College Football Picks Week 5: Who will go down this weekend

Week 5 Final: 11-6

Week 4 Final:11-5

Week 3 Final: 14-2

Week 2 Final: 11 – 4

Week 1 Final: 10 – 4

Hey Football Fiends!

My money is on Miami beating Oklahoma. Of course I don’t really EXPECT the ‘Canes to beat the Sooners, but I sure HOPE they do!

BYU over Utah State

Pitt over Louisville

South Florida over Syracuse

Florida State over BC

Bama over Kentucky

Ole Miss over Vandy

Notre Dame over Washington

LSU over UGA

Oklahoma over Miami

ASU over Oregon State

UCLA over Stanford

USC over Cal

Tennessee over Auburn

Michigan over Michigan State

Penn State over Illinois

GA Tech over Mississippi State

Wake Forest over NC State

-Your Gridiron Goddess

College Football Picks – Week 5: USC will win but take Wazzou and the points

Week 4 Final:11-5

Week 3 Final: 14-2

Week 2 Final: 11 – 4

Week 1 Final: 10 – 4

Hey Football Fiends-

It’s that time of the week again and this Trojan alum finds herself in a familiar place. Unsure of which USC football team is going to show up to play Saturday night in the Coliseum. USC is a 46.5 favorite over Washington State and as past years have shown – this isn’t a great place to be in. That said, Matt Barkely is starting and USC will win the game. I just don’t think our offense has gelled enough to beat that point spread.

USC over Washington State

Mizzou over Nevada

Ohio State over Illinois

Wisconsin over Michigan State

LSU over Mississippi State

Alabama over Arkansas

Florida over Kentucky

UGA over ASU  (I think the Sundevils have a real shot here and I hope they do win! I just, hmmm, am not sure.)

Cal over Oregon

Florida State over South Florida

GA Tech over UNC

U of Miami over VA Tech

Notre Dame over Purdue

Penn State over Iowa

Oregon State over Arizona

Utah over Louisville

-Your Gridiron Goddess

CFB Picks: Week 1

Final Week 1 stats 10-4

Hey Football Fiends!

It’s the MOST WONDERFUL TIME OF THE YEAR once again! College football is back!!!!

I’m instituting a new policy this year. If your FBS team is taking on an FCS team to pad their win record, I am NOT picking that game in my weekly lineup. It is time FBS and especially BCS teams step up to the plate and stop playing “directional schools.”  And yes, I am looking at you #1 ranked Florida. Shame on you for scheduling Charleston Southern. And don’t think you escape scrutiny#2 Texas for scheduling Louisiana-Monroe.

Hell, it would be nice if LSU would play a Pac-10 team with a winning record. Scheduling Washington isn’t much better than scheduling a “directional school.”  Why not play Cal? Oregon? Or, hell, even USC. Why not settle this once and for ALL LSU? FTR, LSU’s last loss to a Pac 10 school was to USC. In 1979. They have not played us since.

Oh and Oregon player LeGerrette Blount should be throw off the team and have all scholarships revoked, IMHO.

So, without further ado, I bring you my Week 1 College Football Picks:

Alabama over VA Tech

USC over San Jose State

UCLA over SDSU

Ohio State over Navy

Oklahoma over BYU

Mizzou over Illinois

Stanford over Wazzou

Cal over Maryland

LSU over Washington

Colorado over Colorado State

Rutgers over Cincy

-Your Gridiron Goddess

Harem of the Goddess: Byron with the 2009 SEC Preview

Hey Football Fiends!

For the 3rd year in a row my Vol pal Byron is here to provide us with an SEC Preview. So without further ado, I’m turning the reigns over to Bryon Earnheart for the day:

2009 SEC Preview

by Byron Earnheart (one Vol fan who has not yet drank the Kiffin Kool-Aid)

Well college football fans, the time of the year we’ve been looking forward to is drawing nigh.  That’s right, it’s college football time!!  I don’t know about you all, but it couldn’t get here soon enough!  When I’m finding myself actually caring about baseball, I know I’ve been without my football for way too long.  Sadly, golf isn’t even doing it for me anymore…I just need my fix.  I need my Bloody Marys and my “Game Day” and my nachos and my BBQ sandwich and my Miller High Life and my couch and my wife to put up with me lounging on the couch all Saturday.  It’s time sports fans…it’s time.

