Week 10 Record: (6-2)
Overall: (67-19)
In what was another classic battle between LSU and Alabama, the Crimson Tide asserted its national dominance in a 10-0 victory last week. Florida’s beatdown at the hands of Arkansas creates an even more complicated picture for the SEC East, even opening up the possibility of a six-way tie for the division.
Mississippi State at No. 1 Alabama (12 p.m., ESPN)
Fresh off the upset of Texas A&M, Mississippi State looks to pull off an even bigger surprise by taking down Alabama.
Nick Fitzgerald was the key to the victory over the Aggies after totaling four total touchdowns last week. The Bulldogs were finally able to get the running backs involved, and it paid off big time. Running back Aeris Williams had the best day on the ground all season of any MSU player not named Fitzgerald. However, Alabama’s defense will be a much tougher task this week.
To stop Alabama, you must first stop quarterback Jalen Hurts. The Bulldogs’ defense needs to take away his mobility and force Damien Harris to carry the rushing load for the Tide. To neutralize Alabama's wide array of weapons, the Bulldogs will need to play even better than they did last week against the Aggies.
Hurts will look to expose the Mississippi State defense through both the passing and rushing game. Getting their primary receivers Calvin Ridley and ArDarius Stewart involved down the field will make the Tide’s path to victory much easier.
Alabama’s defense just shut out LSU in Death Valley and could not be playing better. Containing Fitzgerald should be the primary focus for the Crimson Tide, as the Bulldogs' success relies heavily on their quarterback's ability to find daylight on the perimeter of the field.
The Pick: Alabama 40, Mississippi State 10
Alabama will jump out to a quick start on offense and roll to a win. Mississippi State will find it much harder to take down Alabama on the road than it was to upset Texas A&M at home.
South Carolina at Florida (12 p.m., CBS)
South Carolina is still in contention to win the SEC East despite having one of the nation's worst offenses for much of the season. Before the Gamecocks start thinking about that, they need to focus on getting past Florida.
Looking to remain undefeated in his career, quarterback Jake Bentley will make his first career road start against the Gators. The freshman has brought the Gamecocks’ offense to life in his first three starts and has received help from another true freshman out of the backfield, Rico Dowdle. For the Gamecocks to penetrate Florida’s stout defense, they need to find a balance between the run and pass on Saturday.
The Gamecocks’ defense catches a break with Florida quarterback Luke Del Rio unavailable to start due to injury this weekend. Del Rio's backup, senior Austin Appleby, will lead the Gators’ offense that has seen its share of struggles lately.
To prevent South Carolina from pulling off the upset, the Gators will need excellent play from their defense. Cornerbacks Jalen Tabor and Quincy Wilson will need to lock down the Gamecocks’ top targets in Bryan Edwards and Deebo Samuel.
The Pick: South Carolina 20, Florida 16
South Carolina will continue its hot streak with an upset win over Florida. The Gamecocks lead the SEC in turnover margin and will force Appleby into crucial mistakes on Saturday.
Kentucky at Tennessee (12 p.m., SEC Network)
With a win on Saturday, Kentucky’s chances of winning the SEC East would be greatly increased. The Wildcats have reversed their early season struggles but suffered a key loss to Georgia a week ago.
In the absence of quarterback Drew Barker, the Wildcats have relied heavily on the ground game behind Boom Williams and Benny Snell. Both will play a huge role in breaking the Tennessee defense that has been plagued by injuries in the middle portion of its schedule.
Harassing quarterback Joshua Dobbs will be the main priority for the Kentucky defense. Running back Alvin Kamara is probable to return from injury, and limiting his success on the ground would force Dobbs to carry a larger load.
The Volunteers rebounded from three straight losses with a win over Tennessee Tech. If anything, the win should serve as a confidence booster for the offense and hopefully get Dobbs back on track.
Limiting the Wildcats ground success is essential for the Vols to get a win on Saturday, as backup quarterback Stephen Johnson hasn’t exactly been brilliant in the passing game while filling in for Barker.
The Pick: Tennessee 31, Kentucky 23
Tennessee will ride the success of Dobbs on the ground to carry the team to victory. The return of Kamara will provide a huge boost to the Volunteers' offense.
No. 9 Auburn at Georgia (3:30 p.m., CBS)
Auburn struggled last week against Vanderbilt and will need an improved performance on the road against Georgia.
Sean White’s health is key to the success of Auburn’s offense. While he might not take to the air a lot, the Tigers need him in the game for his accuracy on short passes and ability to manage the game. With running back Kamryn Pettway’s status listed as "day-to-day," Kerryon Johnson may need to carry more of the load on the ground against the Bulldogs.
