SEC+3: Week Four

Week four presents us with great SEC and non-conference matchups! Here's our standings going into this week:

Griff 35-8

Keister 34-9

Godsey 33-10

Here's our picks for this week's action:

Kent State vs. (1) Alabama

Keister: Coming off last week’s closely contested game in Oxford, the Tide will score as many points as they wish, and offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin will avoid a verbal lashing this week.

The Pick: Alabama 59 Kent State 3

Godsey: Nick Saban's alma mater comes to Tuscaloosa in what will be a game to work on getting rid of some mistakes that Saban goes crazy over. 

The Pick: Alabama 45 Kent State 10

Griff: Alabama takes care of business this weekend by crushing Kent State. I look for the starters to be on the sidelines by the second half.

The Pick: Alabama 52 Kent State 0

(12) Georgia vs. (23) Ole Miss

Keister: After an exhausting win last week for the Bulldogs and an equally exhausting loss for Ole Miss, it has all the makings of a rejuvenating home win for the Rebels Saturday. I can’t pick against Georgia, as Nick Chubb and company face a Rebels defense that’s allowed over 240 yards on the ground this season.

The Pick: Georgia 34 Ole Miss 30

Godsey: Georgia has somehow escaped the last two games with victories. One of them they should have won by 20-plus points. They will have to change something because they won’t get lucky again this week. My prediction:  the Bulldogs go to Oxford and try to play the same game, but Ole Miss isn’t Nicholls State or Missouri. Rebels win, as long as they don’t lead by 21 at some point.

The Pick: Ole Miss 31 Georgia 27

Griff: Ole Miss has blown two 21-point leads in the three games the Rebels have played this season. Eventually that bad luck has to run out at some point right? The Georgia offensive line will have to play at a different level than they have played at in the past two games, and the Rebels will even their record with a nice win in week four by giving the Bulldogs fits up front.

The Pick: Ole Miss 35 Georgia 27

(19) Florida vs. (14) Tennessee

Keister: Streaks are meant to be broken, and the Volunteers will be looking to exorcise their Gator demon in Saturdays showdown in Knoxville. With no Luke Del Rio, Florida’s offense will struggle to put a lot of points on the board, and the Vols are due for an offensive explosion after weeks of slow and uninspired play. The Vols ride the big momentum of the home crowd, and get the first victory over Florida since Facebook was created.

The Pick: Tennessee 24 Florida 16

Godsey: I'll take the Vols at home to end Florida's win streak.

The Pick: Tennessee 35 Florida 24

Griff: The Florida defense will keep this game close, but Butch Jones needs this one for his resume. Many predicted Tennessee to win the East before the year started, and the winner of this game will be in the driver's seat to get to Atlanta.

The Pick: Tennessee 28 Florida 23

Mississippi State vs. Massachusetts

Keister: The Bulldogs will find the hot hand at quarterback and ride it to a big win against the Minutemen by using a strong running game.

The Pick: Mississippi State 38 UMass 17

Godsey: Road trip for the Bulldogs and a road win too.

The Pick: Mississippi State 41 UMass 17

Griff: This will be a good weekend for Dan Mullen to decide which quarterback he wants to use each week moving forward. The Bulldogs will get off to a hot start against the Minutemen and not look back.

The Pick: Mississippi State 34 UMass 13

Delaware State vs. Missouri

Keister: Missouri will finish this one early after the bitter taste in their mouths from last week’s heartbreaking loss to Georgia.

The Pick: Missouri 45 Delaware State 13

Godsey: Missouri rolls by at least 30.

The Pick: Missouri 40 Delaware State 10

Griff: If you listened to the podcast this week, you heard me say that I didn’t know what Delaware State’s mascot was. Well folks, thanks to loyal reader Ben Edwards, I now know that Delaware State’s mascot is the Hornets. Thanks for the help, Ben! 

The Pick: Missouri 48 Delaware State 3

Vanderbilt vs. Western Kentucky

Keister: The blowout loss to Georgia Tech will have the Commodores coming out strong to start the contest. That motivation will only carry them so far. Lack of offensive production and along with defensive fatigue will be the edge that the Hilltoppers need to get the win against a SEC opponent in a home game Saturday.

The Pick: Western Kentucky 27 Vanderbilt 17

Godsey: This game is a coin flip for me. Western Kentucky has momentum, and Vanderbilt is still licking their wounds after a beating from Georgia Tech. The mental state of Vanderbilt after last week’s loss combined with the home field advantage for the Hilltoppers will be enough for Western Kentucky to pull out the win.

The Pick: Western Kentucky 27 Vanderbilt 23

Griff: Vanderbilt continues to travel in the wrong direction as a program, and the deficiencies in offensive production will prevent the Commodores from scoring the points needed to overcome an early deficit.

The Pick: Western Kentucky 31 Vanderbilt 21

(18) LSU vs. Auburn

Keister: Auburn will hang close for a half at home Saturday, but Auburn’s lack of offense will lead to a runaway victory for Les Miles and LSU. Turnovers and a physical running attack prove far too much for Auburn to deal with.

The Pick: LSU 30 Auburn 14

Godsey: The woes at home continue for Auburn, and you would have to go back to 2014 to see a SEC home win at Jordan-Hare. While I like to think about the Tigers pulling together and sending Les Miles back to Louisiana with his tail between his legs, I just don’t see it happening.

