**Editor’s Note: Time to take the 6-0 Challenge and make your Week 11 picks against “Joe vs. the Pro and the Hero.” Joseph Goodman’s popular college football picks feature, “Joe vs. the Pro and the Hero,” is adding readers to the action this season. Pick your Week 11 games here, and sign up for Joe’s newsletter to see how your picks compare to the experts (and Joe) as well as other readers.

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This is an opinion column.

LSU has every right to be upset about the injury to Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels, but Alabama linebacker Dallas Turner isn’t to blame.

Turner delivered his best defensive performance of the season in back-to-back plays against LSU on Saturday in Alabama’s thunderous 42-28 victory against rival LSU. The sequence helped put the game away for Alabama and solidified Turner as an Alabama football legend. A surging Crimson Tide is now the clear frontrunner to win the final division championship of the storied SEC West with only Kentucky and the Iron Bowl left on the conference schedule.

No.8 Alabama (8-1, 6-0 in the SEC) is at Kentucky (6-3, 3-3 SEC) on Saturday and Auburn (5-4, 2-4 SEC) travels to Arkansas (3-6, 1-5 SEC) with a chance to win three conference games in a row first time since the 2020 season. The most significant SEC matchup this week is No.2 Georgia (9-0, 6-0) at home against No.10 Ole Miss (8-1, 5-1) and everyone is looking forward to the Bulldogs finally playing a decent opponent.

At question this week will be Turner’s hit against Daniels, which knocked LSU’s quarterback out of the game. Based on my email inbox, LSU fans seem quite confused about what constitutes a dirty play. I’m here to explain.

While it’s unfortunate that Daniels suffered an injury, that doesn’t mean Turner’s tackle was dirty or an example targeting. In this current age of targeting calls, it was actually one of the best hits on a quarterback I’ve ever seen. In response to my column about Turner after the game, LSU fans have passed along one thoughtful message after another. One of the only examples that’s actually fit to print:

Glad to see you ignore the rules and praise blatant fouls.

I hope your family members become blatant victims of crimes and see if you have the same take.

Thanks,

Kyle Robert

Something tells me that Mr. Robert isn’t actually glad about the column in question.

There wasn’t anything malicious about Turner’s quarterback pressure on Daniels. Daniels was going back to pass and Turner was attempting to disrupt the play. That’s football. Turner was flagged for roughing the passer, but was not called for targeting. Why? The reason is because Turner initially made contact with Daniels’ chest (and not head) and never left his feet while slamming into LSU’s defenseless quarterback.

Daniels obviously left his feet after contact, and perhaps that’s what LSU fans are upset with the contact. I’m just speculating, though.

I’ve watched the replay many times, and Turner clearly drags his toes on the turf as he dives into Daniels’ frame. Did Turner intentionally drag his feet knowing that might keep him from getting called for targeting? Alabama didn’t make Turner available after the game, so I didn’t have a chance to ask him. It was a stunning play of athleticism that quite literally toed the line of targeting.

What constitutes a “dirty” play? It’s obviously open to interpretation, but sometimes — to borrow the famous ruling by the Supreme Court on hard-core pornography — you know it when you see it.

As it turns out, there was an obvious example of a dirty play on Saturday in the game between Ole Miss and Texas A&M. Ole Miss defeated the Aggies 38-35, keeping the Rebels’ hopes alive for an outside shot at the SEC West. During the intense battle, Texas A&M defensive lineman Shemar Turner took a swing at the reproductive region of Ole Miss offensive lineman Micah Pettus. Turner’s groin shot was followed up by a swing at Pettus’ helmet. Altogether nasty stuff and definitely dirty.

Shemar Turner is not related to Dallas Turner, for those wondering. Alabama’s Dallas Turner is from Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Shemar Turner of Texas A&M is from DeSoto, Texas. Alabama, Georgia and LSU were among the schools that recruited Shemar Turner, but he chose the Aggies. For his part, Pettus of Ole Miss — the player hit in the midsection — is from James Clemens High School in Madison, Alabama.

Shemar Turner later apologized for his low blow on Pettus. Dallas Turner doesn’t have to apologize for a thing, but I’m sure he’s just as concerned about the health of LSU’s quarterback as everyone who watched the collision.

OBSERVATIONS AND RUMINATIONS

November is here, which means it’s Iron Bowl month of the 10-year anniversary of the Miracle at Jordan-Hare and Kick Six. Auburn is down this season, but improving week to week under new coach Hugh Freeze. It’s great to see. Saturday’s 31-15 victory against Vanderbilt didn’t do much for me other than underscore how easy Georgia has had it in the SEC East.

Don’t discount Auburn’s chances in the Iron Bowl. I’m still inclined to pick the Tigers to win despite all of Alabama’s success. Auburn safety Jaylin Simpson is one of my favorite players in the country and something tells me he’s going to have a big game on Senior Day.

— Congrats to UAB coach Trent Dilfer on his second conference victory of the season. UAB came from behind to upset FAU 45-42. Quarterback Jacob Zeno passed for 484 yards and five touchdowns in the victory. The Blazers (3-6, 2-3 in the American Athletic Conference) have faced its toughest schedule in years, but still have a chance at bowl eligibility.

Fans haven’t been happy with UAB’s defense this season, but there’s no reason to turn on Dilfer in his first year of college coaching. It was always going to take time for his young staff to gain experience. UAB is at Navy (3-5, 2-3 AAC) on Saturday and then ends the season against Temple (3-6, 1-4 AAC) and North Texas (3-6, 1-4 AAC). Those are all games the Blazers should win. As UAB heads into November, Dilfer should already be thinking about giving a raise to UAB offensive coordinator Alex Mortensen. He’s a rising star in the profession and needs to be retained. Do others on the staff? We’ll see how the Blazers finish out the season.

— Jacksonville State (7-3, 5-1 AAC) couldn’t get it done against South Carolina in the fourth quarter, losing 38-28 in the battle of the Gamecocks, but JSU once again won the contest for best-looking helmets in the country. The so-called AKC helmets — short for Ass-Kickin’ Chicken — should become permanent fixtures in college football. JSU is going to make some noise next season when it becomes eligible for the postseason.

— Seven readers delivered perfect entries last week in the 6-0 Challenge. We’ll reveal this week’s certified college football geniuses in Thursday’s edition of “Joe vs. the Pro and the Hero.” Make your Week 11 picks here.

Joseph Goodman is the lead sports columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and author of “We Want Bama”, a book about togetherness, wild times and rum. You can find him on Twitter @JoeGoodmanJr.