LSU vs. Florida Preview

LSU vs. Florida preview by Taylor Cannon:

One of the best games of the week happens to come to Death Valley as LSU continues its quest for its 3rd BCS title as they face the Gators of Florida. The Gators are coming off a devastating loss to Alabama and losing starting QB John Brantley. LSU on the other hand had its way with Kentucky. Two ranked teams with vastly different outcomes from last game will clash in another good SEC battle.

Offense vs. Offense: Even though the Gators are missing Brantley, they will try to run the pro style offence with Jeff Demps and Chris Rainey, but these two haven’t seen the speed of LSU defensive ends. LSU offense got some more life with Jordan Jefferson coming back which may be key even if LSU doesn’t score just having long drives with Alfred Blue, Spencer Ware, and Michael Ford wearing down Florida’s D can B just as devastating – Edge LSU

Defense vs. Defense LSU once again but UF is no pushover either, but Sam Washington on the DE and Kirk Herbstreit’s Heisman trophy candidate in Tyrann Mathieu at DB LSU’S Defense is going to put pressure on Florida’s inexperienced Qb- Edge LSU

Intangibles - LSU Death Valley enough said - Edge: LSU

Winner and why-UF is going to be in for a looong day if LSU plays like it has been for the first 5 games and worse the offense may open up with Jefferson back and the LSU D will put some heavy pressure on UF Qb, but in the end Les Miles will be wearing a gator belt and some purple and gold now or later gators boots. Final Score- LSU 31- Gators 17

Sportaholic College Football Weekend Finale

ESPN billed this weekend of games in college football as “Road Test Weekend” and the guys up there in Bristol hit it right on the head with that moniker. The top three out of four teams in the nation (Oklahoma, LSU, and Boise State) took a stiff road test and passed with flying colors. LSU with its vaunted defense held Mississippi State in check. Oklahoma weathered the storm and a more mature Seminole defense to pull out their victory and Boise trounced Toledo, who a lot of people thought were pretty good because of their play against Ohio State. That was until everyone saw the Buckeyes get demolished by Miami, who held them to almost no passing yards. Auburn finally ran out of comebacks as Clemson’s dynamic duo of Tajh Boyd and Sammuy Watkins got the best of the Tigers. Tennessee wasn’t quite ready for the big stage of the swamp and lost star receiver Justin Hunter in the process, which stinks for everyone in college football to lose one of the great receivers of the nation. Conference play begins soon and teams will look to be at their best as that part of the schedule starts.

# 1 Oklahoma 23 # 5 Florida State 13 – What a difference a year makes. This was a totally different game from last year’s massacre in Norman. The young Seminoles came to play ball but still came up short against the nation’s best team. Landry Jones didn’t put up his usual big numbers, finishing with just 199 yards 18/27 passing and had more Ints (2) then TDs (1) but it was enough for the victory. It wasn’t the most spectacular performance of offense for either side as the Sooners stifled FSU all game as Seminole QB BJ Manuel couldn’t get anything going against the relentless pressure from Oklahoma. Manuel tried his best as he scrambled for a few big gainers, but he was eventually hurt after taking a big shot from stud Sooners LB Travis Lewis. FSU freshman QB Cody Trickett came in relief and performed nicely under the pressure as he hooked up with Rashard Greene for a 56-yard TD pass but the 13-13 score would be as close as the Seminoles got as the Sooners pulled away in the late 4th. Jones hit an open Kenny Stills for a 37-yard TD and Oklahoma got a FG for even more insurance with 2:00 minutes left to play. Oklahoma proved that they are number 1 as Florida State should be proud with the performance they put on. Florida State will be around the top for awhile as they are young and will only get better.

