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Ah, Week 3 in the SEC. We’re finally getting to the nitty gritty of the conference schedule, and several of this Saturday’s SEC games are standouts: Ole Miss at Alabama, Auburn at LSU, South Carolina at Georgia and Florida at Kentucky.
As we get closer to the quarter pole of the regular season, let’s take a look at projected final scores for Saturday’s SEC matchups, according to four different media outlets — tennessean.com, Bleacher Report, Athlon Sports and Fox Sports.
SEC PICKS BY TENNESSEAN COLUMNIST DAVE AMMENHEUSER
Alabama 34, Ole Miss 28
Arkansas 30, Texas Tech 12
Georgia 38, South Carolina 20
Kentucky 27, Florida 24
LSU 24, Auburn 22
Missouri 35, Connecticut 20
Mississippi State 55, Northwestern State 10
Tennessee 44, Western Carolina 17
Texas A&M 51, Nevada 10
Vanderbilt 35, Austin Peay 7
Note: Here are the most telling observations. Ammenheuser likes Kentucky to win outright. Hmm. Florida has beaten Kentucky 28 straight times, so that’s a pretty ballsy pick. He also likes Alabama to win but not cover against Ole Miss. He also sees Auburn falling just short against LSU, and Georgia not only beating South Carolina but also covering a 17-point spread.
SEC PICKS BY BLEACHER REPORT
Alabama 30, Ole Miss 16
Arkansas 40, Texas Tech 35
Georgia 33, South Carolina 20
Kentucky 23, Florida 17
LSU 33, Auburn 21
Mississippi State 56, Northwestern State 14
Missouri 33, Connecticut 13
Tennessee 58, Western Carolina 12
Texas A&M 53, Nevada 20
Vanderbilt 41, Austin Peay 19
Note: The biggest things that jump out here is that Bleacher Report predicts that the Crimson Tide will roll and cover, and that LSU will do the same against Auburn. Add another outlet to the field that thinks that Kentucky will win outright at Florida.
SEC PICKS BY ATHLON SPORTS’ DAVID FOX
Alabama 42, Ole Miss 24
Arkansas 31, Texas Tech 21
Georgia 31, South Carolina 14
Kentucky 24, Florida 17
LSU 17, Auburn 13
Mississippi State 42, Northwestern State 14
Missouri 28, Connecticut 14
Tennessee 49, Western Carolina 14
Texas A&M 49, Nevada 17
Vanderbilt 35, Austin Peay 10
Note: Wow. Fox likes the Crimson Tide to win by 18, which might be a bit much. Plus, he likes LSU to win but not cover against Auburn. And he agrees with Ammenheuser and Bleacher Report regarding Kentucky beating Florida outright.
SEC PICKS BY FOX SPORTS
Arkansas 32, Texas Tech 28
Georgia 30, South Carolina 25
Florida 28, Kentucky 24
LSU 27, Auburn 26
Mississippi State 49, Northwestern State 8
Missouri 30, Connecticut 20
Tennessee 51, Western Carolina 9
Texas A&M 36, Nevada 28
Vanderbilt 44, Austin Peay 6
Note: Each game in Fox Sports’ predictions is simulated 101 times, so these scores may actually turn out to be quite accurate. The most telling thing about these picks is the split between nail-biters (Auburn-LSU) and blowouts (Tennessee-Western Carolina). Unfortunately, there is no pick listed for Ole Miss-Alabama.
Stan Chrapowicki is a contributing writer for Saturday Down South. He covers SEC football, Alabama and Auburn.