The Tigers’ defense played well against the run last week and will need to do the same against Nick Chubb and Sony Michel of Georgia. Defensive lineman Carl Lawson has to put pressure on freshman quarterback Jacob Eason to handicap the Bulldogs' passing offense.
Georgia's offense found some balance against Kentucky last week, both rushing and passing for over 200 yards. Establishing the ground game against Auburn will be tough. Eason needs to connect on a few deep balls to prevent the Tigers from loading the box against Chubb and Michel.
Slowing the dynamic ground game of Auburn will be key for the Georgia defense. Whether or not Pettway plays could be a decisive factor in this one.
The Pick: Auburn 42, Georgia 24
Auburn’s physical defensive front will slow the Georgia running game and allow the Tigers to pickup the road win. The win for Auburn will setup a showdown for the SEC West in two weeks against Alabama.
Vanderbilt at Missouri (3:30 p.m., SEC Network)
Vanderbilt gave Auburn all that they could handle a week ago, but struggled in its normal areas of strength on offense.
The Commodores were unable to get the ground game rolling against Auburn, managing only 3.6 yards per carry. Quarterback Kyle Shurmur threw the ball well against the Tigers but suffered because of drops from his receivers. Shurmur needs to continue his success through the air, and running back Ralph Webb must return to form against a below-average Missouri run defense.
Vanderbilt has been led by their strong defensive play all season and will look to shutdown Missouri quarterback Drew Lock. Linebacker Zach Cunningham continues to lead the SEC in tackles and will be essential in slowing down Missouri running backs Damarea Crockett and Ish Witter.
Lock was able to find success against a tough South Carolina pass defense last week but was limited by two interceptions. Against Vanderbilt, he will need to avoid making mistakes and open up his vision down the field.
The Tigers’ defense will zero in on slowing Webb and forcing Shurmur to hit the deep ball.
The Pick: Missouri 24, Vanderbilt 17
Lock will limit his mistakes and find holes in the Vandy secondary. Winning the turnover margin will be crucial for the Tigers to get the win.
No. 24 LSU at No. 25 Arkansas (7 p.m., ESPN)
LSU’s offense was shut out against Alabama last week, as the Tigers’ normally strong run game struggled mightily.
Leonard Fournette and Derrius Guice must get back on track against Arkansas. The backs will get the majority of the offensive touches for the Tigers, setting up Etling to be a game manager.
The LSU defense shut out Alabama for the first three quarters but was ultimately unable to keep Jalen Hurts out of the end zone. This week, the group must find a way to stop running back Rawleigh Williams III of Arkansas.
Williams III excelled against the normally stingy Florida defense, giving the Razorbacks confidence heading into the matchup with LSU. Quarterback Austin Allen will look to take care of the football and rely on the ground game to power the Hogs’ offense.
Defensively, the Razorbacks must find some consistency. Their great performance against Florida came just two weeks after a horrid showing against Auburn, in which the Razorbacks were demolished 56-3. The version of the Razorbacks defense that shows up will likely determine the outcome on Saturday.
The Pick: LSU 28, Arkansas 21
LSU’s offense will recover this week, with Fournette and Guice both having big days. The Tigers’ defense will hold Williams III and Allen down just enough to grab the win.
Ole Miss at No. 8 Texas A&M (7:30 p.m., SEC Network)
Ole Miss might have beaten Georgia Southern last week but bore a huge loss with senior quarterback Chad Kelly suffering a season-ending knee injury.
Recovering from this loss will be tough for the Rebels. Kelly is the uncontested leader of the team and leads the SEC in passing yards through the first 10 weeks of the season. Freshman Jason Pellerin will step in as Kelly’s replacement and hopes to lead the Rebels to a bowl game. Akeem Judd’s newfound success in the running game will be a key to upsetting Texas A&M.
The Rebels are faced with stopping running backs Trayveon Williams and Keith Ford. The group has struggled much of the season but will look to take advantage of the absence of Aggies quarterback Trevor Knight, who will miss the remainder of the season with a shoulder injury.
With Knight gone, junior Jake Hubenak will take over the Aggies’ offense. Hubenak needs to get in sync with his receivers led by Christian Kirk. Developing a rhythm in the passing game should allow Williams and Ford to get going on the ground.
The Pick: Texas A&M 34, Ole Miss 20
With both teams losing their starting quarterbacks for the rest of the season due to injury, Ole Miss will suffer the most. The Rebels will struggle to find offense in Kelly’s absence, and the Aggies’ defense will step up to grab the win this weekend.