Since the last SEC preview, I’ve found myself in a bit of a different situation…I got married.  Now, thankfully, she likes football and is somewhat conversational on the subject.  She knows enough about the BCS to pull for the teams for which we need pulling.  She got as excited as I did last year during that TX Tech/Texas game…not that we had anything to gain…but WHAT A GAME!  Every once in awhile, I have to explain to her some rule or why a coach would call a certain play at a certain time in the game, but that’s understandable…and, at least, she puts up with me sitting around hollering at the TV.

So, with the marriage as a theme, I’d like to go through the SEC with some quick-hit thoughts.

Something Ole: Well, not quite “something old…”, but you get the gist.  I’ll say more on this later, but if there’s a team in the SEC (not named Florida) who has the opportunity to excel this year, it’s Ole Miss.  That’s right…Ole Miss.  Great, proven QB…decent coach (my personal opinion of Houston Nutt aside)…favorable schedule…probably a top 15 national ranking.  “Wait”, you may be saying “what about LSU and Alabama?!  Saban is one season away from curing cancer and completely reinventing Western Civilization!”  Well, all of that may be true…but he and Miles both have unproven and young QB’s (not a good thing in this league usually) AND they have to go to Oxford to play.  While Oxford is not as intimidating as Tuscaloosa or Baton Rouge, it’s still a road game…and Ole Miss does not have to travel to those aforementioned sights this year.  So, in my opinion, the West is Ole Miss’ to lose.  Will they choke?  Probably so at some point along the way…it’s almost inevitable in this league.  That said…at this stage of the year…it’s their division to lose.

Something New: 3 new coaches are in the SEC now…not to mention the 2 “new” coaches last year (Both Nutt and Petrino seemed to come into situations that were not their making…so, they’re still new to me).  Lane Kiffin, USC’s offensive coordinator when they ruled the world, is at UT and is writing checks that I HOPE his butt can cash.  Dan Mullen is at Mississippi State now hoping to “spread” some of the special sauce that he and Urban Meyer have cooked up over the years.  Gene Chizik joins the SEC at Auburn after he managed to completely stink up Iowa State.  This had to be the most bone-headed hire in the history of the SEC (and I am counting Ed Orgeron in this!), which leads me to my next point…

Something Borrowed: Time and Trouble.  I get the distinct impression that teams now are just borrowing trouble from some of these hires.  Gene Chizik…really?  Why do I get the feeling this has got “Ron Zook” written all over it…maybe even worse.  In the interest of fairness, I’ll throw my beloved Vols here as well.  If Kiffin doesn’t work out, we’re screwed.  Bad.  And when you think about it, that’s two solid programs with a great deal of history that’ve gotten kicked in the nether regions over a dumb hire.   (Gridiron Goddess says: Gee sort of like USC in the 1990s) All of this being said, if they pay off…they’ll pay off huge.  It’s sort of like getting in on a good stock.  If it takes off, you’re a flippin’ genius.  If not, then the bank is coming for your home and Little Junior is not going to college.

Now, why do I care about this in a Preview column?  Because that’s what the fans of these schools with new coaches are watching for.  We want to see improvement.  Most UT fans (the reasonable ones who a) actually went there and b) don’t have “Rocky Top” as car horn or doorbell) aren’t expecting a 12-1 season.  But, perception is on trial this year for at least 5 teams in the league.  We really have no idea what 4-5 teams are going to look like once they step out on the field.  The Court of Public Football Opinion, Southeastern District, is cruel.  Fans are going to want to see improvement.  They’ll want to see close games.  They’ll want to see their teams “in” games that they should not even be in.  We all want what Florida has, what Alabama is building, and what LSU is probably losing…but it can’t happen to everyone…so, someone is borrowing trouble!

Something Blue: So, I’m going to go ahead and spoil the fun and pick Florida and Ole Miss in Atlanta…and you have no idea how much that crawls under my skin.  I hate these two teams passionately.  Why?  I just do.  And what team has a more crystal clear path to the National Championship than Florida?  Let’s review…their ENTIRE D is coming back; they have Tim Tebow who rivals Chuck Norris in freakish talents, and an easy schedule.  Sure, they have LSU in Baton Rouge but, trust me on this, LSU’s Def. Coordinator wouldn’t know what to do with Florida’s offense if he was handed the playbook and given a month to study.  Sure, it’ll be a tight game for 3 quarters but Chavis will start giving the receivers nice 8 yard cushions.  It’ll be so nice to watch another defense implode on itself and not have the accompanying arm pains and shortness of breath.  So, with all of that…Gators, yet again, it’s all you.

