B&S Week 9 game-by-game previews 2023
Texas A&M and South Carolina look to get right, Georgia looks to keep rolling and Tennessee looks to steal some groceries at Kroger Field.
By: Bossman Slim, Hammer, Waco Kid
Jacksonville is home to the top SEC game this week. Can Georgia keep their title hopes alive against the 5-2 Gators?
We’re smack dab in the thick of it now, nine weeks into the season. The East and West races are both starting to shake out, but you can bet that there is chaos lurking just around the corner…
Here’s how the crew has fared through eight weeks:
Bossman is still on Hammer’s heels, but he’ll need to snag a few games over the next few weeks to overtake him in the Straight Up column. Against the spread, Bossman has had a decent year, but overall it's been a poor effort from the B&S crew.
Let’s hit the previews.
Bossman Slim: No one knew the Bonham Trophy existed for years, and the game this year is as forgettable as the trophy they play for. Both team's seasons are finished in terms of meaningful games with serious postseason implications, so now we’re just playing to salvage some sort of dignity. For A&M, anything less than winning out will be seen as a failure. South Carolina’s season has gone sideways since the jump when North Carolina exposed the Gamecocks weak offense line in Week 1. The ‘Cocks offensive line has dealt with a spate of injuries and subpar play this season, resulting in the unit ranking 126th in the country in sacks allowed (30). That should have this stellar Aggie defensive front salivating, as the unit has lived in opponent's backfields since their underwhelming performance against Miami. Since that game, A&M has recorded six or more sacks in three games against SEC competition. The only game they recorded less than three sacks was last week against a solid Tennessee offensive line. I expect the Aggies to wreak havoc on Spencer Rattler and this poor USC line. South Carolina will be able to hit a few shots downfield, but ultimately, they just can’t score enough on this A&M defense to get a win on the road. The A&M offense is nothing to write home about, but this Gamecocks defense is one of the worst in nearly every statistical category, so I expect the Aggies to be able to do enough to get a much-needed win in SEC play. However, I don’t trust A&M to cover a 14-point spread after the paltry offensive output we’ve seen in the last two contests, so give me the ‘Cocks to cover.
Texas A&M 27
South Carolina 17
Hammer: Things are not going great at either of these programs. Jimbo Fisher is squarely on the hot seat yet again, and Shane Beamer’s Gamecock squad is going to miss a bowl game. This game seems like a perfect “get right” game for Jimbo and the Aggies though. I put that in quotations because I don’t think this team is capable of actually getting right and playing up to their potential as long as Jimbo is the head coach, but they should dominate South Carolina. The Gamecocks have a porous offensive line and A&M has one of the best front sevens in the entire country. Yes, the Aggie secondary is leaky at times, but without any time I struggle to see Rattler being able to take advantage of that on the road more than once or twice all game, which won't be enough. On the other side of the ball, South Carolina is bad defensively at every level. The Gamecocks are ranked 120th in the country in total defense, allowing 446.7 yards per game and surrendering just under 32 points per game. This is perfect for an Aggie offense that has really struggled to find any rhythm in recent weeks. Ranking 64th in rush defense and 127th in pass defense, the Aggies should be able to attack South Carolina however they would like and win big. This is a mismatch and it's in Kyle Field so I am expecting the Aggies to win big, but I have to reiterate that a big win here won’t mean much to me from an A&M perspective. Let’s wait and see how the Ags fare against Ole Miss and LSU before anyone draws conclusions.
Texas A&M 34
South Carolina 14
The Waco Kid: The battle for Bonham, doesn’t get any better than this. At least for two mid-tier SEC teams fighting for the title of who may make a run the next year. But hey that’s the motto, there’s always next year…A&M has had a few bad breaks go against them this year but have an overall solid team. South Carolina has Spencer Rattler and outside of him and a few receivers, are pretty weak all around. Neither team is going to dazzle you with offensive firepower, maybe the Gamecocks have the potential to, but the Ags definitely won’t. They do have a stout defense that has the potential to be one of the top in the nation. Which is why I’m giving the edge to the home team. The Aggies should be able to shut down anything Rattler brings to the table and if they can put 21 up on the board, game over. Don’t think they cover, but I’ve been wrong once or twice in the past.
