Kickin' It Off: What a weekend! Never before have we seen all of these top 15 football teams go down: Clemson, Oregon, Rutgers, Texas, Oklahoma, West Virginia, and Florida. It was truly an earth-shattering weekend that most of us are never going to forget.
Kentucky @ South Carolina
When: 7:30 PM ET, ESPN
Why You Should Care: The SEC East could come down to this game and the loser just might be eliminated. Steve Spurrier’s Gamecocks already have one big win under their belt and they might be looking for more. Kentucky on the flip side is looking to back up its #7 ranking with Heisman-candidate QB, Andre Woodson.
Kentucky Will Win Because…: South Carolina’s offense isn’t very spectacular. Adding on to that, Kentucky obviously has one of the best offenses in the nation with Andre Woodson and weapons like Dicky Lyons and Rafael Little.
South Carolina Will Win Because…: South Carolina has one of the best pass defenses in the land. Even though they’ve faced some run-oriented teams, it’s still super-talented. Also, Kentucky’s defensive front is weak and USCEast should have their way with the Wildcats on the ground.
Keep an Eye on…: Wesley Woodyard. He should be the key to halting the Gamecock’s rushing attack and the other guys need to pick up some slack, too.
Prediction: This is the official pick of death with the way things have been going over here so far, but I’m taking South Carolina. Kentucky, I love you guys, but the game is in Columbia so I give the Gamecocks the edge. Andre Woodson will have a good day and he’ll get his yards, but it won’t be enough to overcome Kentucky’s poor defensive play. South Carolina wins 33-28.
Wisconsin @ Illinois
When: 12:00 PM ET, ESPN
Why You Should Care: What’s the biggest game of the day in the Big 10? Purdue/Ohio State? No, it’s Wisconsin/Illinois. This game will decide Wisconsin’s BCS futures and it also gives the Illini yet another opportunity to prove their worth (not on a station called the Big 10 Network).
Wisconsin Will Win Because…: P.J. Hill. The guy is a tremendous back and he’ll find ways to get his yardage. Illinois is still lacking in the passing department. If field position becomes a huge part of this game, Illinois will more than likely lose considering they are 110th in net punting.
Illinois Will Win Because…: The speedy spread option offense of Illinois will give Wisconsin trouble. We’ve seen the Badgers struggle already with UNLV and The Citadel who run some forms of the spread. Just imagine that times 5 worse with the ability of the Illini playmakers.
Keep an Eye on…: Juice Williams. He needs to beat Wisconsin with his arm a few times or else Illinois won’t win the game. Illinois can’t run the ball all day against Wisconsin or their game will end in futility.
Prediction: Illinois will move the ball against Wisconsin and the Badgers will survive yet another scare. Wisconsin will grind it out with P.J. Hill and that will ultimately be the difference. Also, expect Illinois to make some youthful mistakes that will cost them the game. Wisconsin takes it, 35-27.
Virginia Tech @ Clemson
When: 6:00 PM ET, ESPN
Why You Should Care: This game will be huge in deciding the ACC. The loser? All but done. Clemson’s potent rushing attack will give Virginia Tech’s defense fits, but they can certainly stop it. Should be a great game if you like slobber-knockers.
Virginia Tech Will Win Because…: Defense. The Hokies have lots of it. They haven’t been as good as they have in recent past mainly because the stats are a bit skewed with that blowout loss to LSU. Still, they have done very, very well this season and the Tigers shouldn’t get much going offensively if they struggled with Georgia Tech.
Clemson Will Win Because…: Virginia Tech’s offense has been awful. They are 110th in total offense and not to mention, they’re starting Tyrod Taylor who hasn’t exactly been setting the world on fire. The Tigers, at home, should shut VT’s offense down very easily.
Keep an Eye on…: Josh Morgan. While he isn’t the most electrifying receiver to ever come out of Virginia Tech, he’s been okay so far and he’ll need to be sneaky to get around this Clemson defense. If VT can make a few plays in the passing game, they should be well on their way to victory.
Prediction: After seeing Clemson’s offense operate against Georgia Tech’s defense, I can’t see them doing too much better against Virginia Tech. The Hokies shouldn’t move the ball too much either, but “Beamer Ball” will once again will find a way on special teams or defense to squeak out a win on the road.
