Some classics Saturday in week 11, one on the Plains and one in Starkvegas, along with a huge national tilt with major national implications on the line in Waco between Oklahoma and Baylor. Some other key SEC match ups and national headliners. Here's a look at this weekend's action.
Last week: 16-8
Overall: 150-41 (79%)
Georgia (6-3, 4-3 SEC) @ Auburn (5-4, 2-4 SEC)
Jordan-Hare Stadium, Auburn (87,451)
11 AM CT/Noon ET
CBS
Carter Blackburn, Aaron Taylor, Jenny Dell
AU by 1 1/2
Should be an excellent game at Auburn. The question for both sides is at quarterback. I am hearing that Jeremy Johnson will get the start for Auburn, but that Sean White will be able to play. Gus and Rhett Lashlee will see how Jeremy is doing, and if he's struggling, they'll turn to White. For Georgia, two quarterbacks will most likely play. Greyson Lambert has shown signs of being decent but Brice Ramsey is average at best. Mark Richt will probably start Lambert and then see how he does. The running game will be critical for both sides. Jovon Robinson has been a horse the last two weeks running for 250 yards and a seven, and Peyton Barber has been steady and solid all season with 828 yards on the ground and 12 TDs. Kerryon Johnson gives AU the take it to duh house threat if he can get in the open field, though Robinson can make explosive plays as well. Georgia will rely on the super running back Sony Michel, who has rushed for 747 yards and 7 TDs. Keith Marshall has done a pretty good job in relief with Nick Chubb out for the season. Marshall has rushed for 255 yards and three TDs. Brendan Douglas is a big back for Georgia who's pretty good as well. Douglas gets tough yards and runs hard.
The rushing attacks for both sides should excel on Saturday, but at some point each team will have to throw it. I like AU's defense's three ints last week against A&M. Freshman Carlton Davis is playing extremely well at corner for the Tigers. He has three interceptions on the year. He's going to be a superstar. He already is a stellar player. The defense played really well last week. The Georgia defense shut down Kentucky, 27-3, so they are capable.
The Tigers will have to throw it some to win this game. So will the Dawgs. The Tigers are at home and played a heckuva game last week. They need this victory to become bowl eligible.
AU 31, Georgia 28
No.2 Alabama (8-1, 5-1) @ No. 17 Mississippi State (7-2, 3-2)
Davis Wade Stadium @ Scott Field (55,082)
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
CBS
Verne, Gary, Allie
Bama by 8
The only way to beat Alabama is to pass it well and maybe setup some kind of running game. But as Leonard Fournette found out last Saturday Night in Tuscaloosa, it's next to impossible to run on the Crimson Tide front seven. State does have Dak Prescott. Dak has completed 200-of-300 passes, 67%, for 2,351 yards and 18 TDs against only one interception. That's sensational. He has also rushed for 418 yards and seven TDs. He makes State go. De'Runnya Wilson is Dak's go to receiver in the passing game. He has 37 receptions for 548 yards and eight TDs. Fred Ross has 51 receptions for 548 yards and two TDs. Brandon Holloway is a fast running back and has rushed for 220 yards and six TDs. He's not a power guy, they really don't have that, but he has excellent speed.
Priority one for the Tide defense is stopping Dak. He's actually having a better season than he has ever had at State. Awesome guy, too. Love Dak.
Derrick Henry has been phenomenal this season and has certainly stated his case so far for the Heisman Trophy. He has run for 1,254 yards, and leads the SEC in rushing touchdowns with 17. He ran for 210 yards and three TDs against LSU last week. Wow, he was good. The offensive line is really clicking for the Tide. It goes almost without saying; this defense is all time good right now. I'd put it up there with some of the best defenses in college football history, particularly the front seven. The back four are really playing well, too, though they're still sometimes vulnerable to the deep ball.
For State to win, Dak will have to play the best game of his career and the State defense will have to somehow stop Henry and make Jake Coker beat them in the passing game. State's got a pretty good defense. They will give Alabama a pretty good challenge in Starkville, but I like the Crimson Tide to prevail at the end. One thing that might have been overlooked in the Tide's domination of LSU last week was Adam Griffith's 55 yard field goal. That was beautiful. S says he does that all the time in practice, and if he can start converting on field goal opportunities consistently, that would be a huge boost to the team. Looks like he's gotten it down.
