A Look at Week 9 in the SEC

    Last week's games were very underwhelming. Everyone that was expected to take care of business, did. I did not expect Auburn to get blown out like they did, but I guess that's what happens when you have a very young team and start a new quarterback against the best team in the country. Both Alabama and LSU remain unscathed going into their bye weeks and are primed for the matchup that everyone has been talking about on November 5th. I also did not expect Arkansas to struggle as much as they did against Ole Miss. Ole Miss was leading 17-0 at one point and the Razorbacks had to climb back to win 29-24. I think it's safe to say that Arkansas was underestimating the Rebels.

    I was 5-0 last week, but most of the games had heavy favorites and that made it a fairly easy week to pick. On to Week 9....

Game of the Week

Georgia's Aaron Murray

Florida vs. #22 Georgia (3:30 PM, CBS): Florida comes into this game with questions about the health of starting quarterback John Brantley. He has missed the last two games after suffering a leg injury to Alabama. He had the bye last week to recover, and Florida head coach Will Muschamp expects him to play Saturday. That will provide a big boost for the Gators as they take on Georgia. The Bulldogs have been playing better each week and their defense has been shining as of late, only giving up 12.6 points per game over their last five games. That's a vast improvement from a team who allowed Boise State and South Carolina to put up a combined 80 points. Brantley hasn't played in three and a half weeks and is most likely not going to be 100 percent even if he does play. Georgia's defense will carry them and sophomore quarterback Aaron Murray will do just enough for the Bulldogs to pull out a close one. 
    Prediction: Georgia 24-21


The Others

USC's Alshon Jeffery

#13 South Carolina at Tennessee (7:15 PM, ESPN2): There is no doubt that South Carolina will look like a completely different team without stud sophomore running back Marcus Lattimore, who was lost for the season after hurting his knee against Mississippi State two weeks ago. That fact alone will cause this game to be much closer than it would have been otherwise. However, Tennessee has decided to start true freshman quarterback Justin Worley and pull his redshirt instead of playing struggling senior Matt Simms for another game. South Carolina's defense is solid, and their stellar defensive line should take advantage of the Vols' true freshman as he throws his first collegiate passes Saturday. I expect a big game from South Carolina's junior wide receiver Alshon Jeffery, who will be facing a very weak Tennessee secondary.
    Prediction: South Carolina 28-17

#10 Arkansas at Vanderbilt (12:21 PM, SEC Network): Arkansas surprisingly struggled with Ole Miss last weekend and had to come from behind to earn the victory. Don't expect them to make the same mistake twice. The Razorbacks will try to rebound from their poor performance against the Rebels and beat the Commodores on the road. Vanderbilt pounded Army 44-21 behind junior quarterback Jordan Rodgers, who had 186 yards passing and almost 100 yards rushing. Rodgers has provided a much needed spark to Vanderbilt's offense, but it is their defense that will struggle the most this week. It's not likely that the 'Dores will be able to stop quarterback Arkansas Tyler Wilson and his multitude of options through the air.
    Prediction: Arkansas 35-17

Ole Miss at #23 Auburn (7:00 PM, ESPNU): The Rebels made it tough on Arkansas last weekend and will try to continue their improvement against Auburn. Auburn was thrashed by #1 LSU, and will not want to let that loss bleed into this game. Look for Auburn to come out mad and hungry for a victory after being humiliated by LSU. It remains to be seen whether star wide receiver Emory Blake will be playing after missing the last few weeks with an ankle injury, but it shouldn't matter for the Tigers' chances to win this game. Head coach Gene Chizik is 18-2 at home during his Auburn tenure. This game could look very simliar to their matchup in 2009 when Auburn beat Ole Miss 33-20 and dominated most of the game after getting destroyed by LSU 31-10 the week before. I expect Clint Moseley to find his groove against the Ole Miss defense and Auburn will get its sixth victory of the season and thus become bowl eligible.
    Prediction: Auburn 28-13

