Big-XII-SEC

In his weekly Dash, ESPN's Pat Forde matches up the Big XII and the SEC. He sets the games top-to-bottom and assigns each team an edge in the contest. He doesn't straight-up pick the winner, he just flirts with it by evaluating who's in a better place.

Aroo in ATL read the Dash's weekly round-up and decided to take the issue to his e-mail contacts, one of whom I happen to be. Out of privacy, I won't share their thoughts, but I will include mine and encourage your own. With thanks to Aroo for the idea and assuming all match-ups are neutral site games, here we go:

Forde's match-ups are as follows, with his picks in bold:

Texas Tech-Bama; Florida-Texas; Georgia-Oklahoma; LSU-OK St.; SoCar-Mizz; Ole Miss-Neb; Vandy-Kansas; Kentucky-Colorado; Kansas State-Auburn; Tex A&M-Tenn; Miss St.-Iowa St.

That's 6-6 for the Dash. And, to him, these results indicate that the Big-12 is superior because "they don't give out awards for being better in the bottom half of the league."

My take:

TT-Bama: Bama slows down the TT attack. they have the D-line to get past those behemoths protecting Harrell and really disrupt some rhythm. I'd take the Tide, 34-27.*

Tex-UF: Florida wins. I think they could beat anyone right now, really. The special teams are too good and the defense could drop Colt's Manning-like efficiency, providing just enough room for Tebow to get ahead. Just hope it doesn't come down to Colt and under 2 minutes. Gators, 31-21.

OU-UGA: Oklahoma would actually run into more trouble than expected from the Dawgs, just not enough. It would be a high-scoring affair, but Gergia's been so suspect the last couple of games, that I have to take Bradford and the Sooners, 27-21.

LSU-OKSt.: I think Les Miles beats his old team in the Craziest Coach Contest, 28-26.

Mizz-SoCar: Missouri's too talented for South Carolina to contain. Maclin would be the edge though, not Daniel. He would all-purpose the Tigers to victory in a surprisingly defensive affair. It's Mizz with the W, 23-17.

Miss-Neb: The Right Reverend is a tough Nutt to crack (Bah-dum-dum), and Nebraska's just as hard to husk (didn't land, did it?). In an odd match-up, I'll take the McCluster-fuckers and their ne'er do well rebel yell over the erratic temperaments of the Fightin' Bo Pellinis. Mississippi, 32-29.

[Side-bar: I'd totally bang Houston Nutt's daughters. Check them out here. Insert any "Wild-(fill-in-the-mascot) formation/position" jokes or variations on the word Nutt here.]

Kan-Vandy: Todd Ressing is a tough QB, no matter what the Jayhawks record is. Vandy is imploding as we speak, which makes me wonder if this football season is some type of physics experiment being conducted by Nashville's nerdiest. In the end, Vandy won't have enough for Kansas. Mangino's Big and Tall, 34-21

UK-Buffs: Hawkins and Sons, Inc. are not killers, and if you don't finish off this Wildcat squad, you better be able to win the close one. The Buffs just can't do it. Kentucky, 24-21.

KSU-Aub: Auburn, who will beat Georgia this weekend, is atrocious. They might be able to hold the Cats O in check, but will they score any points? Probably not. In an ugly cat fight, the soon-to-be Prince-less KS, 7-5.

UT-TA&M: Wyoming? Really? A&M, 21-17.

****I left this game out yesterday. Thank you, Moviegoer, for the notice:

Ark-Baylor: I hate Bobby Petrino, but I think it's best that a coach named Nutt doesn't coach a player named Dick. Baylor has improved (at least relatively, according to Orson Swindle), losing with more grace. Still, somehow, even with their underachieving scores and record, the Hawgs' skill players own the SEC in offense. I take the Razorbacks, 27-14.

****

ISU-MSU: Croom and the Mississippi State Other Bulldogs are disciplined. But, they're also almost talent-less. Iowa State can relate - they can't even get out of the tunnel some games. Dixie Delta Dawgs, ugly, 19-17.


I get 7-5, SEC, with them winning the crucial, top-2 match-ups. Would those Big-12 gunslingers light up the SEC? Or, would the quick and deadly D's in Dixie smother the offensive fire power of the Heisman front-runners? Who knows. Let's hope we get some interesting match-ups in the bowls, and, until then, speculation sure is fun!

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* I'm still not a Texas Tech believer. I don't know why. It's unexplainable. Just a gut feeling, deep down. If they beat OU, I'll sign on. The O-line is the best thing about them. They're big, smart, talented and dominant; they're why the system works. Emphasis on system.