SEC Fan Nation Week 1 Staff Predictions

The staffs of three Fan Nation SEC sites provide their game predictions for Week 1 of the college football season.

USA Today Sports

Week 1 of the SEC season begins with all 14 teams in action and games spread across four days of the Labor Day weekend. Heck, even Vanderbilt is 1-0, thanks to a road win over Hawai'i last Saturday.

There are no season-opening conference games, but there are two games matching up Top 25 teams. No. 3 Georgia faces No. 11 Oregon in Atlanta, a game that pits the national champions against their former defensive coordinator, Dan Lanning, who is now the head coach at Oregon.

The other is Cincinnati, which was the first Group of 5 team to reach the College Football Playoff last season. The Bearcats are No. 23 heading into their season opener at No. 19 Arkansas.

Staff members from All Aggies, Mizzou Sports Talk, and The Grove Report provide their predictions for each SEC game this week.

Ball State at Tennessee (6 p.m. CT Thursday, SEC Network)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Ball State could give Tennessee trouble early. But not late. Tennessee 36, Ball State 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Ball State has been on the rise over the past two seasons. So has Tennessee. Hendon Hooker has an evening with Cedric Tillman in Neyland Stadium. Tennessee 48, Ball State 17

Louisiana Tech at Missouri (7 p.m. CT Thursday, ESPNU)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: This game could be awfully fun. I’m really interested to see what Sonny Cumbie has done with LA Tech’s offense. But do the Bulldogs have the defense to slow down Mizzou? Missouri 33, LA Tech 30

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Should the Tigers be on upset watch? Without question. Will they lose? Probably not so long as QB Brady Cook doesn’t throw it right into the hands of a Bulldog defender. Missouri 31, Louisiana Tech 17

Connor Zimmerlee, Staff Writer: Missouri is slowly working its way back to contending in the SEC once again. The Tigers might be a year away, but they should be good this season. Opening on Thursday night against Louisiana Tech is an interesting challenge but look for the Tigers to start their season off with a strong win in Week 1. Missouri 38, Louisiana Tech 10

Sam Houston at No. 6 Texas A&M (11 a.m. CT Saturday, SEC Network)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Sam Houston is one of the best FCS teams in the country and preparing for a move to Conference USA. But this is gonna be bad for the Bearkats. No two ways around it. Texas A&M 63, Sam Houston 10

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: The Bearkats have lost one game in two years. Sure, the Aggies should pay attention, but the level of competition between the two schools is a night and day difference. Texas A&M 41, Sam Houston 13

Connor Zimmerlee, Staff Writer: The sky’s the limit this season for Texas A&M, as some analysts consider them national title contenders. However, the Aggies do have a sneaky tough non-conference schedule. While Sam Houston State should be a relatively handy win for the Aggies, sleeping on this Sam Houston State team could cause problems. Texas A&M wins going away, but this could be a better game than some think. Texas A&M 49 Sam Houston State 17

No. 11 Oregon at No. 3 Georgia (2:30 p.m. CT Saturday, ABC)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: As intriguing as the local knowledge argument for new Oregon head coach Dan Lanning is, I think Georgia head coach Kirby Smart has spent the last eight months gutting out every tendency Lanning may THINK he knows about. Georgia 31, Oregon 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Even if the game was in Eugene, the Ducks are cooked. Georgia isn’t the same roster as its national championship one, but it’s good enough to beat Bo Nix for a fourth consecutive season. Georgia 34, Oregon 21

No. 23 Cincinnati at No. 19 Arkansas (2:30 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Cincinnati lost a lot from last year’s incredible College Football Playoff team. But they’re not a shell of last year’s team. Neither is Arkansas. This could be the best game of the weekend. Arkansas 33, Cincinnati 30.

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Luke Fickell still is leading the program, so the Bearcats are going to make this a challenge. That said, the Razorbacks lost one offensive lineman, one running back and replaced star receiver Treylon Burks with OU transfer Jason Haselwood. The Hogs handle business in Fayetteville. Arkansas 34, Cincinnati 20

Troy at No. 21 Ole Miss (3 p.m. CT Saturday, SEC Network)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Even breaking in a new quarterback Ole Miss will take care of business. Ole Miss 34, Troy 18

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Now known as “Transfer U” thanks to the portal, Ole Miss will struggle early against the Trojans, but will find its balance in the second half. Far from a perfect game, but it could be worse in Oxford, right? Ole Miss 34, Troy 17

No. 7 Utah at Florida (6 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN+)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Bad timing for Florida. It’s the best Utah team coach Kyle Whittingham has ever put together. And Florida coach Billy Napier is making his Gators debut. He’ll find out quick they don’t like losing in The Swamp. Utah 27, Florida 21

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: I have Utah making it to the College Football Playoffs as the No.2 seed. What does that mean? The Utes aren’t losing a game in 2022. Utah 34, Florida 20

Miami (OH) at No. 20 Kentucky (6 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN+)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Again, Miami (OH) is a solid MAC team. But ‘solid’ MAC teams don’t win these games. Kentucky 37, Miami (OH) 21

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: A new offensive coordinator calls a rusty first quarter before giving the keys to Will Levis to set Kroger Field ablaze. Cats by 90 … but really more like 21. Kentucky 41, Miami OH 10

Mercer at Auburn (6 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN+)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Auburn will eventually be a dumpster fire. But it won’t be this week. Auburn 63, Mercer 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: It’s Bryan Harsin watch in 2022. He survives Week 1 on The Plains over Mercer. Will he make past Week 2? Auburn 34, Mercer 3

Elon at Vanderbilt (6 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN+)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: I’m not emotionally prepared for a 2-0 Vanderbilt team. But here we are. Vanderbilt 33, Elon 10

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Vanderbilt got a win in Week 0 over Hawaii. The Commodores get a win over Elon in Week 1 at home. Fire the cannons for the winning streak! Vanderbilt 28, Elon 7

Utah State at No. 1 Alabama (6:30 p.m. CT Saturday, SEC Network)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: I know the Internet is infinite, but we all know what’s going to happen here, right? Alabama 67, Utah State 13

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: The good news? Utah State will score at least 10 points. The bad news? It comes in the fourth quarter against Alabama’s third-team defense. Alabama 49, Utah State 13

Memphis at Mississippi State (6:30 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPNU)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: Memphis is trying to get a Power 5 league interested in it. A win over MSU would help. But it’s unlikely. Mississippi State 36, Memphis 21

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: I’m one of the only people who thinks the Bulldogs have a shot to finish with nine-plus wins. The reason? Their defense. More will understand what I’m talking about by the fourth quarter at Davis Wade Stadium Saturday evening. Mississippi State 34, Memphis 7

Georgia State at South Carolina (6:30 p.m. CT Saturday, ESPN+)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: It’s not likely USC will fumble twice in a week. I mean, passing on the best mascot name ever is enough losing for one week, right? South Carolina 44, Georgia State 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: Beamer ball back? Beamer ball back. Cocks strut their stuff with Spencer Rattler looking like a 2020 version of himself in Columbia. South Carolina 38, Georgia State 10

Florida State at LSU (6:30 p.m. CT Sunday, ABC)

Matthew Postins, Staff Writer: All I know is that FSU still isn’t that good, it’s night in Death Valley and the Tigers don’t typically lose when it’s night in Death Valley. LSU 33, Florida State 17

Cole Thompson, Staff Writer: A new era of LSU football begins Monday evening with plenty of Brian Kelly accent jokes. It ends with him proving why he’s a top-five coach in the sport against an improved Seminoles’ roster. LSU 31, Florida State 13

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