Alabama 31, Mississippi State 21
Arkansas @ No.9 LSU
Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge (102, 321)
6:15 PM CT/7:15 PM ET
ESPN
Brad, Todd, Holly
LSU by 7 1/2
Bret Bielema and the Hogs got an improbable and hard fought victory at Ole Miss. That game was electric offensively. Brandon Allen and the Hogs prevailed 53-52 on some of the most impossible plays I've ever seen. The backwards lateral from tight end Hunter Henry at the Ole Miss 26 yard line that landed in Alex Collins hands on the Ole Miss 42 which Collins ran for a first down on fourth and 25 in the overtime period and even fumbled before Arkansas recovered at the eight and then scored. After Ole Miss thought they had the game won in overtime when Allen threw an incomplete pass on fourth down, an Ole Miss defender committed a face mask, and Arkansas took it in and converted the two point conversion on a gutsy call by Bielema in overtime. It was amazing. That was an all time exciting college football game. Arkansas is a good football team. Leonard Fournette is probably pretty ticked off though and so is his team after getting blasted by the Crimson Tide last Saturday Night and with Fournette only rushing for 31 yards. Fournette should have a big game. I think Arkansas has a shot here though. This team has some magic to it. And as a matter of fact, I'm going with the upset here.
Arkansas 45, LSU 41
No. 11 Florida @ South Carolina
Williams-Brice Stadium, Columbia, SC (80,250)
11 AM CT/ Noon ET
ESPN
Mike Patrick, Ed Cunningham, Dr. Jerry Punch
Florida by 7 1/2
I love the job that Shawn Elliott is doing as interim head coach at SC. He's making a strong case to be the head coach for the future at South Carolina. If he can pull this off and be really competitive the rest of the season, and maybe knock off Clemson at home, he should be South Carolina's full time head coach going forward. He seems like a great guy and he has the team pumped. They lost a heartbreaker in Knoxville last Saturday, 27-24, when they were driving for the winning seven with under a minute left, but tight end Jerrell Adams, after making a nice catch and a heckuva run after the catch, unfortunately fumbled at the UT 18 and UT recovered to claim the victory. But it was an awesome effort by the Gamecocks. Florida just got by a heckuvan effort by the Vanderbilt defense a week ago in the Swamp. The Gators survived the Dores 9-7 on a late field goal that clinched the SEC East.
But I'm going to go for another upset here. Love what Shawn Elliott is doing.
South Carolina 28, Florida 27
Kentucky @ Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt Stadium, Nashvegas (39,790)
3 PM CT/4 PM ET
SEC Network
Tom Hart, Andre, Laura Rutledge
Vandy by 3
Derek Mason had his defense ready to play last Saturday in Gainesville and they should have won the game. They had four turnovers and didn't turn the ball over once. They shut down Florida's offense. They just need to get better play from quarterback Johnny McCrary. Johnny has talent, he just needs to hit some throws Saturday and get some confidence. VU's strategy is to play stellar defense, run the football, and take care of the ball. That's their formula until McCrary starts passing the ball better. Not sure about Kentucky. They look a little bit in disarray right now after last week's debacle at Georgia. Patrick Towles can be good at quarterback at times and Boom Williams will be back this week at running back so that gives the Wildcats a good shot. But I'm going to go with Vandy to pull it off here. Coach Mason is turning the corner at Vanderbilt and laying the foundation for success the rest of this season and into the future.
Vanderbilt 17, Kentucky 13
BYU @ Missouri
Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri (79,451)
6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET
SEC Network
Brent, Jess, Maria
BYU by 6 1/2
BYU isn't intimidated to play anywhere. They just line it up and say bring it on. Missouri is totally dysfunctional right now with the racial stuff going on at the school. It's not a good situation with the Missouri Chancellor and the President of the system resigning. They need to work this out for the students and clear this thing up so the students and the faculty can concentrate on making the school the best it can be. This major situation has to be a distraction for the football team. It'll cost the Tigers this Saturday because BYU is a good football team and they don't care about Missouri's issues.
