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I think Georgia wins at home as LSU does not have the talent they have had in the recent past. Auburn/Tenn is a toss up but the Vols have to be the favorites in my mind. And I think the Hogs will handle A&M.
I know more about you guys than I do LSU. The Tigers just barely beat a team Auburn annihilated a few weeks ago. I really have no idea who to pick either, but I'm leaning toward you guys at home. I'll definitely be rooting for the Dawgs because it will help Auburn out a lot if you guys win.
I think Georgia wins at home as LSU does not have the talent they have had in the recent past. Auburn/Tenn is a toss up but the Vols have to be the favorites in my mind. And I think the Hogs will handle A&M.
Arkansas providing an SEC beatdown, I love it!
Auburn looks good so far. 13-6. UT offense is terrible, but their D is well coached and keeping them in it. AU needs to control clock and wear down the Vols. Eventually the dam will burst
I got the LSU-UGA pick right unfortunately. So far my preseason predictions are 5-for-5 in UGA's games.
War Damn Eagle!!! 26-22. And it wasn't as close as the score would say
I missed that pick too. Good win for LSU.
son Auburn had a nice win tonight too ... anyone who beats up on that bag Lane Kiffin's team is my friend for the week.
Yeah, it made me laugh to see UT score a pointless last-second touchdown and set off the fireworks.
Apparently it isn't Lane Kiffin's goal to win games. He just wants to make sure he loses close.
Another "moral" victory for Lame Kitten
Kiffin was a failure in the NFL and will fail at Tennessee ... the dude is a spoiled, little rich brat who is where he is now because of his father. the only reason he is half ass relevant is because of his own trash talk against a team and a coach who have won two national les in the last last 3 years. Kiffin, you're coaching in the SEC now ... its time to win, or shut the up. your 15 minutes of "ESPN fame" is running short.
Tennessee will beat Georgia next week.
Sheesh Chili Dog. Your cynicism is dripping. No way UGA loses to them. Of course, I've been wrong picking UGA games 3 time now
Georgia just isn't that good. Besides, I'm seeing if I can keep my preseason picks correct.
This is from the end of June:
So far I'm lookin good.
Well, the loss to OSU was a bit suspect, but losing to LSU is nothing to be ashamed of. Some bad calls in that game. But it looks like your D got a bit better. Tenn has a good defense but their offense is offensive. Crompton is very bad, so really all you have to worry about is the running game. AU really dominated them tonight despite what the score says. I'll still pick the Dawgs when you play.Georgia just isn't that good. Besides, I'm seeing if I can keep my preseason picks correct.
This is from the end of June:
So far I'm lookin good.
I probably will too, at least in our weekly picks (although I had originally picked UGA today, but switched it because I wanted to keep my preseason pick). But it wouldn't surprise me to see Tennessee win. It seems the offense plays bad if the defense is good, and the defense sucks when the offense is rolling. They can't play a complete game and that might ruin them.
I strongly disagree.
They held Auburn to 4 FGs in redzone defense.
They dropped about 8 big pass plays, and their receivers ran free all game long. Imagine a better QB and receiving core.. I am not sure Auburn won.
And Auburn has worse depth than I thought. Still better than Arkansas' depth as we continue to build with BP.
Auburn pulled it out though so props to them. There's my scouting report on the Auburn @ Arkansas match up sort of.
It will be a shootout. Auburn has the better defense and are more balanced on offense. But Auburn has given up a lot of points in prior games they shouldn't have but maybe it was in garbage time I don't know.
I think Arkansas will def score 40+ on them though. They are fast, and have some tackling issues.
Auburn is surprising everyone though so who knows. I think Arkansas will pull it out though in a shoot out.
Last year we beat Auburn but they were imploding and not really focused so whatever. Should be a good game.
My internet is terrible, I am at my uncle's. My laptop barely picks up my router anymore so I am online less and less.
I'm more worried about Arkansas then I was Tennessee. Auburn tends to play like ass in early morning games for some reason, at least they did under Tubbs.
Auburn will need to play better up front in order to get some pressure against Mallet, cuz he sure ain't no Crompton. The AU secondary is actually the stronger part of the defense, but will still get picked apart if there is no penetration by the D-line.
I really don't think it will be as high scoring as everyone thinks. I expect Malzahn to feed the Hogs a never-ending diet of Tate, McCalebb, Fannin, and Smith. The Tigers have been much better at controlling clock than I could have imagined,and I think that will be key to keeping Arkansas from scoring so much.