Mississippi State at Kentucky (7:00 PM, FSN): One of these teams will get its first SEC victory this weekend. Kentucky beat up on FCS opponent Jacksonville State 38-14 last week and Mississippi State lost on a last second Alshon Jeffery touchdown to South Carolina 14-12 in their last game two weeks ago. Mississippi State has shown more the first half of the season, and Kentucky lacks any semblance of a passing game. Mississippi State is the better of two bad teams.The Bulldogs will get their first conference win.
    Prediction: Mississippi State 24-17

Lucas's Week 8 Record: 5-0
Lucas's Season Record: 55-9

A Look at Week 8 in the SEC

    The biggest news from last week was the injury that South Carolina's superstar running back Marcus Lattimore sustained against Mississippi State. He tore ligaments in his knee and is out for the season. That is a big blow to USC's chances of returning to the SEC Championship. Lattimore meant everything to that team. Without him, they have no running threat and that will make it much harder for quarterback Connor Shaw to get the ball to wide receiver Alshon Jeffery. The Gamecocks still control their own destiny, but have tough games against Arkansas and Florida left on their schedule. It's not over yet, however, as the team chasing them, Georgia, has yet to play Florida and Auburn. It looks as though Florida will have starting QB John Brantley return from injury before their contest with the Bulldogs, and that will make the Gators a much tougher opponent.

    My picks were 5-1 last week with my only loss being the out of conference game I picked between Baylor and Texas A&M. I thought Baylor would win with their high-powered offense, but Texas A&M took them to the woodshed. However, with five correct picks I moved to the half century mark in victories on the season. For comparison's sake, without the three out of conference games I've picked I am 48-8 on the season. ESPN's SEC bloggers Chris Low and Edward Aschoff are 46-10 and 49-7, respectively. Here's to hoping that I can beat them out in the remaining weeks.

Now on to Week 8...

Game of the Week

LSU will count on backup RB Michael Ford with Ware out.

#20 Auburn at #1 LSU (3:30 PM, CBS): LSU comes into this game boasting the fifth best total defense in the NCAA, and Auburn's offense has been sputtering. Last week, Auburn made the switch at quarterback to redshirt sophomore Clint Moseley at halftime after the offense looked stagnant in the first half. He only threw seven passes as the Tigers were content to run the ball and play defense against a weak Florida offense. Although he didn't get many opportunities, Moseley provided the spark Auburn needed and was named the starter for the upcoming game against LSU. Death Valley is not exactly ideal for breaking in a new quarterback, and that among many other things does not bode well for Auburn.
    However, Auburn got a big boost in the form of three LSU suspensions. Cornerbacks Tyrann Mathieu and Tharold Simon and starting running back Spencer Ware have been suspended after failing a drug test. Those are three huge blows to LSU's team, as all three are integral parts of LSU's team. Ware is the leading rusher for LSU with 512 yards and six touchdowns, and Mathieu has been a big time playmaker and possible Heisman candidate with four forced fumbles, two interceptions, and two touchdowns. Simon is one of their top three corners and is important to the Tigers' depth on defense. Keep in mind Gene Chizik is 8-0 in his tenure as Auburn's head coach when games are decided by four points or less. Anything can happen if Auburn can keep the game close. However, despite the losses to suspension LSU should still have enough elsewhere to pull off the victory.
    Prediction: LSU 27-20

The Others
Tennessee at #2 Alabama (7:15 PM, ESPN2): Alabama remained undefeated against a hapless Ole Miss team last week. Tennessee struggled against LSU without their starting quarterback Tyler Bray. This matchup is undoubtedly headed for more of the same. Alabama should be able to dominate a struggling Tennessee team on both sides of the ball. 
      Prediction: Alabama 38-10


#9 Arkansas at Ole Miss (12:21 PM, SEC Network): Arkansas had a bye last week and was able to rest up after their 38-14 victory over Auburn in Week 6. Ole Miss was badly beaten by Alabama 52-7. This week looks to be similar as Ole Miss is arguably the worst team in the conference (only challenged by Kentucky for that honor). Arkansas's stud QB Tyler Wilson will air it out all over Ole Miss's secondary. This one won't be much of a contest.
      Prediction: Arkansas 44-6