So, here, in my predicted order of finish by division, is the SEC.

WEST:

1) Ole Miss:  I think I’ve explained my reasoning above for this.  I just like a team that’s got a great QB, good depth, able D, good coaching, and a favorable schedule.  Now, they may choke.  But at this point in the year, I just can’t bring myself to say they can’t win the West.

2) Alabama:  Yes, I know Nick Saban is God’s gift to mankind in the South and is the reincarnation of Bear Bryant.  But without a proven QB, even the Bear didn’t win every game.  I like everything about this team but the Ole Miss game and the young QB.

3) Arkansas: Bobby Petrino has proven he can win games, in my opinion, when he’s got the QB.  Mallet is that type of QB if you watched any of his Michigan games.  He’s got the skills (to pay the bills…sorry, couldn’t help it!).  There are some questions on Defense…like are they any good…but, I think the offense could save the team a few times.

4) LSU: I’ve just seen John Chavis’ defenses crumble too many times in the presence of teams that can pass the ball to get too excited.  In addition, Jarrett Lee did nothing to impress me.  I’m going to go out on a limb here…a REALLY big limb…and say that 2009 could be the beginning of the downward slide of LSU.

5) Mississippi State:  As this is my 2^nd favorite team in the league, I’m pumped about this year.  This is one of those teams that have to show improvement.  Perception is the name of the game here.  Mullen should bring a great deal of excitement to the team, and, coupled with a punishing RB (pending his DUI situation) and very serviceable D…it might be a decent year…look for them to sneak in the bowl picture.

6) Auburn: Crash and burned, huh Mav?  I just can’t find anything good to say about this team, I’m sorry.  I don’t hate the Tigers.  I just can’t find any reason to put them ahead of anyone in the division.  Gene Chizik?  Really?  That’s who you thought could do a better job than Tuberville?  Last year, Kodi Burns didn’t know whether to scratch his watch or wind his butt.  It was embarrassing.  So, has it gotten better now that you got the Chizik?  The only good thing I can say, seriously, about Auburn, is that acquiring Gus Malzahn will probably save their butts some.  But if he doesn’t have the tools (and Burns did NOTHING to prove that he has the skills), it won’t matter.

EAST:

1) Florida:  Ok, save me the energy here…does anyone really argue this?  We can argue it if you want to…but you’re wrong.  This team reminds me of stacking your team on NCAA Football on PlayStation, turning it to JV level, and start getting top 5 recruiting classes each year…it’s almost not fun to watch.  And, TRUST ME…this praise is not because I like the Gators.  I hate them passionately!  But they’re really freaking good.

2) Tennessee:  Now, before this gets attacked, let me just say that UT, UGA, and South Carolina (maybe even Vandy) could make a bid here.  Neither of these teams have great QB’s, some have better D’s, some have more favorable schedules.  This really is a testament to how far down the East will be this year.  That said, I am going with my biases here.  While I trust UT’s QB about like I’d trust Simon Cowell to break a smile and say something positive (Dang, my wife’s got me watching American Idol…I’m sorry!).  Crompton just…I can’t even type his name without feeling the bile rise up.  However, the offense is supposedly easier to understand (It’d better be…God knows he shorted enough 5 yard passes last year.  Confusing stuff, I know!!).  The D should be good, and some good RB depth should give us a fighting chance.

3) Georgia: Again, not much difference here in UGA and UT.  Good depth, probably a more suspect D…unproven QB.  But UGA is one of the best coached teams in the league.  They lost a TON of talent though that they can’t easily replace coming out of the gate.  They have the talent…but it’ll take time to develop.

4) South Carolina:  Well, it looks like Garcia’s finally been paroled and allowed to play football again.  I know that was a cheap shot…but given all the crap that Satan…I mean…Spurrier’s dealt over the years, payback’s a mother!  Their D should be fairly solid, however.  I’m very impressed with Norwood as a LB.  He’s probably one of the most underrated players in the league.

