupil and the high-flying Ole Miss offense spring the upset? Probably not. But Kiffin will certainly have some tricks up his sleeve. After all, we have been waiting for this meeting since he got the job in Oxford on Dec. 8, 2019.

Main Course: Three-team fight in the SEC East

No. 14 Tennessee will travel to Athens to take on No. 3 Georgia on Saturday in the SEC on CBS Game of the Week. Consider it the start of the three-team battle royale for the SEC East championship. Yes, it's only the third week of the conference season, but the first two weeks have confirmed that the Vols and Bulldogs, along with No. 4 Florida, are the class of a division that has won only one SEC title since 2008. 

Let's start with the Volunteers. The current eight-game winning streak has been criticized a bit because of the level of competition during that stretch. Let's expand on that discussion a bit. The defense hasn't given up more than 400 yards since yielding 526 to Georgia on Oct. 5, 2019. That stretch is more than a calendar year and includes the 373 yards that the Volunteers gave up to Alabama on Oct. 19, 2019. The last time I checked, Alabama's offense is no slouch. The Vols have given up 5 or more yards per play only twice during that span -- 5.12 to South Carolina and 5.55 to Missouri in the first two games of this season. That's nothing at which to scoff.

Plus, have you seen that offensive line? They're tied for sixth in the nation in tackles for loss allowed per game at 3.5. They've been a big part of the 182.5 yards per game that the Vols are averaging this season.

Who gets the credit? It should start at the top. Coach Jeremy Pruitt kept his team together after back-to-back losses to Georgia State and BYU to open last season. The progress the program has made since then is as clear as the water along the gulf coast of the Florida panhandle. He's only in his third year as a head coach -- anywhere. The job he did last season and the clear progress this season has been wildly impressive. It's time for the world to recognize it.

Meanwhile, the Bulldogs got right against Auburn last week thanks to a swarming defense and a passing game led by quarterback Stetson Bennett IV that looked more like a strength than a liability. The ability to run the ball and win the battle on the defensive front proves that this team is for real and ready to defend its SEC East title. 

Florida will tee it up with No. 21 Texas A&M at high noon with a chance to show off its stellar offense on the road. What's more, an impressive defensive performance would go a long way toward solidifying the Gators as a national title contender. 

Buckle up. This is the biggest weekend in the SEC East thus far. And depending on what happens down the stretch, it could be the most important weekend of the season. 

Dessert: The full Mike Leach experience

My, what a two weeks it has been in Starkville. A record-setting win over the defending national champs at their place followed by a home loss to a team that had a 20-game conference losing streak. Or, simply put: the Mike Leach experience. Take last year, for example. Washington State built a 32-point lead over UCLA midway through the third quarter only to fall 67-63 in regulation. Not some ridiculous quadruple-overtime marathon. Just the normal 60-minute game.

This is what Leach does. He has moments where everything clicks followed by moments where it all falls apart. It's a basic system that works most of the time ... but not all of the time. See: Last week's loss to Arkansas.

Snacks

  • Anybody want to block for Bo Nix? Anybody? Bueller? Bueller?
  • Down two touchdowns, South Carolina embarked on an 18-play, 74-yard drive that took 7:24 and ended on a fourth-down incompletion with 0:48 left in the loss to Florida. Seriously, Will Muschamp? Are you trying to heat up that seat?
  • LSU needs a No. 1 back for that offense to click, and it might have found one last week against Vanderbilt. Welcome to the party John Emery Jr.
  • Kentucky running back A.J. Rose's premature celebration only to get tackled from behind and fumble two plays later went viral over the weekend.  Yeah, he deserved it. You can't throw up deuces unless you're completely in the clear. Rose will make amends and go north of 100 yards this week vs. Mississippi State. Write it with a Sharpie.