Texas A&M 35
South Carolina 31
Bossman Slim: This game has some upset potential. I’m still not sold on the Dawgs and Florida has been up and down this year, yet sit at 5-2 and in a great position to make some noise in the East, a position not many people expected them to be in at this point in the year, me included. What concerns me most is the Florida defense. They’re a top-five unit in every category in the SEC except for rush yards against, where they rank seventh. Georgia doesn’t have the rushing attack that makes you feel like you’re staring down the barrel of a gun this year, but they are still formidable and averaging 172 YPG. The Dawgs have also found their stride through the air averaging 337 YPG. I don’t think Florida’s offense will be able to do enough against the seventh-best defense in the country in terms of PPG. If they couldn’t do it against Kentucky, why should I trust them against Georgia? Graham Mertz-to-Ricky Pearsall has been a hot connection this season, but I don’t think that will be enough to overcome the Dawgs, even without Brock Bowers in the lineup. I’ll take Georgia to win and cover.
#1 Georgia 44
Florida 24
Hammer: Depending on which Florida team decides to show up, this could be a competitive game or it could be a tail whoopin’ from Georgia. I will give Billy Napier and Florida credit for keeping things afloat despite a pair of early season losses to Utah and Kentucky, in which the Gators looked like they had never played football before. The ship remains steady in Gainesville, but the Dawgs are far and away the best team Florida will have seen up to this point. And Kirby likes to beat the hell out of Florida. I know Georgia is without Brock Bowers for the first time in this one, but they can figure out a way to move the ball in this one. The Gators defense is solid, but not good enough to hold up for four quarters against Carson Beck and Georgia. Although you would not know this if you read too many Bulldog message boards, Carson Beck is playing well and the Georgia offense is 3rd nationally in yards per game at 509. They are good and are going to score enough to win by two scores. Florida could keep it close but they still don’t have the dudes to win a game like this.
#1 Georgia 31
Florida 17
The Waco Kid: Should Florida show up for this one? Probably not. Yes, it is a rivalry which is the only intriguing part of this match-up. Outside of that, UGA is far and beyond the better team, with more talent, better coaching, all around just a solid unit that won’t let their national championship aspirations die by the tiny little claws of the Gators. UF may keep it close for a quarter but after that expect Kirby Smart to Open the Gate faster than a Zach Bryan concert in the middle of Snook, Texas.
#1 Georgia 42
Florida 17
Bossman Slim: I’m dubbing this one “The Anemic Bowl” as both teams having serious trouble scoring on offense. If Will Rogers doesn’t play, I think this one will be in the teens or 20s. Mississippi State has a bottom-tier pass defense and a middling rush defense, but can Auburn take advantage of it? Arkansas couldn’t do it last week, and while they have had well-documented offensive struggles, they still have KJ Jefferson, which Auburn does not. In five games against Power 5 competition, Peyton Thorne has just two games with 100 or more yards passing. He has zero games over 150+ yards. That’s just mind-boggling, especially for a Hugh Freeze-coached offense. As for Mississippi State, it’s been a struggle on offense for much of the year as the unit adjusts to a new offensive philosophy under OC Kevin Barbay. They’ve scored more than 20 just twice this season against the Power 5 and just once in SEC play. Will Rogers hasn’t looked the same and has been out of sorts for much of the year. If it’s Mike Wright, expect a heavy run scheme against the Tigers (Wright threw just 12 times against Arkansas). I don’t know what to expect in this on frankly. It feels like a Charlie Brown-style scrum, with both teams just handing the ball off to the battering rams and trying to win with field goals and a one-off, maybe a defensive, TD. I’ll take Auburn since it’s at home, and I think they’ll be able to get the running game going with Jarquez Hunter but give me State to cover.
Auburn 20
Mississippi State 16
Hammer: If you watch this game and are not a fan of Mississippi State or Auburn, I’d like to shake your hand and salute you as a true college football fan and genuine sicko. This game will be ugly. Neither offense is good at all. This game will be like watching service academies play except neither one runs the triple option. They run normal college offenses, they just can’t actually throw the ball. Auburn is ranked 121st in the country in passing offense at just 151 yards per game and Mississippi State is ranked 96th in passing offense at 203 yards per game. See what I mean here? This is going to be a knife fight in a phone booth, with both teams struggling to throw the football and just scratching and clawing for any yard they can get on the ground. I’ll take Hugh Freeze and Auburn to win this game since it's at Jordan-Hare and the Tigers have played considerably better than this year (and historically). I don’t trust anything about Mississippi State so I’m just rolling with the home team to eke out a close win.
Auburn 20
Mississippi State 16
The Waco Kid: This may be the best matchup of the weekend. Two teams with nothing to gain and nothing to lose can make for quite an interesting storyline. I’m not sure how I feel about this game. Auburn doest not have a good quarterback but Mississippi State has been horrible even with a QB like Will Rogers, who is questionable to play tomorrow. That’s what makes this difficult. MSU should be way better on paper but the eye test has proven otherwise. Auburn is not good but has tested a few top teams and put on better-than-expected performances. For that reason, I’ve got to go with the Tigers.