BYU 31, Missouri 21
North Texas @ Tennessee
Neyland Stadium, Knoxville (102, 455)
11 AM CT/Noon ET
SEC Network
Dave, Stinch, Kayce Smith
UT by 41 1/2
Tennessee 52, North Texas 10
Western Carolina @ Texas A&M
Kyle Field, College Station (102, 512)
6 PM CT/7 PM ET
Duh U, ESPNU
Allen Bestick, Dan Hawkins
No line
A&M 49, Western Carolina 20
***Marquee National Game***
No. 12 Oklahoma @ No.6 Baylor
McLane Stadium, Waco, Texas (55,000)
7 PM CT/8PM ET
ABC
Chris, Herbie "Iowa are you kiddin me? , Heather
Baylor by 2 1/2
I watched the Sooners blast Iowa State last night, and am very impressed with their football team. Quarterback Baker Mayfield is playing at a very high level this season completing 193-of-275 passes, which is 70.2%, for 2,812 yards, 28 TDs and just four ints. Running back Samaje Perine is a stud with 806 yards and 10 TDs. Joe Mixon has added 528 yards and five TDs at rb. Jarrett Stidham is a super talented freshman quarterback for Baylor and put on a nice show last Thursday Night in the Little Apple completing 23-of-33 passes for 419 yards and three TDs against no interceptions in a 31-24 Baylor victory over K State. They've got playmakers through the roof at Baylor led by standout wide receiver Corey Coleman, who caught 11 passes for 216 yards and two sevens against K State, and running back Shock Linwood, who rushed for 72 yards, decent, against Kansas State. Coleman has caught 58 passes for 1,178 yards and 20 TDs this season, which is tied for the lead nationally in TDs with Louisiana Tech running back Kenneth Dixon. That's outrageously good. Linwood has run for 1,046 yards and nine, sevens on the season. Another guy to look out for in the Oklahoma offense is Sterling Shepard, who's caught 47 passes for 826 yards and seven TDs.
This will be a classic in Waco. I like the Sooners to prevail and really make a move in the national picture after this victory. Really like this OU team
Oklahoma 38, Baylor 35
No.1 Clemson @ Syracuse
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
ABC
Dave Lamont, Ray Bentley, Marty Smith
Clemson by 28
Like Dabo and his team to be doing another premature championship shuffle after this one. His dancing is getting a little questionable right now. There is some tough football left to be played. They still have to play @South Carolina and against most likely North Carolina in the ACC Champioship game. So Dabo may want to slow down on his Whip dances.
Clemson 45, Syracuse 24
No.3 Ohio State @ Illinois
11 AM CT/ Noon ET
ABC
Sean McDonough, Chris Spielman, McShay
Urb by 16
Ohio State is showing some of the same dysfunction that FSU showed last year. Maybe to the degree of the Jameis fiasco, but J.T. Barrett, the starting quarterback and a team captain, got a DUI two weeks ago, and that's not a great sign. He got suspended for a game and he's back. I hope the committee really watches this team closely over the next four weeks and sees if they are really worthy of being in the playoff. They made the mistake last year picking FSU over a better TCU team that had a chance to win it all, and FSU was a disaster in the semifinal as they got blasted by Oregon. I hope the committee remembers that, though the Buckeyes have some serious work left. Illinois is not bad. but they're not very good either, so this is a W. But then it gets serious for the Buckeyes. Michigan State at home and at Harbaugh and Michigan. This team will have to earn it and they should have to.
Urb 35, Illinois 24
Wake Forest @ No.4 Notre Dame
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
NBC
Dan Hicks, Flutie, Kathryn Tappen
ND by 27
I like this Notre Dame team, but I'm not sure I love 'em. They still have to play @Stanford at the end of the season and that will be determine if the Irish make the playoffs. They'll get it done here though and matriculate in the rankings, staying at No. 4 most likely.
Notre Dame 42, Wake Forest 14
Oregon @ No.7 Stanford
6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET
FOX
Gus, Joel Klatt, Molly McGrath
Stanford by 10
Now while I said I like Notre Dame, but don't love them, I am very bullish on the Cardinal. They have a complete football team in every phase of the game. Christian McCaffrey may be the most underrated superstar in college football. He's rushed for 1,207 yards and six TDs this season. He's also caught two passes for sevens. His touchdown total may not be enough to keep up with Henry and Corey Coleman, but he's quite a football player. Quarterback Kevin Hogan's got it together and thrown for 16 TDs against just six ints. He's struggled with accuracy in the past, but is clicking now as he's completing 133-of-201 passes, 66%, for 1,831 yards. Hogan has also rushed for 226 yards and 3 sevens. Their defense is very good. They have it all, much like Alabama, Clemson, possibly, and I'm starting to think Oklahoma too. I'm really starting to like North Carolina as well. Like Stanford to take care of business at home over an Oregon team that is not playing up to Oregon standards under third year coach Mark Helfrich.
