It's one of the best weekends of the year. Families are divided, relationships and friendships are put on hold and bragging rights are put on the line as rivals square off Saturday. There is nothing quite like rivalry weekend and the atmosphere at games this weekend is as hostile and heated as ever. Times have changed a bit in a few of the rivalries compared to recent years but quite a few have major playoff/major bowl implications. Arizona and Arizona State will go at it over in Arizona Stadium in Tucson, AZ. Alabama will be seeking revenge from last year's "kick-six: as they host rival Auburn in Tuscaloosa in the Iron Bowl. Florida State welcomes Florida to Doak Campbell for their annual showdown in Tallahassee. Mississippi State will hit the road and head to The Grove to face Ole Miss in one of the biggest games in the rivalry that I can ever remember. Louisville and Kentucky will give it a go in Cardinal Stadium in a battle of SEC vs ACC. Georgia and Georgia Tech will face off down in Athens in what should be an interesting game. Ohio Stadium will be the site of Ohio State and Michigan. And finally, Clemson looks to snap the five game losing streak to Steve Spurrier and the South Carolina Gamecocks as they battle down in Death Valley. Let the madness begin!Alabama vs Auburn
Revenge will be on the mind of the Crimson Tide as they look for payback from last year's wild finish at Auburn. Alabama only loss this season came to Ole Miss and while they didn't look so great early on this year, they have come on strong at the finish and look about as good as anyone. Amari Cooper is a BOSS and should be in NYC for the Heisman trophy presentation. He's in another league when it comes to wide receivers this year. College Gameday will be on site for this showdown and despite Bama being nearly a 10-point favorite many have marked this one as the game of the weekend. I tend to disagree but I do feel the game might be closer than the experts and guys in Las Vegas are predicting. But hey, what do I know? It should be interesting for sure but I think Alabama wins this one. Of course, I thought the same thing last year also and didn't really give Auburn a chance and we all saw how that turned out. Good thing I'm not much of a gambler.The Pick: Alabama
Florida @ Florida State
We know now that Will Muschamp will not return as head coach of the Gators so this is the end of his run in Gainesville. Florida has struggled this year and even let South Carolina, a team that has choked in the 4th quarter as of late, get the best of them with the game on the line late in the game two weeks ago. That apparently was the last straw has the news about Muschamp came out the following morning. Nobody really has luck anymore cause Florida State has all of it. They yet again avoided another loss and squeezed past Boston College to improve to 11-0 on the year. I find it hard to believe that Florida is just going to lay down and take it from the Seminoles but even with the craziness of rivalry weekend, I just can't pull myself to thinking Florida could pull the upset. Especially on the road. I do think the Gators play inspired and fight hard for their coach (and dignity) but it won't be enough. Florida State will do what Florida State has done all year and find a way to win the second half. Seminoles win but it once again will be close.The Pick: Florida State
Mississippi State @ Ole Miss
Ole Miss has fallen apart right in front of our eyes after looking like a solid playoff contender through the first half the season. However they haven't been able to maintain that success down the stretch and officially knocked themselves from contender to pretender after a 30-0 defeat to the hands of Arkansas. Now they have to regroup and get ready for Mississippi State who is 10-1 and still very much in the playoff conversation with their only loss coming to Alabama two weeks ago in a hard fought game. Despite having to go on the road I think Mississippi State gets the job done. The Rebels have lost three out of the last four with the only win coming against my alma mater, Presbyterian. They seemed to have lost their mojo....or maybe "The Rebels are exactly who we thought they were" and their early season run as come to an end. Rivalry games are weird and it wouldn't shock me if Ole Miss pulls it off..especially considering how wild the SEC has been this year...and college football overall, for that matter. I would love to see it happen to create more playoff chaos but don't think it will nor am I crazy enough to predict it.The Pick: Mississippi State
Georgia vs Georgia Tech
Both of these Georgia schools have had a solid season and if Arkansas can knock off Missouri giving Georgia the division crown, both will play for a conference championship next weekend. This is an intriguing match-up. You know what you get out of Tech's offense and triple option. Justin Thomas is very athletic and a good fit for Paul Johnson's scheme. Georgia's offense continues to impress and if you missed it the first ten times I said it, Nick Chubb is a bad, bad, dude. I think when its all said and done he'll prove to be better than Gurley and go down in history as one of the greatest to tote the rock for the Bulldogs. Huston Mason has also matured and become a solid game manager. He does what he has to do and makes smart decisions with the football. The defense is molding into what Pruitt is known for and overall Georgia is a pretty good football team. If they can handle business Saturday and sneak their way into the SEC Championship (with a Missouri loss) and somehow take down Alabama, the Dawgs will be right there in the discussion for the playoffs, and rightfully so. As for the Yellow Jackets, I'm still a little suspect about them as a whole. This will be only the second ranked team they have faced this season and its on the road in a hostile environment against your rival. Add in the fact they are going up against a defense that continues to improve and I just don't know how I feel about their chances. All that said, I gotta play it conservative.The Pick: Georgia