Oklahoma vs. Texas
When: 3:30 PM ET, ABC
Why You Should Care: Both teams are coming off of agonizing defeats to what are thought to be inferior football teams. Kansas State had their way with Texas while Oklahoma allowed Colorado to get back into the game and eventually win it. It’s the Red River Shootout, so be sure to grab a seat and a box of popcorn, it should be fun.
Oklahoma Will Win Because…: Their offense is just too potent. Maybe, just maybe, Texas has been vastly overrated. They have managed to pull off wins against UCF, Arkansas State, and TCU while not looking to sharp in the process. Then, when they play a living and breathing opponent, they get nailed. Maybe it’s not a coincidence?
Texas Will Win Because…: It will be very difficult for the Sooners to come back in full force after that stunning defeat. Colt McCoy hasn’t really found his groove yet and he probably will by Saturday.
Keep an Eye on…: Sam Bradford. The redshirt freshman didn’t have a very good game last week against Colorado and this is his first game for redemption. Texas has a weak pass defense that hasn’t exactly faced the stiffest competition in terms of pass offense. Oklahoma should rip them to shreds if Bradford and the OU receivers are on.
Prediction: A drilling from Kansas State is just what Texas needed, however, I fear that the loss was no aberration. They’ve looked very mediocre and Oklahoma will be too fired up. Sooners win by a bunch, 41-21.
Georgia @ Tennessee
When: 3:30 PM ET, CBS
Why You Should Care: The loser of this game will be eliminated from the SEC East title race. I know it sounds funny considering this is the first week of October, but it’s true. Georgia and Tennessee have a loss a piece so far in divisional play.
Georgia Will Win Because…: The ground game. While it hasn’t been out-of-this-world, Knowshon Moreno and Thomas Brown have acted as a very effective tandem in the backfield. Luckily for Georgia, Tennessee has no defense whatsoever to speak of.
Tennessee Will Win Because…: The Vols will be coming off of a bye week and a nice rebound victory against a solid Arkansas State team. Say what you want about the Tennessee pass defense, but they can chuck the ball around with Erik Ainge and that, so far, has been rather surprising. He lost a bunch of his receivers to the NFL but Lucas Taylor has really stepped it up. The pass protection has been brilliant.
Keep an Eye on…: Daniel Lincoln. That’s correct, the Tennessee kicker. Neither offense will do that much (Georgia’s offense isn’t that great, Georgia’s D is terrific). So with that said, this game will come down to whichever team is most accurate in the kicking game. Lincoln can’t afford to miss any because this will be a game that goes down to the wire.
Prediction: Georgia wins it kicking more field goals. Both teams will have about three touchdowns but the special teams will make the difference for the Bulldogs. Expect Tennessee’s defense to finally show up, but it won’t be quite enough. UGA wins, 30-24.
LSU @ Florida
When: 8:00 PM ET, CBS
Why You Should Care: Florida is licking its wounds trying to make a case for another 1-loss appearance in the national title game while LSU is going through the usual pressure of winning and winning big to keep pace with USC who is right on their tails.
LSU Will Win Because…: They’re flat out better. I’m not sure there’s that much to debate about it. Florida’s defense has been solid, but LSU should be able to score.
Florida Will Win Because…: LSU gets most of its business done on the ground but guess what? The Gators have the nation’s 5th ranked run defense. The balance offensively has been great for Florida and the offensive line has done a tremendous job. This will be, by far, LSU’s toughest test of the season.
Keep an Eye on…: Tim Tebow. The QBs will usually make the difference in these kinds of games and with the Swamp behind his back, if he can do some funky, crooked jumpshot TD pass again, it could be all Florida needs to win this game.
Prediction: Florida will keep it very, very, very interesting and it will be decided in the 4th quarter. I’m just not sold that Florida will beat LSU. The Tigers will show why they are the best team in the nation. The Gators will drop two straight but this will be a valiant effort compared to last week against Auburn. LSU wins, 23-20.
You can read more of Eric’s work at the blog, Saturday Sound Offs.