Army at Vanderbilt (7:00 PM, ESPNU): Vanderbilt has an interesting story in junior quarterback Jordan Rodgers. Jordan transferred to Vanderbilt this year from Butte Junior College in California and is the younger brother of the Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers. Last week, Rodgers came in for senior QB Larry Smith and was able to move the offense somewhat effectively as he ran the ball 11 times for 80 yards. It remains to be seen whether Rodgers or Smith will get the start this week, but either should be able to do the job against an Army team with losses to Northern Illinois, San Diego State, Ball State, and Miami (Ohio). 
      Prediction: Vanderbilt  27-14

Jacksonville State at Kentucky (12:00 PM, ESPNU): Kentucky needs this win badly. The Wildcats are coming off four straight losses and are looking to rebound against an FCS team. Jacksonville State was able to upset Ole Miss last year in a double overtime thriller, but don't expect Kentucky to suffer a similar fate this year.
      Prediction: Kentucky 31-17
*All Times Eastern

Lucas's Week 7 Record: 5-1
Lucas's Season Record: 50-9

A Look at Week 7 in the SEC

       Last week featured few surprises. LSU, Alabama, and South Carolina dominated, Mississippi State struggled with an inferior opponent, and Georgia-Tennessee ended up being a tight one. The only pick missed in Week 6 was Auburn over Arkansas. To be honest, I had a bad feeling about it once I found out that Auburn's leading receiver Emory Blake would not be available for the game. Indeed, their passing game suffered. As a team they were 9-25 passing for 104 yards and three interceptions. It's difficult to win any game in the SEC with those numbers. Not to mention, they had 11 penalties for 105 yards and at least three crucial drops. Arkansas took advantage, piling up 262 passing yards on the way to a 38-14 blowout.
      Georgia's defense showed up well again, and Tyler Bray broke the base of the thumb on his throwing hand and may be out for the rest of the season. To add insult to injury, Tauren Poole injured his hamstring and is out for this week at least. That was recipe for a 20-12 UGA victory. UGA will still need a little help if they want to win the East, however, as they lost the head-to-head battle against South Carolina in Week 2.

Now on to Week 7....

Game of the Week

Florida's freshman QB Jacoby Brissett

Florida at #24 Auburn (7:00 PM, ESPN): Both teams come into this game with a 4-2 record. Auburn's passing game has been very suspect the past three or four games, and that's something they will look to get corrected. Barrett Trotter will remain the starting quarterback this week, but you have to figure he will have a short leash. If he struggles after the first quarter or so we may see Clint Moseley get his first real action - but will it be too late? Auburn has really shown the ability to pound the ball on the ground, and if they can get some semblance of a passing game they may be able to win 8 games this year. Florida will be without starting quarterback John Brantley once again, and it looks like true freshman Jacoby Brissett is the favorite to start this weekend. Brissett got his first start against LSU last Saturday and completed 8 of 14 passes for 94 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions. He will be entering another hostile environment, which does not bode well for Florida. According to auburnsports.com's Justin Hokanson, since 2000 Auburn is 23-4 in night games at Jordan-Hare Stadium. The true freshman quarterback will definitely be tested. Also, Florida has given up 464 rushing yards in their two losses, which plays right into Auburn's strength. Look for Auburn to pound it out on the ground and get a score or two from Michael Dyer, as well as taking advantage of Florida's mistakes on offense. This will be a close one, and both teams are on the ropes, but Auburn's home field advantage will allow them to escape with a victory despite a basically even matchup.
     Prediction: Auburn 27 Florida 23

Second Tier Games
#1 LSU at Tennessee (3:30 PM, CBS): LSU travels to Neyland Stadium to take on the Vols. This game has all the makings of a blowout as LSU's tenacious defense will be coming after a Tennessee offense without QB Tyler Bray, RB Tauren Poole, and WR Justin Hunter. Tennessee doesn't seem to have much of a chance without their top playmakers at all three skill positions. LSU is still on course to remain undefeated when they face off with an undefeated Alabama for a pseudo National Championship of sorts on November 5th. LSU fans just hope Les Miles's loyalty to Jordan Jefferson won't mess things up in the meantime. LSU in a romp.
     Prediction: LSU 44 Tennessee 10