5) Vanderbilt: Coming off the bowl win was HUGE for this program.  They always have a fairly decent D but lacking in the skill spots on offense.  Well, this year, they’re bringing back the team leaders in passing and rushing and 2/3 of the leaders in receiving.  Look for them to make some splash…possibly another bowl bid.  Also, as I said above, don’t count them out to be higher than this.  Last year, this team gave Mississippi State and Georgia all either team wanted.  While I’m not a big believer in “moral losses” since you still lose the game…Vandy’s the kind of team with the kind of talent that can slip up on most any team at any time.

6) Kentucky: I sort of miss those few years where Kentucky was good.  Now, I just don’t see it.  I will say that they had a heck of bowl game.  They’ll win games.  They won’t get creamed in every game they play.  A small running game and an average QB won’t move you up this list too much, I’m afraid.  Lost some key defensive players, as well.

So, that’s the year in preview.  I see Ole Miss and Florida going to Nashville with Florida beating them senseless.  Revenge is a tough pill to swallow.  Then, Florida will probably take on the winner of the Texas/Oklahoma game for the national title.  Who will it be?  I don’t care enough about the Big 12 to even begin to guess that.  Both of those teams are good and it’ll probably be a great game either way.

I wish everyone’s team good luck!

CFB Picks Week 10: One Unbeaten BCS Team Will Fall

Hey Football Fiends!

Mark my words: One of the Unbeaten BCS teams will go down this weekend. It’s not Utah, they’ve already won. Will it be Texas Tech in a hangover from last week’s last minute victory over Texas? Will it be the Crimson Tide when they go on down to Baton Rouge? Or will Penn State’s Nittany Lions get surprised by that team from Iowa?

To tell you the truth–I am not sure. I think Texas Tech will lose either this week or next week against Oklahoma. Bama and LSU–damn. I’m not impressed with LSU this season in the same way that many are not impressed with USC. Yes LSU is a good team. But they just aren’t firing on all the cylinders they need to be to win the SEC.  The two games the Tigers have lost (Georgia and Florida) they’ve lost big. And Bama has already beat the Bulldogs.

But who am I underestimating? The Red Raiders? The Cowboys? The Tigers? The Crimson Tide? Or is it the Nittany Lions who will finally prove fallible?

God I love College Football!

Any Given Saturday. That’s what I keep telling myself. So without further editorializing, my CFB Picks for Week 10.

UTAH over TCU 13-10

USC over CAL

Wisconsin over Indiana

Ohio State over Northwestern 45-10

Florida over Vanderbilt 42-14

Georgia over Kentucky 42-38

Oregon State over UCLA

Arizona over WA State

Texas over Baylor 45-21

Minnesota over Michigan

Nebraska over  Kansas

Mizzou over K State 41-24

Michigan State over Purdue 21-7

And the 3 Unbeaten Teams left:

Oklahoma State over Texas Tech

Bama over LSU

Penn State over Iowa 24-23

-Your Gridiron Goddess

CFB Picks Week: Halloween & USC Homecoming

13-3 on the day!

Hey Football Fiends!
Here are this week’s College Football Picks.
You know the drill. 16 games. 32 teams. 16 winners. 16 losers.

Fresno St over LA Tech

Notre Dame over Pitt

USC over Washington

Oklahoma over Nebraska

Cal over Oregon

Texas Tech over Texas (If anyone’s going to upset the Longhorns this year it’s Tech)

Michigan St over Wisconsin

LSU over Tulane

Utah over New Mexico

Oregon St over ASU

Alabama over Arkansas St

UVA over Miami

Illinois over Iowa

Wake over Duke

Mizzou over Baylor

Mississippi over Auburn

-Your Gridiron Goddess

CFB Picks week 9

Week 9?!!! How’d it get to be weeek NINE already, Football Fiends? WOW.

You know the drill. 16 games. 32 teams. 16 winners. 16 losers.

