Biscuits & SEC Rivalry Week game-by-game previews 2024
We’ve arrived. It’s Rivalry Week, let the hatred flow through you.
By: Bossman, Hammer
As hard as it is to believe, we have arrived at the final weekend of the regular season. It’s simultaneously the best weekend of the year, full of rivalry games, thanksgiving meals, family, friends, and football, while also being bittersweet as the wonderful ride of a college football season is over. Many teams will play their final game of 2024 tomorrow. Many others will play in bowl games, conference title games, and for the 12 lucky winners, a college football playoff game. Soak it all in this weekend!
Here’s how the crew fared in Week 13:
As the regular season comes to a close, so do our regular season picks. We’ll continue picking games through the SEC season so that includes bowls, SEC titles, and CFP games so it’s not quite done. But for those of you interested in regular season titles and participation trophies, be ready this final weekend.
We’ve got a ton of games to get to, so let’s dive in!
Bossman: That’s a large spread for me to pick against, and if you’re smart, you pick against a big spread like that in the SEC this year. But I am not that smart man. I’m taking Ole Miss to win and cover here. The sails are deflated for the Rebs after the Florida Gators shot a cannonball through their SEC Title and CFP hopes last week. Still, I think they’ll be seeing blood and have a chip on their shoulder after the disappointing performance last week. They also catch their archrival in the middle of their worst season since 2003 when the Bulldogs won just two games, Jackie Sherrill’s final season in Starkville. The Bulldogs showed some life during the middle of this season, but since then they’ve fallen back to earth with blowout losses in their last three SEC games. I think Ole Miss takes out their frustration on the Bulldogs and wins big with their defensive front teeing off on Michael Van Buren.
#14 Ole Miss 45
Mississippi State 17
Hammer: I am fascinated to see how Ole Miss looks in this game. The loss to Florida last week absolutely crushed this team. The likelihood of Ole Miss sneaking into the CFP with three losses is next to none, especially being ranked behind Alabama. So where is their motivation here? I would like to think it simply comes from loving football and wanting to beat a bitter rival. But this is modern college football, and Ole Miss is at the forefront of that conversation with their NIL and transfer portal emphasis. All of that said, I think they come out and play a good game here. Jaxson Dart and others who have given their all to this program will want to end on a high note, and Mississippi State is ripe for a beating. The Bulldogs are really, really bad and I don’t expect them to come into Oxford and put up much of a fight if Ole Miss comes motivated to play. Until the Rebels do show signs of quitting, I’m going to assume they come ready to play.
#14 Ole Miss 41
Mississippi State 17
Waco Kid:
#14 Ole Miss 42
Mississippi State 16
Bossman: Another big spread here, and I’ll go against this one. Georgia is the better team here and they get the win, but the Ramblin’ Wreck have been pesky this year and I expect that to continue in this rivalry. Haynes King is expected to play and the 1-2 punch of King’s legs and Aaron Philo’s arm has caused a few teams some problems, like the Miami Hurricanes who lost to the Jackets for the second straight season. Don’t sleep on this GT defense either. At the end of the day, I think Georgia has found some confidence after their solid win over Tennessee, with Carson Beck returning to form. I’ll take the Bulldogs to win but they won’t cover.
#7 Georgia 31
Georgia Tech 17
Hammer: Georgia Tech is pesky. The 7-4 Yellow Jackets play hard and will not be easy to put away. But let’s be real for a moment. This is Georgia in Sanford Stadium at night against a rival. It ain’t happening. I like Georgia to handle business here with their CFP hopes on the line. However, given Georgia is already in the SEC title game and the size of this spread, I’ll take the Yellow Jackets to cover. I just don’t expect them to really threaten in this game. Give me Georgia to win comfortably but not cover.
#7 Georgia 31
Georgia Tech 14
Waco Kid:
#7 Georgia 52
Georgia Tech 24
Bossman: Mudfight! That’s what Vandy wants. They play ball control and force you to play their style of football and hope they can outlast you. I think that puts Tennessee in a dangerous spot here. Their offense should be clicking at this point in the season but it just…isn’t. And Vanderbilt’s defense is not a joke this season, but neither is Dylan Sampson, who leads the SEC in rushing by almost 200 yards. I expect another rock fight to the end like every Vandy game has been this season, but the Vols have too much in the end with a CFP berth on the line.