#15 South Carolina at Mississippi State (12:21 PM, SEC Network): South Carolina was able to ignite its passing game last week against Kentucky by turning to sophomore QB Connor Shaw. Shaw was promoted to QB1 after Garcia had another poor showing against Auburn the previous week. The move seemed to have really worked as Shaw threw for 311 yards and 4 touchdowns. Granted it was Kentucky, but the offense looked better than it had with Garcia at the helm against similarly weak opponents ECU and Navy. Garcia is apparently no longer an option as he was reportedly kicked off the team. South Carolina will try to build on last week's momentum as they take on a struggling Mississippi State team. Last week, Mississippi State trailed UAB 3-0 at the half, but put in backup Tyler Russell for the second half and he threw three TDs in the second half for the bulldogs. It remains to be seen which quarterback will start this week for MSU, but neither will be enough to defeat South Carolina.
     Prediction: South Carolina 34 Mississippi State 17


Georgia at Vanderbilt (7:00 PM, FSS): Georgia was able to pull out a win last week on the road in Neyland Stadium, which is always a tough place to play. Freshman RB Isaiah Crowell impressed again, running for 58 yards and two key touchdowns. Vanderbilt has been struggling mightily since starting 3-0 as they have not scored a touchdown in their last two games. Georgia should be able to handle them pretty easily.
    Prediction: Georgia 31 Vanderbilt 6


#2 Alabama at Ole Miss (6:00 PM, ESPN2): Is there even any question as to who will win this game? Ole Miss is challenging Kentucky to be the worst team in the SEC, and Alabama is challenging LSU to be the best team in the SEC. Ole Miss fans should probably just stay in The Grove during this game because it won't be pretty.
    Prediction: Alabama 47 Ole Miss 3

Bonus Non-SEC Game

Can Baylor's Robert Griffin III lead
them to victory over the Aggies?

#20 Baylor at #21 Texas A&M (12:00 PM, FX): We all remember the beginning of the season when Baylor went back and forth with TCU and finally was able to win the game with stellar play from QB Robert Griffin III. Texas A&M has had a string of bad losses giving up big halftime leads to Oklahoma State's and Arkansas's. Baylor's only loss comes at the hands of a talented Kansas State team. Baylor's offense is remarkably similar to that of Oklahoma State and Arkansas, and it has to make you think that they will have similar success against the Aggies. I've tried to find a reason to pick the Texas A&M in this game, but I just don't see how the Aggies will stop Griffin. They will have to battle the "here we go again" mentality even if they have a lead, and that does bode well for them against another high-powered offense.
     Prediction: Baylor 38 Texas A&M 34
*All Times Eastern




Lucas's Week 6 Record: 5-1
Lucas's Season Record: 45-8

A Look at Week 6 in the SEC

Last weeks games featured a major upset in the form of the Auburn Tigers defeating #10 South Carolina. That was an upset that honestly I could see coming because of Steve Spurrier's South Carolina track record of choking at least once a season, but at the time I had no reason to believe that Auburn could play well enough to win. I ended with a 7-1 record last week bringing my season total to 40-7. Hopefully the streak will continue as we have a few intriguing games on tap for this week.

On to Week 6...

Game of the Week

Auburn will look to upset Arkansas this week

#15 Auburn at #10 Arkansas (7:00 PM, ESPN): Auburn's defense improved dramatically last week against South Carolina. They will need a similar performance to defeat a good Arkansas team. Arkansas erases an 18 point halftime deficit to defeat Texas A&M behind a 510 yard effort through the air by quarterback Tyler Wilson. However, Arkansas looked very vulnerable against the run giving up 381 total yards on the ground and 230 to Aggies' running back Christine Michael. Auburn will undoubtedly look to attack the hogs in a similar fashion. Gus Malzahn showed no hesitation in giving Michael Dyer the ball over and over again last week on the way to 41 carries for 141 yards. Auburn will most likely employ a similar game plan this week in effort to control time of possession and keep their defense and Tyler Wilson off the field as much as possible. I also like what Malzahn has done with true freshman QB Kiehl Frazier, who will likely see more and more of the game plan as the season progresses. Frazier has added an element to Auburn's offense that they have needed and enabled them to run the zone read that was such an important play for them last year. As a result, they have been much more effective on third down than they were at the beginning of the season. Auburn pulls off their second upset in as many weeks.
     Prediction: Auburn 31 Arkansas 27

