Friday SEC Pick-Em

Well SEC Nation, some of the drama may be gone now that we know who will be in the Conference Championship game on December 6th in Atlanta, but it still doesn’t take nothing away from the fact that as football fans, We live for the weekend. This weekend’s slate of games still offers up plenty of chances for upsets as well as clarifying the bowl picture. It is do or die time for the Arkansas Razorbacks and the Mississippi State Bulldogs as they must win out to become bowl eligible. Let’s not wait any longer, let’s play Pick-Em.

Louisiana Monroe versus Ole Miss: The Ole Miss Rebels are on the verge of becoming bowl eligible for the first time since the 2003 season. Standing in their way though is the University of Louisiana Monroe Warhawks. These are the same Warhawks who earlier this year played to a 1 point loss to Arkansas and just last year beat the Alabama Crimson Tide. I am sure that nothing would please ULM more than spoiling Ole Miss’ hopes of going bowling this year. ULM is led by senior Kinsmon Lancaster at quarterback who has passed for just shy of 1900 yards this season. The Ole Miss defense has been playing real well against the run but the pass “D” has been questionable at best, so Lancaster will probably try to exploit this fact. Ole Miss receiver Shay Hodge is tied for first in the conference for touchdown catches. Anyone who has watched any Rebel games this year will have no doubt that Ole Miss has plenty of offensive weapons including a formation called the Wild Rebel, in which Dexter McCluster takes a direct snap and sweeps with the ball. McCluster then has the option of pitching, throwing or keeping the pigskin. It is a formation designed to get the ball into your playmakers hands, and no one can argue that McCluster can be one of the most exciting playmakers in the SEC. However the Rebels have been prone to making mistakes, more especially the turnover. ULM is not a high school team; the Rebels will have to take care of the football if they want to win. As of late though, Ole Miss has done a much better job of securing the football so for that reason, I am going to pick Ole Miss to win, hopefully by big enough margin to be able to get their younger players some game time experience.

Mississippi State versus Alabama: MSU has had a bad year! They are at 3 – 6 and on the verge of being eliminated from bowl eligibility. Alabama on the other hand has already secured a spot in the post season. The Tide is ranked № 1 in the nation and will represent the SEC Western Division in the SEC Championship game. Looking at the numbers for this game, MSU will need to do well running the ball. Sly Croom will have to get the ball to his solid RB Anthony Dixon if the Dawgs are to have any chance. However offensive anemia has been the Bulldog M.O. all year. Alabama on the other hand has not had that problem. John Parker Wilson is Alabama’s all time leading passer in the Completions, Yards, and Touchdown categories. So far this year JPW has passed for over 1600 yards coupled with 8 touchdowns. I use the word stingy for describing good defenses all the time, but when you find a better word for describing Alabama’s defense I want to hear it Mr. Thesaurus. If you put a stingy defense against an anemic offense then it is just very hard for me to pick an upset in this one. The Bulldogs have won the last two contests in this series and some may say that Alabama may be looking ahead towards the SEC championship game. I don’t however; Nick Saban is way too good at motivating players. He will have his team ready for the Bulldogs, not the Gators, or Auburn Tigers. Alabama wins this game in a run-away!

Georgia versus Auburn: Tommy Tubberville’s Auburn Tigers are sitting on a 5 – 5 record with a dismal 2 – 4 SEC mark. That is the worst I have ever seen an Auburn team look this late in the season. If they wish to get to bowl eligible they must win one of their last two games. That will not be an easy task to do though as they have Georgia this weekend and next it will be the № 1 Alabama Crimson Tide. If Auburn wishes to make the post season they will have to find something they haven’t had all year, a football team. The Georgia Bulldogs are a team that has been wounded as of late but nothing more dangerous than a wounded dog. Georgia still has a very talented quarterback in Matthew Stafford and one of the finest running backs in the country in Knowshon Moreno. Let’s not forget that the Bulldogs also have a very talented duo of receivers in Mohamed Massaquoi and A.J. Green. Defensively, Georgia still has the SEC’s leading tackler in Rennie Curran. All this sounds like overwhelming odds for the Auburn Tigers to overcome and it may very well be. This is the SEC though and we all know that any team can beat any other team on any given Saturday. I cannot pick an upset here either though; Georgia wins this game and puts Auburn one game closer to post season death.

South Carolina versus Florida: The Florida Gators, like Alabama have secured their spot in the SEC Championship game, but they still have their eye on the BCS title game. The Gators will have to continue their style of intensive play if they wish for this to come to fruition. Former Florida head coach Steve Spurrier though might have one of the SEC’s top rated defenses. It is my opinion that this Gamecock defense is the best all around defense that Florida has faced so far this year; that is referring to defending the pass as well as the run. Obviously Tim Tebow is the key to a Florida victory. Since the Ole Miss loss Tebow has been off the charts great, and that is like “Tony the Tiger” says it….Grrrrrrrrrrrrr eat! I have said it before and I will say it again, I feel that Tebow is worth 14 points by himself! I am sure that the Ole Ball Coach Spurrier has his team focused and wanting nothing more than to ruin Florida’s National Championship hopes. This game should be very entertaining, and if South Carolina can keep it close they will stand a chance late, but if the Gators get off to the kind of start that they have become accustomed to, then I give the Gamecocks little to no chance of getting back into it. I have got to go with the hot hand at this moment. Florida wins, but they will have to work for it.

Troy versus LSU: No one, including the author, gave LSU much of a chance last week to beat Alabama, and although they didn’t win, they more than had a chance to. If LSU had more experience at the QB position, they could very well be undefeated. This week they go up against a team that is badly out of their league. Normally you wouldn’t hear me make that kind of statement, but for Troy, they couldn’t have caught the LSU tigers at a worse time. Not only is this LSU’s homecoming game, but they are coming off of a “Bitter Pill” type of loss to Alabama, a game that many an LSU fan and players alike think they should’ve won. The Tigers are at home, they are mad, and they will prevail. No surprises in Red Stick Country…..This weekend!

Vanderbilt versus Kentucky: The 5 – 4 Vanderbilt Commodores have been in search of the elusive 6th win since October 4th. After starting out 5 – 0 and entering the AP poll, the Dore’s have dropped 4 straight decisions including a 17 – 14 loss to Mississippi State. To say the final few games have been frustrating for Vanderbilt fans would be an understatement. Kentucky likewise started the year out strong at 4 – 0, but has a 2 – 3 record since, but unlike Vanderbilt, Kentucky is already bowl eligible. Kentucky also had a very impressive outing last week out of their QB Randall Cobb in a loss to Georgia. Cobb is a threat to run as well as pass and he may have Kentucky back up to their winning ways. When Vanderbilt was winning games they were doing it on defense. A defense that could bring pressure in the passing game as well as snuff out the run. This kind of defense keeps you in a game long enough for you offense to put together something, in the first 5 games, the Commodore offense found that something. In the last 4 contests however they have not and in fact in the Florida loss last week, the defense didn’t even show up. But a lot of teams have had that problem against Florida this year. I don’t see Vandy being able to pull out their 6th win this weekend though. This game will be a close one in my opinion but Kentucky at home wins in the end.

Well there you have it sports fans, the SEC match ups as I see them unfolding. On the national stage, № 2 Texas Tech is taking the weekend off, but № 4 Texas is in action against their conference foe Kansas. Looking at the rest of the national schedule, I don’t see any upset possibilities out there. To all of SEC nation, enjoy yourself this weekend and come back on Monday as I re-cap the action, brag about my victorious picks and give excuses for my defeated picks. Until then….Hotty Toddy!
Darryle “Speedy” Clark