Week six provided us another great weekend of college football. Despite the disappointment that followed the postponement of LSU/Florida, we were rewarded with a heavyweight matchup between Tennessee and Texas A&M that needed TWO overtimes to decide a winner. Even Kentucky and Vanderbilt, two teams at the bottom of the SEC East standings, gave us excitement until the Commodores' last possession!
Week seven gives us another slate of exciting games that will have many college football fans glued to our couches. Before we get into the picks, let's take a look at the standings going into this week's games:
Griff: 59-15
Keister: 56-18
Godsey: 56-18
Here's our picks for week seven:
Friday, October 14
Mississippi State vs. BYU
Keister: Provo, Utah will be rocking for Friday's contest against a SEC visitor. Defense will be virtually absent in this one, with the home crowd and experienced dual-threat quarterback Taysom Hill giving the Cougars a third win against a power five team this season.
The Pick: BYU 44 Mississippi State 33
Godsey: The Bulldogs seem to be getting worse each week, and the season isn’t getting easier. BYU might look like a middle of the pack team, but the Cougars are trending up. Seven points keep the Cougars from 6-0, so BYU is the king of hanging around. The Bulldogs may go up early, but it will be BYU that celebrates the victory in Provo.
The Pick: BYU 31 Mississippi State 27
Griff: If you listened to the podcast this week, you heard me pick Mississippi State as my "worst" for week six. The Bulldogs absolutely let Auburn come in and dominate every aspect of the game, and Auburn went to the locker room at halftime with a 35-0 lead. Taysom Hill is explosive, and he will be the key component for the Cougars putting points on the board. BYU will give up some points, but the Bulldog offense won't be enough to keep up in this offensive shootout.
The Pick: BYU 38 Mississippi State 26
Saturday, October 15
Vanderbilt vs. Georgia
Keister: Vanderbilt can't seem to catch a break this season, and Saturday will be no different. No versatility on offense, no problem for Georgia. Big days for Sony Michel and Nick Chubb give Georgia a big win at home Saturday.
The Pick: Georgia 30 Vanderbilt 13
Godsey: My confidence in Vanderbilt was misplaced last week, but not this week. I’m confident Vanderbilt loses this one in Athens.
The Pick: Georgia 44 Vanderbilt 14
Griff: Vanderbilt has won just two of the last 10 meetings against Georgia. The Commodores desperation shows here, and Georgia's one-dimensional offense will keep this game close until around midway through the second quarter. The Bulldogs will command this game running the football and win this game by close to three touchdowns.
The Pick: Georgia 41 Vanderbilt 20
(1) Alabama vs. (9) Tennessee
Keister: In the biggest game of the weekend, Tennessee will come out with quick scores on a couple early possessions. I can't pick against the Tide or Coach Saban, though not even in a hostile environment versus a top 10 team. Look for Alabama tight end O.J. Howard to play a big role this weekend.
The Pick: Alabama 40 Tennessee 27
Godsey: This is another huge game that could resonate come playoff time. Tennessee is at the point where the Vols can either rise up and become a championship caliber team or just shoot for a SEC East title. I know the come from behind ability that Tennessee has is giving Nick Saban fits, but I’ve seen nothing to make me think Alabama has a weakness that can be exploited to the point where the Tide drop a game.
The Pick: Alabama 34 Tennessee 21
Griff: Another CBS 3:30 p.m. kick for Tennessee equals another great game that will be an absolute marathon due to way too many commercial breaks. Tennessee really is a tough team that will give Alabama one of the toughest games that the Crimson Tide will face all season. The Volunteers will have to prevent super freshman Jalen Hurts from making big time plays, which is something that none of the defenses facing him have been able to do this season. Hurts and the all the blue chip talent around him in addition to the meticulous coaching of Nick Saban are the reason that Alabama escapes Knoxville with a big victory over Tennessee to remain the king of the SEC. There's a strong possibility that we see a rematch in December.
The Pick: Alabama 38 Tennessee 30
Missouri vs. (18) Florida
Keister: An inexperienced visiting quarterback and an inconsistent football team overall makes for easy pickings in Gainesville Saturday. Gators roll in this one.
The Pick: Florida 38 Missouri 17
Godsey: Maybe a victory over the other Tigers will help all of the Gator fans impacted by Hurricane Matthew.
The Pick: Florida 35 Missouri 20
Griff: Luke Del Rio will make the start for the Gators at quarterback after missing a couple starts due to an injury against North Texas. Missouri/Florida has been a close one since Tigers have joined the SEC East, and this game will give one team the advantage since the series record between the two teams is 2-2 since the Tigers joined the SEC. Missouri doesn't have enough weapons to overcome a stout Florida defense, and the Gators get a big divisional win in this game.
The Pick: Florida 26 Missouri 16
(12) Ole Miss vs. (22) Arkansas
Keister: With Arkansas being handed two tough conference losses already this season, the Razorbacks will come out playing inspired ball and manage the game with limited turnovers. The defense will provide a surprising lift with a big takeaway or two in a tremendous win in Fayetteville Saturday.
