09-07-2012, 11:07 AM
Here are the predictions for week two. Donât be afraid to tell us where weâre wrong.
Western Kentucky at #1 Alabama
Jon: Bama will have a field day against the team Nick Saban doesnât think gets enough credit or respect from the media. This will be nasty and at the same time beautiful. Alabama 48, WKU 10.
Kevin: This is a warm up game for Arkansas next week. Alabama will do its thing and it will be very uninteresting. You know Saban will be all over his team coaching them up â especially the defensive back field â getting ready for the Arkansas pass attack next week. Alabama 51, WKU 7.
LA-Monroe at #8 Arkansas
Jon: Tyler Wilson will light it up again, and Knile Davis will have a better game than last week. I like the Hogs really big this week. Arkansas 51, LA-Monroe 17.
Kevin: Arkansas wins fairly easy, but I donât think they cover the 30.5 point spread. LA-Monroe is used to tough road games (playing at FSU, TCU and Iowa last year) and they bring back essentially their entire offense who was banged up all last year. This unit can move the ball and I donât view Arkansas as a dominating defense. While Arkansas looks ahead to Alabama next week, LA-Monroe scores a few times. Arkansas 45, LA-Monroe 24.
Auburn at Mississippi State
Jon: Dan Mullen is 0-5 against Auburn when heâs coached in the SEC, with two losses coming as an offensive coordinator at Florida and the other three coming at MSU. I like MSU, and I think they are a wild card team in the SEC West this season. Miss State 24, Auburn 23.
Kevin: Dan Mullen needs this game badly. I think this game is ugly and will go down to the wire. Remember last year? Honestly, this game is tough to call, but Iâm going to go with sneaky Auburn pulling out a close win. Auburn 28, Miss State 27.
#24 Florida at Texas A&M
Jon: I have no clue how this game will even begin to go. I just know Florida has had a week to make some corrections, and TAMU will be breaking in a freshman quarterback in what some are calling the biggest game in Aggie history. Florida winsâ¦very ugly. Florida 26, TAMU 20.
Kevin: Like Jon, Iâm going with Florida here for a few reasons. First, they say teams make the most improvements from week 1 to week 2. With Florida naming their starting QB, tweaking a few things on defense, and a sound run game with Mike Gillislee, i think they have enough to beat the Aggies who have yet to play a game in 2012. The postponed week 1 game hurts the Aggies especially with the new coach, new QB, etc. Florida likely starts slow with an active Aggie atmosphere, but settles in during the second half. Florida 21, TAMU 14.
#7 Georgia at Missouri
Jon: This is one of the biggest games in the SEC East this season, and I think everyone in the SEC and the Big 12 will be tuning in to see just how Missouri plays Georgia. Georgiaâs defense is very strong, although they will need to improve with a running quarterback this week. This one could go either way, but I like the Bulldogs to get out of Columbia with a win. Georgia 31, Missouri 20.
Kevin: Georgia is a strong team that looked just ok at times against Buffalo. I think they, like Florida, make a few tweaks defensively, and play very well against Mizzou. Georgiaâs offense will move the ball at will. As long as Murray doesnât make poor decisions and avoids turnovers, Georgia wins handily. Georgia 38, Missouri 24.
Kent State at Kentucky
Jon: Joker Phillips is in need of a win in the worst way. But there are too many question marks to make this a guarantee. But there is something to be said about a team with their backs against the wall. Max Smith â Iâm counting on your for deliverance. Kentucky 24, Kent State 20.
Kevin: All Iâm hoping in this game is that we get another play where the Kent State player returns his own punt the wrong direction. Hopefully, Kentucky will have enough sense to not chase him down and tackle him like the guys last week. If Kentucky doesnât win this game, Jokerâs in trouble. Kentucky 27, Kent State 24.
Washington at #3 LSU
Jon: Washington will present a much bigger challenge this week than North Texas did last week against LSU, but I like the Tigers to send the Huskies home licking their wounds. I think Zach Mettenberger comes alive this week and has a big game, in addition to the pounding running game the Tigers will always have. I think the defense mans up this week against a formidable opponent and quarterback Keith Price. LSU 41, Washington 17
Kevin: Like most of you, this will be the first game of the season where I watch LSU. itâs an interesting matchup with a decent passing game coming with the Washington Huskies into Tiger Stadium. With the LSU secondary losses, I am very interested to see how they play this week. Washington has no answer to the ground game of LSU. LSU pulls ahead huge in the second half and controls the clock. LSU 45, Washington 21.