Featured Game of the Week:
#21 Clemson (8-3) vs South Carolina (6-5)
Time: 12 pm Noon
Location: Clemson, SC (Death Valley)
TV: ESPN
Latest Line: Clemson -6.5
Overall Series Record: Clemson leads 65-42-4
Last Clemson Win: Nov 29th, 2009 (31-14)
Last South Carolina Win: Nov 30th, 2013 (31-17)
Players to Watch:
South Carolina
QB Dylan Thompson
WR Pharoh Cooper
RB Mike Davis
DT JT Surratt
Clemson
QB Deshaun Watson
RB Tyshon Dye
WR Artavis Scott
DE Vic Beasley
LB Stephone Anthony
Advantages:
Offense:
This one is a little tricky depending on who gets the start for the Tigers. South Carolina's offense has been one of the best in school history production wise and is averaging nearly 35 points per game while averaging 280 through the air and 180 on the ground. Mike Davis is a hard running back and not the easiest guy to take down but he's no Gurley or Chubb. Pharoh Cooper has come up big for the Gamecocks down the stretch and is a talented individual with speed and athleticism. Thompson has done well filling in the shoes of what most would say the best QB in school history in Conner Shaw. Any offense ran by Spurrier has to be respected. Bottom line. He knows how to find ways to score and exploit weaknesses. Clemson's offense has been suspect and really depends on who is the quarterback. When Watson is in the offense as a whole looks better and plays at a higher level. He's been running this style offense since he was in high school and has that raw and pure talent. Clemson finally is beginning to have a running game. Wayne Gallman has come up big down the stretch and Tyshon Dye had his coming out party against Georgia State. He is as good as we thought he would be and now that he's healthy and has a full game under his belt, is ready to run loose on the Gamecocks next weekend and moving forward. He's got some moves and speed but size and power as well. He's gonna be a good one. I can only imagine that he'll have some success against this South Carolina defense but the offensive line will have to step up and do their job. I like the possibilities with Watson, Gallman and Dye all in the backfield at the same time.
This one is a little tricky depending on who gets the start for the Tigers. South Carolina's offense has been one of the best in school history production wise and is averaging nearly 35 points per game while averaging 280 through the air and 180 on the ground. Mike Davis is a hard running back and not the easiest guy to take down but he's no Gurley or Chubb. Pharoh Cooper has come up big for the Gamecocks down the stretch and is a talented individual with speed and athleticism. Thompson has done well filling in the shoes of what most would say the best QB in school history in Conner Shaw. Any offense ran by Spurrier has to be respected. Bottom line. He knows how to find ways to score and exploit weaknesses. Clemson's offense has been suspect and really depends on who is the quarterback. When Watson is in the offense as a whole looks better and plays at a higher level. He's been running this style offense since he was in high school and has that raw and pure talent. Clemson finally is beginning to have a running game. Wayne Gallman has come up big down the stretch and Tyshon Dye had his coming out party against Georgia State. He is as good as we thought he would be and now that he's healthy and has a full game under his belt, is ready to run loose on the Gamecocks next weekend and moving forward. He's got some moves and speed but size and power as well. He's gonna be a good one. I can only imagine that he'll have some success against this South Carolina defense but the offensive line will have to step up and do their job. I like the possibilities with Watson, Gallman and Dye all in the backfield at the same time.
Advantage: South Carolina
Defense:
South Carolina has not been the same team defensively that we have grown accustomed to the past few seasons. They rank 95th in the nation in scoring defense giving up about 30 points per game. They've given up at least 30 points five times this season. Clemson is having a great year on defense ranking in the top ten in many defensive categories. They enter Saturday's game coming off another shutout performance and the nations top ranked defense. They lead the pack in total defense, tackles for loss and 3rd down defense. Clemson is stopping opponents for negative yards or no gain on 44% of their plays. They have a solid front backed up by one of the nations best linebacker core. They play even better at home and look to be having fun while they are out there. It won't be fun and games Saturday but I'll tell you what....this defense is the real deal.
Special Teams:
Never thought I'd live to see the time where Clemson would be winning games with special teams and their defense. After a rough start for Kicker Ammon Lakip, he has made 14 out of his last 15 field goals and is a perfect 34 out of 34 on extra points. Bradley Pinon has done his job all season on kickoffs and pinning the opposition deep on punts. Outside of the Gurley kickoff return in week one, coverage as been solid and expect Ben Boulware's name to be called multiple times before the day is over. He's an animal. Elliot Fry for South Carolina is 46/46 on extra points and 16/20 on field goals. And like Lakip has struggled at times. Most notably against Tennessee at home when he was 0/2 including a extra long FG that would have tied the game in overtime. Lakip missed a few crucial field goals in Athens and Tallahassee earlier in the year. While Humphries had a nightmare-ish performance in Columbia last year he is a solid returner and I'm sure he's eager to come up big this time around.