Top Tier Games

Georgia will lean on freshman Isaiah
Crowell against Tennessee

Georgia at Tennessee (7:00 PM, ESPN2): Tennessee lost arguably the best receiver in the SEC to injury against Florida in Justin Hunter. That will really hurt this team, and they have had to rely solely on Da'Rick Rogers, who stepped up excellently against Buffalo on his way to 180 yards and 2 touchdowns. However, Tennessee has not been able to get their running game on track all season, and that limits them at times because they have to rely completely on Tyler Bray, which is a difficult load for any quarterback to carry. Tennessee has only run for 444 yards on the season, which is good enough for last in the SEC and 107th out of 120 FBS teams. Georgia struggled to start the season, but have turned it on as of late, which is in a large part due to the emergence of true freshman running back Isaiah Crowell. Georgia has increased his carries in the last two games, and as a result he ran for 147 and 104 yards, respectively. Getting the running game going is crucial to their success because quarterback Aaron Murray is much better out of the play action than he is as a drop back QB. Although Murray threw 3 interceptions against Mississippi State last week, he will most likely improve that number this week as Tennessee has not been a big threat to intercept the ball this season. They have just 1 interception on the year, which ranks them tied for second to last in the FBS. Georgia will win this game by running the ball and playing solid third down defense.
      Prediction: Georgia 28 Tennessee 24

#17 Florida at #1 LSU (3:30 PM, CBS): On paper this looks like a solid match up between two ranked teams. However, Florida lost QB John Brantley last week to injury against Alabama and he won't play this week against LSU. That means Florida will be throwing true freshman Jeff Driskel into the fire at Death Valley. That doesn't bode well for their chances of success. LSU's vaunted defense has to be licking their chops, and I expect Tyrann Mathieu to remind Driskel that this is no longer high school. It will be interesting to watch exactly how much Les Miles will play Jordan Jefferson this week. He came in last week against Kentucky as a change of pace quarterback and rushed 4 times for 29 yards. I don't think Les Miles will deviate from starting Jarrett Lee yet, and I expect to see Jefferson in a similar change of pace role this week. But I wouldn't be surprised if Jefferson's role increases over the next few games as he clearly wants his starting job back. LSU wins this game with dominating defense against an over-matched Florida offense.
     Prediction: LSU 27 Florida 13

Bottom Tier Games
Kentucky at #18 South Carolina (12:21 PM, SEC Network): South Carolina will try a new quarterback this week after Stephen Garcia threw 2 interceptions and completed just 39% of his passes against Auburn last week. Coach Steve Spurrier is turning to sophomore Connor Shaw in hopes that Shaw can ignite what has turned out to be a stagnant South Carolina offense. Kentucky is the perfect opponent for Shaw to get his feet wet. Kentucky has been challenging Ole Miss as possibly being the worst team in the SEC and have struggled all season.
     Prediction: South Carolina 31 Kentucky 10

Vanderbilt at #2 Alabama (7:00 PM, ESPNU): Vanderbilt has surprised some folks this year with a 3-1 record and wins over Ole Miss and UConn. They won't be surprising anyone this Saturday.
     Prediction: Alabama 31 Vanderbilt 3

Mississippi State at UAB (12:00 PM, FSN): Mississippi State travels to Legion Field to take on the UAB Blazers. The bulldogs will try and get their offense back on track against a poor 0-4 UAB squad.
      Prediction: Mississippi State 27 UAB 7
*All Times Eastern

Lucas' Week 5 Record: 7-1
Lucas' Season Record: 40-7

Auburn's defense stands strong as they shock the Gamecocks

Auburn's Michael Dyer was a big factor
in the victory against South Carolina.