UTEP at Ole Miss
Jon: UTEP played Oklahoma pretty tough last week, and they will be ready to play, hungry to beat an SEC West team. But I like the Rebelsâ combination of Bo Wallace and Donte Moncrief on offense, and I think they both create more big plays this week. In addition, Ole Miss DE CJ Johnson is going to be a great one. Be that team for me, Rebels. Ole Miss 30, UTEP 27
Kevin: Iâm hoping Ole Miss can get a good win here and establish a little momentum prior to SEC play. But, Iâm going to go with UTEP this week. UTEP 27, Ole Miss 21.
ECU at #9 South Carolina
Jon: It looks like Connor Shaw is going to play this weekend, but Iâm not sure how much of a factor heâll be. ECU can score some points, but they havenât faced a defense as fast or talented as SCâs. I like Carolina in a lower-scoring game because of Marcus Lattimore and the strength of the defensive line. South Carolina 27, ECU 18
Kevin: Iâm with Jon on this one. South Carolina wins an ugly game, and itâs not a blow out. Gamecocks have to use Lattimore more than they want against a non-SEC team a la the Navy game from 2011. South Carolina 24, ECU 17.
Georgia State at Tennessee
Jon: Do I even need to pick this game? This has blowout written all over it. Tyler Bray to Justin Hunter will be said more than Bray to Cordarrelle Patterson. Howâs that for a prediction? Vols win big. Tennessee 49, Georgia State 17
Kevin: Vols put up big numbers against Georgia State. Thatâs all I got. Tennessee 45, Georgia State 10.
Vanderbilt at Northwestern
Jon: This has the makings of being a shootout, but Vanderbilt has to get back to their game of controlling the ground game and time of possession with Zac Stacy. Jordan Rodgers needs to move the pocket and hit his talented receivers Jordan Matthews and Chris Boyd. The offense will need to score some points this game. I think they have a rebound in them. Vanderbilt 38, Northwestern 35
Kevin: I like James Franklinâs ability to get his guys ready for the game. I really like Zac Stacy and think he has a big game. Vanderbilt 27, Northwestern 18.
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Western Kentucky at #1 Alabama
Jon: Bama will have a field day against the team Nick Saban doesnât think gets enough credit or respect from the media. This will be nasty and at the same time beautiful. Alabama 48, WKU 10.
Kevin: This is a warm up game for Arkansas next week. Alabama will do its thing and it will be very uninteresting. You know Saban will be all over his team coaching them up â especially the defensive back field â getting ready for the Arkansas pass attack next week. Alabama 51, WKU 7.
LA-Monroe at #8 Arkansas
Jon: Tyler Wilson will light it up again, and Knile Davis will have a better game than last week. I like the Hogs really big this week. Arkansas 51, LA-Monroe 17.
Kevin: Arkansas wins fairly easy, but I donât think they cover the 30.5 point spread. LA-Monroe is used to tough road games (playing at FSU, TCU and Iowa last year) and they bring back essentially their entire offense who was banged up all last year. This unit can move the ball and I donât view Arkansas as a dominating defense. While Arkansas looks ahead to Alabama next week, LA-Monroe scores a few times. Arkansas 45, LA-Monroe 24.
Auburn at Mississippi State
Jon: Dan Mullen is 0-5 against Auburn when heâs coached in the SEC, with two losses coming as an offensive coordinator at Florida and the other three coming at MSU. I like MSU, and I think they are a wild card team in the SEC West this season. Miss State 24, Auburn 23.
Kevin: Dan Mullen needs this game badly. I think this game is ugly and will go down to the wire. Remember last year? Honestly, this game is tough to call, but Iâm going to go with sneaky Auburn pulling out a close win. Auburn 28, Miss State 27.
#24 Florida at Texas A&M
Jon: I have no clue how this game will even begin to go. I just know Florida has had a week to make some corrections, and TAMU will be breaking in a freshman quarterback in what some are calling the biggest game in Aggie history. Florida winsâ¦very ugly. Florida 26, TAMU 20.