Here are my College Football Picks for Week 9:

Auburn over WVU

Boise State over San Jose State

Illinois over Wisconsin

Texas A&M over Iowa State

Florida over Kentucky

Ole Miss over Arkansas

BYU over UNLV

Vandy over Duke

Cal over UCLA

USC over Arizona (now we all know this is exactly the type of game in which my Trojans have a tendency to stumble. Only they won’t. USC by 3 tds, y’all)

Bama over Tennessee

Oklahoma over Kansas State

South Florida over Louisville

Nebraska over Baylor

Mizzou over Colorado

Ohio State over Penn State

ETA: I’ve been asked “What about Texas-Oklahoma State?” I pondered this and left it off for a reason. I think Oklahoma State will win it. And am not sure if it is because I am Hater or because I truly feel OK St has a shot.

-Your Gridirion Goddess

CFB Week 4 Picks

Hey Football Fiends!

You know the drill. 16 games. 32 teams. 16 winners and 16 losers.

USC over Oregon State

Georgia over Alabama

Miami (FL) over UNC

Michigan State over Indiana

Florida over Ole Miss

LSU over Mississippi State

Purdue over Notre Dame

Nebraska over Virginia Tech

Stanford over Washington

Cal over Colorado State

Auburn over Tennessee

Wisconsin over Michigan

Fresno State over UCLA

Oklahoma over TCU

Oregon over Washington State

Penn State over Illinois

-Your Gridiron Goddess

ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL?! (Week 1 CFB picks)

Weekend Wrap Up 13-4

Football Fiends!

The LONG — 40 weeks! We should have built an Ark to get us through the long, dry, desert known as the weeks without college football–wait is over!

COLLEGE FOOTBALL SEASON STARTS TODAY. (Go ahead, I’ll give you time to digest that info.)

It’s going to be an all college football weekend this Labor Day and I can’t wait.

Without further ado, here are my Week 1 picks:

Thursday Games:

• Wake Forest over Baylor 41-13

• South Carolina over NC State 34-0

• Oregon State over Stanford (I had a feeling about this game and almost went with Stanford, first “trust my instinct” lesson of the 2008 season) 38-26

Saturday Games:

• Utah over Michigan ( I just can’t shake the feeling that RichRod’s Wolverines are still in a bit of chaos) 25-23

• USC over Virginia (Prediction for final score: 31-14) 52-7

• Florida over Hawaii (The spread here is Hawaii +34–not quite the Colt Brennan/June Jones days anymore, is it?) 56-10

• Clemson over Alabama 34-10
  

• Mizzou over Illinois 52-41

• ASU over Northern AZ 30-13

• UNLV over Utah State (Utah State is getting 12.5 points. UNLV won 2 games last year. Yeah.) 27-17

• Oregon over Washington 44-10

• Boise State over Idaho State 49-7

• Nebraska over Western Michigan 47-24

• Ole Miss over Memphis 41-24

• California over Michigan State (Kevin Riley’s getting the start for Cal, not Nate Longshore, this should be interesting.) 38-31

Monday Games:

• Tennessee over UCLA 27-24
  

• Rutgers over Fresno State 27-4 (Lesson #2 of trusting my instincts right here folks. Oh well)
  

I’ll be checking in throughout the weekend to update the wins and losses and comment. ENJOY the first weekend of the College Football Season! Only 11 more! (So sad, isn’t it? Shortest season in sports.)

-Your Gridiron Goddess

A Harem of the Gridiron Goddess Post: ByronVolFan on SEC Preview 2008

Gridiron Goddess is happy to welcome back ByronVolFan, our resident Tennessee Volunteer Alum and official SEC previewer!

Your SEC Preview

by ByronVolFan

Hello, once again, from the banks of the Mississippi River and the Bluff City. It is getting to that time of year when the sandstorms of the sports year have us crawling through the wasteland of the summer in search of the Promised Land…there it is…COLLEGE FOOTBALL!!! It’s juuuuust around that next dune, my friend. We will soon make it there…fear not.

This heat has begun to suck from my memory the idea that a cold fall morning calls for getting the grill ready for the BBQ and a strong and spicy bloody mary. I have forgotten how, no matter how crazy the night before may have been, all God-fearing sports fans are up in time for ESPN’s College GameDay. There are very few excuses for missing this and the only REAL excuse you have is that you are en route to an actual SEC game. [This year, I learned, that your roommate will chastise you if you miss GameDay because your fiancé wants to talk on the phone. There is no purgatory big enough for such crimes. We may miss church tomorrowbut Herbie and Corso demand our reverence…even if they malign our beloved alma mater. And, they probably will even as we slam down our red Dixie cups, sloshing our Bloody Marys on the table, and call them every 4-lettered word we have ever heard. In fact, we probably make some up just to let those Yankees know we mean business.