#16 Florida 33 Tennessee 23 – Chirs Rainey put on a show against the out-manned Vols as he ran for over 100 yards and also had over 100 yards receiving as well as the Gators downed the Vols for the seventh straight time in the swamp. Rainey and other Florida speedster Jeff Demps ran circles around the UT defense but this one seemed to be over before it started as Vols star receiver Justin Hunter went down with a tore ACL on his very first catch of the game. As it turns out, that will be his last catch of this year and it took all the air out of the UT offense from that point. Tyler Bray was still slinging the ball and had a decent game going 26/48 for 288 yards and 3 TDs. Bray also had 2 interceptions and none worse than an ill-advised throw to begin the second half as the Vols were still in the game at 16-7. The UT defense held serve and only gave up a FG but on the next UT possession the Vols went three and out and Chris Rainey blocked Tennessee’s punt. This guy was everywhere and his speed gave UT problems all day. The play that broke the Vols back was the 80-yard reception that saw Rainey burst through the UT secondary off a screen past and once he got in the open field, no one was going to catch the 4.2 forty runner. UT had no way to match the speed of Florida and will continue to lose games against the Gators until they can. Another problem was the snaps form Center James Stone, who is a natural lefty but chose to switch this summer to his right hand for a more natural exchange. The Vols will get better as the season goes on but this one will stew in the minds for the next 364 days.

Miami 24 #17 Ohio State 6 – Talk about a pathetic offensive display, The Ohio State University has played a lot of football but may have never put as worse of passing numbers as they did this past weekend. Their two QBs combined to go 4/18 for 35 yards. It was just as awful a passing attack as I have ever seen. The “Canes on the other hand got a big game from Lamar Miller (184 yards 26 carries) as he repeatedly gashed and dashed the Buckeyes defense. Fresh off his suspension, Jacory Harris was decent as he went 15/23 for 123 yards with 2 TDs and of course his customary 2 interceptions. The Hurricanes also welcomed back LB Sean Spence who had a big game along with WR Travis Benjamin. The “Canes were just too tough for a lackluster Ohio State team that seems to be missing the key play makers that have made so fun to watch over the last few years. The Ineligible bowl rendered both team without some of their best players but you could tell it was Ohio State that missed theirs the most. They would probably take Terrelle Pryor back if that’s all they can do on offense.



Other Notable games and players:

Clemson: I got a chance to see the electric Tajh Boyd of Clemson for the first time this weekend and at first glance I wasn’t really impressed. Auburn stormed out to a 21-3 lead and it looked as if they would just overwhelm the Tigers. But in the words of Lee Corso, “Not so fast my friend” as Clemson stormed back thanks to the uber-athletic Boyd and the speedy WR Sammy Watkins. He made plays with his feet and arm to help Clemson ended Auburn’s 17-game win streak. Boyd and the Tigers showed a lot of resolve in that one and the most fired up guy in the stadium had to be Clemson coach Dabo Swiney. Look up his post game interview if you don’t believe me.

Marcus Lattimore continues his Heisman campaign: This is a man playing football for the South Carolina Gameocks. He absolutely shredded the defensive line of Navy (I know its just Navy but you still have to give it to him.) The super soph ran for 246 yards on 37 carries as he just bulldozed his way over the midshipman defenders. He is just a load to bring down and when you have the threat of Alshon Jeffrey on the other side it makes him even more dangerous. As long as the Gamecocks continue to win, then the better the chances Lattimore has to take the Heisman. Its funny to think that Steve Spurrier is running the ball 37 times. Boy has time changed.

Vanderbilt 3-0 – Its hard to fathom that Vandy is off to a 3-0 start for many reasons. Head Coach James Franklin was brought to tears at his post game press conference as he described what he called as a team that has bought in to his high energy approach. The Commodores just obliterated the Ole Miss Rebels 30-7 and gave the “Dores their first 3-0 record since WWII. Vandy has used a number of offensive gadget plays and they seem to be working as their offense outgained Ole Miss 387-234 in total offense. I don’t like to see a grown man cry but I understand Franklin getting a little emotional after his team’s great effort. It was their largest margin of defeat over a SEC opponent since 1971 against Mississippi State.

Boston College: There a few teams that you just don’t lose to in college football. Duke has to be near the top of the list and the Golden Eagles were handed a dose of humility in their lost this weekend to the Blue Devils. The loss of the Blue Devils sent the Golden Eagles to 0-3 and their streak of 12 consecutive bowl appearances appear to be in jeopardy.

