The mighty has fallen again and some say Texas is back as the Longhorns defeated the Crimson Tide in week two of the college football season. Alabama has now dropped to number 10 in the AP Poll and Texas is at number four with this being the first time Texas has been in the top five since 2010. Notre Dame ran over NC State by a score 46-24, Miami put up 48 points in the big win over Texas A&M, along with some other big games in week 2. While there are not as many big ranked matchups in week three, there are some rivalry matchups most expect to be interesting and look forward to watching.

Week two record (no spread): 5-0

Overall record (no spread): 7-2

Week two record (spread): 5-0

Overall record (spread): 8-1

#14 LSU @ Mississippi State (LSU -9.5)

After losing to Florida State in week one, LSU (1-1) bounced back with a 72-10 win against the Grambling State Tigers. Quarterback Jayden Daniels led the LSU Tigers with 269 yards, going 18-for-24 passing and 5 passing touchdowns. LSU was dominated in week one on clock with Florida State having the ball around 11 more minutes than the Noles. The LSU Tigers do have a lot of talent on both sides of the ball, especially on the defensive end, but did give up some yards on the ground in first couple weeks. This is the first big game for the Tigers after the loss and may be important as they will follow up these games with Arkansas and Ole Miss.

Mississippi State (2-0) won in week 2 in overtime 31-24 against Arizona. The Bulldogs finished 9-4 last season and are welcomed on offense by now offensive coordinator Kevin Barbay and coach Zach Arnett, who was named head coach after coach Mike Leach’s death. The offense is led by senior quarterback Will Rodgers, along with a good rushing attack through first couple games. The defense was able to force five turnovers against Arizona in week 2. If the Bulldogs defense can continue to force turnovers and the team can tone down the penalties from week 2, they may can contend in this game.

Game Prediction: I like LSU in this game, but think the spread could be a little high. I would not be surprised if Mississippi State wins this game, but I am going to take the Bulldogs to just cover and the Tigers will win 35-28.

South Carolina @ #1 Georgia (UGA -27.5)

South Carolina (1-1) will travel Athens to play the number one ranked Georgia Bulldogs (2-0) on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 3:30 p.m. The Gamecocks are coming off a 47-21 win against Furman, but did drop their first game of the season 31-17 to North Carolina. The offense for South Carolina struggled in week one, especially on the offensive line, with North Carolina sacking quarterback Spencer Rattler nine times. Rattler came back in week 2 with a stellar game against Furman, going 25-for-27 with 345 yards and 3 passing touchdowns. The offensive line and passing game will have to be great for the Gamecocks to have any chance against Georgia.

Georgia gets there first test of the season here after facing Tennessee-Martin and Ball State in the first two weeks. I would not say Georgia looked great in the first couple games as they started both without scoring in the first quarter against two way less talented teams. Georgia has had a few key players out for the first two weeks though on offense and defense. Wide receiver Ladd McConkey could miss his third game as his status is still up in the air. Georgia Safety Javon Bullard is also questionable due to an ankle injury. Running back Daijun Edwards will return for the Bulldogs, adding to depth to the position. Quarterback Carson Beck will have his first test in his biggest game of his college career at Georgia so far.

Game Prediction: Georgia may be missing a few players, but Carolina also has some pieces questionable in wide receiver Ahmarean Brown, safety Nick Emmanwori, defensive back Keenan Nelson Jr., and defensive end Jatius Geer according to South Carolina’s injury report. Either way, I do not expect this team to stand a chance to win this game in Athens. If the North Carolina defense did that much damage, I can only image what Georgia will do. I do think the spread is a bit high though and will take the Bulldogs to win 41-17.

Minnesota @ #20 North Carolina (NC-7.5)

The Minnesota Golden Gophers travel to play the North Carolina Tar Heels on Saturday, Sept. 16, at 3:30 p.m. Minnesota (2-0) opened the season with a 13-10 win versus Nebraska and a 25-6 victory against Eastern Michigan. The Gophers are led by a strong rushing attack and defense. Running back Darius Taylor rushed for 193 yards and a touchdown, along with Sean Tyler rushing for 93 yards against Eastern Michigan. Minnesota’s defense was able to force few  turnovers against Jeff Sims and Nebraska, but Drake Maye and the Tar Heels offense could be a problem for the Gophers.

North Carolina (2-0) edged out Appalachian State in Overtime 40-34. While defense may have struggled, running back Omarion Hampton and the rushing attack was dominant. Hampton ran the ball 26 times for 234 yards and 3 touchdowns. He did not have his way in the opening game against South Carolina, but did still rush for two touchdowns, leading the team. The defense looked great against the Gamecocks in week 1, but looked back to normal in week 2. The Tar Heels will have to look to stop the ground game in week two and keep the Gophers from taking control of the game.

Game Prediction: This is a lot of points against a tough Minnesota team, but they have not seen a team on offense yet like North Carolina. I think North Carolina covers 28-20 in a close game.

#11 Tennessee at Florida (Tenn -6.5)

The Florida Gators will host the Tennessee Volunteers at the Swamp this Saturday night. Florida opened with a loss against Utah 24-11 after struggling running and getting the ball in the end zone. The Gators and new quarterback Graham Mertz were able to gain momentum with a 49-7 win over McNeese State. Florida got back to the ground game, running the ball for 323 yards and 6 total rushing touchdowns.

Florida lost this game 38-33 last year, but the Volunteers are not as good as they were last year on offense in my opinion. Losing quarterback Hendon Hooker, wide receiver Jalin Hyatt and others are key losses to the offense. While I have not been impressed by Milton and the offense so far, the rushing attack has been one of the best in college through the first two games. The Volunteers are currently fourth in rushing yards in the country. The defense has also been great this season so far as they are ranked number 1 in tackles for a loss and sacks for a loss.

Game prediction: Despite Tennessee being really good numbers wise, I am still not a believer. I am not a believer in quarterback Joe Milton and do not think the defense is as good as the numbers look. I do think they win this game though, but I think it will be really close and Florida will cover. Give me Tennessee to win 31-30.

TCU @ Houston (TCU -7.5)

TCU (1-1) travels to play Houston on Saturday at 8 p.m. The Hornfrogs dropped their first game of the season against Deion Sanders and Colorado. The defense may not be that good, but the offense is still great, putting up over 40 points in both games. TCU’s pass rush has also been decent with 4 sacks against Colorado and 2 versus Nicholls State.

Houston (1-1) is coming off two close games, dropping their week two game by a score of 43-41 against Rice in overtime. Coming into the season, the Cougars had to replace former quarterback Clayton Tune wide receiver Tank Dell, and more. Houston added former Texas Tech quarterback Donovan Smith at quarterback as the new starter to lead the Cougars. According to collegefootballnews.com, Houston is 1-12 against current power five teams since beating Arizona in 2018. I think Houston’s decline may continue this year after the loss to Rice.

Game prediction: Some think this will be a really close game and I just don’t see it. The defense allowed Rice to score all over them and offense is not great either in my opinion. I think TCU covers and wins this game 42-24.

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