   Auburn pulled off a major upset Saturday, beating the nation's #10 ranked team South Carolina 16-13 on the road. Chizik called the win a "landmark victory" for his Auburn Tigers. Auburn showed a big improvement on the defensive side of the football. A unit that gave up 315 yards against lowly FAU last week limited South Carolina's offense to 289 yards. Most importantly, Auburn keyed in on big time back Marcus Lattimore and only allowed him to gain 66 yards on 17 carries. It was clear that shutting Lattimore down was the focus of Auburn's defensive gameplan.

   Both teams featured lackluster quarterback play. South Carolina's Stephen Garcia completed only 9 of 23 passes for 160 yards and a touchdown and threw two interceptions, but also added 62 yards on the ground on 10 attempts. Auburn's Barrett Trotter completed 12 of 23 passes for 112 yards and a touchdown, but also threw two interceptions. The difference came on the ground. Auburn showed no reservations for feeding running back Mike Dyer the ball, and feeding it to him often. Dyer ran it an astounding 41 times for 141 yards and one touchdown. Auburn's game plan was to lean heavily on Dyer, and that's exactly what they did.

   A big difference in Auburn's play on defense seem to come up front, where Auburn's defensive line looked to play much better. The d-line got penetration all night long and the Tigers had a season high 3 sacks in the game as well as providing pressure on Garcia, forcing a couple of interceptions. The defensive line seemed to collapse in on Lattimore all game as well, keeping him and check and causing him to fumble the ball in the first quarter.

   It's difficult to tell what caused the defense to play so much better than they had in the past. They were much more effective on third down than they had been all season, only allowing the Gamecocks to convert 2 of their 10 third down plays. Part of me wants to believe that Gene Chizik was much more involved with this game plan, and Auburn played more like the Chizik defense of the undefeated 2004 team that we all came to know and love. Whatever it was, Roof and Chizik seemed to be on the same page and it resulted in Auburn turning in their best defensive performance of the season.

Will we see Clint
Moseley next week?

   Going forward there are still a few things that would seemingly need to be addressed. Auburn's most impressive touchdown drive came when Kiehl Frazier rushed the ball 3 times for 33 yards on a possession that started towards the end of the first quarter. He looked quick to hit the hole and the read option plays really worked well with him taking the snaps. You have to think that as the season progresses his role will grow more and more. Barrett Trotter turned in a very poor performance, and Gus seemed to lack confidence in his ability to throw the ball downfield as there were a lot of bubble screens and draws called in third down situations. He did not look like a starting SEC quarterback until he connected with Phillip Lutzenkirchen on the game winning drive in the 4th quarter. He hit Lutzenkirchen for a 9 yard TD in the 4th quarter while standing strong in the face of a Melvin Ingram blitz. That was one of the lone bright spots in Trotter's night. If Malzahn does not think Frazier's passing game is ready for the big time, then Auburn has to give back up Clint Moseley a look in practice this week. It would be hard to believe that he could do much worse than Trotter did in this game.

    If Auburn can keep up this defense and find a way to be more effective on offense, then they will surprise a lot of people who wrote them off after struggling in the first four games of the season.  This young team is growing up in front of our very eyes, and Arkansas should consider themselves warned.

2011 Braves and Looking Ahead to 2012

 
    The Braves finished what turned out to be a monumental collapse last night. They let an 8 1/2 game wild card lead slip away. They closed the season with five straight losses while also losing 18 of the last 26 games, which allowed the St. Louis Cardinals to overtake them for the birth into the playoffs. With the Braves season ending I thought I would post some thoughts I had for the 2012 season.