Kevin: Like Jon, Iâm going with Florida here for a few reasons. First, they say teams make the most improvements from week 1 to week 2. With Florida naming their starting QB, tweaking a few things on defense, and a sound run game with Mike Gillislee, i think they have enough to beat the Aggies who have yet to play a game in 2012. The postponed week 1 game hurts the Aggies especially with the new coach, new QB, etc. Florida likely starts slow with an active Aggie atmosphere, but settles in during the second half. Florida 21, TAMU 14.
#7 Georgia at Missouri
Jon: This is one of the biggest games in the SEC East this season, and I think everyone in the SEC and the Big 12 will be tuning in to see just how Missouri plays Georgia. Georgiaâs defense is very strong, although they will need to improve with a running quarterback this week. This one could go either way, but I like the Bulldogs to get out of Columbia with a win. Georgia 31, Missouri 20.
Kevin: Georgia is a strong team that looked just ok at times against Buffalo. I think they, like Florida, make a few tweaks defensively, and play very well against Mizzou. Georgiaâs offense will move the ball at will. As long as Murray doesnât make poor decisions and avoids turnovers, Georgia wins handily. Georgia 38, Missouri 24.
Kent State at Kentucky
Jon: Joker Phillips is in need of a win in the worst way. But there are too many question marks to make this a guarantee. But there is something to be said about a team with their backs against the wall. Max Smith â Iâm counting on your for deliverance. Kentucky 24, Kent State 20.
Kevin: All Iâm hoping in this game is that we get another play where the Kent State player returns his own punt the wrong direction. Hopefully, Kentucky will have enough sense to not chase him down and tackle him like the guys last week. If Kentucky doesnât win this game, Jokerâs in trouble. Kentucky 27, Kent State 24.
Washington at #3 LSU
Jon: Washington will present a much bigger challenge this week than North Texas did last week against LSU, but I like the Tigers to send the Huskies home licking their wounds. I think Zach Mettenberger comes alive this week and has a big game, in addition to the pounding running game the Tigers will always have. I think the defense mans up this week against a formidable opponent and quarterback Keith Price. LSU 41, Washington 17
Kevin: Like most of you, this will be the first game of the season where I watch LSU. itâs an interesting matchup with a decent passing game coming with the Washington Huskies into Tiger Stadium. With the LSU secondary losses, I am very interested to see how they play this week. Washington has no answer to the ground game of LSU. LSU pulls ahead huge in the second half and controls the clock. LSU 45, Washington 21.
UTEP at Ole Miss
Jon: UTEP played Oklahoma pretty tough last week, and they will be ready to play, hungry to beat an SEC West team. But I like the Rebelsâ combination of Bo Wallace and Donte Moncrief on offense, and I think they both create more big plays this week. In addition, Ole Miss DE CJ Johnson is going to be a great one. Be that team for me, Rebels. Ole Miss 30, UTEP 27
Kevin: Iâm hoping Ole Miss can get a good win here and establish a little momentum prior to SEC play. But, Iâm going to go with UTEP this week. UTEP 27, Ole Miss 21.
ECU at #9 South Carolina
Jon: It looks like Connor Shaw is going to play this weekend, but Iâm not sure how much of a factor heâll be. ECU can score some points, but they havenât faced a defense as fast or talented as SCâs. I like Carolina in a lower-scoring game because of Marcus Lattimore and the strength of the defensive line. South Carolina 27, ECU 18
Kevin: Iâm with Jon on this one. South Carolina wins an ugly game, and itâs not a blow out. Gamecocks have to use Lattimore more than they want against a non-SEC team a la the Navy game from 2011. South Carolina 24, ECU 17.
Georgia State at Tennessee
Jon: Do I even need to pick this game? This has blowout written all over it. Tyler Bray to Justin Hunter will be said more than Bray to Cordarrelle Patterson. Howâs that for a prediction? Vols win big. Tennessee 49, Georgia State 17
Kevin: Vols put up big numbers against Georgia State. Thatâs all I got. Tennessee 45, Georgia State 10.
Vanderbilt at Northwestern
Jon: This has the makings of being a shootout, but Vanderbilt has to get back to their game of controlling the ground game and time of possession with Zac Stacy. Jordan Rodgers needs to move the pocket and hit his talented receivers Jordan Matthews and Chris Boyd. The offense will need to score some points this game. I think they have a rebound in them. Vanderbilt 38, Northwestern 35
Kevin: I like James Franklinâs ability to get his guys ready for the game. I really like Zac Stacy and think he has a big game. Vanderbilt 27, Northwestern 18.
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