Urban Meyer steps down as Florida Head Coach..... Again

So again with this huh Urban? For someone reading this and thinking it 2009 all over again, its not but Meyer is up to his old antics again. Less than a year removed from his previous resignation citing health concerns, Meyer has a press conference 5 pm ET to announce his departure yet again.

Florida took a big step back this year going 7-5 after going 26-2 the previous two seasons. The core of the team including Tim Tebow, Brandon Spikes and Joe Haden all left for the draft last year. As the perfectionist that Meyer is, maybe that had something to do with him resigning this year. Meyer pushed himself maybe like no other in the game and as a result he has become one of the best in his craft. At that same token, the stress of remaining in that position has taken it toll on him. I won't speculate about his current health condition even though it was noted his issues he had last year that forced to take what amounted to a vacation last year.

The biggest question to me in all this is who takes over for him? Florida is a top 5 job in college football. Its has fertile recruiting base with the state of Florida always producing some of the best athletes in the nation. The Gators have a first class facility that rivals no one and they have a football rich tradition. Some of the early favorites have to Dan Mullen and Charlie Strong (I bet both of those guys wished they had known this was going to happen before leaving.) Both were assistant coaches under Meyer and know the school and administration well. Who ever gets the job will be getting one gems in all of college football. But who is to say ol' Urban won't pull another stunt and come back like he did last year? Stay tuned folks

College Football Weekend Finale Spectacular

Last week due to being under the weather, I was unable to post my usual picks for the weekend (out of all weekends to be sick, it would be on championship Saturday). But thanks to a little Nyquil and some chicken noodle soup, I am good to go now. I did get to witness the massacre that was the SEC championship game, a thriller in the last Big 12 championship game and Virginia Tech holding its annual ACC invitational.




Championship Saturday always is special as it is the last week before the bowl season. Most bowls games are set and the national championship will be Auburn vs. Oregon. That one has all the makings of one the more interesting championships match-ups we’ve had in years but more on that later. As for now, lets breakdown the championship games.

SEC Championship: Auburn 56 South Carolina 14 - This one was actually interesting until the second half, as it turned into the Cam Newton show from there. The projected Heisman winner was just sensational as he displayed his talents in the Georgia Dome. He would prove that he can do it with his arm as he finished 17/28 for 335 yards and 4 touchdowns to no interceptions. He made plays are over the field, dropping beautiful passes to various receivers including a lucky Hail Mary at the end of the first half. The Hail Mary pass seemed to shift the momentum going into the second half and poor South Carolina could do nothing but watch as Newton put a stamp on his Heisman campaign. The Tigers beat the Gamecocks in every conceivable way as they rolled up 589 yards of total offense. The game was put out of reach on a Stephen Garcia interception, as he tried to lob a screen pass but was heavily pressured and T'Sharvan Bell of Auburn took the easy pick to the house. The look on Steve Spurrier’s face was priceless. He looked like a man who had no answers. Auburn goes on to face Oregon in BCS championship game.

Big 12 Championship: Oklahoma 23 Nebraska 20 – I didn’t know much about the Sooners Travis Jackson but by the end of this one I knew he was a playmaker. Jackson had 2 fumble recoveries and an interception in the win against the Cornhuskers. Nebraska shot out to an early 17-0 lead off the strength of its power run game. Roy Helu Jr. won a footrace and bolted for a 66-yard run up the gut and the Cornhuskers tacked on a field goal. Nebraska would also pull out a trick play as the former high school QB and now RB Rex Burkhead would find Kyler Reed down the middle for a 5-yard touchdown. Don’t call it a comeback though as the Sooners would strike back with Landry Jones finding an open Kenny Stills down the middle for a 42-yard touchdown. The Boomer Sooners would add their own field goal after Jackson intercepted Taylor Martinez to tie the score at 17-10. Nebraska would have another turnover on their next possession as they fumbled and the Sooners would take advantage as Landry Jones would lead Oklahoma on a short field drive and take it in on a 1-yard touchdown run tying the score at 17 all. Nebraska would get the back with 1:26 and would be able to add on another field goal to make it 20-17 at halftime. The Sooners would be the only team to score from their as they added two more field goals in the second half. Nebraska continued to shoot themselves in the foot as Martinez fumbled on their first possession and again Jackson was spot on for clean up duty. The Cornhuskers would fumble yet again as Rex Burkhead coughed it up and guess who scooped it up? You guessed right with Jackson. Oklahoma would take it down field and kick the go ahead field goal. The Cornhuskers had so many chances to take control of this game but couldn’t hold on to the ball. It’s fitting though as the title stays in the Big 12 with the Cornhuskers going to the Big 10 next year. Oklahoma will now face Uconn in the Fiesta bowl.

