Missouri at Ole Miss is SEC’s Big Game
Maty Mauck
When the schedule came out, most people likely would have thought this week the big game in the SEC would be the one between the LSU Tigers and the Texas A&M Aggies. If not that one, then most would likely have gone with the Vanderbilt Commodores at the Tennessee Volunteers in the big in-state rivalry game. While those games are still rather large, the biggest one this week is the one in Oxford where the Missouri Tigers will battle the Ole Miss Rebels.
The SEC Eastern Division championship is at stake in the Missouri Ole Miss game. The South Carolina Gamecocks are 6-2 and will be in a bird fight with the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers this week. While they are taking care of business they will be pulling for the Rebels to take down Mizzou. The Tigers are 5-1 in the SEC, with that lone loss to the Gamecocks. If the Rebels can’t help the Gamecocks then they still have one last shot when the Tigers take on the Aggies next week.
In only their second year in the SEC, it would be very impressive for the Tigers to land in the SEC Championship game. There are members who have been inn the SEC for the entire time there has been a championship game that still have never made it. Ole Miss is one of them. The others are the Commodores and the Kentucky Wildcats and of course the Aggies who have also only been eligible for two seasons. A&M has been getting most of the accolades for being the better of the two new additions with a Heisman Trophy winning quarterback in Johnny Manziel and some big wins including one over the national champion Alabama Crimson Tide. But quietly, Mizzou is 9-1 with wins over traditional SEC powers, the Georgia Bulldogs, Florida Gators and Tennessee Volunteers. The Tigers are also ranked #8 in the BCS standings and with two more wins and a win over the Auburn Tigers/Crimson Tide winner, they could find themselves in the running for a national championship.
But should the Tigers get upset, they will be out of the championship game and likely in either the Cotton Bowl, Capital One Bowl or Outback Bowl. That would be quite a drop. So this game tomorrow may be the biggest in their school’s history.
Bet DSI has the odds on the SEC games this week:
Missouri at Ole Miss– Mizzou is -2.5 -110 while Ole Miss is +2.5 -110 ATS. Moneyline is Mizzou -135 and Ole Miss +115. Over/Under is 58 with over -110 and under -110. We are going to go with Ole Miss +2.5. Missouri doesn’t realize just how tough it is to win a championship in the SEC. That includes even winning just a division title. There is a reason this is the best conference in college football. We also like the over.
Vanderbilt at Tennessee– Vandy is already bowl eligible while UT is trying to get there. This is a must-win for the Vols. But Vansy would love to get one at Neyland. It has been a while since they’ve won there. Vandy is +2.5 -105 and UT is -2.5 -115 ATS. Moneyline has the Commodores +120 and Tennessee -140. Over/Under is 53.5 with both -110. We like Vanderbilt +120 and the over -110.
Miss State at Arkansas– This game is a pickem with an over/under at 50. We gotta go with the Bulldogs in this one. Arkansas is just really bad. We also like the over.
Texas A&M at LSU– A&M would like a bit of payback for last season’s loss. Texas A&M is +5 -110 and the Tigers are -5 -110 ATS. Moneyline is A&M +175 and the Tigers -210. O/U is 73 with both -110. We like A&M +5 and the over. Of course we like the over since both of these offenses are awesome and neither defense could stop anyone in a game of two-hand touch. Johnny Football knows how to pull out a shootout.
Kentucky at Georgia– UK is +26 -110 and the Bulldogs are -26 -110 ATS. Moneyline is UK +1500 and UGA -3500. We would be tempted to put a small wager on Kentucky +1500 in this one. Georgia is having a terrible year and you just never know when the shy will cave in on them. Over/Under is 61.5. We like the under -110.