As for the Tennessee game, that defense was ranked 8th in the Nation when AU rolled in. Monte's defense is pretty darn good, and did a good job of stiffening with their back to the wall. Thing is, it was still 23-6 at the start of the 4th quarter and the Auburn D played a soft, almost prevent zone the whole final period. That's why you saw all the scoring by UT late and it took a bomb as time expired to bring UT to their final score of 22. It definitely wasn't as close as the score indicated.
Arkansas will probably be as prepared as anyone for the Malzahn offense, the Hogs beat Tulsa last year with Malzahn as the OC. Obviously he also coached at Ark as well so I expect the UA D to be better than most would think. Depth will be an issue for both teams, and I just think the Arkansas D will be on the field too long and will fade late. I'll call the score 35-24 for Auburn. But I really won't be surprised if the Hogs win, again, due to AUs tendency to lay eggs in early morning road games.
From CBS sports Auburn@Arkansas
Auburn's hiring of Gene Chizik in December was a surprise move given his lack of success as a head coach, but he's quickly winning over the Tiger faithful.
Chizik and No. 17 Auburn look for the school's first 6-0 start in five years when they visit SEC rival Arkansas on Saturday.
The Tigers (5-0, 2-0) went 5-7 last year, capping off the disappointing season under Tommy Tuberville with a 36-0 loss to conference foe - and top-ranked - Alabama. It was the school's first losing season since 1999 and ultimately led to Tuberville stepping down just four years after he led the team to a perfect season.
To replace Tuberville, who went 85-40 in 10 seasons, Auburn hired Chizik, who was the Tigers' defensive coordinator in 2004.
Chizik, who also was a coordinator at Texas, was coming off a 2-10 season in 2008 and a 3-9 campaign in 2007 with Iowa State, though.
So far, doubts regarding Chizik's qualifications have been quieted with an impressive start, although it's the offense that has keyed Auburn's fast start. A 26-22 win at Tennessee last Saturday propelled the Tigers into the top 25 for the first time since halfway through last season.
"I guess it's a good thing but it really doesn't matter to be ranked," cornerback Walt McFadden said. "It'll put a smile to our face but we can't let that get to our heads."
After five games, the Tigers rank fifth in the nation in yards per game at 521.3 and are second in points scored with 207 - one shy of their total from all last season.
Ben Tate has been a major contributor to that success. He's the SEC's No. 2 rusher with 108.0 yards per game, and had 128 yards and one touchdown on 25 carries against the Volunteers.
Quarterback Chris Todd has been equally effective. Coming off offseason shoulder surgery, Todd appeared in seven games in 2008, throwing for 903 yards and five touchdowns with six interceptions. The senior was 19 of 32 for 218 yards and one score against Tennessee, giving him 12 touchdowns and one interception this year. His 1,230 passing yards lead the SEC.
Tennessee came into last weekend ranked eighth in the Football Subdivision in yards allowed with 233.0, but the Vols gave up 459 yards to Auburn, which had the ball for almost 10 minutes longer than Tennessee.
"That just lets everyone know that we're for real," Tate said. "It kind of gives us confidence in ourselves too. They are one of the best defenses in the country with one of the best defensive coordinators in the country. That just shows us that our hard work is paying off."
The Razorbacks (2-2, 0-2) are coming off a 47-19 victory over Texas A&M last Saturday. After back-to-back losses to ranked SEC foes Georgia and Alabama, Arkansas scored 23 second-quarter points against the Aggies and cruised through the second half. Ryan Mallett finished 17 of 27 for 271 yards with four touchdowns and one interception.
Mallett, a transfer from Michigan, has thrown 11 touchdowns this season. Arkansas begins the week ranked seventh in the FBS in passing yards per game with 329.0.
"He's an extremely good quarterback," Chizik said. "He is what makes their passing game go. They also have some great receivers for him to throw too. ... We have to work on our open-field tackling."
Arkansas is trying to avoid losing its first three SEC games since 2007. The Razorbacks have given up 87 points and 955 yards of offense in their two conference losses, allowing eight passing touchdowns.
"(Auburn is) undefeated and we are going to be on national television," Arkansas offensive coordinator Paul Petrino said. "It's a big game and we're going to do everything in our power."
The Tigers have won three straight at Fayetteville.
