The Kentucky Wildcats bounced back from a disappointing loss to Florida with a big win over Missouri 21-13. Mark Stoops’ club dominated the two time defending SEC East Division champs in the second half holding the Tigers to only three points. Quarterback Patrick Towles silenced his critics with 249 yards passing and 2 touchdowns. He also ran for a TD to account for all of Kentucky’s points.
The Cats will try to continue their winning ways when they host Eastern Kentucky at 7:30 on the SEC Network Alternate Channel.
Eastern Kentucky at Kentucky will feature two schools that are separated by 26 miles, but this will be only the fourth time the squads have played with Kentucky winning the first three.
There are a number of story lines in this game, but foremost will be to honor the memory of Joey Kraemer. The Colonel defensive lineman was killed in a car accident after their 51-13 win over Austin Peay last Saturday.
He will be honored during the playing of “My Old Kentucky Home” before the game.
Another interesting story line is how the teams will react after what happened in the off-season. Back in January a fight broke out in a Richmond bar between members of both squads. It ended with EKU lineman and former UK player Patrick Graffree sucker punching Kentucky back-up quarterback Drew Barker. Stoops says Barker will see some playing time on Saturday and it will be interesting to see how he does.
Another thing to watch is the rise of JoJo Kemp to starting running back. Boom Williams is said to be dealing with a personal issue and has not practiced all week. Kemp played most of the second half last Saturday while Williams sat the bench. Stoops says the two have talked but it will be interesting to see if Williams plays at all on Saturday.
This is one of those games you hope to get through with no problems and with no injuries. Kentucky has an off week before playing its first ever Thursday night home game against Auburn.
Kentucky 41-14
Time to take a look at the rest of the SEC games and there are some big ones this week. Last week only a miracle comeback from Florida kept me from going undefeated. Still I will take an 8-1 week anytime. That makes my current record 31-7 on the season.
South Carolina at Missouri (NOON SEC Network)– The Gamecocks got back on track with a win over Central Florida and Lorenzo Nunez played well in his first start.
The Tigers are looking to bounce back after losing to Kentucky and will now be without Maty Mauk on Saturday who has been suspended for the game.
Enter Drew Lock who will get his first start. He played against Kentucky and did well, leading the team to a field goal.
I don’t see Missouri losing two straight, especially playing at home.
Missouri 21-14
Alabama at Georgia (3:30 CBS-) The biggest game of the day in the SEC in a Saturday filled with big games. The Bulldogs have rolled to a 4-0 start and a win over Alabama would put Marc Richt’s club firmly in the hunt for a spot in the College Football Playoff.
Alabama is looking to avoid an 0-2 start in the SEC for the first time since 2007, which was Nick Saban’s first season in Tuscaloosa.
The Tide are the underdogs in this one, which is the first time since the 2009 SEC Championship game against Florida they have been an underdog. If you are counting that is 72 straight games which is just unreal.
This could come down to a battle of the star running backs, Nick Chubb for Georgia and Derrick Henry for the Tide. I really want to pick Alabama but I will go with the home team.
Georgia 31-28
San Jose State at Auburn (4:00 SEC Network) Has any team fallen any quicker than the Tigers this season? Back to back SEC losses and what could have been a third to Jacksonville State has fans wondering what is wrong.
Sean White played pretty well in his first start, a 17-9 loss to Mississippi State and you would think he and the squad will do much better against a 2-2 Spartan team. Last season these two teams played and the Tigers won 59-13. I think it will be a little closer this year.
Auburn 31-17
Ole Miss at Florida (7:00 ESPN)- The Rebels had the inevitable let down last week against Vandy after beating Alabama but still got the win.
The Gators are 4-0 after a miracle comeback against Tennessee but could easily be 2-2.
The big match-up in this game will be Gators All-American cornerback Vernon Hargreaves III against Rebels wide receiver Laquon Treadwell. I wonder if the Gators offensive line can keep the Ole Miss front line from spending all day in the backfield.
Ole Miss 28-21
Arkansas at Tennessee (7:00 ESPN2)- Until this season, Tennessee had never blown a lead of more than 13 points, EVER. It has now happened twice in the last three weeks. The Vols had Florida beat for the first time since 2004 but the Gators pulled it out in the last minute.
The Razorbacks nearly knocked off Texas A&M last week losing in overtime. I think Joshua Dobbs and company will be too much for Arkansas sending them to another loss.
Tennessee 35-17
Eastern Michigan at LSU (7:00 ESPNU)- The Eagles are last in the nation is rushing defense at 373 yards per game. The Tigers have this guy you may have heard of named Leonard Fournette. The most interesting thing in the contest will be how many yards the Heisman hopeful gets before he gets pulled.
LSU 52-10
Vandy at Middle Tennessee (7:00 CBS Sports Network)- The Commodores gave Ole Miss all they could handle last week before losing 27-16. It is not a stretch to say this could be Derek Mason’s most important game as coach of Vandy as a loss here will really get the buzzards circling. The Blue Raiders nearly beat Illinois on the road last week and have won the last three meetings between the two schools, but haven’t played since 2005. I am going with the home team to make it four in a row.
Middle Tennessee 27-24
Mississippi State at Texas A&M (7:30 SEC Network)- Crazy stat for you, in the last two games these teams have played they have combined for 171 points. I don’t see any reason why that should change here.
The Aggies rallied to beat Arkansas in overtime last week while the Bulldogs went into Auburn and won.
The thought of Dak Prescott and Kyle Allen going back and forth makes this a must see game of the weekend. At home I like the Aggies to prevail.
Texas A&M 42-31
That is it for this week, I would love to hear your predictions. Feel free to leave a comment below.
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