Randy Smith: SEC Picks Week Nine

  • Thursday, October 23, 2014
  • Randy Smith
Randy Smith
Randy Smith
As we head down the stretch in the 2014 college football season, the biggest surprise so far continues to be the awesome success of the Mississippi schools. Who would have thought that both Ole Miss and Mississippi State would be ranked in the top three in the national polls? Both teams are back in action this weekend, with both teams being tested on the road.
Last week: 5-1
Year to date: 55-13
 
Florida, Georgia and Texas A&M are idle this week.
 
Vanderbilt at Missouri: Nothing puts you back in a good mood after losing 34-0 at home than to blow out Florida in the "Swamp".
That's exactly what Missouri did last week, to at least stay close to Georgia in the SEC East race. While it looks as if the Tigers will not repeat as Eastern division champs, they can still finish strong and have a good season. There is no reason to think that Vandy can put up a big enough threat to seriously worry Coach Gary Pinkel's staff this Saturday.
Missouri 35  Vanderbilt 13.
 
South Carolina at Auburn: The Tigers have had two weeks to stew about their big loss at Mississippi State two weeks ago. Auburn is still very much in the hunt in the SEC West with just one loss, but they can't afford another loss this late in the season. We really don't know which South Carolina team is going to show up; the one that upset Georgia or the one that was blown out by Texas A&M. The week off will benefit Auburn as they Tigers should win handily.
Auburn 52  South Carolina 21.
 
UAB at Arkansas: The Razorbacks are still winless in the SEC, so to get another win, the Hogs are stepping out of the league to face a struggling UAB squad.  Arkansas has come close a couple of times, (losing 14-13 to Alabama) and while winless, they are still much improved over last season. 
Arkansas 44  UAB 7.
 
Ole Miss at LSU: The Rebels are for real; take that to the bank. Just ask Tennessee's Butch Jones whose team was throttled last week in Oxford. The Rebs are not bad at all on offense, especially when Bo Wallace is playing well. But they are "lights out" on defense. They are big, physical and fast on the defensive side of the ball. Any other year and I would say LSU has a good chance for an upset. Not this time. The Bengal Tigers are at least another year away from being good enough to beat Ole Miss; though stranger things have happened.
Ole Miss 27  LSU 13.
 
Mississippi State at Kentucky: The Wildcats laid a big egg last week in Baton Rouge being blown away by the Bayou Bengals. Kentucky has been playing very well at home, but the task this week is just too big. Top-ranked Mississippi State pays a visit to Commonwealth Stadium and is
favored to win big. This game could be a lot closer than we think, but when the smoke clears in Lexington, The Bulldogs will still be unbeaten and still be ranked number one in the country.
Mississippi State 42  Kentucky 20.
 
Alabama at Tennessee: Vols' fans are getting frustrated with the teams' inept offensive play, but nobody is more frustrated than Coach Butch Jones and his staff. Face it, Tennessee is still too young to be a very good football team, and after the 'Bama game, will be 3-5 with four games left. Of those final four opponents, (South Carolina, Missouri, Kentucky and Vanderbilt) none are ranked in the top 25 polls. Tennessee will need to win three of the four to be bowl eligible, and that is still a good possibility. Alabama has been very inconsistent this season, though the Tide's only loss was an upset at third ranked Ole Miss. Alabama is still seeking to make the final four playoff list if not win the SEC West. For many years I chose the Vols to win over the Tide and was very disappointed on Sunday morning. I will still be disappointed, but at least my prediction will be correct. One thing the Vols' seven year streak of misfortune has taught me is to be much more realistic in my expectations.
Alabama 33  Tennessee 13.  

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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.

His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.

He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.

In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.

To contact Randy: rsmithsports@epbfi.com

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