#8 Tennessee 27
Vanderbilt 17
Hammer: I have similar thoughts here to the Georgia Tech vs Georgia game. Vanderbilt is extremely pesky and hard to put away. Their offense is tough to defend, they maintain possession and frustrate opposing teams. But Tennessee’s defense is damn good and I think they will get after Diego Pavia here. Plus, this will be a glorified home game for the Vols as Tennessee Orange will far outnumber Vandy black in Nashville. I still do not trust Nico and the Vols passing game, but Dylan Sampson will get over 100 yards in this game and the Vols will win. There is too much on the line for them to come out flat.
#8 Tennessee 27
Vanderbilt 14
Waco Kid:
#8 Tennessee 45
Vanderbilt 38
Bossman: I’m pumped for this game. These fanbases despise each other as much as any rivalry you’ll encounter in the country. It goes under the radar, but it shouldn’t, and hopefully, if South Carolina can sustain this momentum for a couple of years, the Palmetto Bowl will return to prominence. LaNorris Sellers is on an absolute tear and playing like a man possessed. Clemson has played well for most of the year, but a few hiccups make you question just how good this team is. Cade Klubnik has turned into a reliable QB for the Tigers, throwing 29 TDs to just four INTs. There are two big advantages I see for South Carolina to one for Clemson. For Clemson, this one is in Death Valley, which always helps. For the Gamecocks, Clemson has just the 10th-best rushing defense in the ACC…something the run-happy Cocks are happy to hear. The Tigers have also allowed 18 sacks on the year and give up five TFLs per game. That’s a good omen for this vaunted Carolina front. I’ll take the Gamecocks in a tight one.
#15 South Carolina 30
#12 Clemson 27
Hammer: This game is huge. I love seeing this rivalry back in the national conversation. For the last decade, Clemson has dominated the Gamecocks and it was never worth watching. There is deep hatred between these two programs so the fact that they are playing a game with real stakes is awesome. Clemson has a good chance to make the CFP with a win, and South Carolina has an outside chance. Call me an SEC homer, but I like South Carolina to get it done here. Clemson has struggled in games against solid opponents, and they have several injuries on their offensive line. When you face South Carolina’s defensive line, having multiple injuries up front is a bad omen. I like the Gamecock defense to frustrate Klubnik and the Tiger offense all day. At the same time, I like how LaNorris Sellers is playing and as long as that offense can take care of the ball on the road, I think Shane Beamer and USC get this win outright.
#15 South Carolina 24
#12 Clemson 21
Waco Kid:
#15 South Carolina 34
#12 Clemson 28
Bossman: It’s been a nightmare season in Lexington, and I don’t think it gets any better on Saturday. The Wildcats have had Louisville’s number lately, winning six of the last seven meetings, and five in a row since 2018. I think that comes to an end this weekend. Louisville has the better team this year and has played everyone stout, even in their losses. The loss to Stanford stings, especially when they beat #11 Clemson on the road and whipped one-time ACC leader Pitt 37-9. In a matchup like this, I also think a lot comes down to coaching. Right now, I trust Brian Brohm more than I do Mark Stoops. Brohm has this team on a good trajectory.
Louisville 28
Kentucky 23
Hammer: Rivalry games always bring out the best. They matter to these teams and fanbases simply because they are rivals, and they want to win. It’s wonderful, and it’s the only reason this game carries any weight. Kentucky has had a brutal season so far. The Brock Vandagriff transfer never clicked, and the offense has been stuck in the mud all year. Yet, Vandagriff was just benched and Cutter Boley will get his first start of the year on Saturday. Maybe Boley can inject some fun into this offense and the Wildcats come to play in this one. I’m probably going to regret this, because Kentucky stinks, but I’ll take the Wildcats to pull off the upset here. Mark Stoops and this team will send a final middle finger to their instate rival and end the season on a high note.
Kentucky 24
Louisville 21
Waco Kid:
Kentucky 24
Louisville 13
Bossman: Watch your step, Tide…this one could get very interesting. But is it ever NOT interesting? Even when Auburn is down, they play up for this game. You only need to look at the last two years to see that. And right now, Auburn is riding high on emotion and confidence, while Alabama is picking up the pieces from another devastating loss. Lucky for the Tide, this one is at home. If it was on the Indian burial ground at Jordan-Hare Stadium, I’d have a hard time betting against the Tigers. I see two keys here. For Auburn, you gotta have a similar performance from Peyton Thorne as he had against A&M - and get his legs going as OU did with Jackson Arnold. And FEED JARQUEZ. Bama is soft against the run. Pound the rock and then hit them with some play-action to Cam Coleman or Keiondre Lambert-Smith. For Alabama, Jalen Milroe has to bounce back in a big way. Auburn has a solid rushing defense, but if I’m the Tide, you gotta get Milroe going on the ground with his bread and butter. I think Alabama is able to do that just enough in this one, but I’m squeamish about it. Alabama is very vulnerable.
