By JOHN ZENOR
AP Sports Writer

TUSCALOOSA, Ala.(AP) -- Three penalties. Three turnovers forced,
none committed. And a commanding 444-213 edge in total yards.

No. 2 Alabama's all-around performance in a 31-3 victory over
Mississippi State last week was solid enough to prompt a
question for coach Nick Saban: Was this the Crimson Tide's best
game of the season?

Saban didn't give a yes or no answer but said he was "really
pleased" with Alabama's play against a fired-up Bulldog team.

"Knowing you've got to go out there and sort of get into a
street fight right off the bat with all the emotion (the
Bulldogs) had in the game. To be able to persevere and just keep
playing through it, I think that was the most important thing,"
Saban said.

Quarterback Greg McElroy could find something else to like. The
Tide had no offensive penalties.

"Isn't it great?" he said, smiling. "Looking back on it, I think
we did a pretty good job of executing. As far as the
three-and-outs, we had a couple of those in the second half.
Those are things we want to eliminate. But the lack of penalties
is obviously huge. No turnovers, and we also had a lot of
explosive plays, which is our three most important goals."

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GOING BOWLING? Mississippi State wants to join the party.

The Bulldogs are just one of three Southeastern Conference teams
who haven't clinched bowl eligibility. The postseason path
appears difficult with games at Arkansas and against archrival
Mississippi, but Mississippi State players feel they've been
hardened by the challenge of playing six teams that either are
or have been ranked.

"We're real confident," linebacker Jamar Chaney said. "We're not
a team that's just going to give up."

Vanderbilt (2-9) had been eliminated from postseason contention,
leaving Mississippi State (4-6) and Tennessee (5-5) with the
chance to reach the minimum six wins needed for a bowl berth.
The SEC has never had more than nine teams play in a bowl.

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BOO BIRDS: Les Miles appreciated why fans in Tiger Stadium grew
restless as heavily favored LSU struggled with Louisiana Tech
last weekend. He agreed his team lacked intensity and was not
sharp at times in its 24-16 victory over the Bulldogs, which led
poll voters to drop LSU a spot in the rankings to No. 10.

Miles had more trouble with the way fans vented, namely by
booing fill-in starting quarterback Jarrett Lee and instances of
the pass-heavy play-calling, and he essentially asked them to
stop it.

"I've never been to a contest where that affected anything
positively," said Miles, who played at Michigan and has since
worked as an assistant or head coach for 29 years in college and
the NFL. "Point to any example where that is a significant
factor in anything, then I'm for you. But having never done that
in my entire life, I just can't imagine what would possess
people to do that - to root negatively. Look it up. I guess
there is a spot in there where there is a negative piece to
rooting or cheering. I don't know why there would be,
personally."

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MOVING UP: Tennessee senior defensive tackle Dan Williams is no
doubt improving his NFL draft status.

The Memphis native has 35 tackles the last six games. He's also
got seven quarterback hurries, 5.5 tackles for loss and a sack
in that span. Teammates and opponents alike have dubbed him
unblockable.

Williams has spoken briefly with coach Lane Kiffin, who spent a
season and a half with the NFL Oakland Raiders, about the NFL.

"We never did get in depth into it. He just said, 'Dan, just
keep doing what you're doing,"' Williams said.

Kiffin told him, "'You're doing good, and they're talking good
about you.' For the most part, I think that's good to hear, but
my goals for this team are still trying to get us to a bowl game
and just make sure I do everything I can do we can win,"
Williams said. "If my play is helping us win, and it also helps
me out in the long run, that's a plus. But we don't talk about
it that much."

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OUT FOR BLOOD: Kentucky hasn't beaten Tennessee on the football
field in 25 years. And that's not the only losing streak the
Wildcats have to the Volunteers.

Tennessee has dominated the school's annual blood drive
competition. The effort, in its 22nd season, is designed to
build up the blood supply in both states during the holidays.

Tennessee has won the past six blood drives, a number that
coincides with Kentucky coach Rich Brooks' arrival on campus.
Brooks did his part to end the skid, donating a pint of blood on
Monday before meeting reporters.

"A lot of fans wanted my blood a long time ago," Brooks quipped.

Kentucky had the early lead in event, which runs through Nov.
20. The Wildcats and Vols close the regular season Nov. 28.

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SACK DANCE: Georgia's defense managed only five sacks in its
first four games and then was held without a sack in a midseason
loss at Tennessee. Since then, the production of the Bulldogs'
pass rush is on the rise, and Georgia already has topped its
2008 sacks total.

Led by young defensive ends Cornelius Washington, Montez
Robinson and Justin Houston, the Bulldogs have nine sacks in
their last two games. Washington, a freshman, and Houston, a
sophomore, each had one in last week's win over Auburn.

Houston has six sacks in seven games this season. Robinson, a
freshman, had his first two career sacks against Tennessee Tech
on Nov. 7. Houston and Robinson each have won SEC defensive
lineman of the week honors.

Junior Demarcus Dobbs, who starts with Houston, has 3 1/2 sacks.

Georgia ranks fourth in the SEC with 25 sacks. It finished last
season with 24 sacks.

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ON THE EDGE: Steve Spurrier says winning or losing against rival
Clemson in two weeks will be the difference between a good year
and an average one for South Carolina.

After 11 straight games, the Gamecocks (6-5) have a bye week as
they prepare for their annual regular-season finale against
Clemson.

South Carolina will enter the Nov. 28 contest off three straight
losses, including a 24-14 defeat to No. 1 Florida this past
Saturday.

"If we're fortunate to win the last one, we'll have a very good
year," Spurrier said. "If we don't we'll have a very average
year. Simple as that."

The odds aren't necessarily in Spurrier's favor. The past two
times South Carolina's had a week off before Clemson, it has
lost.

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AP Sports Writers Chris Talbott in Jackson, Miss.; Brett Martel
in Baton Rouge, La.; Beth Rucker in Knoxville, Tenn.; Charles
Odum in Atlanta; and Pete Iacobelli in Columbia, S.C.,
contributed to this report.