Auburn 24
Mississippi State 17
Bossman Slim: Another game on the slate I feel very little confidence in. Tennessee expected to pick up right where they left off last year with a high-flying offense behind veteran QB Joe Milton. That hasn’t materialized, as he’s struggled through the air and the Vols have had to rely heavily on the run game. Luckily for the Vols, they’ve turned into the best rushing attacks in the country behind Jabari Small, Jaylin Wright, and Dylan Sampson. Kansas State, UCF and Oregon are the only Power 5 teams with a more potent rushing attack. Kentucky has having similar issues at quarterback, with signal caller Devin Leary not living up to expectations and having difficulty adapting to OC Liam Coen’s system. The lack of passing attack is shocking considering the weapons that the Wildcats possess on the outside like Barion Brown, Dane Key, and Tayvion Robinson. Robinson is Kentucky’s leading wide receiver with just 338 yards and three TDs. The good news for Kentucky is that they have the second-best rush defense in the SEC to counter this potent orange attack. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, that didn’t matter for Texas A&M. The Aggies have a better front than Kentucky and still weren’t able to stop the Vols on the ground, as Tennessee ran for 232 yards on the A&M. They also managed 133 against Alabama’s formidable front. Like the Mississippi State-Auburn game, this is going to be a run-heavy game and who wins in the trenches will determine who wins this game. I like Tennessee’s lines better than I do Kentucky’s and that’s why I’m taking the Vols to win and cover.
#21 Tennessee 30
Kentucky 23
Hammer: Man, I don’t know what to think about this one. Tennessee and Kentucky have both been underwhelming at times this year and come into this one with a bunch of uncertainty. Kentucky has lost two consecutive games and neither game was particularly close. The Wildcats, however, are coming off of a bye week and are back at home to take on the Vols. Meanwhile, Tennessee has been beaten and battered physically in the last two weeks in their close win over Texas A&M and loss at Alabama. The Vols have to be hurting a little while the Wildcats should be well rested. Is Tennessee led by Joe Milton really a team that can go on the road to Kentucky after those two games and get a win? I don’t know. My head tells me that Tennessee is the better team here. If this was neutral or in Knoxville, I’d pick them to win no problem. But I’m going for chaos this week. Do I trust Devin Leary and the Kentucky offense to move the ball consistently against this Vol front? No, not at all. However, I can see the Wildcat defense playing well and finding a way to get a score on defense or at the very least force a turnover and give that offense a short field. I’ll take Kentucky to pull off a wild, albeit sloppy upset here.
Kentucky 23
#21 Tennessee 21
The Waco Kid: Tennessee looked decent after beating Texas A&M and in the first half against Alabama. But now they face one of the better teams in the East outside of Georgia. I’d like to think this may be close but that’s a stretch. I think Joe Milton takes the driver's seat back and runs this orange machine right over Big Blue. It should be a high-scoring game with alright defense. The Vols should be able to outscore Devin Leary and this Wildcats’ offense with ease. Tennessee covers.
#21 Tennessee 38
Kentucky 21
Bossman Slim: Next. I know we say this every week, but there’s just not much to say. Vanderbilt is not a good football team and they are well on their way to losing every SEC game this season. Week 9 against Ole Miss will be no different. The Rebels are hitting their stride, having won three straight. There is some look-ahead potential here, as Ole Miss has Texas A&M traveling to Oxford next Saturday, but at best, that means maybe Vandy keeps it closer than expected for three quarters. At the end of the day, Ole Miss has Jaxson Dart, Tre Harris, Quinshon Judkins, and the list goes one…while Vandy has no game-breakers like that. AJ Swann is also still questionable with an elbow bruise, so the odds are stacked against Vandy. Rebs win but don’t cover.
#12 Ole Miss 41
Vanderbilt 21
Hammer: I’ll keep this one quick as I keep reiterating that Vandy will not win an SEC game this year. This game is all about how much Ole Miss will win by and I do not expect them to cover. Vanderbilt has played within three scores of most teams they have played, including Georgia. This is also a sandwiched game for Ole Miss in between a tough road trip to Auburn last week and a big home game against Texas A&M next weekend. Ole Miss might play with their food for a half before finding the gas pedal and pulling away. Rebs win, Vandy covers.
#12 Ole Miss 35
Vanderbilt 17
The Waco Kid: Vandy is still horrible. Not much to write. Quinshon Judkins will get on track as a top SEC back and run rampant over this Commodore defense. Let’s just hope Vanderbilt walks away with some dignity.
#12 Ole Miss 45
Vanderbilt 13