A casual glance around the Southeastern Conference reveals there are several teams with a lot in common. More and more teams have developed good defenses but been saddled with bad offenses.
Of course, Tennessee leads the way in this department. After the Vols' one rushing yard effort against Georgia, they are really struggling and putting more and more pressure on the defense. This week's opponent Mississippi State has also had trouble scoring consistently though running back Anthony Dixon has helped the Bulldogs develop a fairly dependable running game.
Kentucky and Auburn have also floundered consistently on offense. Even after Tommy Tuberville fired offensive coordinator Tony Franklin, the Tigers lost to Arkansas at home, which has to be the biggest upset of the conference season so far. Also, Vanderbilt is in danger of falling into this category as quarterbacks Mackenzi Adams and Chris Nickson both struggle.
As for this week's Tennessee/Mississippi State match up, if either team can score 20 points, I believe they will win. The Vols have only scored 45 points in their last four games, while the Bulldogs' offense showed signs of life against Vanderbilt and LSU in their last two games.
However, the Vols are playing at home. Expect this to be a physical game much like last year's game in Starkville. Tennessee won down there last year, and I believe they will get it done Saturday.
The pick: Tennessee 20 Mississippi State 17
Other SEC picks: Georgia over Vanderbilt, LSU over South Carolina, Kentucky over Arkansas, Alabama over Ole Miss
Last week: 2-3 (.400), Overall: 40-13 (.757)
4 comments:
I DON'T SEE IT HAPPENING. THE VOLS SLIDE WILL CONTINUE.
I hate to agree with folks who leave anonymous comments, but I fear that the Vols will have a very tough time beating Miss. State this weekend. Don't know why, but I keep thinking about the '86 UT/MSU match-up ...
joltin' django wrote: "...but I keep thinking about the '86 UT/MSU match-up"
I've spent 22 years trying to forget that game.
Tennessee 34 Miss State 3. It helps anytime you can get two interceptions returned for touchdowns, but I did think the offense showed some progress. We had four drives that had more than 10 plays each. Still lots to work on though.
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