ACC Championship: Virginia Tech 44 Florida State 33 – As I stated above, the annual Virginia Tech invitational was held in Charlotte, North Carolina this year instead of Florida and the result was still the same. After starting the season 0-2 as everyone knows, The Hokies ran the table and took home the ACC championship for the third time in four years. This game belonged to Tyrod Taylor. He may not be the second coming of Michael Vick as he was perceived at the beginning of his career at Tech, but the senior exposed the FSU secondary going 18/28 for 263 yards and 3 touchdowns. His top target was Danny Coale and he finished the day with 6 catches for 143 yards and 1 touchdown. If there was an excuse for FSU it was that Senior starting QB Christan Ponder was unable to go after sustaining an injury last week. E.J. Manuel filled in admirably for Ponder and made a few good plays but also some very bad ones including two interceptions, with one being returned for a touchdown. His numbers weren’t that bad as he passed for 288 yards and one touchdown, but this game belonged to the Hokies. The Seminoles had a good first year for new head coach Jimbo Fisher finishing 9-4 and headed to the Chick-Fil-A bowl. The Hokies will be on their way to the Orange to face a tough Stanford team lead by Andrew Luck.



Other notables and news:

Oregon 37 Oregon State 20 – The old civil war lived up to its billing in the first half before the Ducks pulled away in the Second. LaMichael James did what LaMichael James always does rushing for 134 yards on 28 carries. Darron Thomas looked solid going 14/24 for 145 yards and two touchdowns. The win setups the match-up everyone wants to see with Auburn. Oregon State started the year with such high hopes but won’t even be bowling this year. I’ll touch on the Auburn-Oregon game later in this column. Man I loved those Jersey's Oregon had on in this one.

SEC Power – The SEC had a total of 10 schools selected to bowl games this year. That’s remarkable when you consider there are only 12 schools in the league. The match-ups include: Music City Bowl (Tennessee vs. North Carolina), BBVA Compass Bowl (Kentucky vs. Pittsburgh), Outback Bowl (Florida vs. Penn State) Liberty Bowl (Georgia vs. UCF) Chick-fil-A Bowl (Florida State vs. South Carolina) Gator Bowl (Michigan vs. Mississppi State) Capital One Bowl (Alabama vs. Michigan State) Cotton Bowl (LSU vs. Texas A&M) Sugar Bowl (Arkansas vs. Ohio State) and of course BCS Championship Game (Auburn vs. Oregon)



Auburn vs. Oregon – These are two very similar teams from the outside looking in. Both feature a spread option attack that keeps the tempo of the game at a high pace. They both have bend but don’t break defenses. The one thing the separates the two is none other than Cam Newton. I haven’t seen Oregon (Or any team that hasn’t played Auburn for that matter) face someone with the talents of the Auburn phenom. He will present a different set of challenges for the defensively stout Ducks. He has proven that he can beat you with arm as well as feet now as well. I’m interested in the scheme Oregon DC Nick Allotti comes up with. Luckily he will until Jan 10 to figure that part out. Auburn will have a tough time containing James but they have seen similar backs in the SEC after facing the likes of Marcus Lattimore, Mark Ingram, and Trent Richardson so I think they will be able to deal with him. The game will come down to Newton in the end and I believe he will be up to the challenge.