Your Gridiron Goddess says: A commitment to GameDay is no small feat on the West Coast. It starts at 7am out here. And yet, it is my 2^nd favorite time of the week. College Football Saturday is my Holy Day.]

Your humble Southern correspondent also learned some other valuable truths this year. Do NOT assume that your team will not make the conference championship unless it is mathematically impossible to do so. I made the mistake of planning the proposal of marriage on the day of the SEC Championship. When I bought the ring and set up all the necessary surprises, I would not have bet that UT would have made the game. However, we did but to watch that game at a surprise party in honor of your new fiancé…was disheartening, at best, for this Volunteer. Thankfully, my soon-to-be bride loves football as much as I, was equally as disheartened, and was distracted by the wedding magazines her friends had brought her. So, up yours, Football gods!!! You tried to ruin my impending marriage by letting her see me lose my mind over Ainge’s “play”, however, I outsmarted you with those wedding magazines…the first, last, and only time those things have ever HELPED a guy in need!!

On to football news…last year, I humbly submit to you, that I I was pretty dead-on. Got the championship game right and was fairly close on most teams, with some notable exceptions. So, gloating aside (as this is a new year and ample opportunity to get my butt handed to me) here’s the “down and dirty” breakdown of the SEC in the 2008 season.

SEC East

Florida (9-3, 5-3). Tebow is the man. I know that I’m supposed to hate him as the Florida QB, but I can’t. However, I’ve heard the same song and dance out of UF about RB’s and D. I’m sorry, but I just don’t see the improvement to win the title here and the rest of the conference is figuring Florida out. Good year, close games…but no Atlanta.

Georgia (11-1, 7-1). The hottest team in football last year–well in the 2^nd half of the year at least. Moreno will be in New York at the end of the year and Stafford will prove much better. The Georgia/Florida game will make/break the division…and probably the conference. I’ve got Georgia beating them again as Moreno will just kill the Gator D. A good deal of pundits are worried about the schedule. Really? Their road games are South Carolina, Arizona State, LSU, Kentucky, and Auburn. So, they lose at LSU and play one INCREDIBLE game at Auburn…but where’s the BIG scare here? Other than Richt’s inability to close the deal when highly rated, I just don’t see it. Conference champs and SEC rep to the Sugar Bowl.

Kentucky (5-7, 1-7) Kentucky’s back to their doormat status. Loss of their star athletes and a coach who probably secretly wishes he could run the Full House triple option every game with players with no facemasks…makes for a hard rebuilding process. (Note: It would be cool, however, if someone pulled out that kind of BS consistently…I mean, it works on NCAA Football on PS2!!!)

South Carolina (8-4, 5-3) Spurrier’s QB’s…Spurrier’s QB’s…blah blah blah. First, in the interest of full disclosure, I have them beating Tennessee. This is not biased, but I’m just still not sold on them…never have been. The Ol’ Ball Coach is slipping. The program will never usurp Georgia, Florida, and UT in the East on a consistent basis (and yes, I know that in my 2008 rankings, they are ahead of UT…I’m talking about the program level). New QB, loss of some key players…mid level bowl and more “aw shucks” from Darth Visor himself.

Tennessee (8-4, 5-3) Bias Alert! Gonna be an ugly year. I’m sorry, Amy, but I just don’t see us going back to the Coast and leaving with a victory against UCLA. , I wouldn’t put money on that game if I were you. New OC and QB and the same inept banana hammock calling the defense. However, we’ll be better than expectations. Crompton is mean as a snake at QB. I like him a lot and the new OC could really take us to the “next level”. Also, I wouldn’t be super fan if I didn’t point this out…there was another time that we lost a superstar QB, had a new QB coming in a great OL, experienced RB’s and WR core, and a ready-made-tough-as-nails D…that was in 1998. It’s a stretch, I know…and I’m not predicting it! Back to reality, close games but coaching and inconsistent play at QB will eat us alive.

[Your Gridiron Goddess says: UCLA is going to STINK up the joint this year my friend. They barely have a QB that can even WALK right now But they do have Norm Chow, grrrrr..]

