ATHENS — All eyes turn to Tuscaloosa on Saturday night for an early season classic, Georgia playing at Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium.
Ninth-year UGA coach Kirby Smart will be trying to assert himself as the new “King of the SEC,” while new Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer hopes to prove the Tide’s ability to tame the Bulldogs hasn’t changed with Nick Saban no longer in charge.
Georgia was a 2-point favorite — down 4.5 — at the time of this publication, with recent opinion favoring an Alabama team coming off a bye week after a 42-10 win at Wisconsin.
Georgia, also coming off a bye week, has had its nose bloodied in a couple of wins already. The Bulldogs were up only 6-0 at halftime against Clemson before pulling away for a 34-6 win, a Kentucky gave UGA all it wanted before Georgia escaped with a 13-12 victory.
It’s the second time quarterbacks Jalen Milroe and Carson Beck will be facing off, Milroe having won the first battle by a 27-24 count in last year’s SEC Championship Game.
Can the Georgia defense get to the elusive, cannon-armed Milroe before he gets to them with explosive plays?
Can Beck process Alabama coverages fast enough to find the open receiver and know when to hand off to Trevor Etienne?
The college football world be tuned in at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday on ABC channels to find out.
Here’s the television schedule, betting line and pick for each game involving SEC teams on Saturday:
This Week’s SEC Games
Kentucky (0-2, 0-2 SEC) at Ole Miss (4-0, 0-0) -17 , Noon, ABC
The pick: Ole Miss 34, Kentucky 17
Oklahoma (3-1, 1-1) -2 at Auburn (2-2, 0-1), 3:30 p.m., ABC
The pick: Auburn 26, Oklahoma 24
Arkansas (3-1, 1-0) vs. Texas A&M (3-1, 1-0) -4 , 3:30 p.m. ESPN
The pick: Arkansas 24, Texas A&M 21
Mississippi State (1-3, 0-1) at Texas (4-0, 0-0) -38.5, 4:30 p.m. SEC Network
The pick: Texas 51, Mississippi State 10
Georgia (3-0, 1-0) -2 at Alabama (3-0, 0-0), 7:30 p.m. ABC
The pick: Georgia 27, Alabama 24
South Alabama (2-2) at LSU (3-1, 1-0) -21.5, 7:45 p.m., SEC Network
The pick: LSU 31, South Alabama 28
Last Week: 7-2 straight-up, 6-3 vs. Line
Season: 38-10 straight-up, 26-22 vs. Line