Next week I will be predicting each bowl game on a week to week basis and that should be fun. The college football regular season has ended and it’s a bittersweet moment for me. This has been a wild and unpredictable year to say the least. From the Cam Newton Bombshell to Joe Pa winning his 400th game we saw it all. The game brings out the best and worst in people but most of the time good over runs the bad. Here is to another fine college football season, now let the bowling bonanza begin.

College Football Weekend Finale

This weekend we saw the SEC championship game tickets get punched as South Carolina dominated Florida as they never have before and Auburn with the sensational Cam Newton overwhelm Georgia. It should be an competitive and exciting game in Atlanta with those two teams. Virginia Tech's blowout of North Carolina further cemented them as the best team in the ACC. As the season winds down, the good team have separated themselves from the bad. Now for the breakdown of those highlighted games and other observations from this weekend.

South Carolina 36 vs. Florida 14 - The Marcus Lattimore show was on full display in this game. The fab Freshman toted the ball 40 times and produced 212 yards and 3 touchdowns. He just pummeled the Gators for and set the tone early and often for the Gamecocks. Lattimore had 21 carries for 83 yards in the first half but its was 21-yard scamper for a TD that really broke the Gators spirits. Stephen Garcia did his part as well going 15/22 for 156 with no turnovers and he also added 28 yards on the ground. This is only the second time in 19 tries that the Gamecocks have beat Florida.  South Carolina also beat Florida for the first time at home since joining the SEC in 1992, and now advance to their first ever SEC championship game. As for Florida, their offensive attack reverted back to what we saw mostly this year. "Threebow" in reference to the three QBs they use to match Tim Tebow production could not get the offense going. John Brantley finished with a pedestrian stat line of 16/31 for 130 yards. Jordan Reed and Trey Burton didn't even play much.The same Gator team that looked so crisp and speedy on offense the last two games, looked pathetic this game.  Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps were bottled up and that was all she wrote for Florida. South Carolina moves on to  face Auburn in the SEC championship game.

Auburn 41 vs. Georgia 31 - If Cam Newton isn't the best player in college football, you tell me who is? The Auburn QB was just a one man wrecking crew once again in the Tigers win over the Bulldogs.  Newton busted the Bulldogs defense up for 150 yards on the ground and went 12/15 for 148 yards and a touchdown in the air. The Tigers marched down the field on their opening drive and took a 7-0 lead but Georgia would go on to score the next 21 points as receiver as A.J Green and QB Aaron Murray began to get hot. Green had a spectacular day as well with 9 catches for 164 yards and two touchdowns. But Newton and the Auburn's offense could not be stopped. RB Onterrio McCalebb 4-yard run capped off a 9 play, 73 yard drive that made the game 21-14 Georgia. Georgia would be forced to punt on their next series and The Tigers again scored on the next possession with Newton using a beautiful play-action fake to find a wide open Philip Lutzenkirchen down the middle of the field for another TD that made it 21-21 going into halftime. Georgia and QB Aaron Murray would add 10 more points in the 3rd quarter but it wouldn't be enough as the Tigers offense kept rolling and eventually would tally 49 points. I also have to commend Nick Fairley who seemed to be in the Bulldogs backfield all game long. Cam Newton may have a lot of problems off the field but on it, he is simply the most electrifying player in college. He is Tebow 2.0 with ability to run in space and he throws better than Tebow ever did. He became the first player in SEC history to throw for 2,000 yards run for 1,000 in this game. If he doesn't get the Heisman due to those allegations he is facing than something is really wrong and flawed with the system of voting. I just haven't saw a better player this year and maybe the last two years than the Tigers QB. Auburn will face South Carolina for the SEC crown now but not before the annual Iron bowl with Alabama. That one should be a doozy and be careful Auburn fans, they still have to win out to play in the National championship game.