Vanderbilt (4-8, 2-6). The only good thing about Vanderbilt being so bad is, as I’ve spent more time in Nashville for work and personal, the Vandy fans make me laugh. There’s always next year. Personal highlight of my Vandy picks…beating Ole Miss!

SEC West

Alabama (8-4, 4-4). But wait, didn’t Saban walk on water and bring sight to the blind and cure cancer and find Jimmy Hoffa and figure out what Bob Dylan’s “Desolation Row” was about? No. Good QB…but inconsistent QB…will lead you to the Liberty Bowl every time. Just ask South Carolina and Miss. State. Wilson’s got the talent and the fire in his gut, but damn, that boy looks stupid sometimes. That, and a ridiculous schedule this year makes it tough for me to find a much better path.

Arkansas (5-7, 2-6). I have to admit, that when I got to Arkansas on my picks sheet, I couldn’t believe that they, by default, had this many wins. The latest stop on the Petrino Boat to Nowhere is pretty bare. Casey Dick? Really…a Petrino-style QB? I’m just not seeing it. Thank God for Western Illinois!

Auburn (9-3, 6-2). Year in/year out the toughest team to call but this seems to be about right given the schedule and the fact that, apparently, I’m drinking the Georgia Kool-Aid this year. The only interesting call I’m making here is that Alabama beats Auburn in the Iron Bowl. They’re just due for it and I smell something like that brewing in the last month of this year. Incidentally, the month of November will be ridiculous in SEC football. Jobs will be secured and lost in those four weeks.

LSU (11-1, 7-1) SOMEHOW, once again, LSU benefits from a ridiculously great schedule. They’ll lose to either Auburn or Florida on the road (my money’s on Auburn) and they’ll have to play South Carolina on the road (yawn). The rest of the games are at home (or neutral site against Arkansas…yawn). I mean, I don’t care who’s at QB, they’re still loaded and all of those drunk Cajuns (not a term of derision!) provide an incredible home field advantage. Still great on D and have great skill players and one BIG OL.

Ole Miss (5-7, 1-7). As has been noted, I’ve never been impressed with Houston Nutt. I always thought he was overrated as a coach. All I’ve heard is “Snead will save the day for the Rebs”. Ok, but Snead is not Tebow…who else do you have? Riiiiiight, that’s what I thought. Not convinced, here, that this is the year that Houston Nutt sends the Rebs to Atlanta (the only SEC West team never to have done so…tee hee hee!).

Mississippi State (8-4, 5-3). Bias Alert! WOW! Ok, so I should have sent my beloved Bulldogs bowling last year. 8 wins though? Byron, are you crazy? Yes. Sure, they lost some people, but they’re stacked behind them. A coach like Croom seizes momentum in his program and uses it to get his guys back in the game. I’m betting on a one game improvement? “8 wins Byron?”. Yes, remember, that if Arkansas didn’t have one of the greatest RB tandems in football history last year, State would have crushed the mighty Arkansas. They only lost by 2 touchdowns…which for MSU standards vs. a Heisman candidate…pretty dern good! This year, there’s no Heisman in Fayetteville and State has a chance to beat up on the new guy, Bobby Petrino.

Championship Game: Georgia vs. LSU…Georgia gets revenge on LSU and heads to the Sugar Bowl.

On a side note, for those of you that like your football to be fun and crazy…pay attention to New Mexico State. Hal Mumme, disgraced former coach at Kentucky who makes Mike Leach look like a run-first coach, and Joe Lee Dunn have teamed up down there. Dunn is notorious for having some of the most odd-ball defensive formations imaginable. Ever seen 2 down linemen on D? He’ll show it to you. That combined with Mumme’s 158 passes/game, it’ll be funny to watch.

So, that’s the preview from south of the Mason-Dixon line. I’m not even going to pretend to forecast the nation this year. There’s just too many variables and changes this year that it’s going to be a toss-up year. Good luck to your teams. If you’re a Big 10 fan, can’t wait to see OSU be overrated and shown up in the post-season. HA!

(Your Gridiron Goddess says: Sept 13 is the day the Buckeyes dream of another trip to the BCS Championship game dies)

Good luck everyone and continue to check out The Gridiron Goddess for all of your football needs!