Third Saturday in October: Week 8 SEC Betting Lines

Get your cigars ready; it’s the third Saturday of October. While all eyes are usually on Knoxville or Tuscaloosa, the Week 8 SEC slate has a number of intriguing matchups that are sure to garner plenty of eyeballs. Before we get to the games, the latest AP Poll shows that the Big Ten has passed and is gaining on the SEC.

B1G Moves

🚨 The Week 8 AP Top 25 rankings have dropped ‼️📊

Do you agree? 🤔 pic.twitter.com/sZKcDTaRtG

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) October 13, 2024

Texas and Georgia will meet on Saturday night in Austin, which will surely draw plenty of eyeballs. The two teams also booked the Top 5 in this week’s poll. Oregon, Ohio State, and Penn State are sitting pretty and ahead of Georgia, Alabama, and LSU in the Top 10 overall. Oregon and Ohio State have been impressive. Their game Saturday night was just as entertaining as what we saw in Knoxville and Baton Rouge. Penn State seems fraudulent at 4, but they have taken care of business and won the games in front of them. As we head into the middle of October these seedings and narratives will play a large role in determining how many teams from the Big Ten and SEC get in and who will get to host the First Round matchups.

SEC fans can continue to claim that they are the superior conferee. But Alabama losing to Vanderbilt two weeks ago and barely avoiding disaster at home against South Carolina is concerning. What’s wrong with the Tide? While we don’t know, their former coach had an opinion on College Game Day yesterday. “I saw a little complacency, almost even arrogance, after the Georgia win. That creates a blatant disregard for doing what’s right.” LSU and Tennessee also look shaky at best; we’ll take a closer look at them in a moment. The SEC may be cannibalizing itself in their week-to-week action, but as we can tell from the rankings, the writers don’t think it Just Means More.  Three matchups this weekend can help clarify and reset the SEC narrative this week.

Smoke Em If You Got Em

Alabama and Tennessee put the third Saturday in October on the calendar. The Vols and the Tide don’t like one another very much, making the victory cigars all the sweeter once the clock strikes 0:00 on the scoreboard. The two teams are in similar places this season. They had plenty of buzz early on in the season but are coming off disappointing losses two weeks ago and escaping to make it two straight with narrow wins last week. A win on Saturday keeps a path open to play for an SEC Championship in December. Also, it provides a crucial data point for the College Football Committee to tabulate their rankings.

Both teams have quarterbacks with big arms and a knack for making big plays. Their mistakes have led to a midseason lull, though.  Their big play ability and limiting those key turnovers will help determine who will have the sweet taste of victory.

Can Woo Pig Strike Twice?

LSU did not lead in their overtime win over Ole Miss last week until Garrett Nussmeier hit Kyren Lacy down the right sideline for a 25-yard touchdown pass on LSU’s first play of overtime. LSU now heads to Fayetteville to take on the Hogs. This one has the best sneaky game of the Week 8 SEC slate. Vegas is making the Tigers a 2.5-point favorite show, and they expect it to be another challenging game. LSU has improved defensively from where they were a year ago but still lacks consistency on the offensive side of the ball. Blake Baker has improved the LSU defense. The Tigers did a good job of getting after and pressuring Jaxson Dart most of the night.

The Tigers, though, will need to be careful not to fall into the same trap that Tennessee did two weeks ago when the Hogs knocked them off in Saturday night ABC action. It’s not always pretty, but Sam Pittman and Bobby Petrino have brought an edge to the Hogs that was missing in years past. Pittman was on the hot seat heading into the season, and another strong performance on Saturday night could see him get an extension to keep plugging away.

 Texas-Sized Showdown

If you don’t have a hotel room yet for the biggest game on the Week 8 SEC slate, it’s probably too late. Georgia travels to Austin on Saturday night to face the Longhorns. This will be Georgia’s first SEC game in Texas (despite Texas A&M being in the league for the last 13 seasons). Georgia and Texas are built in similar fashions, and their coaches have positioned each of them well to seize the top of the SEC and college football from Alabama.

Steve Sarkisian has done a masterful job in helping guide the Longhorns through year one in the SEC. Injuries have yet to slow them down, and the Longhorn defense continues to be just as impressive as its offense. It was assumed that Georgia and Kirby Smart would simply take the crown from Alabama and jump feet first into its new reign. The 2024 season has been uneven for the Bulldogs. Off-field problems have clouded the program for most of the last two years. Whether it is the pressure of wearing the crown or just the complacency that goes with winning, Georgia has shown to be mortal in 2024. Another slow start tied with a handful of defensive lapses will have the Longhorns taking their claim atop college football and the SEC.

Week 8 SEC Betting Lines

There are some other juicy Week 8 SEC games to keep your eye on. Auburn has the potential to see their season go from bad to worse as they travel to Columbia to take on the Mizzou. Speaking of seasons going wrong, Oklahoma is challenged as they host the Gamecocks in Norman. Billy Napier had an opportunity to win in Knoxville, but he passed and lost. He now welcomes Kentucky a team he has struggled against. Rankings are based on the AP media poll. SEC betting lines and game totals are courtesy of FanDuel. All games are Eastern Standard Time. Check the links for insights from your favorite Last Word on College Football writers.