Va Tech 26 vs. North Carolina 10 - The Hokies dominated the Tar Heels on both sides of the ball and are now just one game away from winning the ACC coastal division. Tyrod Taylor finished with 249 yards passing and the Hokies defense had their way with the Tar Heels. Virginia Tech actually trailed 10-9 going into halftime but they were a different team in the second half. Taylor would find an open Marcus Davis for a 43-yard strike to open the half and from their the Hokies would only add to their separation. Taylor found Davis again for an 11-yard TD pass and the game was never in much doubt from their. “I think we’re playing at a high level right now, and as long as we continue to play it, I think people will eventually respect us,” Taylor said. The Hokies now travel to Miami to visit the Hurricanes next weekend and need to win either of its final two games to reach the league title game in Charlotte on Dec. 4. Its been a long winding road for Frank Beamer's team but they have just about wrapped up their side of division.

Other News and Notables:

BCS frontrunner's survive: Cal almost pulled off the epic upset of Oregon, using different defensive fronts and switching their number of down linemen on every defensive play. As the score indicated, the Bears were able to slow down Oregon's seemingly unstoppable offense. It did however look as if Cal was able to stop the clock with a few "questionable" injuries. All great teams have a game where they don't look great and this happens to be Oregon's. They still have a few tough games ahead of them in Arizona and the Civil War game versus Oregon State. Cal may have shown those teams how to beat the Ducks so stay tuned for their final two games. TCU almost had a major letdown after defeating Utah last week. The Horned Frogs were able to narrowly defeat San Diego St. 40-35. As stated above, every team has inevitable trap game but luckily for the Horned Frogs they were able to keep their national title hopes alive. Utah didn't help out their cause though, after they were demolished by Notre Dame ( In a word, Wow) 28-3.

Wisconsin - Did anyone see the Badgers literally just run over Indiana? The Badgers rolled up 598 total yards with 338 yards of it on the ground. Their starter and 2009 Big Ten offensive player of the year John Clay didn't even play this game and they still had to rushers over 100 yards with Montee Ball going for 167 and James White adding 144 yards. That's the definition of smash mouth football.

The Big East - Now this is just getting ridiculous. How does a BCS conference not have a team ranked in the top 25? Pittsburg's loss to Uconn now means that going into their BCS game, the team that wins the conference probably won't be ranked. This has just been an awful year for the conference as a whole this year. I know they can't wait for the basketball season to get under way.

College Football Weekend Setup

Last weekend was one of the better slate of games this year, with two sexy top ten BCS match-ups (Alabama vs. LSU and TCU vs. Utah).This week doesn't have the great games of last week, but there are a few top 25 teams facing off. The most important game of the weekend comes out of the SEC (No surprise there right?). No. 23 South Carolina travels to the swamp to face No.22 Florida, in a battle that will determine the SEC east champion. Auburn, amid all the controversy surrounding Cam Newton, can clinch the SEC west with a win over Georgia and Virginia Tech continues their assault on the ACC (after losing to everyone else) taking on North Carolina. Now for the break down of those games.

South Carolina (6-3) vs. Florida (6-3) - When the season started, the first game I watched was South Carolina vs. Southern Miss. I could tell then that this Gamecock team was going to be a force. Marcus Lattimore gives them a different dimension they haven't had, with his physical style of running. I knew they would be the chief challenger to Florida's strangle hold on the SEC east division. Florida wasn't what we expected to be this year, but low and behold they still can stay can make their way to Atlanta if they win this game. I look for coach Urban Meyer to pull out all the tricks for this one. The one Achilles heel for South Carolina this year has been their pass defense. The Gamecocks rank 109th in the nation in that department giving up 264.7 yards per game. If the Gators are going to exploit that area of the Gamecocks, they will need more out of QB John Brantley. He has been average this year and Meyer has been forced to use multiple QBs in his last few games. Florida offense has waken up a bit over the past two games with the wrinkles Meyer installed in their bye week. They have utilized QB Jordan Reed more and also Trey Burton. South Carolina may not have a 100 percent Marcus Lattimore and that would put the pressure on QB Stephen Garcia and his favorite receiver Alshon Jeffrey to step up. Florida has one of the best secondaries in college football with 17 interceptions, so that won't be easy. I really think this is the year the Gamecocks get it done. They have never won the SEC east or at Florida ( Which is amazing when you realize they have been a member of the SEC since 1992). This is one of those the nerd has to beat the bully to get respect games. This is the way it should be for the Gamecocks and coach Steve Spurrier. Its comes full circle for them. I think the motivation of all these events will propel South Carolina to the victory in this game. The Pick: South Carolina

