Randy Smith: SEC Picks Week 13

  • Friday, November 27, 2015
  • Randy Smith
Randy Smith
Randy Smith

Where has this college football season gone? It was only yesterday that I was counting the days, hours and minutes down to the first kickoff. Now, after Saturday's games, the regular season ends and we look forward to the league championship games, bowl games and the college football playoff. The regular season will likely go out with a bang, so here goes...

Alabama @ Auburn:
Will this really be a lackluster "Iron Bowl" contest? Is Alabama really that much better than Auburn in 2015? Well to answer one of those questions, yes; Alabama is really that much better than Auburn. The answer to the other question remains to be seen. This could be a season maker win for Coach Gus Malzahn's Tigers. They could spoil the national championship hopes of their bitter rivals to the north. On the other hand, the Crimson Tide can use this game as a stepping stone on their trek to another national crown. Auburn fans are hoping for an ending like the one two years ago on the plains. It's not going to happen this year.
Alabama 27 Auburn 12

Missouri @ Arkansas:
You have to feel at least a little bit sorry for Missouri Coach Gary Pinkel. Tennessee spoiled his going away party last week with a 19-8 win in Columbia. Now, if the Tigers who are 5-6 make a bowl game with a sixth win, they must beat Arkansas on the road on Saturday. The Hogs are coming off a heartbreaking 51-50 loss at home to Mississippi State a week ago, and are probably still a bit perturbed they couldn't find a way to stop Dak Prescott even once when they needed it. Missouri will be no match for the Razorbacks in Fayetteville.
Arkansas 34 Missouri 10

Florida State @ Florida:
This game is shaping up to be a super match up. Playing in the "Swamp" certainly gives the Gators an edge, but the Seminoles are still a really good football team. Florida is not playing very well at all. Winning 9-7 over Vanderbilt and claiming an overtime win over Florida Atlantic last week. Coach Jim McElwain is hoping his team will right the ship before next week's SEC Championship Game; likely against Alabama. Those two above mentioned lackluster performances have probably taken Florida out of any serious playoff consideration, though the Gator's only loss came at LSU. Unless Florida improves a lot over last week's performance, FSU could make this look easy.
Florida State 24 Florida 17

Georgia @ Georgia Tech:
Mark Richt has never lost to the Yellowjackets in Atlanta. The Bulldogs have been a real mystery team all season long, yet they still have the potential to be really good, if they could just settle in on a quarterback. Coach Richt has probably saved his job at least one more year.........that is unless the ' Dawgs lose to their biggest rivals on Saturday.  At the very least, one can expect some wholesale changes to the Bulldogs coaching staff at year's end. Practically every game between Georgia and Georgia Tech has been close. This one will be no exception.
Georgia  23 Georgia Tech 20

Louisville @ Kentucky:
The last regular season weekend in the SEC has taken on an SEC versus ACC look. Georgia versus Tech, South Carolina versus Clemson and Florida versus Florida State. The fourth such match-up is Louisville at Kentucky. The Wildcats are just one win away from becoming bowl eligible, and they could get that win against the Cardinals. This will be a very competitive game, but the fact that Kentucky is hosting at Commonwealth Stadium, gives the 'Cats an edge.
Kentucky 31 Louisville 28

Texas A&M @ LSU:
LSU Coach Les Miles is said to be fighting for his job against the Aggies, but I'm afraid the decision has already been made. Despite winning more than 78% of his games at LSU and one National Championship, the Bengal Tigers,  "Powers that be" seem to have grown tired of "The Hat" and are ready to buy out his contract, which will cost them at least $15 million. Texas A&M Coach Kevin Sumlin should watch closely the proceedings as they unravel in Baton Rouge. He could be in the same position next year in College Station unless the Aggies don't show a lot of improvement. LSU is the second SEC squad that went in the tank following a one-sided loss to Alabama. (Georgia being the other)
Texas A&M 28 LSU 24

Ole Miss @ Mississippi State:
The "Egg Bowl" may not get the attention that the "Iron Bowl" gets every year, but this is one tremendous rivalry. This year's game promises to be a dandy match-up. The Rebels are coming off a win over LSU, while the Bulldogs scored a 51-50 win at Arkansas. Dak Prescott is playing lights out for MSU right now, and the Ole Miss defense will be tested to the max. Both teams are going to a bowl game, but the winner will get a better bowl game than the loser will get. A lot at strake here........
Mississippi State 37 Ole Miss 35

Clemson @ South Carolina:
The top-ranked Clemson Tigers have a lot to lose at South Carolina. If the Gamecocks could pull off the upset of the year in college football, they would seriously damage the Tigers chances at playing for a national title. Clemson has simply won each time out this season. Most times it hasn't been pretty, but win they have. Last week South Carolina lost to a Southern Conference team , as The Citadel pulled off the upset in Columbia. Unless the Gamecocks play way over their heads........and if Clemson is really overlooking USC, Carolina has a chance. Since this is a very heated rivalry, I don't see that happening.
Clemson 31 South Carolina 14

Vanderbilt @ Tennessee:
Being a long time Tennessee fan, the Vandy win in Nashville in 2012 was the biggest kick in the gut I've ever had. It was bad enough that it almost ruined my trip with the UT basketball team to Puerto Rico that same weekend.  Vanderbilt has a very good defense and a really bad offense. So the Vols are big favorites as they usually have been through the years. This is not to say that Vandy can't pull off the upset because they certainly can, but Tennessee is at a good place right now with four straight wins, a locked up bowl bid and a lot of momentum going forward. A win over the Commodores will end the season at 8-4 for Tennessee, but more importantly, it would be the Vols fifth SEC win of the year. 5-3 in the SEC is a big improvement for Coach Butch Jones in his third year, and even though Big Orange fans wanted more, 2016 promises to be a banner year.
Tennessee 23 Vanderbilt 7
Last week:  7-3
Year to date: 74-21 

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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.

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