Week 6 Preview

OU and Texas headlines a great weekend of college football. Let’s preview these games

1. #3 Oklahoma travels to Dallas to take on #11 Texas. Texas is a very young team and plays one of the youngest teams at the skill positions in the country. They have 8 offensive starters that are either freshman or sophomores. They play more freshmen than any other team in the country. This can be a good thing and a bad thing. Mistakes are the bad thing. Experience in these games is the key to winning them. Oklahoma has a veteran team that understands that this game usually decides who will win the Big XII. The good thing is that these young players will be out there trying to prove that they belong out there and want to be included with the great players that they watch wear the same uniform as they do now. Harsin has been doing a great job in putting his players in positions to make plays. Jaxon Shipley is McCoy’s safety valve when he gets into a tough situation. I would figure he would be since they have been playing together since they were kids. Malcolm Brown, the young freshman savior at RB, rarely gets tackled for a loss. Texas’ defense has been playing very well also. Manny Diaz seemed to figure things out in the second half of the BYU Texas game. His defense has been flying around since. They forced 3 interceptions in the first quarter of the game against Iowa State. Texas has a really good chance of winning this game. But Oklahoma is a well oiled machine. Jones, Broyles and Stills are a very tough tandem to contain. The pace of the OU offense cannot be matched by any other team in the country and will give the Texas defense fits. But this isn’t the only part of OU’s offense that will give Texas problems. Dominique Whaley has been playing very well and the Texas defense cannot disregard how effective of a runner he can be. The most underrated part of Oklahoma’s team is the defense. Oklahoma has a very good defensive unit. The strength of this unit is the LB corp. Most people focus on just how good Travis Lewis is, but you definitely can’t disregard Tom Wort. He makes plays and was all over the field against Florida State. Texas definitely has its work cut out for them. As much as it pains me to admit to this, Oklahoma is the better team. I think they beat Texas this week 35-20.

2. #17 Florida travels to Baton Rouge to take on the #1 ranked LSU Tigers. Florida is coming off of a week where they not only lost the game, but lost their starting QB to an ugly hit in which his leg was pinned under his body. Florida couldn’t run the ball and struggled to protect the QB after the 1st quarter. They couldn’t stop the run, and did a pretty good job on the pass. Well the same issues they had last week will be the same issues they have this week. Driskel did not really do a great job in relief for Brantley. He did have a 31 yard run on 3rd and 14. Other than that he was abysmal throwing the football. Demps was hurt on a kickoff return by the kicker. He has been battling a foot injury all season. He just can’t seem to stay healthy. The defense couldn’t stop Trent Richardson from rushing for 181 yards. LSU will run the ball the same way, with power and consistently. The difference in Alabama and LSU is the fact that LSU can bring in one of four RBs that can gash you all game long. Jared Lee has been managing the game well and has been surprisingly accurate. The numbers from Kentucky are a little misleading because LSU’s WRs dropped 8 passes. If those passes are completed, I think that game gets uglier than it was. I look for Jordan Jefferson to get some snaps in this game. He has been quoted saying that he wants his starting position back. Maybe he can be another wrinkle that teams will have to prepare for. Spencer Ware is expected to play with his hamstring injury. I think he should sit and get healthy for the Alabama game. He may see limited action. Florida’s defense will have another tough week as LSU will beat Florida 35-3.

3. #15 Auburn travels to Fayetteville to take on #10 Arkansas. Arkansas is coming off comeback win against Big XII favorite Texas A&M. Arkansas put up some massive yards and shut all the naysayers like myself up. They actually protected Tyler Wilson and gave him time. He then proceeded to have the game of his career throwing for 510 yards; Jarius Wright had 281 of those yards. Arkansas played very well in the second half of that game. Although they did not run the ball, Arkansas had enough of an attack to keep Texas A&M honest up front and have to contend with it. Arkansas will be going another week without their star defensive end Jake Bequette with a knee injury. Also the other starting DE Tenarius Wright is out with a broken arm. Arkansas has to be able to at some point put some stops up. Maybe the momentum from the 4th and 2 stop against Texas A&M in the clutch will continue over to the Auburn game. Auburn finally gave Dyer the amount of carries (41) needed to dominate a game. He can carry the ball 25+ times a game. Trotter’s play has been inconsistent. Yes he made the throw to win the game against South Carolina. But he is going to have to be able to hit his WRs consistently. Auburn’s defense gave a valiant effort against South Carolina. But was Auburn’s defense that good, or was South Carolina that bad? I think it was a combination of the two. Can Arkansas keep that momentum facing an Auburn team coming off a big win themselves? Auburn is ranked #106 in total defense and Arkansas is ranked #75. There will DEFINITELY be some points scored in this game. The momentum of the prior week will play a role in who will be the better team and win this game. I am going with Arkansas in this game 45-35.

4. Georgia travels to Tennessee to take on the Volunteers in Neyland Stadium. Isaiah Crowell is another dynamic freshman that has been playing fantastic over his last two games. Check out this stat line: 52 carries 251 yards. Freshman. He has been a catalyst for the 3 game winning-streak that Georgia is currently on. Brandon Boykin is one of the most dynamic players on the field. He is the starting CB, but he can play WR, RB and he is VERY dangerous in the special team game as a returner. He has game breaking speed and if he touches the ball in any way, he is a threat to score. Tennessee has to keep an eye on where he is at all times. This game will be played close to the chest, so every point and possession will count. There is no clear cut advantage here. Tennessee is definitely in a new era of football. They have a solid back in Poole, but Tyler Bray is really the future of Tennessee football. Bray has been paired with Da’Rick Rogers and they have Tennessee ranked amongst the top in the country in passing. His other star WR Justin Hunter is out for the season with an ACL tear. Dooley has the Tennessee faithful anxious for a big win. Can he pull it out this week against a Georgia team riding a three game win streak? I don’ t think so. I think Georgia pulls this game out 24-14. Bray is good, but I think that Georgia is a more complete team.

Stay tuned to more picks and analysis after the game with 4th and Inches Magazine. Your opinions are welcomed here at 4th and Inches Magazine. Don’t be shy to comment!