It’s been a wild week in college football from Steve Sarkisian being fired at USC to Florida quarterback Will Grier being suspended for a year to Steve Spurrier stepping down at South Carolina. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen as many crazy off-the-field things happen in such a short amount of time. And that will be the storyline heading into the weekend until we get down to a packed slate of huge games.
Georgia and Georgia Tech are back home on Saturday and both need a win in the worst way. There’s also two humongous SEC showdowns, and a barometer game in the Big Ten.
Here’s my picks for the biggest games of the weekend (No Falcons pick this time because hopefully by the time this column runs, they’ve taken care of business in New Orleans to move to 6-0):
Missouri at Georgia
Last week couldn’t have gone much worse for the Bulldogs in Knoxville as they not only blew a 24-3 lead in a tough loss to Tennessee, but they lost their biggest offensive weapon, Nick Chubb, to a seasonending knee injury.
After two straight losses, Georgia fans are growing restless, and much of the blame has been shifted to Mark Richt. Whether, you believe that’s real pressure or not, Richt and Georgia need this win badly. All is not lost for the Bulldogs, and there’s still a conceivable chance of them getting to the SEC Championship Game. There’s no room for any more slip-ups, however. And I don’t think they’ll have one this week. I feel a lot of frustration being taken out on Missouri in Athens. This one could get ugly.
Score: Georgia wins 35-10.
Pittsburgh at Georgia Tech
As bad as Georgia fans think they have it right now, the Yellow Jackets have it worse. (I certainly know firsthand.) Georgia Tech has been all kinds of bad the last four weeks in four straight losses, and their offense, that many thought couldn’t ever be fully stopped, has looked discombobulated at best.
Pittsburgh comes in playing well and looking like a big, physical team, which doesn’t bode well for a Jackets’ offensive line that has had incredible struggles so far in 2015.
At some point, Paul Johnson has to figure it out, though, right? I mean, that’s the only thing that keeps any hope alive of Tech salvaging at least a decent season. He’s got to make some kind of adjustment. If not, Tech’s streak of 18 straight years with a bowl game appearance could be in jeopardy.
Score: Georgia Tech wins, 31-28.
Alabama at Texas A&M
The two teams that have risen to the top of the loaded SEC West at this point in the season get together for a muchanticipated matchup at Kyle Field on Saturday. The Aggies have quietly gone about their busi- ness and are undefeated at this point, while Alabama has bounced back from that tough loss to Ole Miss and once again looks like a playoff contender.
Nick Saban has had problems in the past with Kevin Sumlin’s spread offense, and this could be one of their better units since joining the SEC. Alabama on the other hand, will look to just bully the Aggies with their power run game and extremely talented front seven on defense. This is one of those games that Alabama imposes their will in. The tougher team wins.
Score: Alabama wins, 28-20.
Florida at LSU
Florida has been the biggest surprise in the SEC so far this season as they’ve gotten out to a 6-0 start with a couple big wins in that bunch, while LSU has made sure nobody has forgot- ten about them as a legitimate contender in the SEC West in large part to Leonard Fournette’s unbelievable start to the season.
The game’s in Death Valley at night, and Florida just lost their starting quarterback for the season to a suspension. It’s time for the Gators to come back to Earth a bit.
Score: LSU wins, 2714.
Michigan State at Michigan
If Michigan wins this game, they’ll probably start molding the Jim Harbaugh statue already. But the Spartans have the better talent overall, and definitely the better quarterback with Connor Cook. This one will be close until the fourth quarter, but the Michigan State’s depth will be too much. Michigan’s headed in the right direction, though.
Score: Michigan State wins, 23-14.