Game changers: A pair of sophomore LSU defenders—safety Eric Reid and defensive end Sam Montgomery—have received SEC player of the week honors for their roles in the Tigers’ 9-6 overtime win over second-ranked Alabama on Saturday. Reid, a native of Geismar, earned SEC Defensive Player of the Week honors, while Montgomery, from Greenwood, S.C., was named the SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week. Both players played a significant role in LSU limiting Alabama to season lows for points (6), total yards (295) and rushing yards (96). The six points were the fewest for the Crimson Tide under coach Nick Saban. Read more about the players’ stats in Saturday’s game and see the rest of this week’s SEC player of the week honorees here.
Kickoff: LSU’s final SEC road game, against Ole Miss on Nov. 19, will kick off at 6 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN. The ESPN telecast marks the first time since 2006 a network other than CBS has televised the LSU-Ole Miss game. It also caps LSU’s streak of consecutive league games on CBS at four straight. LSU closes out the regular season the following week against Arkansas on CBS at 1:30 p.m., the Tigers’ fifth appearance on the network this season.
Houston, we have a problem: University of Mississippi Athletics Director Pete Boone announced today that the 2011 football season will be the last for head coach Houston Nutt. “Our goal is to compete for championships, and we are not making progress in that regard,” Boone says. “It’s time for our team to have new leadership and a new direction.” Nutt will finish out the season with the Rebels, a decision that Boone says was made in the interest of continuity and stability for student-athletes as they near the end of the semester and end of the season. “Change is never easy, but I understand why it’s necessary. My attention is on finishing out the 2011 season and winning this Saturday,” Nutt says. Boone also announced that he would be stepping down as athletics director within the next year. Read more here.
