The sun is barely up and here in South Carolina it finally feels like football weather.
The morning air is crisp and cool but todays college football landscape promises to be scorched with heated tension.
In College Station Texas it is either going to be validation or revenge. If Johnny Football manages to beat Alabama again then all his off and on the field antics will be overlooked. If Saban is able to extract his revenge then the reigning Heisman Trophy winner might have his magic carpet ride jerked from underneath his nimble feet. I have a feeling it might be a long fall for not only Johnny football but the entire Texas A&M program if that is the case. This day looms large for both teams but A&M seeks validation and a true opportunity for that does not role around that often.
I predict A&M wins by 10 but it will be because of an outstanding defenses performance rather than QB heroics that make the difference.
Another interesting matchup will be underway at the same time between Oregon and Tennessee out in the duck pond. Nobody imagines Tennessee will have any reason to be singing rocky top and I would have to agree, but even a strong showing by the Vols against the Oregon scoring machine will give some momentum to the sleeping giant in Knoxville. I think the best Tennessee can hope for today is a moral victory but it should be a fun game to watch.
Tennessee being down puts a pretty big damper on the SEC east in my opinion and I would even argue that the rise of South Carolina can be heavily attributed to the fall of Tennessee. When Tennessee was a power a huge portion of their recruits came from South Carolina, Western North Carolina and North Georgia. The Vol's quick decent into the bottom rung of the SEC opened up some huge opportunities for South Carolina as well as Clemson for a large number of recruits that would have been wearing burnt orange seven years ago. Florida's decline can also be attributed to South Carolina's rise but for Florida there will always be enough local talent to keep them relevant as long as they have some measure of competent coaching. The harsh truth for Tennessee fans is that if they are not winning, cheating or both then they face a huge uphill battle in the SEC east. If they do not make a push to power quickly it might be decades before South Carolina relinquishes their top tier spot in the east. A win against Oregon in Oregon might be just the kind of magic the Vols need to get that spot back much sooner.
Georgia fans finally get a breather today before next weeks match up against LSU. If Coach Richt can find a way to come out of the most brutal first four weeks of competition I can remember with only one loss then the Dogs might be in for a very special year.
South Carolina finds themselves in for a gut check tonight. Everyone knows that Vandy is no slouch by now so it will be interesting to see if the Cocks can bounce back from the harsh reality check Georgia handed out in Athens last week. This early in the season almost anything can be forgiven but taking back to back losses will put a legitimate end to almost all of the Gamecock goals. If I am a Gamecock fan I start looking for the Xanax now. I think the Gamecocks win but it is still going to be a stress fest and only a dominant stomping of Vanderbilt will make this a good day in Columbia.
The last game of note for southern football fans will be Ole Miss versus the staggering Long Horn program. This game lines up to be a wet dream for the talented freshman at Ole Miss and I see Austin Texas turning into a full blown disaster tonight. This game could get ugly and if it does Mac Brown might find his tenure at Texas over like a slaughterhouse steer with a bolt gun to head.
I hope everyone is up early and outside enjoying the first taste of fall this morning because by noon today you will not want to be venturing away from the T.V.
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