Last edited by symple19; 10-07-2009 at 01:44 PM.
from CBS sports Florida @ LSU
Florida didn't need Tim Tebow to perform like a world beater in its first four games, but a scary injury could mean the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner won't be at full strength heading into the team's biggest road test of the season.
The Gators may not even have him at all.
Tebow's recovery from a concussion could keep him out of top-ranked Florida's Southeastern Conference showdown in Baton Rouge on Saturday night, when No. 4 LSU will try to end the defending national champions' 14-game winning streak.
Tebow is third in the nation in passer rating through four games (170.3), has thrown six touchdown passes and run for five others while averaging a modest 160.5 yards per game through the air, but fans in Gainesville are hardly concerned with their senior quarterback's numbers as he tries to join Ohio State's Archie Griffin as college football's only two-time Heisman winners.
With the Gators (4-0, 2-0) leading 31-7 in the third quarter Sept. 26 at Kentucky, Tebow was knocked out with a vicious shot to the head, sending him to the hospital overnight with a concussion. Florida went on to win 41-7, and had a bye week to rest and recover for a trip to Death Valley - the site of Tebow's only loss in an opposing SEC stadium.
The winner of this game has gone on to capture the last three BCS championships, and LSU (5-0, 3-0) picked up its highest-profile win of its 2007 championship season against the defending national champion Gators. Tebow led Florida to a 10-point fourth-quarter lead before the then top-ranked Tigers stormed back for a 28-24 win.
"It was a tough night," coach Urban Meyer said. "We needed to make a stop on defense, not allow a score or not turn the ball over. It haunts us."
Now, the Gators are facing the prospect of making their return visit to Tiger Stadium - where LSU has won 32 consecutive Saturday night games - without their two-time All-American quarterback. Tebow practiced Tuesday for the first time since suffering his concussion, but still hasn't been cleared to play Saturday.
Meyer, though, certainly hasn't ruled Tebow out.
"He looked like Tim out there (Tuesday)," Meyer said. "Obviously practice is a lot different from what's going to happen Saturday night. We're still doing an evaluation."
Tebow took about half the snaps Tuesday - backup John Brantley got the other half - and competed in about 80 percent of the workout. He was held out of 11-on-11 drills.
Brantley has looked good in his brief time on the field as a sop re, completing 73.3 percent of his passes and throwing four touchdowns without an interception.
While Tebow's potential absence - and Brantley's first collegiate start - would figure to give the Tigers a major edge, coach Les Miles lamented Tebow's injury during his weekly news conference, saying it "saddened" him.
"It's the worst thing about college football. You don't want injury. You don't want it for your opponent. You don't want it for yourself," Miles said. "I want them to do whatever they need to do for them. Tim Tebow is great for football. He's great for Florida. If he's healthy and capable, we'd love to compete against him."
The Gators earned a measure of revenge for their 2007 loss in Baton Rouge with a 51-21 rout in Gainesville last season, as Tebow and current Minnesota Vikings receiver Percy Harvin helped Florida rack up 475 yards of offense against a Tigers defense that came in among the nation's best.
Currently 16th in the nation yielding 14.8 points per game, LSU's defense has carried an offense that ranks 99th in total yards (321.6) behind sop re quarterback Jordan Jefferson.
However, when the Tigers allowed 13 fourth-quarter points last Saturday at Georgia, Miles' much-maligned rushing attack - averaging 3.7 yards per carry - came through. All-SEC tailback Charles Scott hadn't scored a touchdown or gained more than 63 yards until the trip to Athens, where he ran for 95 yards and a pair of touchdowns - including the game-winner with 46 seconds left - in LSU's wild 20-13 win.
"Our offense has confidence in Charles Scott," Miles said. "Our offense has confidence in the ability to run the football. We just needed to do it and put it together."
Scott certainly has something to prove against the Gators. He's carried the ball a total of 16 times for 44 yards in LSU's last two meetings with Florida.
The Gators rank 17th in the nation against the run (92.8 ypg), but the ground game on offense has made Meyer's team deserving of its No. 1 ranking. Led by Tebow and sop re tailbacks Jeffery Demps and Chris Rainey, Florida is averaging a Football Bowl Subdivision-high 307.5 rushing yards.
The Gators have averaged 5.8 yards per carry against LSU the last two years, but Meyer knows his team is in for a stiff test.
"I think their defensive front is a typical LSU," said Meyer, who is 6-1 at Florida against top-five opponents. "... This will be as good a defense as there is in college football."
