SEC Previews and Predictions: Week 9

By Jess Nicholas
TideFans.com Editor-In-Chief
Oct. 26, 2016

Last week’s record: 4-3 (57.1%)
Season record: 57-13 (81.4%)

A second consecutive poor week for the Predictions Dept. has caused us to reevaluate our feelings about several teams in the middle of the SEC pack. While Alabama is off this week, Bama fans won’t find much to look at from the rest of its conference neighbors. Auburn has the key game of the week, facing a tired and beaten-up Ole Miss squad, while Tennessee tries to avoid having its season fall apart when it visits defensive-minded South Carolina.

FLORIDA vs. GEORGIA (at Jacksonville, Fla.)
The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party may end up turning into the World’s Largest Outdoor Psychotherapy Session, especially if Florida loses here. Georgia has lost 3 of its last 4 games, including a shocker to Vanderbilt, and Kirby Smart’s honeymoon couldn’t have ended any faster if he’d been caught cheating on his bride on the first night at the resort. Florida is fighting to stay atop the SEC East standings, and this game and the rescheduled LSU game later in the year represent the two greatest threats to that position. Both teams have more than enough talent to win the game outright and have it not be considered a surprise, but Georgia will have to overcome a lot more self-doubt than is present among the Gators of Gainesville. Florida wants a revenge shot at Alabama in the SEC Championship Game and must get by Georgia to get it.
Florida 27
Georgia 17

KENTUCKY at MISSOURI
Now’s when we find out how Kentucky plays with a little pressure applied. If South Carolina gets by Tennessee and Georgia beats Florida – both of those scenarios are quite plausible, too – then Kentucky is just an LSU upset (upset?) of Florida away from possibly getting a rematch with Alabama in Atlanta. Yes, yes, a lot of things have to happen first, not the least of which is Kentucky improving and becoming more than a team that just beats Mississippi State by 2 points. Missouri is in free-fall at the moment, its season devastated by a loss to MTSU last week. The Tigers are 1-5 against FBS teams with the lone win coming over Eastern Michigan, one of the most historically inept teams in this division. That still doesn’t guarantee the Sybil-esque Wildcats a victory, however, as Kentucky has alternated between mediocre and terrible all year long. But mediocre should be good enough to win here.
Kentucky 34
Missouri 28

TENNESSEE at SOUTH CAROLINA
Until the Gamecocks gave up a surprisingly high number of points to Massachusetts last week, USC was beginning to look like a surprising defensive juggernaut – or, at least respectable. “Juggernaut” is a descriptive term not usually reserved for teams that are sitting 3-4, with wins over UMass, Vandy and East Carolina by a total of 14 points. If this game had been played last week, when Tennessee was at the height of its patronization of local emergency rooms, the Gamecocks might have been a legitimate upset pick. But the Volunteers, even thinned by injury as they are, at least had a week of rest to get ready to face the offense-poor, defense-middling Gamecocks and come up with a decent gameplan.
Tennessee 30
South Carolina 17

AUBURN at MISSISSIPPI
This one was shaping up to be a barn-burner until Ole Miss decided to dedicate its season to the concept of Throwback Thursdays and revisit the Rebel glory days of the mid-1980s. Ole Miss is not only now 3-4, but a path exists to where the Rebels don’t make the postseason for reasons other than the NCAA Committee on Infractions demanding it. In addition to this game, which almost surely shapes up as a loss now that Auburn has gotten its act together, the Rebels have yet to face Texas A&M and Mississippi State. Lose all three of those games and a team that fancied itself a national title contender in the preseason could suddenly be 5-7 and wishing it had self-imposed a bowl ban when such a gesture actually meant something. At this point it just looks like the Rebels want to avoid a trip to the Birmingham Bowl.
Auburn 34
Ole Miss 31

SAMFORD at MISSISSIPPI STATE
Teams like Samford aren’t automatic pushovers for hosts like the Mississippi State Bulldogs, who are 2-5 and are quickly approaching a state of mind best described as “disinterest.” MSU has lost four of its last five and its Dak Prescott-less offense has an air attack about on par with ancient Egypt – i.e., nonexistent. Dan Mullen’s job should be safe this year regardless, but let’s not test that theory by trying to absorb a Samford loss.
Mississippi St. 31
Samford 14

NEW MEXICO STATE at TEXAS A&M
The New Mexico State Aggies aren’t as blatantly terrible as in previous years, but they’re still bad enough to be sitting at 2-5 and coming off losses to Idaho and Georgia Southern. They won’t beat Texas A&M and if they even scare Texas A&M, it will be because they dressed early for Halloween.
Texas A&M 45
New Mexico St. 14

IDLE: Alabama, Vanderbilt, Arkansas, LSU

Follow Jess Nicholas on Twitter at @TideFansJessN