The Pick: LSU 34 Auburn 20

Griff: LSU will come in to this game looking to establish the run with Fournette, just like Les Miles has tried to do in every game this season. LSU will get Auburn in an early deficit, and Auburn won’t be able to play “catch up.” Texas A&M didn’t have any trouble running the ball last week, and it’s not going to be an issue for LSU. This game will be close, but it will prove to be another tough conference loss for Auburn.

The Pick: LSU 23 Auburn 16

South Carolina vs. Kentucky

Keister: The Wildcats will be looking for their third-straight win against the Gamecocks this weekend. The Wildcats will be able to get on the board and move the ball throughout the contest. South Carolina will score more though, with Brandon Mcllwain due for a breakout performance along with a Kentucky secondary that's been extremely kind to opposing quarterbacks. All things line up right for a big win for Coach Muschamp and the Gamecocks Saturday in Commonwealth Stadium.

The Pick: South Carolina 33 Kentucky 24

Godsey: South Carolina with a chance to go 3-1, and I think they do just that on the road at Kentucky. I like the South Carolina defense over the Kentucky offense, and I don’t like the Kentucky defense at all. The Wildcat “D” held New Mexico State to just 42 points last week.

The Pick: South Carolina 37 Kentucky 24

Griff: Three SEC road contests in your first four games is going to be tough on any team in the conference, minus perhaps Alabama. This will be another indicator of where Will Muschamp has this team, and last week the Gamecocks pulled out a win that no one would guess by just seeing the statistics. This will be the just the second start for both quarterback for each team, and the Gamecocks will win the turnover battle and continue the progression of scoring more points each game. Look for Bryan Edwards, Hayden Hurst and Deebo Samuel to have big games, and I also believe that David Williams will see an expanded role this weekend in Lexington.

The Pick: South Carolina 38 Kentucky 27

(17) Arkansas vs. (10) Texas A&M

Keister: College Station will be rocking in Saturday night’s primetime showdown. The two teams will feel each other out for most of the first half and exchange scores once or twice. Once the halftime adjustments are made, I look for the Aggies to expose the Razorback coverage for a couple big scores and slow down the Arkansas rushing attack while on defense.

The Pick: Texas A&M 34 Arkansas 26

Godsey: Big SEC West matchup here, with both teams looking to make runs for a division crown. That’s what makes this game an interesting game, one team's season is about to change. I’m going with the Aggies because they have a lot of speed on both sides of the ball and very experienced receivers on the outside.

The Pick: Texas A&M 31 Arkansas 28

Griff: This will be an awesome game to cap off an awesome day of SEC football. I love some of the qualities about both of these teams. I’m a fan of the physicality Arkansas plays with at the line of scrimmage. I love how big and fast Texas A&M is in the receiving corps and at defensive end. I see lots of big plays by both teams, and just an overall fun game to watch. This game could come down to whoever has the ball last.

The Pick: Arkansas 34 Texas A&M 33

(11) Wisconsin vs. (8) Michigan State

Keister: Riding the wave of last week’s big win against Notre Dame, the Spartans stifling run defense will create havoc for Wisconsin early and often. State might not score a lot but they won't need to in a hard fought old school Big Ten game won in the trenches. 

The Pick: Michigan State 24 Wisconsin 13

Godsey: Both teams have one victory each that looks nice on the resume. I know that previous games don’t really matter, and that each Saturday is a new day. Wisconsin looked a little sloppy last week against Georgia State, so give me the Spartans in this one.

The Pick: Michigan State 35 Wisconsin 24

Griff: Michigan State, minus the Furman game, has looked like a team that’s looked like the real deal so far this year. Wisconsin surged up the rankings after beating a LSU team that didn’t have a capable quarterback with Brandon Harris, and the Badgers are a little overrated after seeing how Georgia State was able to play Wisconsin down to the wire on the road. Michigan State gets a huge conference victory on the road.

The Pick: Michigan State 31 Wisconsin 17

Oklahoma State vs. (16) Baylor

Keister: Baylor will remain unbeaten due to Oklahoma State’s inability to keep up with the Bears offense.

The Pick: Baylor 41 Oklahoma State 27

Godsey: This is a tough one to pick. The Cowboys recovered from the “stolen” game two weeks ago and handled business against Pitt. The Bears have smoked all of their opponents in their tune-up games and have looked about as dominant as they have been in recent years. I’m going with Baylor at home.

The Pick: Baylor 37 Oklahoma State 34

Griff: This game will take on the usual Big 12 mold with a lot of points scored by both teams. I’ve compared this conference with Arena Football, as it seems like no team takes defense seriously. Oklahoma State has yet to impress me this season, so give me the Bears in a big conference win early in the season.

The Pick: Baylor 52 Oklahoma State 34

(7) Stanford vs. UCLA

Keister: Stanford will use Christain McCaffrey in a variety of ways that UCLA will be unable to slow down. Bruins quarterback Josh Rosen will get a trigger happy in the second half, and that will lead to some turnovers. 

The Pick: Stanford 37 UCLA 28

Godsey: I’m taking Stanford because UCLA is not going to be able to stop the Cardinal offense.

The Pick: Stanford 31 UCLA 21

Griff: I see this game going into the half with a close score, but Christain McCaffrey is one of the most dynamic and electric players in the country, if not the best overall player. People also underestimate Stanford’s ability on defense, and the Cardinal has allowed under 12 points per game. UCLA might beat that average, but the Bruins won’t be able to outgun Stanford in this PAC-12 matchup.

The Pick: Stanford 38 UCLA 27

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