SEC Predictions Week 6

Last week was not a good week for any of us in our predictions but our Michael who was (4-3) in last week's action, retains the overall lead with a (35-6) mark followed by a tie between both Jay Skipworth and Eddie McCoy at (32-9) each. This maybe one of the toughest weeks to pick games in the SEC, so we could be headed for another swing. Without further adu, here are our picks:

Michael McCoy Picks's:

Vanderbilt at Army - Vanderbilt
Georgia at Tennessee - Tennessee
Kentucky at South Carolina - South Carolina
Houston at Mississippi State - Mississippi State
Alabama at Ole Miss - Alabama (upset alert)
Florida at LSU - Florida (upset alert)

Auburn at Arkansas:
Auburn went up to Knoxville last weekend and picked up a big win on the road with some authority. The first four games were nice, but those wins all came in the friendly confines of Jordan-Hare Stadium, and the game against the Vols served notice that these Tigers are indeed a much different version from their 2008 counterparts. But things get a lot more difficult on Saturday with an early kickoff in Fayetteville to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks. The Hogs were considered to be a sleeper in the West before the season started, but a couple of tough losses to Georgia and Alabama put an early dent in those hopes. The corresponding rout of Texas A&M last week however should serve notice that Arkansas will not go silently into the night. There are not a lot of secrets with this team, though. They are great on offense, especially in the passing game, and they are suspect on defense, especially in the secondary. On the ground, things are mixed on both sides of the ball. Coach Bob Petrino loves to have a balanced offense and he loves to run to set up the passing game with some play-action, but trouble at the offensive line has meant the running game hasn't really gotten going yet. Ryan Mallet's arm is just that good that a lack of a consistent running game has been largely overcome. On defense, the Hogs have actually done a nice job against the run their last couple of games, but continue to give up big plays in the air. On offense, I look for us to come out a little more aggresive from the start than we did against Tennessee, though we'll still try to establish the run early before taking some shots down field. Special teams remain a concern, but I believe they are getting better, and they'll need to improve even more this week, especially on kick-off coverage, or Arkansas's return game could make it a long day for us. In the end, it's hard to see this game being anything other than a shootout. I could see this game going either way to be honest. The difference I think may lie in that our defense has held up a little better than theirs, though I still expect us to give up some yards and points, and up to this point, our team has shown that bit more of moxy to make the plays down the stretch to win the game. I think it will be a game where holding the other team to field goal attempts will be deemed a victory for the defense, and I think we will do that more than Arkansas does. I'll say Auburn 38, Arkansas 34.

Jay Skipworth's Picks:
Vanderbilt at Army - Vanderbilt
Georgia at Tennessee - Georgia
Kentucky at South Carolina - South Carolina
Houston at Mississippi State - Houston
Alabama at Ole Miss - Alabama
Florida at LSU - LSU

Auburn at Arkansas:
The Tigers at 5-0 are easily the surprise team in the SEC this year. In spite of glaring holes on defense, Auburn has found ways to win mostly through the high-powered offense that keeps the tempo moving and puts points on the scoreboard. Arkansas just puts points on the scoreboard (unless playing Alabama) while the defense has been largely lack until last week. The Hogs defense gave up yards to Texas A&M but found ways to end Aggies drives before they could cash into the endzone. Auburn’s defensive backfield has ability to create turnovers but their coverage skills will be tested greatly this week. Several times last week, Auburn defenders were beat by WRs who simply dropped the ball or the quarterback didn’t make a good throw. That won’t happen this week as Ryan Mallett and company are very talented. Arkansas, for all the defensive issues, has faced solid running teams and performed well enough to put the games in the opposing quarterback’s hands. That will be the Hogs gameplan and it will be on Auburn’s Chris Todd and his gang of receivers to pull this on through for the Tigers. This one has the makings of an early morning shootout and will probably down to which team has the ball last. Arkansas has the playmakers offense to win this one if they can limit the turnovers. Arkansas 35, Auburn 31.

As always, you can view a more detailed pick by pick summary from Jay at his BC column linked below:
http://blogcritics.org/sports/article/sec-week-six-midterm-mania/


Eddie McCoy's Picks:
Vanderbilt at Army - Vanderbilt
Georgia at Tennessee - Georgia
Kentucky at South Carolina - South Carolina
Houston at Mississippi State - Houston
Alabama at Ole Miss - Alabama
Florida at LSU - Florida

Auburn at Arkansas:
Auburn got a huge win on the road at Tennessee in front of over 100,000 fans that really helped them gain more confidence in what they are doing. This Auburn teams has some real weaknesses but it also has some real strengths and the biggest strength they have right now is team chemistry / unity. I'm not overly surprised that Auburn is 5-0 at this point in the season, but I am greatly surprised in how they have gone about doing that. Let all the bama media type talk about our opponents record and accuse us of not playing anybody, but the fact is that we have been impressive in the games that we have played in. I believe that Arkansas presents a very serious challenge, more so than Tennessee in my opinion, but I just feel that this team will go into Fayetteville and play a very good game. Arkansas defense has improved over the last couple of weeks, but I think our offense provides a real problem for their defense since we are so balanced. Their secondary allows big plays and I would look for Gus Malzahn to take advantage of that along with the new DB's that they are throwing into the mix this week. In the end, I believe our defense will get more stops than their defense. I like Auburn 45, Arkansas 30.

Let us know your picks in the comment section.

War Eagle!