    First, as many of you know if you follow me on twitter, my opinion of Fredi Gonzalez is not very high. Fredi Gonzalez has not been a good manager for the Braves this year. Wren did a fantastic job of putting more pieces on the team this year, and Fredi managed to win less games than the 2010 Braves. Granted, all of that is not his fault, but he is definitely to blame for some of it. Last night was just another example of Fredi's futility. The Phillies started right-handed pitcher Joe Blanton. Prior to last night's game, Diaz had a slash line of .222/.260/.282 against RHP, while Heyward's slash line was .238/.335/.417. Granted, Fredi knew of the Phillies plan to pitch Hamels who is a LHP in the middle of the game, but there was no guarantee that Diaz would come up against him. Not only that, but Fredi could have pinch hit Heyward for Diaz when the Phils put in right-hander Vance Worley in the bottom of the 6th, but instead he left in Diaz and then subbed in Heyward as a defensive replacement in the top of the 7th. Please someone, explain to me how that makes sense. IT DOESN'T. This is just one example of the kind of decisions Fredi has been making all year. Fredi Gonzalez, in my opinion, needs to be relieved of his duties by Frank Wren.

   Another contributing factor to the Braves demise is their poor hitting. I think a lot of this has to be laid at the feet of hitting coach Larry Parrish. The Braves showed no discipline for most of the season. They turned into hackers. This is shown by the terrible team on base percentage of .308, which had them ranked 3 spots above last place in that category in the National League. The Braves hitters struggled to improve over the season, and that ended up costing them a spot in the playoffs in the end. If Braves' GM Frank Wren allows Fredi Gonzalez to stay on for another year, at the very least they need to find a replacement for Parrish.

    Many Braves fans will disagree with me on this, but Martin Prado does not need to start in left field for the Braves in 2012. He had the second worst OBP of all the regular starters with a .304 mark. And unlike Alex Gonzalez who had the worst OBP, Prado is not a gold glove candidate in left field. There are two options for the Braves to take with Prado. First, they could make him into a bench utility player. This wouldn't be a bad option because Chipper has already stated that he is absolutely coming back next year. So when Chipper inevitably gets hurt, the Braves can plug Prado into that spot, as well as plug him into any other position on the field when someone needs a break. The second option would be to dangle Prado on the trade market. Prado's value is on the decline, and it may be wise to see what the market might bring for him. Either way, Prado doesn't need to be starting in left field on opening day.

     Heyward needs to start every day. The Braves will be doing themselves a big injustice if they pigeon hole Heyward into a platoon hitter. If they start Diaz over Heyward against left handers, they will be making a big mistake. Granted Heyward did not have a good year against LHP in 2011 with an OBP and slugging percentage of only .270/.308. However, he has shown that he can do ok against LHP in the past. In 2010 his slash line was .249/.356/.399 and he also hit LHP well in the minors. Compare that to Diaz's line this year of .298/.338/.359 against LHP, and you can see that Diaz actually hasn't been that great. If you label Heyward a platoon player this early, you really stunt his growth. The more at bats he gets against LHP, the better he will be. Remember, he's only 22 years old.

    There is no way Derek Lowe should be on the Braves' roster in 2012. I don't care if you have to eat his contract, you have to get rid of him. Release him, trade him for some bats and balls, it really doesn't matter, just get rid of him. Derek Lowe finished the season with a 9-17 record and a 5.05 ERA and an 0-5 record with a 8.75 ERA in September. He allowed opposing hitters to get on base at a .347 clip and slug .406 against him. Just terrible. With the stockpiled young talent in the pitching department, Lowe should not be in the rotation. Hudson, Beachy, Minor, Hanson, Delgado, Teheran, and even Jurrjens are all better options than Derek Lowe. And although he will probably end up being a reliever, Medlen looked nasty in his two appearances at the end of this season and I would even rather have him starting than Lowe.

    With all that said, the Braves have a very bright future. They have a lot of awesome young talent that hopefully will bloom into what should be a good Braves team for many years to come. With Beachy, Minor, Hanson, Delgado, Teheran, Vizcaino, Heyward, Freeman, McCann, Uggla, and Bourn, the Braves have an unbelievable core to build on. They just need a few things to happen to put them in the right place to capitalize on it.

A Look at Week 5 in the SEC

Week 4 didn't bring much excitement within the SEC. Other than LA Tech taking Mississippi State to overtime, all the games went as expected and weren't that close. My predictions from last week ended up 8-0, which came as a result of there not really being any difficult games to pick other than the non-SEC game I included. LSU throttled another ranked team, and still have all the makings of a national title contender. Alabama looked impressive as well, destroying a quality Arkansas team. It's shaping up to be a heavyweight bout between Alabama and LSU on November 5th.