#13 Alabama 28
Auburn 24
Hammer: I am torn on this game. And not just on the spread, but who wins outright. To me, this all hinges on the same thing I have been screaming from the rooftops all year long: how many carries does Jarquez Hunter get? I know Auburn has some playmakers on the outside, and both of those dudes showed out against A&M. But this offense goes as Hunter goes, and in order for Hutner to go, he needs the damn ball. The amount of carries Hunter has gotten this year with how poor the Auburn passing game has been most of the year should be a fireable offense for Hugh Freeze. I have to think Freeze will feed Hunter this week like he did last week against the Aggies. The Auburn defense is solid as well. Not elite, but solid and could frustrate Milroe and Alabama. Just stop Milroe from running the ball, which is easier said than done, and the Tide offense will struggle. For Bama, they just have to play their game. It’s at home and losing a 4th game is unfathomable to the Crimson Tide faithful. Just win this game by any means necessary. Force turnovers on defense, and don’t let Auburn’s defense limit the run game. To be honest, I hate picking Bama here but since it’s at home I will lean that direction. They won’t cover though.
#13 Alabama 31
Auburn 27
Waco Kid:
#13 Alabama 31
Auburn 24
Bossman: This is an important game for both teams, make no mistake. Mizzou is not interested in losing to an Arkansas team they view as down, and Sam Pittman can’t afford to lose to the dork who is purposefully mispronouncing his QBs name. The Battle Line Rivalry typically flies under the radar, but make no mistake, there’s no love lost between these two teams. I don’t see Brady Cook losing his last game in gold and black at home. We also may be seeing a snow game in Columbia, so it could turn into a ground-heavy attack for both teams. If that happens, Arkansas has a good shot to win this one, but I’m still taking the Tigers with that Cook factor.
#21 Missouri 27
Arkansas 21
Hammer: I’ve been critical of Missouri all season long because I don’t think they are that good. But that opinion, while I stand by it, has been influenced by outside expectations and noise. They came into the season as a top-10 team with CFP goals. They fell short of that goal by quite a bit when they got blown out against Bama and A&M. However, if you take out the sky-high preseason hype, Mizzou has been solid. They got blown out twice against good teams on the road, but otherwise, they have taken care of business. It’s looked ugly at times, but they have taken care of business nonetheless and that’s what I expect here. Arkansas is too inconsistent for me to trust them to put together a competent 60 minutes of football on the road. I fully expect Arkansas to turn the ball over a few times and ultimately fall short here. I’ll take the Tigers to get it done.
#21 Missouri 34
Arkansas 24
Waco Kid:
#21 Missouri 28
Arkansas 14
Bossman: It is a sad, sad state of affairs in Tallahassee. If they lose this game, it will be the worst season since the 1970s. The falloff of FSU from a borderline CFP team last season to one of the worst teams in the Power 4 should be studied. Anyway, DJ Lagway is playing and Doak Campbell will be half-empty. Florida.
Florida 28
Florida State 14
Hammer: Florida State is dead. They have been lost all year, and they won’t find it this weekend. The Seminoles are just begging to get this season over with and once this game is done, they can all put it in the rearview mirror. Doak Campbell will probably be half-full of Gator fans anyway. I don’t see how Florida loses this game or even sweats it. Give me DJ Lagway and the Gators all day long.
Florida 31
Florida State 13
Waco Kid:
Florida 30
Florida State 13
Bossman: I’m hoarding my flowers as long as possible, I picked OU to cover against Alabama and everyone thought I was crazy. In fairness, I didn’t pick them to win. BUT I didn’t leave them for dead like almost everyone else. And now, with a little life, could they sustain the momentum and take down a mediocre LSU team…? Anything is possible now, and people aren’t laughing at the Sooners anymore. We should also remember what has happened with LSU this season against running QBs…Jalen Milroe went for 185 yards and four TDs. Marcel Reed burned up the turf with 62 yards and three TDs in the second half. Last week, Jackson Arnold put up over 100 on Alabama. Might we see deja vu against LSU? It’s quite possible. Similar to the Tide, LSU is also not great at getting sacks or TFLs, which is where OU's worst attribute, the offensive line. Still, I think LSU has enough weapons on the outside to get it done, but mainly I’m taking the Tigers with this one in Death Valley. But I’m nervous about it.