Auburn (10-0) vs. Georgia (5-5) - Auburn has a chance to clinch the SEC west title, for their first outright title since 2004. The game known as the deep south's oldest rivalry (the two teams have been playing one another since 1892) is actually being overshadowed by the controversy that is Cam Newton (or Scam Newton as some like to call him). I could go all into the swirling allegations but I won't. The game itself will be a chance for Newton to release some of his frustrations out on the field. If Auburn wins out, they know they will be playing for all the marbles in January. Georgia on the other hand needs one more victory to become bowl eligible and would like none other but to beat their rival. Georgia's LB Justin Houston has 16.5 tackles for lost this season and will be key in stopping Newton on the ground. The Bulldogs lead the SEC in per yard rushing defense, allowing a measly 3.1 yards a carry. The Tigers counter with the nation top running yards per carry average at 6.65, and have rushed for more than 300 yards in their previous five SEC games. Auburn's defense will allow a few scores by Aaron Murray and the Bulldogs offense as they have with everyone else but in the end Scam Newton I mean Cam Newton and Auburn's rushing attack will be too much. The Pick: Auburn

Virginia Tech (7-2) vs. North Carolina (6-3) - Virginia Tech infamously started the season off by losing it's first two games. One was a respectable loss to Boise State and the other not so much losing to FBS school James Madison. Since the two losses however, the Hokies have beat all comers. They are now the only undefeated team in the ACC coastal division,  and control their own destiny for the division title. If the get a win over North Carolina coupled with a Hurricanes loss to reigning conference champion Georgia Tech, than they could take the title this Saturday. Tyrod Taylor leads the Hokie offense that ranks 1st in scoring in the ACC at 36.0 points a game. The Hokies get it done on the ground as well, averaging 212.9 yards a game. This game also features the top two rated passers per efficiency in the ACC, with Taylor leading the league with a 163.3 rating and North Carolina's T.J Yates coming in with 153.4 rating. North Carolina has dealt with everything you can imagine this year and still actually has a shot at the division crown. Yates is coming off his best performance and in North Carolina history going 24/35 for 439 yards and 3 touchdowns. The biggest clash in this game will be the North Carolina run game vs. Tech's defense. The Hokies gave up 346 yards last week. But North Carolina's running back situation is a mess. James White has been have an impact year running for 720 yards and averaging 5.5 yards per carry but will be out for the rest year with a broken clavicle. Shaun Draughn was next line but he suffered a sprained ankle last week versus Florida State and his status for this game is unknown. With the cloud surrounding there running backs and Tech getting stronger each week, I have to with the Hokies. The Pick: Virginia Tech

Game of the week - South Carolina vs. Georgia. The winner gets the SEC east title and a trip to Atlanta for the SEC championship game. It doesn't get any better than this.

Most intriguing game - Kansas St. vs. Missouri. KSU will try to run over the Tigers as they have been doing everyone else but Missou comes in ranked 2nd in total defense in the Big 12 and 4th against the run.

Rivalry Game - Auburn vs. Georgia. When a game is known as "The deep south oldest rivalry" that's all that needs to be said.

Under the radar game - Mississippi State vs. Alabama - Bama's loss to LSU took away their chance to repeat as SEC west and national champs and it also too the luster off this game but it still should a good one.

Wake me when it's over game - Wyoming vs. UNLV - This one will go with both teams combined record 3-16.

Coach better get it right game - Oklahoma State vs. Texas - Now that Dan Hawkins has been fired, who can I pick on? This week its Mack Brown. His team has to much talent to be 4-5 and he needs to pull off an upset or two to keep the fan base in line.

UT and Vandy Report week 10

Tennessee and Vandy had decidedly different outcomes in their games this weekend. UT manhandled Memphis 50-14 and and Vandy was on the end of a 55-14 whopping. Let's breakdown both games.

