Randy Smith
Thank goodness for a week off. The Tennessee Volunteers need a week off to rest many injuries and to prepare for the final five weeks of the season, not to mention a week to reflect upon that 49-10 whipping they took from top-ranked Alabama last weekend.
Tennessee, Georgia, and Florida are idle this week.
Texas A&M at Alabama
This week's SEC headliner could be a real thriller......and then again it could also be a snoozer. Alabama is so good that it's hard to believe there is a team in the country anywhere that can beat them.
Texas A&M will have to play a near perfect game just to have a chance against the Crimson Tide. Now, with that said, there are three teams left on the schedule with enough talent or incentive to beat 'Bama. The Aggies are one, LSU is the other, and Auburn has a shot just because they're Auburn. If Alabama is still clobbering rival Tennessee in their minds when Texas A&M takes the field, the Aggies could walk out of Bryant-Denny a winner.
Alabama 37 Texas A&M 28
Arkansas at Auburn
After pulling the upset last week over Ole Miss, the Hogs had little time to celebrate. A game on the plains with an improving Auburn squad comes this week. The Tigers were idle last week but two weeks ago they turned in perhaps their best outing of the year with a 38-14 win at Mississippi State. After a slow start Auburn has turned up the heat on offense, racking up 432 total yards against MSU. Believe it or not, Auburn is still very much a player in the SEC West title chase. They're 4-2 and 2-1 in the SEC, with their only league loss coming to Texas A&M. For Arkansas, last week's win over Ole Miss was SEC win number one. By the way, the Tigers are a nine point favorite.
Auburn 31 Arkansas 27
Mississippi State at Kentucky
It's almost been what you could term an up and down season for Mississippi State, though lately things have gone south for the Bulldogs. Kentucky was idle last week after posting a 20-13 win over Vanderbilt two weeks ago. Last weekend MSU lost in overtime at Brigham Young, and this week the Bulldogs are on the road again. This could be a highly competitive contest, but it's one the home team should get. In a close one......
Kentucky 28 Mississippi State 24
Ole Miss at LSU
This is one of several key SEC games on the card this weekend. A rejuvenated LSU squad led by interim head coach Ed Orgeron is playing very good football right now. They're 2-0 under Coach "O" with a third game (Florida) moved to November 19th. Ole Miss on the other hand has lost some tough league games so far, including last week's thriller at Arkansas. They're 1-2 now in the SEC, and will be playing the role of spoiler in the SEC West from this point forward. The spoiling will begin this week.
Ole Miss 38 LSU 31
Middle Tennessee at Missouri
This is a very interesting match up. MTSU is 4-2 on the year, with losses coming to Vanderbilt and a tough one last week 44-43 against Western Kentucky on a blocked PAT in the second overtime. The Blue Raiders are a solid team with a great quarterback in Brent Stockstill, son of head coach Rick Stockstill. The Tigers are reeling following losses at LSU and Florida, and could be overlooking the Blue Raiders - a team that no one should overlook. In an upset.....
Middle Tennessee 38 Missouri 33
Tennessee State at Vanderbilt
The Commodores are flying high after last week's upset win over Georgia. Vandy is 3-4 overall and looks to climb back to the .500 mark with a win over the TSU Tigers this weekend. Tennessee State from the OVC is 5-1 on the year and looking to make a run in the FCS playoffs. A win over Vandy would be a big notch in their belts and would make them more attractive to the FCS Playoff Committee.
Vanderbilt 27 Tennessee State 21
UMass at South Carolina
South Carolina is looking a lot like Will Muschamp's Florida teams; Great defense.....almost no offense. The Gamecocks are 2-4 facing a Minuteman squad that is 1-5 on the year so far. It should be a win for the Gamecocks, though when you're playing for Will Muschamp it's never easy. The Gamecocks are hoping to improve greatly before Tennessee comes to Columbia next weekend.
South Carolina 24 UMass 14
Last Week: 3-2
Year to Date: 48-14
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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.
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 five grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, Mattingly, DellaMae, and CoraLee.