Never thought I'd live to see the time where Clemson would be winning games with special teams and their defense. After a rough start for Kicker Ammon Lakip, he has made 14 out of his last 15 field goals and is a perfect 34 out of 34 on extra points. Bradley Pinon has done his job all season on kickoffs and pinning the opposition deep on punts. Outside of the Gurley kickoff return in week one, coverage as been solid and expect Ben Boulware's name to be called multiple times before the day is over. He's an animal. Elliot Fry for South Carolina is 46/46 on extra points and 16/20 on field goals. And like Lakip has struggled at times. Most notably against Tennessee at home when he was 0/2 including a extra long FG that would have tied the game in overtime. Lakip missed a few crucial field goals in Athens and Tallahassee earlier in the year. While Humphries had a nightmare-ish performance in Columbia last year he is a solid returner and I'm sure he's eager to come up big this time around.
Coaching:
This is a big one. Steve Spurrier is one of the best to ever walk the sidelines as a coach at the college level. He is genius and knows how to utilize his players and play to their strengths while also exposing the weakness of the defense.We all know the OBC loves to talk and brings his A game when it comes to facing off against his rivals. Lorenzo Ward has had a tough year with his young defense this year that never really seemed to find their groove this year. Dabo has built one of the best overall coaching staffs in the nation with Chad Morris and Brent Venables but is not on the same level as Spurrier. But not many people are. Chad Morris' offense is hit or miss and kind of an all or nothing deal. Either the offense is wheeling and dealing and can't be stopped or simply can't get started at all. Clemson's defense is as good as it has ever been but still has to eliminate giving up the big play.
Advantage: South Carolina
This is a big one. Steve Spurrier is one of the best to ever walk the sidelines as a coach at the college level. He is genius and knows how to utilize his players and play to their strengths while also exposing the weakness of the defense.We all know the OBC loves to talk and brings his A game when it comes to facing off against his rivals. Lorenzo Ward has had a tough year with his young defense this year that never really seemed to find their groove this year. Dabo has built one of the best overall coaching staffs in the nation with Chad Morris and Brent Venables but is not on the same level as Spurrier. But not many people are. Chad Morris' offense is hit or miss and kind of an all or nothing deal. Either the offense is wheeling and dealing and can't be stopped or simply can't get started at all. Clemson's defense is as good as it has ever been but still has to eliminate giving up the big play.Overview/Prediction:
Can the Tigers end the streak? Will Deshaun Watson play? And he if he does, will he be effective? Can the Tigers avoid the turnovers that have plagued them the past five years? Will the Gamecocks be able to move the ball against the Tigers #1 ranked defense and impressive front seven? Is Chad Morris really leaving? How about Spurrier? So many questions surrounding this game that we just simply do not have the answers to. What we do know is that all signs are showing that Deshaun Watson will indeed play Saturday and the get the start. While I think that is obviously the biggest factor I think there are two other equally important factors. We know South Carolina doesn't have the greatest defense...109th overall to exact. If Clemson can run the ball effectively and get 5 or 6 yards when they keep the ball on the ground I think that will be huge....HUGE!! Wayne Gallman has ran very well here at the end of the season and Tyshon Dye looks like he could be the X-Factor for the Tigers. If those guys can get going early, that will take pressure off Watson including the pressure for him to run as much. Either way, I think this is a game where the Tigers are going to have to weather the storm and grind it out for the win....I don't care who is a quarterback. We know we are going to get the Gamecocks' best effort regardless of how they have played this season. Likewise, Clemson wants this streak to end and the seniors are hungry to go out on top. I think behind our defense that has played well all season long we keep this one close and find a way to get it done in the 4th quarter...where the Gamecocks have not been able to seal the deal this year. Dylan Thompson has shown that he is not the same guy if you can get him moving and put a hand in his face. When that happens he has made some very poor decisions and that could be the difference in what I'm expecting to be a low-scoring affair. Throw into the mix the home field advantage and I just feel that Clemson is due for a win at home to snap the five game losing streak. It won't be pretty, it won't be easy but the Tigers grind it out and find a way in the fourth quarter to hold on for the win. Bring on the hate and SPOT THE BALL!
The Pick: Clemson 23 South Carolina 21
Other Predictions:
Texas over TCU
Arizona over Arizona State
Louisville over Kentucky
Ohio State over Michigan
Baylor over Texas Tech
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