Week 6 Preview

You never know what can happen in college football, but there look to be some monster clashes down the road. Clemson at Georgia Tech on October 29th could be one of them. Clemson is #8 right now, and Georgia Tech is #13...both have 3 very winnable games before their meeting...so both could be 8-0 going into the game, and if that is the case they will both most likely be in the top 6 or 7 in the country. Then there's the big one: LSU at Alabama. There doesn't seem to be anything standing in the way of this game being between both of these teams being 8-0 and a #1 vs. #2 matchup. And then there's the possibility of Oklahoma at Oklahoma State on December 3rd being a game between two undefeated teams. But, of course, the chance of all three of these games being the monster clashes I'm demonstrating is almost 0% because teams always get upset. And that is what makes college football great.

First on the docket, my beloved Bulldogs. They've been playing pretty poorly of late, especially on offense. But UAB is horrible. Even in Birmingham MSU should win big. If this is another LA Tech game, I'll be pissed. I don't think it will be, but it won't be the blowout Memphis was. I'm looking for State to win 31-17.

Kentucky at South Carolina - Losing to Auburn at home has got to be pretty devastating for the Gamecocks and their extremely high expectations for this season (I stupidly picked them for the BCS Title). Stephen Garcia is playing horrific. But Morgan Newton is playing worse. USC cannot struggle in this game and expect to hold onto the East with Georgia gaining fast. But the recipe for beating them has been laid out by Auburn in 3 times now....load up and go for broke to stop Lattimore, Garcia sucks. USC wins.

Florida at LSU - Florida is going into Death Valley with a true freshman quarterback. So no one is giving them a chance and they are a 14 point underdog. After getting thumped by Alabama at home that spread almost looks too thin. But you have to remember that Les Miles will probably get up by two scores and milk the clock and win by 10 or something. And who knows, while everyone loves Miles right now, he is still the same coach that everyone consistently scratched their head with the past few years. LSU may find a way to turn this game into a close one...but it shouldn't be that close with the disadvantages Florida has right now.

Georgia at Tennessee - This is a pretty big game. Tennessee is tied for the lead in the SEC East - in the loss column, but they still don't have an SEC win. If they want to have a shot at the division this year this is a must win. I picked UT before the season, but I didn't know UGA's defense would be this good....they are much much better than I expected. Tyler Bray looks really great, but I don't think he'll be able to throw for 300 yards in this one unless they get far behind. Georgia is has the best defense in the SEC on 3rd down...Tennessee has the best offense in the SEC on 3rd down - something's got to give. This game will be close into the 4th quarter but I like Georgia to win, and possibly get into the Top 25 next week.

Vanderbilt at Alabama - Protect all your playmakers Vandy, don't get injured. Save your energy for a game you've got a chance in.

Auburn at Arkansas - All of the sudden this game became a Top 15 matchup. A game I'm sure Arkansas fans had marked as a 'W' has become a game in question. Gene Chizik is coach of the year 1/3 of the way through the season in my estimation, I don't know how they've done it. Somehow the Auburn D managed to play great against South Carolina, but will that hold up against an Arkansas offense that executes a lot better? The Hog's D is playing pretty horrible, and is probably the reason they aren't going to end up contending to the SEC West at season's end. This should be a very entertaining game, between two schools that defy typical SEC logic to win games. The over/under is 63.5....I'll take the over. Arkansas by a field goal.

Texas vs. Oklahoma - The Horns have managed to quietly sneak up to #11, but I have a feeling they are going to come crashing back to earth this week. OU by three touchdowns.

Where did Illinois come from? They are 5-0 and looking at their upcoming schedule they have a good shot to be 9-0 before hosting Michigan and Wisconsin. Ron Zook has really been all or nothing there.


JB