Randy Smith: SEC Picks Week 6

  • Thursday, October 3, 2024
  • Randy Smith
Randy Smith
Randy Smith
The Georgia-Alabama game last weekend far exceeded anything anyone expected. Everyone was looking forward to the game and I believe the only people that were disappointed were Georgia fans. Altogether, I was 4-2 last week giving me a season record of 51-9 ( 85%). This week, five SEC teams are idle: Texas, Mississippi State, Oklahoma, Kentucky and LSU.

Alabama at Vanderbilt
Vandy came oh so close to pulling off a huge upset on the road two weeks ago at Missouri before falling to the Tigers 30-27 in overtime.
The Commodores have been up and down this season....beating Virginia Tech in their opener, then blasting Alcorn State, then losing at Georgia State before the loss at Missouri. Vanderbilt is actually a pretty good team but do they have a chance against the unbeaten Crimson Tide? Probably not but stranger things have happened. Vandy must play a perfect game and Alabama must still be celebrating the Georgia win.
Alabama 31 Vanderbilt 14

Auburn at Georgia
The South's oldest rivalry continues this week in Athens, GA and this will be a real tail-whipping. The Bulldogs are still smarting from their loss at Alabama last week. Falling behind 30-7 at the half, then rallying to take a 34-33 lead late in the game, then losing 41-34 will do that to you. Auburn is really struggling this season and even if they weren't struggling, they are no match for Georgia, though we still haven't decided if the Bulldogs are really that good.
Georgia 47 Auburn 13

UCF at Florida
The big question this week is....how much longer will head coach Billy Napier be with the Gators? I would say not much longer. Florida is a three point underdog this week to UCF even though they're playing in " The Swamp." After this week's game, the Gators travel to Knoxville to face powerful Tennessee next weekend. The Knights are 3-1 on the year and are more than capable of winning against the Gators....which I feel they will do.
UCF 28 Florida 23

Ole Miss at South Carolina
Last week, the Rebels played their first real opponent of the year and lost. The Kentucky Wildcats pulled off a huge upset in Oxford knocking a lot of the luster off what was supposed to be a super year for Ole Miss and Coach Lane Kiffin. The Gamecocks walloped Kentucky a few weeks ago, then blew a 17 point lead and lost to LSU. The Johnny Rebs will be looking for redemption and they'll get it this week.
Ole Miss 38 South Carolina 20

Missouri at Texas A&M
This could be the best match up of the day. The 9th ranked Tigers in College Station to face the number 25 Aggies. A&M is a 2.5 point favorite among the odds makers and fans in Texas are really happy with the job new head coach Mike Elko has done. Missouri started the season as one of the favorites to make the twelve team playoffs but when the Tigers almost lost at home to Vanderbilt, that changed. Missouri is still a very good football team but not as good as everyone thought in the pre-season.
Texas A&M 27 Missouri 24

Tennessee at Arkansas
Big Orange fans are wondering how the Vols will handle an off week, especially after that huge win at Oklahoma two weeks ago. Tennessee is a two touchdown favorite to beat the Razorbacks and after the first one-third of the season, the Volunteers dominate the stats on offense and defense, not only in the SEC but nationally as well. The excitement over the 2024 season is still at a fever pitch in Big Orange country....however this could be a tough contest as Arkansas is not as bad as we thought. The Hogs are 3-2 and 1-1 in the SEC and this game presents a big opportunity. A win for Coach Sam Pittman would go a long way to saving his job.
Tennessee 37 Arkansas 10

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Randy Smith can be reached at rsmithsports@epbfi.com
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