Now let's take a look at Week 5...

Game of the Week

Will Rainey and the Gators be able
to pull off the upset?

#3 Alabama at #12 Florida (8:00 PM, CBS): This game will really tell us if Florida is the real deal or not. They are undefeated so far, and have looked much more impressive than I thought they would be in their first season under Will Muschamp. It will be interesting to see Florida's dynamic speed in Chris Rainey and Jeff Demps against Alabama's lock down defense. This game being in The Swamp makes it intriguing and definitely increases Florida's chances of pulling the upset. However, Alabama's defense is for real, and they have looked very impressive so far this year. It also helps to have two power backs in Trent Richardson and Eddie Lacy that will help turn the time of possession in Alabama's favor. Alabama wins, but it will be their closest game so far this year.
     Prediction: Alabama 24-21

Top Tier Games:

Auburn will have to give Dyer more
carries if they want to have any
chance to win.

Auburn at #10 South Carolina (3:30 PM, CBS): This game will begin a very tough four game stretch for the Auburn Tigers. In the next four weeks they play on the road against South Carolina and Arkansas, home against Florida, and then back on the road to take on LSU. I think most Auburn fans would consider it a victory to come out of that stretch 2-2 and would maybe take being 1-3. Auburn's biggest challenge is going to be trying to stop Marcus Lattimore with their defense that has been porous so far this season. According to Vegas, Auburn is a 10 point underdog. The plausible reason for an Auburn upset is the fact that South Carolina's Stephen Garcia has thrown 7 interceptions in the last 3 games, and that will give any team a chance. However, you know that South Carolina has had this date circled on their calendar for a year after getting beat twice by AU last season including a thrashing in the SEC Championship Game. My heart tells me Auburn, but my head tells me South Carolina. South Carolina wins, but, as Lee Corso would say, it will be closer than the experts think.
     Prediction: South Carolina 34-31


#14 Texas A&M at #18 Arkansas (12:00 PM, ESPN): Both of these teams are coming off their first loss of the season last week. Texas A&M was officially admitted into the SEC this week and so it's a nifty coincidence that they also face an SEC opponent as well. A&M has the same problem this week that they had last week against Oklahoma State, and that's a high powered offense. Arkansas has an elite passing game along with home field advantage, and for those reasons Arkansas will pull out the victory.
     Prediction: Arkansas 31-27


Mississippi State at Georgia (12:00 PM, FSN): Both of these teams have definitely had their struggles this season. Mississippi State had a 1-2 LA Tech team take them to overtime last week and Georgia started off the season with two straight losses. However, Georgia is coming off of two straight wins and is looking to build that momentum with a win over MSU. Although Georgia has had its flaws, they have shown more than Mississippi State this season. Georgia takes the victory at home.
    Prediction: Georgia 28-17

Bonus Non-SEC Game

Wisconsin's Russell Wilson

#8 Nebraska at #7 Wisconsin (8:00 PM, ABC): This game features a top ten matchup between two Big Ten foes. Russell Wilson has fit in perfectly at Wisconsin and has the makings of a potential Heisman candidate. What could have been for Auburn, right? Wisconsin has a very impressive defense that ranks right behind Alabama as the #3 scoring defense in the nation only allowing 8.5 points per game. The defense has looked good and Russell Wilson has jolted the offense this season and has them hitting on all cylinders scoring 48.5 points per game. Wisconsin wins this showdown at Camp Randall Stadium.
    Prediction: Wisconsin 31-21


The Rest
Kentucky at #1 LSU (12:21 PM, SEC Network): LSU 44-7
Buffalo at Tennessee (12:30 PM, CSS): Tennessee 31-10
Ole Miss at Fresno State (9:15 PM, ESPN2): 24-17 Ole Miss
*All Times Eastern


Lucas' Week 4 Record: 8-0
Lucas' Season Record: 33-6