THE SEC REPORT
The SEC Report: A&M wins, Alabama triumphs but falls in polls and LSU is the real winner of the weekend
Oct 29, 2019, 6:54 am
THE SEC REPORT
Born with a comic book in one hand and a remote control in the other, Cory DLG is the talent of Conroe's very own Nerd Thug Radio and Sports. Check out the podcast replay of the FM radio show at www.nerdthugradio.com!
Texas A&M held up against Mississippi State in spite of their defense. Alabama thinks they have a quarterback after they drummed Arkansas for 235 yards and three touchdowns and LSU jumped over Alabama into the number #1 position on the country after beating Auburn in a close game. It's a little odd that LSU jumped over Alabama after closely beating an Auburn that only barely beat A&M but hey, they have to play Alabama next weekend so we'll see who deserves what then.
Lynn Bowden Jr, running back of Kentucky, had himself a day with 204 yards and two touchdowns on 21 carries against a Missouri team that was, until recently, in the pole position for their division for the SEC championship game.
Kellen Mond, Quarterback of Texas A&M, in a game they basically had to have he came out and slung it for 234 yards and put three touchdowns on the scoreboard. A&M's season hangs in the balance and it will take great poise and a solid quarterback.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire, running back of LSU, on 26 carries he got 136 yards and a touchdown in a game where they needed every yard and every point. It must be thankless to be the starting running back of a team with a potential Heisman winning quarterback on it, because you won't get a lot of love nationally.
So we live in a world where I correctly predicted last week that LSU would leapfrog Alabama with a win, I just thought it would be a clear win and it wasn't. This week both Alabama and LSU are off as they prepare for their must see game next weekend but this week everyone needs to be watching Georgia coming to Gainesville in a game that desperately matters to the SEC championship game. Also Texas A&M hosts UTSA in a game that while not SEC relevant matters to Aggies, and Ole Miss comes to Auburn who really needs a win.
Kyle Trask, quarterback of Florida. Florida is in a position to get to the SEC championship game by just playing winning football. All they have to do is keep playing good football and usually the quarterback is directly responsible for this.
D'Andre Swift, running back of Georgia. This is the big game this week. Numbers 1 and 2 of the SEC East are playing in a game that is likely to decide one of the two teams that plays in the SEC championship game so the star running back may want to step up.
Bo Nix, quarterback of Auburn. This is likely the last time his name appears on the list because if Bo doesn't win the rest of their season doesn't matter in the big picture. They need the freshman to find his mojo and quick or what started off as a great year may wind up being the year that broke Bo.
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Cal Raleigh approached the All-Star Home Run Derby like a day on the lawn. Dad was on the mound and baby brother was behind the plate.
Only this time, there were tens of thousands looking on at Truist Park and a $1 million prize.
“It goes all the way back to him coming home and me forcing him to throw me a ball and hit it in the backyard or in the house or something probably shouldn’t be doing,” a beaming Cal said, flanked by Todd and Todd Jr. after defeating Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero 18-15 in the final round Monday night.
Todd Raleigh, former coach of Tennessee and Western Carolina, threw the pitches and Cal’s 15-year-old brother, Todd Raleigh Jr., did the catching. A first-time All-Star at age 28, Cal became the first switch-hitter and first catcher to win the title. He’s the second Mariners player to take the title after three-time winner Ken Griffey Jr., who was on the field, snapping photos.
“Anybody that’s ever played baseball as a kid dreams of stuff like this,” Cal’s dad said. “I dreamed of it. He dreamed of it. When you’re a parent, you look at it differently because you want your kids to be happy.”
Leading the major leagues with 38 home runs at the All-Star break, Cal almost didn’t make it past the first round. The Mariners’ breakout slugger nicknamed Big Dumper and the Athletics’ Brent Rooker each hit 17 homers, and Raleigh advanced on a tiebreaker for longest long ball: 470.61 feet to 470.53 — or 0.96 inches. At first, Cal wasn’t aware whether there would be a swing-off.
“An inch off, and I’m not even in the final four, which is amazing,” Cal said. “So I guess I got lucky there. One extra biscuit.”
Raleigh totaled 54 homers. He won his semifinal 19-13 over Pittsburgh’s Oneil Cruz, whose 513-foot first-round drive over the right-center field seats was the longest of the night.
Cal Raleigh's #HRDerby by the numbers:
Total HR: 54
HR of 425+: 31
Top distance: 471 ft
Avg distance: 430 ft
Total distance: 23,212 ft
Top exit velo: 112 MPH
Avg exit velo: 102 MPH pic.twitter.com/0pV6nGWLsA
— MLB (@MLB) July 15, 2025
Cal’s brother, nicknamed T, kept yelling encouragement to the brother he so admires.
“His swag, the way he plays, the way he hustles,” T said.
Hitting second in the final round, the 22-year-old Caminero closed within three dingers — MLB counted one that a fan outfielder caught with an over-the-wall grab. Using a multicolored bat and down to his last out, Caminero took three pitches and hit a liner to left.
“I didn’t think I was going to hit as many home runs or make it to the finals,” Caminero said through a translator.
Cal was just the second Derby switch-hitter after Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman in 2023. His dad was a righty and wanted both his sons to hit from both sides.
“Did it from the first day, when he was in diapers, literally,” Todd Sr. said. “I would take that big ball and he had a big red bat. I’d throw it slow and he’d hit it. Then I’d say stay there, pick him up, turn him around, switch his hands and do it again. I was a catcher. I played a little bit, and I just knew what a premium it was. I didn’t want either one of my boys to ever say, am I right-handed or left-handed?”
There was a downside.
“I don’t recommend it if you have two kids, they’re both switch hitters, if you want to save your arm, because that’s a lot of throwing,” said dad, who had rotator cuff surgery.
Raleigh hit his first eight homers left-handed, took a timeout, then hit seven right-handed. Going back to lefty, he hit two more in the bonus round and stayed lefty for the rest of the night.
“Was grooving a little bit more lefty so we were like, since we have a chance to win, we might as well stick to the side that’s working a little better,” Cal said.
Caminero beat Minnesota’s Byron Buxton 8-7 in the other semifinal. Atlanta’s Matt Olson, Washington’s James Wood, the New York Yankees’ Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Rooker were eliminated in the first round of the annual power show.
Cruz’s long drive was the hardest-hit at 118 mph.
Wood hit 16 homers, including one that landed on the roof of the Chop House behind the right-field wall. Olson, disappointing his hometown fans, did not go deep on his first nine swings and finished with 15, Chisholm hit just three homers, the fewest since the timer format started in 2015.fter it was all over, the Raleighs headed out. Stephanie, the boys’ mom and Todd Sr.'s wife, is surrounded by baseball.
After it was all over, the Raleighs headed out. Stephanie, the boys’ mom and Todd Sr.'s wife, is surrounded by baseball.
“We kind of leave it in the cage. We’ve got a cage at home, a building,” Todd Sr. said. “Or we leave it in the car on the rides home. There’s probably been a few times where she says, yeah, that’s enough.”