ºüÀêÊÓƵ

College football teams often take on the personality of a head coach.

This can be good or bad.

See Auburn for an example of the latter.

Auburn has become the SEC’s most generous team, turning over gobs of fumbles and throwing a staggering number of interceptions.

Auburn coach Hugh Freeze also is a great gift giver.

He provides bulletin-board material for opponents every time he talks. Like his team, which has a league-worst turnover differential — minus-11! — Freeze can really hand out free momentum.

“I know everybody has their rankings of coaches,� Freeze said this week during his news conference, beginning an incredible back-handed compliment of No. 19 Mizzou. “The better talent you have, the better coach you are, for sure. To me, some of the better coaching jobs are done with those lesser rosters in recruiting. You look at people like (Mizzou’s) Eli (Drinkwitz) and (Kentucky’s Mark) Stoops and, heck, (Vanderbilt’s) Clark Lea now, too, who are doing incredible jobs at their respective programs with the kids they’ve had.�

What Freeze will defend as a compliment of Drinkwitz also is a bit of a jab at Mizzou’s players. They will receive the message. What they do about it? That’s up to them.

I don’t think Freeze was intentionally firing up Mizzou. I think this was another Freudian Freeze slip, like when he said less than a week after losing to Arkansas that Auburn would win that game 9 times out of 9. (Sure thing, Coach.)

I don’t think Freeze thinks Mizzou should be a program that can compete with his program in terms of talent level on the field, at least not if he gets Auburn where he thinks he can if he’s given the time. If that doesn’t tick off Mizzou players, that’s a problem.

Auburn is a beatable opponent. In fact, every team Mizzou faces the rest of its season has flaws in addition to a game or two they would love to have back. Those teams are viewing Mizzou in the exact same way. That’s what happens when you get your teeth kicked in at Texas A&M and fail to respond after a few early calls go against you. Pummeling UMass doesn’t change it. Responding better against SEC opposition could.

Auburn: Like I said, Auburn has quite literally given some games away. Six lost fumbles rank second-worst in the SEC. Nine interceptions thrown, including six by starting quarterback Payton Thorne, are the most in the SEC, by three.

Auburn’s minus-11 turnover margin is worst in the SEC, by eight turnovers. Auburn’s 31-13 loss at Georgia was a small win because of no fumbles lost or interceptions thrown.

When Freeze’s team isn’t beating itself, it’s a tougher out.

No. 7 Alabama: After barely finishing a massive win against Georgia, Alabama flopped at Vanderbilt and then barely beat South Carolina at home. That makes three consecutive games for new Tide coach Kalen DeBoer that have been decided by a touchdown or less after being up in the air in the final moments.

Since the second quarter of that big win against Georgia began, Alabama has been outscored 99-82. Still a really good team. But maybe not the fully operational death star we once thought.

Oklahoma: The Red River Rivalry was so rough on Oklahoma the Sooners went from No. 18 to unranked after taking a 34-3 whipping in Dallas. Oklahoma’s offense can be found in the conference’s bottom in pretty much every notable category: 24.3 points per game (15th), 122 rushing yards per game (16th), 165.7 passing yards per game (16th) and a third-down conversion rate of 26.8% (16th).

South Carolina: The Gamecocks have allowed the most sacks in the SEC (26) along with the most tackles for loss (53), which is 10 more than the next-worst SEC team in preventing TFLs (Oklahoma). The old adage says this league is won and lost in the trenches, and South Carolina’s offensive line struggles are pulling down a team with a disruptive defense and creative quarterback.

Mississippi State: Where’s the D? Not in Starkville. The Bulldogs, losers of five straight, are allowing an SEC-worst 33.2 points per game, an SEC-worst 201.9 rushing yards per game, an SEC-worst 264 passing yards per game, and an SEC-worst opponent third-down conversion rate (46.8%).

The only MSU opponent that has not scored at least 30 points against this defense, home or away, is Eastern Kentucky.

Arkansas: The resilient Hogs proved there is life after losing to Texas A&M. They stunned Tennessee after but will still face three top 20 teams before coming to CoMo: No. 8 LSU, No. 18 Ole Miss and No.1 Texas.

Other than Freeze’s free motivation and maybe some Auburn fumbles and/or picks, gifts are going to be hard to come by moving forward. Mizzou no longer gets the benefit of the doubt unless the Tigers earn it back.

But there are winnable games left on this schedule, and no team in the SEC not named Texas feels unbeatable entering this season’s second half.