UT 50 Memphis 14 - Tyler Bray got the start for Tennessee and delivered big time for the Vols. Bray made some exceptional throws going 19/33 for 325 yards and 3 touchdowns. Bray, showed why the coaches and the team are so high on him, making the young Tigers secondary look over matched. Although this was a mediocre Memphis team, Bray showed poise in the pocket through out the game. UT actually started the game by spotting the Tigers a 7-0 lead. Ryan Williams put Memphis on the scoreboard first as he hit Marcus Rucker with a four-yard TD strike midway through the first quarter, but from there the contest belonged to UT as it tallied 50 straight points.

UT begin its manhandling with Bray tossing two touchdown passes, one to Taurean Poole for nine yards and then a beauty of a throw to Justin Hunter for 42-yards. The score was 14-7 after the first quarter.

In the second is where the Vols really took off on the Tigers, scoring 26 points. It started with a 26-yard field goal from Micheal Parlardy and two more touchdown passes from Bray to Denarius Moore and Da'Rick Rogers of 14 and 22 yards. Bray would later find Gerald Jones (who moved into the top 10 all-time receiving in Vols history) on a nine-yard TD pass play and Micheal Parlardy ended the quarter with another field goal to make it 40-7 at halftime.

In the third, Tauren Poole (Who finished with 101 yards on 16 carries)  would burst for a 21-yard run and Parlardy would add another field goal. The game was over going into the fourth. It was good to see the Vols have some success after struggling so much this year. The defense even showed some teeth with Chris Walker recording a couple of sacks and the team recorded 3 interceptions. They also forced 3 fumbles but only recovered one. The Vols would end the night with 510 yards of offense, including 379 through the air. The 50 points matched Tennessee's largest scoring output of the season. I am excited to see Bray's progression. No knock against Matt Simms, but Bray has all the tools for in an SEC quarterback with the big arm and quick release. UT can open the playbook more with his play. Bray has a chance to be very good in the coming years and should only develop a better chemistry with his young receivers in Justin Hunter and Da'Rick Rogers. This has to be a good feeling for the Vol faithful after suffering one of the toughest season's of memory but the future looks bright on the offensive side of the ball.

One bad note of the game perhaps was kicker Micheal Parlardy. Head coach Derek Dooley wasn't happy with his kicker after the game. He didn't play well last night," Dooley said on his Sunday teleconference. "He took a little step back."

The win now puts UT at 3-6. The next three games look to be winnable for the Vols as they face Ole Miss, Vandy, and Kentucky.Hopefully they can keep the good play up and win their last three games to become bowl eligible.

Florida 55 Vanderbilt 14 - Florida walked into Nashville and thoroughly demolished the Commodores. The Gators used their big play ability to turn this one into a laugher.

Chris Rainey (In his second game back from suspension) would block punts from Vandy twice and also caught a 40-yard touchdown pass from John Brantley. The Commodores would not score until  Ryan van Rensberg blocked a punt Javon Marshall recovered and ran in for a touchdown, making it 41-7.

Its really disheartening to see Vandy play so bad. They couldn't stop the Gators in any phase of the game. Vandy has now lost its fourth straight, ensuring a second straight losing season under first-year coach Robbie Caldwell. They have also been outscored 168-35 in this slide. I knew with top running back Warren Norman out they would struggle but the offense was just anemic. Larry Smith finished a dismal 7/18 for 28 yards passing no touchdowns before being relieved by Jared Funk. The offense only generated 109 total yards and that just won't get it done in the SEC. Vandy had trouble fielding kickoffs and the miscues on top of such a horrible offensive performance all but the doomed the Dores.

Vandy is now 2-7 with 3 games remaining and will have a hard time winning any the way they are playing. I really like Robbie Caldwell but he seems to be in over his head. Its hard to justify bringing him back if the team doesn't show any improvement in the last three games of the season. Vandy's remaining schedule concludes with Kentucky, Tennessee and Wake Forest. They will be the underdog in all of their remaining games. Let's wish the Commodores the best and see if they can pull it back together for their remaining schedule.