Is Mizzou The Truth? SEC Week 6 Predictions
This week doesn’t have your cream-pie match-up in the SEC. Which is good, because some of us have only just finished relaxing after THAT LSU vs Georgia game.
But it has a lot of matches that ask the question: Are you REALLY any good? Are you really any good, Missouri? We’ll know after you visit Vanderbilt. Are you really any good, Auburn? We’ll know after the clash with Ole Miss. Are you really going to surprise us? Arkansas and Tennessee will answer the question when they play Florida and Georgia respectively. Oh, and the short-term future without HaHa Clinton-Dix is going to be OK, Bama fans….Georgia State’s not going to cause y’all any problems.
So here are the previews:
MISSOURI AT VANDERBILT
Vanderbilt lost its first game of the season in heart-breaking fashion to Ole Miss, while Missouri are unbeaten at 4-0 after playing pretty easy competition. There’s no denying that Missouri’s offense which starts QB James Franklin and WR Dorial Green-Beckham is going to cause Vanderbilt’s secondary fits, but then again, so will Vandy QB Austyn Carta-Samuels, and the WR combo of Jordan Matthews and Jonathan Krause. This is definitely going to be exciting, folks. Why? Because after all is said and done we’ll get to work out how good both teams actually are.
BOTTOM LINE: Vandy’s a one-point favorite. We have them to win. By a field goal. In one of the better games of the SEC season you’ll see.
OLE MISS AT AUBURN
A quick word about Auburn: They were pretty impressive in coming back against Ole Miss. We really enjoyed seeing how hard they played. Hugh Freeze should be worried about the Malzahn offense. A longer piece at Ole Miss. On Wednesday, 20 Ole Miss football players (amongst others) interrupted a play about the beating up of a gay student at the University of Wyoming. Amongst the taunts were nasty things said about homosexuality and some of the women‘s sizes. Anyway, we think Hugh Freeze should suspend all attendees of the play until those responsible own up. And when they do, they should be either suspended for the next 3 games. But will any action happen before the Auburn game? We doubt it, as the players have to leave on Friday to go to Alabama. We suspect that they will get away with it. Anyway, this will be a great game, but by God it’s soured.
BOTTOM LINE: If Ole Miss doesn’t find the perpetrators, then this game will stay at a three-point game. We think Auburn will win this one by a field goal if not more. Auburn’s really hyped at the moment, guys. As for Ole Miss, they are recovering from the awfulness that was the shutout by Alabama last week.
LSU AT MISSISSIPPI STATE
The other side of that incredible game at Sanford Stadium must be exhausted. Well, Les Miles has got to pick up the troops and travel to sunny Starkville. And because MSU has so much to prove after their laughable loss to Oklahoma State in Week 1, they’d better be up for this one. Well, the Kings of Cowbell Country get their starting quarterback, Tyler Russell, back from a concussion. He’ll go (excuse the pun) head-to-head with LSU QB Zach Mettenberger, who had a great game against Georgia in a losing effort. Mettenberger’s got a great running weapon in Jeremy Hill and two NFL-ready wide receivers in Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. We shudder just thinking about what damage they can do to a secondary.
BOTTOM LINE: LSU’s a 9-1/2 point favorite, but we think LSU wins by 2 touchdowns. That’s because of Mettenberger, Landry and Beckham.
ARKANSAS AT FLORIDA
Florida’s defense is really, really nasty. Arkansas will try and thwack them with Alex Collins, who’s proving to be a beast of a running back for the Razorbacks. But we really believe that Florida’s got too much – particularly as the offense is on a bit of a high with the quarterbacking skills of Tyler Murphy.
BOTTOM LINE: Florida’s an 11-1/2 point favorite, which we think is a little low. We think Florida wins by two touchdowns.
GEORGIA AT TENNESSEE
I listened to a Georgia podcast today, and they seem scared to death of a Georgia comedown after THE best game you will ever see against LSU on Saturday (I was there, and it was!). Georgia, apparently, has a knack of letting itself down after big victories. And the LSU one was a big victory. Tennessee, on the other hand, has to pick itself up by its bootstraps after beating South Alabama but being utterly unconvincing in the process. What could help Tennessee is the injury to Georgia running back Todd Gurley, who certainly won’t be fit on Saturday – even if he plays.
BOTTOM LINE: Georgia’s a 10-1/2 point favorite, which we think is low. We think Georgia will win this by 14 in a game that’s a battle into the fourth quarter….
KENTUCKY AT SOUTH CAROLINA
Our favorite moment from last week was Steve Spurrier’s drunken commentary on the Central Florida game, in which the Gamecocks survived by 3 points, thanks to an incredible performance from Mike Davis. It’s worth watching, if you have a spare half-an-hour. Anyway, we expect Steve Spurrier to be a little more settled after the Kentucky game, after his team has beaten Kentucky comfortably. Sorry ‘Cats, we don’t see a lot of hope for ya. Oh, and Connor Shaw is apparently going to start the game after injuring a shoulder in the first quarter of the UCF near-debacle.
BOTTOM LINE: South Carolina wins and beats the spread.
GEORGIA STATE AT ALABAMA
Things have been pretty interesting at Alabama this week, which has ended up with HaHa Clinton-Dix being suspended indefinitely for borrowing cash from an assistant strength coach. Anyways, this doesn’t mean a thing when it comes to playing mighty Georgia State, who we predict will be creamed like the cream puff they are.
BOTTOM LINE: Alabama’s a 54-1/2 point favorite. We’ll take Alabama, but by less than the 54-1/2 predicted. That’s because Nick Saban will call the dogs off at the end of the third quarter.