Stanford 45, Oregon 34
Other scores
No.5 Iowa 28, Minnesota 24
7 PM CT/8 PM ET
Big Ten Network
Iowa by 12
Not a believer in the Hawkeyes. They are not even in my top eight for the playoff.
No. 8 Oklahoma State 56, Iowa State 35
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
ESPN
Adam Amin, Kelly Stouffer, Olivia Harlan
Ok State by 14
North Carolina 45, Miami 28
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
Duh U
UNC by 13
Really like what Larry Fedora is doing in Chapel Hill. This is a high quality football team.
No.24 Houston 38, No.21 Memphis 35
6 PM CT/7 PM ET
The Deuce (ESPN2)
Houston by 7
Memphis got trounced by a good Navy football team last week, 45-20. They don't play much defense. Houston is not stellar on defense either, but both are good on offense. Houston is at home, so that's why I like 'em.
No. 14 Michigan 35, Indiana 21
2:3o PM CT/3:30 PM ET
ESPN2
Michigan by 13 1/2
Harbaugh's gotten the ship righted after the Michigan State fiasco and the Wolverines are playing good football again as they are now focused on the task at hand of course, which is Indiana, but in the back of their minds thinking about a showdown in the Big House, Saturday, Nov. 28th vs Urb and the Buckeyes. They'll have to play Penn State on the road the week before that, too, so they have their work cut out for them if they want to have a shot at the Big Ten East Division. They're going to need some help, too, with somebody else beating Michigan State. Ohio State may take care of that, but there's no guarantee there.
No. 16 Florida State 34, North Carolina
State 31
11:30 AM CT/12:30 PM ET
ESPN3
FSU by 9 1/2
No. 10 Utah 38, Arizona 31
9 PM CT/10 PM ET
Fox Sports 1
Utes by 6
Utah is still leading the Pac 12 South at 5-1 with games left against @ Arizona, Saturday, UCLA at home, Nov. 21st, and Colorado, at home, Nov. 28th. So things are setting up for Utah maybe getting back into the national picture. USC is a better team to me, USC is excellent, but Utah is still a really good football team. So if they win out, they win the Pac 12 South and most likely play Stanford in the Pac 12 title game which would be an excellent game. USC is 4-2 in the Pac 12 South, but as hot as anybody in the country right now.
No. 19 UCLA 45, Washington State 42
9:45 PM CT/10:45 PM ET
ESPN
UCLA by 10 1/2
I think Mike Leach and Washington State gives UCLA everything they want. They may even beat them.
No. 20 Navy 42, SMU 38
2:30 PM CT/3:30 PM ET
CBS Sports Network
Navy by 21
Navy quarterback Kennan Reynolds has tied the NCAA record for rushing touchdowns with former Wisconsin running back Montee Ball at 77. He should break it on Saturday, but SMU should score a lot of points and make in interesting.
Friday Night
USC 49, Colorado 28
8 CT/9 ET
ESPN2
Dave Flemming, Mack, Allison
USC by 16 1/2
I watched SC beat Arizona, 38-30, late last Saturday night, and they've got an awesome team. Interim coach Clay Helton has done an excellent job cleaning up the mess that Steve Sarkisian left and has the Trojans playing traditional, excellent USC football. He really deserves a shot for the head job if this continues throughout the rest of the season especially if SC beats UCLA. They'll need some help from UCLA in the Pac 12 South to get to the Pac 12 title game. UCLA will have to beat Utah and SC will have to beat the Bruins. USC blasted Utah at home a couple of weeks ago. It's certainly possible. Running backs Ronald Jones and Justin Davis are absolute studs. Jones had an incredible 74 yard touchdown run against 'Zona last week. He's awesome. Jones has run for 710 yards and six scores, and Davis has added 420 yards and five, 7's. Tre Madden was the starter, but he's been hurt some, and Jones has definitely picked up the slack. Really good football team here.
Tonight
Georgia Tech 28, Virginia Tech 24
6:30 PM CT/7:30 PM ET
ESPN
Tess, Dave, Kaylee
Ga Tech by 2 1/2
Like Paul Johnson and Tech to get it done barely over the awesome, retiring Frank Beamer and a solid Hokies team.