LSU 30
Oklahoma 27
Hammer: I have no clue what to expect here. I thought Oklahoma had quit and they made me eat crow last week when they beat the crap out of Alabama. Can they repeat that performance on the road in Death Valley? I’m skeptical. But their offensive strategy last week does bode well for Oklahoma because LSU stinks at stopping the run on defense. Last week, the Sooners ran the ball 50 times for 257 yards on Alabama. They should try to repeat that game plan this week. They haven’t been able to throw the ball effectively all year, so just don’t try. Unfortunately for them, LSU saw that offensive scheme last week and has been game-planning for it all week. Will it matter though? Can LSU game plan enough to stop a run game if they simply aren’t good at stopping the run? I have my doubts. Basically, I am sitting here doubting both teams and have no idea how this will go. But I’ll go chaos mode in honor of a chaotic 2024 season and pick Oklahoma to pull off the upset outright.
Oklahoma 24
LSU 23
Waco Kid:
LSU 27
Oklahoma 10
Bossman: I’m not going to be able to hold in my homerism here. It’s been 12 long years since I sat in Kyle Field on a chilly November night and watched Justin Tucker send the Aggies to the SEC with a loss. An Aggie friend of mine made us take a picture after the game for some inexplicable reason. I’ll never forgive them, and the look on my face says as much. Now, A&M has a shot at revenge to stop the Horns from going to the SEC Title game in their first year in the conference. If the Aggies lose, they’ll never hear the end of it. “You had 12 years to go to an SEC Championship game and we went in year one!” Living in Austin, I’ll have to wear a ghillie suit around town to move without detection for fear of hearing the jeers. BUT I HAVE NO FEAR. A&M has the talent to compete with Texas, the game is at Kyle Field, and it’s a rivalry game where the hatred runs as deep as any. You can throw out everything on paper. It doesn’t matter. Kyle Field will be one of the best environments you will ever see on Saturday, worth every penny for one of the most expensive tickets in sports history. Quinn Ewers may be playing hobbled on a sprained ankle, which gives the Aggies a unique chance to mimic Georgia for this talented defensive line to pin their ears back and get after Ewers. The big key here for A&M is to not let Texas get off to a hot start and play from behind. They need to keep the crowd in the game and if they get down in a 21-0 hole like they did against South Carolina and Auburn, they’ll lose. This Longhorns defense is no joke. With all that said…GIVE ME THE AGGIES. I’m riding the emotion, and I think A&M will be too. The 12th Man will play a huge factor in this game and the Aggies get a couple of turnovers on their way to a massive win for the program.
#20 Texas A&M 28
Texas 27
Hammer: It’s finally here. For those of y’all who have been reading out blog for a while, you know I am a Texas A&M grad. So are my Dad and brother. Having this game back means so much. This was my favorite game all year growing up, just like every other Aggie and Longhorn. It’s about damn time it’s back and the stakes couldn’t be higher. All the talking that has been done for 13 years is over and we can finally settle it on the field with the winner going to Atlanta for the SEC championship game. The scene in Kyle Field will be one of the best atmospheres ever in college football. I fully expect the crowd to play a big role in this game because Texas has not been tested with a difficult road game yet. And in their two true road games thus far, against Vandy and Arkansas, they won by a combined 13 points. This game is there to be taken by A&M, if they can play clean. I expect the Texas defense to give A&M trouble. The Aggies have not been running the ball well since LeV’eon Moss got hurt against South Carolina, so Marcel Reed will have to have a great game. But Texas has a great defense, and getting points will be difficult for A&M. On the flip side, and where I think this game will be won, is with the A&M defense and turnover-prone Quinn Ewers. Texas A&M needs to get pressure on Ewers, make him uncomfortable, and get him to the ground. Ewers has shown time and time again that he will turtle up if he is pressured, but if given time, he is capable of carving up A&M’s secondary. I think the Aggie defensive line will get home in this one and force a couple of Texas turnovers. I am 100% a homer, but give me the Aggies to pull off the upset.
#20 Texas A&M 24
#3 Texas 23
Waco Kid:
#20 Texas A&M 43
#3 Texas 42
