Professor's Picks
Week 6
2009 Record
Overall: 55-23
Last Week: 10-4
Comment: This will be a no frills version of Prof's Picks as we head into midterms (please check back for midterm grades next week).
Best Pick: Many people pegged LSU as next in line to fall from the Top Five, but the Tigers prevailed over the Bulldogs in Athens as prognosticated here.
Worst Pick: A toss-up between overrating Oklahoma, thus missing the Sooner loss to Miami ... or underrating Auburn and whiffing on the Tigers taming of Tennessee.
Here are this week's SEC picks and selected national games of interest.
Enjoy!
(All Times Eastern)
SEC Picks
Vanderbilt at Army (CBS College Sports Noon): Commodores get thrill of playing at Michie Stadium along the beautiful Hudson. Vandy should have enough defense to contain Cadets.
Professor's Pick: Vanderbilt
Auburn at Arkansas (ESPN Noon): Tigers won on the road for first time last week and remain unbeaten. Hogs cannot stop anybody, so the AU offense figures to score plenty ... still, I'm waiting on Arkansas to put a whole game together and for Auburn to come to earth. Upset special.
Professor's Pick: Arkansas
Georgia at Tennessee (SEC Network 12:21): Two teams struggling to find an identity. Vols cannot score. Dogs can one week, but not the next. Neither team is very good at this point, but Georgia is probably a little better.
Professor's Pick: Georgia
Houston at Miss State (ESPNU 12:30): A week ago, the Cougars would have been a big favorite to whip the MSU Bullies. A blowout loss to previously unimpressive UTEP changed that storyline. Improving Dogs handle C-USA visitors.
Professor's Pick: Miss State
Kentucky at South Carolina (Fox Sport South 12:30): Two middle of the pack teams jousting for potential bowl positions. Gamecocks have looked better, but do not discount the boys in blue.
Professor's Pick: South Carolina
Alabama at Ole Miss (CBS 3:30): Polls projected Ole Miss to be main challenger in West for the Crimson Tide, but Rebels have disappointed. Toughness looks to be biggest difference between the two ... Bama is tough, Ole Miss is flashy. Tough usually wins.
Professor's Pick: Alabama
Florida at LSU (CBS 8:00): Most likely the top game of the conference regular season. With or without Tim Tebow, I like Florida to win the game. Gators have had a week off, and Urban Meyer and staff are usually pretty good game-planners. What factors give LSU an opportunity? Aside from the Tebow saga ... the Gators can be susceptible to a power rushing attack (and LSU has bruisers in Charles Scott and Keiland Williams); the atmosphere of a night game in Baton Rouge (especially with the national attention and ESPN College Game Day there) might become the overriding factor in the game. It's feasible the crowd might just will the Tigers to a win. So, it's no sure thing, but I expect Florida to play with a bit of a chip on the shoulder.
Professor's Pick: Florida
Selected National Picks
Georgia Tech at FSU ... Can Noles slow Jacket option game (and Bobby Bowden's departure)? No. Professor's Pick: Tech
TCU at Air Force ... Horned Frogs remain potential BCS busters, but Air Force is capable of grounding those hopes. Professor's Pick: TCU
Oregon at UCLA ... PAC-10 race is shaping up to be strange (although USC will likely win it again) and the survivor is in good shape. Professor's Pick: Oregon
Wisconsin at Ohio State ... Badgers are undefeated and unloved by pollsters. Buckeyes will probably show us why in the Shoe. Professor's Pick: Ohio State
Michigan at Iowa ... Which Hawkeye team will show up ... vanquishers of Penn State or pretenders barely beating Arkansas State? Doesn't matter, Wolverines win. Professor's Pick: Michigan
Stanford at Oregon State ... Jim Harbaugh's Cardinal sit atop the PAC-10, but Mike Riley and the Beavers always play tough at home. Professor's Pick: Oregon State
