SEC Predictions- Week 2

After Week 1, Michael has jumped to the lead by posting an (11-0) mark, followed by Jay at (10-1) and Eddie pulling up the rear at (9-2). Now that the easy week is done, let's jump into this week's SEC predictions with some actual conference games:

Michael McCoy's Picks, (11-0) on the season:

Troy at Florida - Florida
UCLA at UT - Tennessee
FIU at Bama - Bama
Vandy at LSU - LSU
USC at UGA - Georgia

Auburn-Mississippi State:

Last weekend was nice, but a different set of Bulldogs are heading to the Plains this weekend. State is feeling pretty good about itself these days after the buzz hiring of Dan Mullen, and being the first SEC game for both teams means the intensity level should be through the roof. Having beaten State last year in Ruston last year, one could make the argument that La. Tech provided a sterner test than the boys from Starkvegas will, but Mullen will have his team motivated and ready to play, plus Auburn hasn't had it all its own way with State the last couple of seasons anyway. I fear against a letdown a little bit after the euphoria of last Saturday, but I think the coaching staff will reign in the team with good effect. The strength of State's offense, running the ball, should work to our advantage, even with Dixon back. In fact, Dixon being back may well keep things a little more predictable, though Mullen will no doubt look to keep things off balance and not so one dimensional. State QB Relf is more a wildcard than anything. We know about Dixon; Tyson Lee played a lot last year, but Relf is just now really coming on to the scene. Going against Malzahn's offensive sets in practice should help out the defense though. Plus, even though Muschamp is gone, Auburn is the one defensive riddle that Mullen was never really able to solve while at Florida. On the other side of the ball, State is always solid on defense, so I'd be surprised if our offense replicates the success of last weekend, but then again, if Malzahn is able to run the kind of tempo that he wanted but didn't get last weekend against Tech, these Bulldogs may wear down faster. But I'd be surprised if this weekend's clash of Tigers and Bulldogs was as straightforward as last weekend's. SEC games can never be taken for granted when your team only won two of them the previous season. But I expect Malzahn to open up the vertical passing game a bit more, opening up the run in the process while the defense should be able to sustain a standard similar to last weekend.

I'll say Auburn 24 - Mississippi State 10.

Jay Skipworth's Picks, (10-1) on the Season:

Troy at Florida - Florida
UCLA at UT - Tennessee
FIU at Bama - Bama
Vandy at LSU - LSU
USC at UGA - South Carolina

Auburn-Mississippi State:

The Bulldogs did what they were supposed to against Jackson State. They played two quarterbacks and ran the ball under Dan Mullen’s spread to the tune of 230+ yards. They won't be afforded the chance to tweak the attack as much this week. Auburn showed signs of organization and life on offense that has been sorely lacking for years from that program. The Tigers had two running backs gain over 100 yards and Chris Todd played well at the quarterback position.

The keys for Auburn in this game are to strike fast, strike hard, and show no quarter and try to put the Bulldogs into a throw often mode.

However, Mullen is no slouch and he knows this and will have his defense ready to stuff the run and force Auburn to go deep early. Can Auburn do it? We'll see. Auburn will also need to do something else with the WildKodi packages in order to get maximum benefit from that package.
Otherwise, it's all smoke and mirrors which will only choke and cut you.

This will be a slugfest and will come down to who establishes the most consistency in the running game.

Auburn 24 - Mississippi State 21.

You can also find a more detailed prediction of each game at Jay's Blog Critic Column listed below:

http://blogcritics.org/sports/article/sec-week-two-preview/

Eddie McCoy's Picks, (9-2) on the Season:

Troy at Florida - Florida
UCLA at UT - Tennessee
FIU at Bama - Bama
Vandy at LSU - LSU
USC at UGA - South Carolina

Auburn-Mississippi State:

This Mississippi State team will run a much more exciting brand of offense this season under HC Dan Mullen, but they are still at least a year away from being able to put up good production numbers against good defensive teams, and I suspect that Auburn will present many problems for them by forcing Tyson Lee / Chris Relf to make plays with their arms. Auburn will need to contain the QB and not allow them room to run and make big plays with their feet, especially on 3rd and longs.

Defensively, Mississippi State is going to try and do it's best to cover-up its weak passing defensive by trying to put pressure on the Auburn offense by blitzing on running and passing downs to force the Tigers to make bad decisions. Auburn needs to take shots down the field early and get the Bulldogs on their heels so that the running game can have it's way with the State defense.

I believe Auburn will shut down the run and force Mississippi State in to 3rd and long situations along with forcing some Turnovers. I believe the Auburn offense will be able to generate a decent passing attack that will lead to another game of big running totals. This game will probably be out of reach by half time.

Auburn 41- Mississippi State 14.


Let us know your thoughts on this weeks games and your predictions in the comment section.

War Eagle!