LSU is 2-8-1 all-time against No. 1 teams, with its lone regular-season victory coming 28-21 over Florida in prime time Oct. 11, 1997, at Tiger Stadium.
from CBS sports Bama @ Ole Miss
Despite its preseason hype, Mississippi wasn't able to turn Saturday's anticipated matchup with Alabama into a battle of unbeatens.
Whatever respect the 20th-ranked Rebels lost following their early stumble, however, they could quickly regain by beating the Crimson Tide this weekend in Oxford.
No. 3 Alabama, meanwhile, will look to extend a dominating start and a five-game winning streak against Ole Miss as its defense tries to bounce back from arguably its worst performance of the season.
This game was circled on both teams' calendars after each was ranked in the top 10 before the season, and the Rebels jumped as high as No. 4 before their major slip-up.
Quarterback Jevan Snead was 7 of 21 for 107 yards in a 16-10 loss at South Carolina on Sept. 24, and while Mississippi bounced back with a 23-7 win at Vanderbilt last Saturday, Snead's problems continued as he threw three interceptions along with his three touchdowns.
"I think he would be the first to tell you that we can't have some of those mistakes that he made in the second half," Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt said. "We were executing the offense very well to start, then we started forcing things and he needs to either drop it off to the back or throw it away."
The Rebels (3-1, 1-1 SEC) still have high hopes in the crowded SEC West, but any chances of reaching the conference le game would almost certainly require a win over Alabama.
That hasn't looked like an easy task based on the Tide's first five games. Alabama's 38-20 win at Kentucky on Saturday was perhaps the team's least impressive victory even though it had a 25-point lead through three quarters on the road.
"Even though it's a win and we'll take the win, we're not really satisfied with it," star linebacker Rolando McClain said. "We know we could have played a lot better."
McClain was the national defensive player of the week after he had 12 tackles, an interception and a forced fumble, but the unit as a whole allowed 133 rushing yards - more than double its previous season high.
Overall, Alabama (5-0, 2-0) still ranks second to top-ranked Florida nationally in total defense, allowing 222.2 yards per game.
The Tide's offense averages more than that on the ground alone (228.2), led by running back Mark Ingram. The sop re has 290 rushing yards and four total touchdowns in Alabama's two road games.
"A lot of teams come out and play on emotion," Ingram said. "The more we hit them in the mouth, it wears them down."
The team may look heavily to the ground game again as highly touted wide receiver Julio Jones continues to struggle. Jones nearly racked up 1,000 receiving yards as a freshman last season, but he has 133 in four games this fall, including just two catches for 13 yards against Kentucky.
Alabama has still managed a productive passing attack with junior Greg McElroy in his first season as starting quarterback. McElroy has thrown 89 passes without an interception in the last four games, with eight touchdown passes mixed in over that span.
McElroy may have to be sharp against Mississippi's defense, a strong unit led by standout defensive end Greg Hardy. The Rebels have allowed a total of 43 points in the team's four games - the sixth-best scoring defense in the nation.
"(Mississippi) is probably the best team we have played to this point, all the way around," said Alabama coach Nick Saban, whose team has already beaten then-No. 7 Virginia Tech.
"Their defensive team is very highly ranked," Saban added. "They've got a very good front, a couple of dominant up front guys and couple of good pass rushers and play well in the secondary."
They also have a growing track record of challenging top teams under Nutt. In the coach's first season in Oxford last year, Mississippi went 1-1 against top-five opponents, beating eventual national champion Florida 31-30 before losing to then-No. 2 Alabama 24-20 on Oct. 18, with both games coming on the road.
"I think it is about preparation, your at ude and how you approach it," said Nutt, who also had two wins over top-five teams in his last two years at Arkansas in 2006-07. "It has always been a kind of winning formula - the way you approach things. You get your guys to believe."
The Tide led Ole Miss 24-3 at halftime during last year's meeting, but the Rebels launched a furious rally before falling short. Mississippi still hasn't beaten Alabama since 2003, when Eli Manning threw for three touchdowns in a 43-28 win.
Nutt, however, already has experience beating Saban. Nutt's Arkansas teams won two of five meetings with LSU while Saban was in Baton Rouge from 2000-04.
from the bleacher report Georgia @ Tennessee
This just in... The SEC has picked up the flag, and the excessive celebration penalty has been waved off. Only, symbolically of course.
