Randy Smith
I had another great week, even picking a couple of upsets. (South Carolina over Georgia and Arkansas over Texas Tech.) This week, the SEC features a light schedule with just eight games on the card, but among those eight games are a few good ones.
Last week: 10-1
Year to date: 29-4
Idle this week: Tennessee, Kentucky, Ole Miss.
Auburn at Kansas State: (
Thursday) The Tigers are poised to make another run at the SEC West title and a shot at a national championship.
They were idle last week and this week they get a bit of a test from Kansas State on the road. Auburn is favored in the game, and while K-State will hang around for a while, Auburn will get it done. Auburn 48 Kansas State 20.
Texas A&M at SMU: With Mustangs Coach June Jones resigning after two games, things appear to be in a state of turmoil at SMU. It's not the best time to be playing a darn good Texas A&M squad. Last week, the Aggies struggled a bit with Rice before winning 38-10. Kenny "The Thrill" Hill will have his act together in a big way this weekend. Texas A&M 49 SMU 17.
Troy at Georgia: While Troy certainly is not the "Three Sisters of the Poor" by any means, Georgia should get back on track this weekend. A heartbreaking loss at South Carolina last week is just what it is; nothing more or less. The Bulldogs can still win the SEC East, still win the SEC and yes Red and Black fans, they can still win a national championship, however they can't afford to stub their toe again. With a big home game against Tennessee looming next weekend, this week's contest against Troy will give the Bulldogs a chance to right the ship.
Georgia 37 Troy 17.
Indiana at Missouri: The Tigers keep right on rolling along through a considerably weak non-conference schedule. They scored a much easier than expected 38-10 win over Central Florida last week, and should have no trouble disposing of Indiana this week.
Missouri 42 Indiana 14.
South Carolina at Vanderbilt: Vandy finally won a game last week by squeaking past UMass, but victories for the Black and Gold will be hard to come by from here on out. Usually following a big win over Georgia, Coach Steve Spurrier and his Gamecocks would be falling into a trap against the Commodores, but not this time. South Carolina 38 Vanderbilt 10.
Northern Illinois at Arkansas: The Hogs pulled out a big win last week at Texas Tech 38-35 and once again they step outside the SEC facing Northern Illinois. The Razorbacks need to show a lot of improvement on defense to compete against SEC teams, but their running game is about as good as it gets. Arkansas 35 Northern Illinois 14.
Mississippi State at LSU: This could be a really good game. Both teams are unbeaten through three games so far, but LSU has been a bit more impressive than MSU. The Bengal Tigers could be the real "sleeper" in the SEC West this fall. Coach Les Miles may have his best team in years on the bayou, and while those Bulldogs will be pesky for most of the game, LSU pulls it out and puts it away in the fourth quarter. LSU 30 Mississippi State 21.
Florida at Alabama: The SEC's headliner this week should be a good one. The Crimson Tide gets tested for the first time this season, while the Gators are coming off a much harder than expected overtime win over Kentucky in the "Swamp". How good this contest is depends upon which group of Gators show up; the ones who beat Florida International 65-0 or the ones that struggled with Kentucky. I think Will Muschamp's Gators will play well, but Nick Saban's Tide will play better. This game would have been much more attractive with Urban Meyer facing Saban rather than Muschamp versus Saban. Alabama 24 Florida 17.
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Randy Smith has been covering sports on radio, television and print for the past 45 years. After leaving WRCB-TV in 2009, he has written two books, and has continued to free-lance as a play-by-play announcer. He is currently teaching Broadcasting at Coahulla Creek High School near Dalton, Ga.
His career has included a 17-year stretch as host of the Kickoff Call In Show on the University of Tennessee’s prestigious Vol Network. He has been a member of the Vol Network staff for thirty years.
He has done play-by-play on ESPN, ESPN II, CSS, and Fox SportSouth, totaling more than 500 games, and served as a well-known sports anchor on Chattanooga Television for more than a quarter-century.
In 2003, he became the first television broadcaster to be inducted into the Greater Chattanooga Area Sports Hall of Fame. Randy and his wife Shelia reside in Hixson. They have two married children, (Christi and Chris Perry; Davey and Alison Smith.) They have four grandchildren, Coleman, Boone, DellaMae and CoraLee.
To contact Randy: rsmithsports@epbfi.com