The Pick: Arkansas 34 Ole Miss 30
Godsey: This is a tough one for to call because this game can easily go either way. I think the shine is wearing off of the Razorbacks, and Arkansas will have a hard time keeping up with the Rebels. I’m going with Ole Miss because the Rebels will wear down the Arkansas defense, and the Razorbacks will run out of gas as this game goes into the fourth quarter.
The Pick: Ole Miss 38 Arkansas 31
Griff: This will be a fantastic prime-time SEC West matchup. It will be fun to watch the position group battle between the big, physical Rebels receivers against the stingy Arkansas secondary that's only allowing just over 218 yards per game through the air. The Rebels will have to use Chad Kelly and Akeem Judd's legs and establish a ground game early. If the Rebels can have success on the ground, then this game looks a lot like Arkansas game against Texas A&M a few weeks ago. The Rebels have a lot of weapons on offense and will be able to win a game that will feature a lot of scoring.
The Pick: Ole Miss 45 Arkansas 31
Southern Miss vs. LSU
Keister: Ed Orgeron and his Tigers roll big over Southern Miss.
The Pick: LSU 38 Southern Miss 17
Godsey: One month ago, we were talking about LSU possibly playing for a SEC Championship and would still have hope for more. The Tigers lost one game since then but have fallen a lot more than that. Heisman hopeful Leonard Fournette doesn’t even lead the team in rushing. Another victory might steer the Tigers back on course and we will find out Saturday.
The Pick: LSU 45 Southern Miss 10
Griff: It's been a crazy couple weeks for the Tigers, and this game will help get things back to normal in Baton Rouge. Condolences to the LSU faithful on the passing of Mike VI this past week. Southern Miss faces an extremely tough task on the road, and LSU will be out to prove something Saturday after the disappointing postponement of last week's game against Florida.
The Pick: LSU 52 Southern Miss 17
North Carolina State vs. (3) Clemson
Keister: The Clemson defense will atone for last year's sloppy performance in this matchup. That coupled with the Tigers aerial assault featuring DeShaun Watson against a weak Wolfpack secondary will allow Clemson to win big.
The Pick: Clemson 45 North Carolina State 17
Godsey: Clemson seems to have worked out the kinks that caused the offense to have a slow start and have responded well to the close and emotional win over Louisville two weeks ago. I expect a convincing win against the Wolfpack.
The Pick: Clemson 51 North Carolina State 20
Griff: It seemed like every other play Clemson had on offense against Boston College last Friday was a big play. The Tigers know that each team is going to give Clemson its best shot and come into this game maintaining focus. I expect a very productive day from DeShaun Watson and one of the best receiving corps in the FBS, and Clemson will light up the scoreboard early and often Saturday.
The Pick: Clemson 56 North Carolina State 13
North Carolina vs. (16) Miami
Keister: The Hurricanes come out hungry and get last week's loss off their mind. Brad Kaaya snd the Miami offense will get back in rhythm, and the impressive defensive play will continue for Coach Rucht's squad.
The Pick: Miami 31 North Carolina 17
Godsey: Miami suffered a tough loss last week to Florida State but will get back on track this week.
The Pick: Miami 28 North Carolina 24
Griff: Each team suffered difficult losses last weekend in different ways. North Carolina was simply throttled by the Hokies defense, while Miami let history repeat itself against Florida State with a mishap on special teams. These teams will both be hungry for a critical ACC Coastal win, and the Hurricanes defensive front will disrupt North Carolina's passing attack. Miami will pull away in this game in the second half after a close start.
The Pick: Miami 31 North Carolina 21
(2) Ohio State vs. (8) Wisconsin
Keister: in what will be a great game Saturday, J.T. Barrett will solidify his top tier Heisman candidacy with a huge performance against a stingy Badger defense. The Buckeyes won't have it easy but will come away from Camp Randall with a big conference win.
The Pick: Ohio State 24 Wisconsin 14
Godsey: This is easily the game of the week. Wisconsin can’t go down 1-2 in conference play, if the Badgers want any chance at a Big 10 title. Ohio State could recover from a loss but still have Michigan at the end of the year. That makes this game extremely important because the Buckeyes need to win this game. Statistically, the Buckeyes lead in almost every category, but, much like Alabama, I can't pick against Ohio State.
The Pick: Ohio State 34 Wisconsin 31
Griff: I have gone against Wisconsin twice this season, and both time the Badgers have burned me. The third time will be a charm, and J.T. Barrett and the Buckeyes have all the answers on offense for questions raised by a hard-nosed Wisconsin defense. The amount of points that Ohio State is able to score in this game will be an outlier number for the Wisconsin defense.
The Pick: Ohio State 45 Wisconsin 24
As always, thanks for reading! Be sure to follow the blog on Twitter @GSL_SECPlus3 and on Facebook (Facebook.com/GriffinsStartingLineup). You can follow Griff on Twitter @griffaldo. If you missed the podcast yesterday, you can listen by pressing the play button on the link below:
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