Rivalry Week Match-ups

I skipped out on last week as it was a pretty bad week in terms of good match-ups.  The week before I was a perfect 6-0, bringing my total to 42-21.

This week as always for rivalry week there are several great match-ups.  Some with big time Playoff implications on the line.  Get ready for a wild ride these last 2 weeks.

 

Mississippi St Ole Miss

MSU – 4.81

Ole Miss – 4.55

 

Ole Miss has been a shell of itself since Treadwell went out.  They lost what little offense they had.  If this wasn’t a rivalry game I would have MSU winning by a good margin.  However it is a rivalry game with the favorite on the road.  The underdog has a great defense.  That generally can lead to disaster for the visiting team. Add on to it it is a rivalry game.  Watch out.  Both Defensive lines should be able to control the line of scrimmages.  However Dak Prescott is a much better QB than Bo Wallace.  Both can tend to have bad games and throw questionable balls in clutch situations.  The QB with the least amount of mistakes will win this game.

 

Prediction: Mississippi State wins a nail-biter and officially throws their hat in the Playoff ring. 23-21

 

 

Arizona St Arizona

ASU – 4.10

Arizona – 4.14

 

These teams are very evenly matched. Add to that it is a rivalry game and we should have another scorcher in the Desert.  Both teams are fairly balanced with good offenses and good defenses. None are great, but they all get the job done.  No big weaknesses and no major strengths.  Arizona is at home and that should give them a slight advantage.  Both defensive lines have performed well this year and I suspect that should continue this game.  It will still be pretty high scoring as both teams will have a lot of possessions.

 

Prediction: Arizona takes advantage of the home-field and wins 35-31

 

 

Florida Florida State

UF – 4.41

FSU – 4.55

 

Not to long ago this was among the most fierce rivalries.  It has since cooled off a bit as both teams have went on streaks, when the other team was down.  However there is still a lot of hatred there.  FSU has won 27 straight. The last team to beat them. UF in Tallahassee.  The last time UF had an out-going coach, they also beat FSU.  FSU has started off slow in just about every game and has failed to put away teams, causing most of their games to be close.  I would expect that to continue.  UF will have a very similar game plan to Boston College. They will try to run the ball and keep ahead of the chains, passing only when needed or to catch FSU off-guard.  The key to this game will be if FSU can get a few stops in the first quarter and put some Touchdowns on the board early.  Forcing UF out of their game-plan (IE force them to throw).  If FSU can do that, then they can run away with it.  However I expect UF to get a lead and stick around in this game, with FSU finishing it again in the 4th quarter.

 

Prediction: FSU wins another closer one with a last minute TD 28-21

 

 

Georgia Tech Georgia

GT – 4.44

UGA – 4.72

 

Taking out the 2 inexplicable games against South Carolina and Florida, Georgia has been very good this year.  Georgia Tech according to F/+ has the top rated offense in the nation.  Neither team has been able to stop a good rushing attack all year, both teams love to run the ball.  Expect a lot of nice runs in this game (even without all-world RB Todd Gurley for UGA).  Georgia’s rushing defense is better than Georgia Tech’s and should be able to get a stop or 2 when needed.  That could be the difference.

 

Prediction: Georgia runs by GT 42-31

 

 

Minnesota Wisconsin

Minn – 4.21

Wisc – 4.65

 

Both teams have had a surprising year (Wisconsin is not surprising to SF as we predicted them to be here).  Wisconsin has come on very strong as of late, with Minnesota surprising against Nebraska last week.  It should be a good rivalry game, however with the Camp Randall crazies as the backdrop, and Melvin Gordon running the ball, Wisconsin should be able to control this game.  Both teams should have the ability to run the ball against the other.  In the end I think Wisconsin is just the better team and playing at home.

 

Prediction: Wisconsin gets behind Gordon and the home crowd and wins going away 38-28

 

 

Auburn Alabama

AU – 4.12

Bama – 4.98

 

Alabama has played very well at home, and struggled on the road.  Auburn has done the same thing, played well at home but not so well on the road.  Lucky for Alabama they are at home. Alabama has the better lines and more momentum.  However in the Iron bowl most of that goes out the window.  I expect Auburn to fight hard and keep it close for at least 2 quarters.  In past years offenses like Auburn have given Alabama’s defense fits, however Saban seems to have adjusted and is doing much better in that regard this year.  I still expect Malzahn to come out with a few wrinkles and have some success against this defense.

 

Prediction:Alabama pulls away in the 2nd half 35-21

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