Week 9 Preview

Arkansas at Vanderbilt - I like the way Vandy is playing...scoring 44 points?! When has Vandy ever scored 44 points? And the offense isn't even that good. They are 4-3 and have a legit shot at a bowl. They don't need this win, but it would be huge. This will be their 6th home game already this year. Arkansas played poorly at Ole Miss..but give the Rebs credit they played above the previous standard they had set this year. Vanderbilt's D, at home, could cause some problems for Arkansas. The 'Dores certainly have to be taken seriously this year, and I think the Hogs know that. I'm tempted to say this game is close, but I think UPig will hit some long passes that Vandy won't be able to keep up with on their end. ARK 35 VU 13

Georgia vs. Florida - Georgia is a trendy pick in this one. For one, we don't know for sure if John Brantley will be 100%, and UF's other freshman QBs are not that good right now. Secondly, the Georgia defense gets Alec Ogletree back from injury and Cornelius Washington back from a 2-game suspension. Combined SEC record of the teams UGA has beaten: 1-15 (that one win was Vandy over Ole Miss). Combined SEC record of the teams FLA has lost to: 13-2 (Auburn L vs. LSU and ARK). So don't get all hopped up on the Georgia bandwagon because they've won 5 straight and Florida lost 3 straight. The Gators had lost 3 straight to West opponent going into last year as well (Bama, LSU, MSU), but still beat UGA. Florida has won this game 18 of the last 21 times. Mark Richt is 2-8 vs. Florida. Georgia's got a shot at winning the East - all 3 times they've previously won the East ('02, '03, '05)....Florida has beaten them. Georgia is a 3 point favorite, but they suck in this game. As I said before the season, no explanation needed. Florida wins.

Ole Miss at Auburn - Houston Nutt made a great run at Arkansas last week, but now he must go on the road...against a pretty good Auburn team. This will be Ole Miss' last ditch effort to make it to a bowl this year - this is a must win for that to happen. The combined record of the teams Auburn has lost to: 22-1 (and that one loss was Arkansas to the #2 team in the country, Alabama). Auburn has beat some good teams too: South Carolina, Florida, Mississippi State. They've had one of the toughest schedules in the country and have come out of it 5-3 so far. This will be an important game to lift them above what looks like will be a bunch of 6-6 SEC teams for good bowl positioning. Even though Auburn has some quarterback issues this year, they will rise above them at home vs. Ole Miss' sorry defense. The last time the Rebs won at Jordan-Hare, Eli was QB. No Eli, no win. Tigers 34-17. War Eagle.

Mississippi State at Kentucky - UK is going to wear black uniforms. If Mississippi State's history of wearing black uniforms is any indication of how they'll do, it isn't good. After Georgia's funeral game (taken behind the woodshed by Bama) in 2008 why do this? Joker Philips needs some kind of gimmick for his players to buy into. This is a huge game for the Wildcats as they have a chance, as they do vs. Ole Miss and at Vanderbilt (plus UT, but they can't beat UT) - which could get them to 6-6 if they win all 3. However, this is equally if not more important for Mississippi State, who is the better team here. MSU is a 10 point favorite, but they should win this game by even more. UK's defense is weak on it's best day, Tyler Russell should be able to slice through them like he did UAB. Kentucky played a defense of similar strength at South Carolina - they scored 3 points. Kentucky is the worst scoring and total offense in the SEC, and nearly the worst in the nation. MSU 34 UK 9

South Carolina at Tennessee - The only time I thought wearing black jerseys was cool was two years ago when, on Halloween night, Tennessee wore them vs. South Carolina. Since their main color is orange...it worked - they won 31-13 against a nationally ranked USC team. I've got a sneaking suspicion UT will try the same trick - although it's not as cool since it's not actually Halloween. Derek Dooley is taking the redshirt off Justin Worley and is starting him in place of Matt Simms. Yes, the game is at home, but as a true freshman how will it feel to have the best pass rushers in the country in your face? Ah, not good. Gamecocks win, and beat the 3.5 point spread.

Michigan State at Nebraska - So MSU has beaten Ohio State, Michigan, and Wisconsin in consecutive weeks. Now they have to go to Nebraska? Who is making these schedules? That's all the Big Ten has to offer, and the Spartans have to play them all in one month. Too much, Nebraska wins.

Oklahoma at Kansas State - This is just great. Really, I want to watch it. How good is KSU, we are about to find out. I think they are pretty good as they have beaten Miami (FL) who looks good now and then they went to Texas Tech and beat them right before they stormed OU. This could be like a Big 12 semi-final, and the winner's game vs. Oklahoma State is for the championship of the Big 12. The spread is OU -13.5...that seems pretty high. The Sooners may be ticked about losing, but Bill Snyder coached a balanced, disciplined team who, at home, will be tough to beat by that much. I think Oklahoma wins, but only by a touchdown.

Clemson at Georgia Tech - GA Tech went and screwed this game up by losing to Virginia and Miami (FL). Miami I can see, but UVA? What if these two were 8-0 and in the Top 10...that would do wonders for the ACC. But they aren't GA Tech couldn't even get to 7-1 after that 6-0 start. Their offense has fallen off the map...but they should be able to find themselves because Clemson's defense don't bring much to the table. Conventional wisdom is that this will be a really high-scoring game...but I don't know. I was surprised to see the over/under so low at 63. I think Paul Johnson milks the clock a lot trying to play keep away, but Clemson wins 31-28.


JB