So Georgia must now move on. They must move on from one of the toughest emotional defeats they have faced in quite some time.
Can they do it? Can they travel to Knoxville, take on the Vols in front of 100,00 people, and put last weekend's tough loss behind them?
If they want to win this coming Saturday in Neyland Stadium, they certainly better.
To put it mildly, the Dawgs have been very inconsistent this season.
A Jekyll and Hyde defense, and an offense that lacks a running game can make for a very long season. However, all is not lost.
Much of the inconsistency comes from the youth that we see at many of the positions we are struggling at. Experience gained this year will be big next season. The Dawgs still have much to play for. A win this week and a win next week at Vanderbilt sets up a showdown in Jacksonville against the Gators.
Stranger things have happened, so don't laugh.
But, first things first.
Can we go to Knoxville and win? Here are three things I believe the Dawgs must focus on if they are to be successful on Saturday.
1) We must find our running game
Richard Samuel, Carlton Thomas, and Caleb King have all had enough playing time to prove themselves. Samuel is young and seems tentative at times. Thomas, while fast, does not seem to possess the power needed to consistently succeed in the SEC. King has been injured, and now we find that he cracked his lower jaw in the game against LSU.
While I still believe Samuel can be productive, it appears that King may spend his career at Georgia injured.
That leaves us with one choice.
Washaun Ealey ran with purpose against LSU. He hit the hole hard and continued to drive his legs until he hit the turf. He looked strong and fast. He seems to have great vision on the field.
So is he the answer?
As a kid, I can remember listening to Larry Munson call a game one Saturday night in Knoxville. He told us of a freshman that was "running over people." It only seems fitting that Ealey have a break out game against the Vols in Knoxville.
Of course, I'm not saying that Ealey is the next Herschel Walker. But after looking at our rushing stats from the past two weeks, I see no reason to not give him a chance.
So I say, do it. Give Ealey a chance, and do it now.
2) Michael Moore and Tavarres King need to be more involved
With Eric Berry lurking over AJ Green's shoulder, it will be extremely important that Joe Cox look for, and find, other targets.
Orson Charles should be one of them. But I want to see Michael Moore involved in the offense, again. He has basically vanished for the past two weeks.
AJ Green is without a doubt one of the greatest receivers to ever play at the University of Georgia, and he is just a sop re. The Vols will focus on AJ and try to limit his catches. They may succeed, but we all know that with AJ that can be easier said than done.
So, Bobo and Cox will need to find a way to get Moore and yes, Tavarres King back into the mix. If Cox continues to throw into double and triple coverage, trying to get the ball to AJ, someone will make us pay.
With Eric Berry on the field, the Vols could very well be that team.
3) Get to Crompton early and often
Driving home from Athens on Saturday night, I listened to the Vols play Auburn on my XM radio. With each errant throw, with each dropped pass, the tension in the voice of those "homer" announcers became more pronounced.
Vol bulletin boards and talk shows have been ringing for weeks with the talk of Crompton becoming Land Kiffen's scape goat for this season.
Most chuckle at such talk, but the fact of the matter is, Crompton may be the worst quarterback in the SEC this season.
Georgia at times has made bad quarterbacks look really, really good.
If Georgia is to win Saturday, they must make life miserable for Crompton. He needs to get hit every time he throws the ball. He needs to get planted into the Neyland Stadium turf five or six times.
We need to make him cry.
The Vols have weapons and they are very capable of winning this game. Their defense will keep it close, but they win or lose on what Georgia allows Jonathon Crompton to do.
So the stage is set. Both teams come into this one unranked. That has not been the case in this series since the 1930's.
Relegated to the SEC network and a 12:30 kickoff, the Dawgs and Vols will renew what has become a great southern rivalry.
I hope my ride home from Knoxville is more enjoyable than last week's ride home from Athens.
Can't wait for this HUGE weekend in the SEC. Auburn/Ark - Bama/Ole Miss - Fla/LSU all nationally televised and back to back to back. Freakin awesome. We'll know a lot more once Saturday is done.
I generally agree. This game could go either way really. If we can do what we do and put points on the board and make Auburn play keep up we win.
Tubby was on the radio here in Arkansas today. He gave the advantage to Auburn because it was an 11am game and he knows their talent well. He said he was in the box with Jerry Jones and posse during the Arkansas/A&M game too. I'll pick Auburn in the contest but will say Arkansas 38-24.
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