In other action, the Virginia men's basketball team takes on La Salle in Brooklyn in the Barclays Center Classic at 9:30 p.m. The game is televised on NBC Sports Network. The Cavaliers are 5-0 after beating George Washington, 59-42, last Friday and then Tennessee State, 79-36, on Tuesday. The Cavaliers will then take on Vanderbilt or Rutgers in the Classic on Saturday.
Friday
Arkansas at No. 17 Missouri, 2:30 p.m. CBS
The Razorbacks have six wins and are eligible for a bowl for the first time under coach Bret Beliema. The significance of this game is all on Missouri. If the Tigers win, they capture the SEC East and will face Alabama or Mississippi State in the SEC championship game. If they lose, Georgia wins the East. I think Mizzou has the motivation necessary to get the job done at home, but it won't be easy. Arkansas is coming off back-to-back shutouts of LSU and Ole Miss and is playing its best ball.
Missouri 19, Arkansas 17
Duel in the Desert: No. 13 Arizona State at No. 11 Arizona, 3:30 p.m. FOX
The winner of this game can win the Pac-12 South if UCLA loses to Stanford. If UCLA wins, the Bruins win the South. But the Sun Devils and Wildcats must win to have any chance. Both of these teams are 9-2 and 6-2 in the conference. Both have good offenses and decent defenses. Both lost to UCLA. I think this game is a tossup so I will go with the homestanding Wildcats.
Arizona 31, Arizona State 28
Saturday
Battle of the Palmetto State: South Carolina at No. 21 Clemson, Noon ESPN
This game likely hinges on the health of Clemson QB Deshaun Watson. If he plays, I like the Tigers to beat the Gamecocks, something they haven't done since 2008. Clemson lost two weeks ago to Georgia Tech, 28-6, and managed just 28 points on Georgia State last week. South Carolina has had a disappointing season and is just barely bowl eligible with six victories.
Clemson 23, South Carolina 17
Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate: No. 16 Georgia Tech at No. 9 Georgia, Noon SEC Network
Every year, it seems like we think that the Yellow Jackets have what it takes to top the Bulldogs, and often we are wrong. Georgia has won 12 of the last 13 contests, with the Jackets winning, 45-42, in 2008. Last year in Atlanta, Tech took a 17-0 lead after the first quarter but ended up losing, 41-34, in double overtime. Between the Hedges, I like the Bulldogs to win a high-scoring affair.
Georgia 38, Georgia Tech 33
Egg Bowl: No. 4 Mississippi State at No. 19 Ole Miss, 3:30 p.m. CBS
A few weeks ago, this was looking like the game of the year. Since then, though, the Bulldogs have lost to Alabama and the Rebels have lost three times to LSU, Auburn, and Arkansas. Ole Miss hasn't beaten an SEC team in over a month, Oct. 18 (Tennessee). The Bulldogs are in more of a must-win situation with SEC West title and college football playoff hopes on the line.
Mississippi State 21, Ole Miss 16
Florida at No. 3 Florida State, 3:30 p.m. ESPN
The Seminoles have won an amazing five games by six points or less. And in two other games -- Louisville and N.C. State -- the Seminoles have been behind at halftime. They did it again last week against Boston College, winning by three on a late field goal. They should beat the Gators, who are just playing for their coach, Will Muschamp at this point. He is gone at the end of the year no matter what, and Florida is already bowl bound with six wins. Anything seems to be possible with this FSU squad, but it is still undefeated and I expect it to remain that way in Tallahassee.
Florida State 23, Florida 17
Battle for Paul Bunyan's Axe: No. 18 Minnesota at No. 14 Wisconsin, 3:30 p.m. Big Ten Network
This is a defacto Big Ten West championship game. The winner meets Ohio State in Indianapolis in the conference championship game. Both teams are playing well and run the ball, don't pass much, and have good defenses, so this is going to be an old style Big Ten game. I like the Gophers if it was in Minnesota, but I like the Badgers since it is in Madison.
Wisconsin 27, Minnesota 24
Iron Bowl: No. 15 Auburn at No. 1 Alabama, 7:45 p.m. ESPN
Along with the Egg Bowl, this was looking like a huge game a few weeks ago but has lost some luster with the Tigers' losses to Georgia, Texas A&M, and Mississippi State. Alabama lost to Ole Miss earlier this year but has been better down the stretch, picking up necessary victories over LSU and Mississippi State to get back into the national title picture. After last season's end-of-the-game debacle, I am sure the Crimson Tide are ready to go for this one and they also have more on the line.
Alabama 27, Auburn 17
Battle for the Commonwealth Cup: Virginia at Virginia Tech, 8 p.m. Friday ESPN
Well, here we are at the end of another year and another Cavaliers-Hokies rivalry game is upon us. And once again, it seems as if UVa has a good chance to win. When that has been the case before, though, the Hokies have prevailed. Tech has won 10 straight in the series and 14 of 15. Virginia last won, 35-21, in 2003 in Charlottesville. The Cavs' last victory in Blacksburg was the famous comeback game, 36-32, in 1998.
So is this actually the year that the 'Hoos are able to top the Hokies again? I was actually feeling pretty good about this game a few days ago. Like good as in leaning toward picking UVa as the winner. But two things happened this week that I think changed my mind. First, Tech said that it would start Michael Brewer at QB, but that it will use more of Brenden Motley in a backup/wildcat role. Even if he doesn't play the majority of the game, the fact that he probably will play more than a few plays probably works to Tech's advantages for a couple reasons. First, UVa must think about him and game plan for him. Second, he moved the ball against Wake Forest some and Brewer hasn't been good. A change of pace could be just what the Hokies need on offense after a jarring, terrible performance last week in a 6-3 double overtime loss at Wake Forest.
Second, UVa announced Wednesday that Mike London would be back as head coach in 2015. The fanbase seems to think this was a bad idea to announce this now, even if he was coming back no matter the result of Friday's game. A little added pressure could have been just what London, his staff, and his players needed to give them a boost vs. Tech. But once thinking about it, it was actually the logical move for UVa to announce the decision before the game. That is because the move, while lots of people want London gone, is easier to swallow after a good win over Miami than it would be after another loss to Tech. So, if he was coming back either way, might as well hedge your bets and cover your butt in case UVa loses. Can you imagine the uproar if UVa announced he was coming back after a blowout loss to Tech, or a close loss where a bad decision late by London costs the 'Hoos the game? Yeah, not pretty.
In reality, the announcement should not hurt the players' motivation. First of all, why would our players be lacking motivation? Most of the state is now against them as Tech has more fans. No one thinks they are good. Tech has won 10 games in a row, and usually pretty convincingly. Also, perhaps the pressure to win is off a little bit because of the London announcement, but at the same time, the players love London and should now want to validate the decision by going out and playing hard for him and winning on enemy territory. So I think the will should still be there on the players' part. Still, even though I just gave reasons why I think the announcement won't hurt the Wahoos' chances, this game has rarely gone according to plan. I just have this feeling that the London decision did take some momentum out of UVa's sails somehow.
The other years over the past decade where I thought Virginia had a good chance to win, it didn't necessarily have the edge on paper or the game seemed pretty even. But this year, UVa seems like it has the edge. Greyson Lambert has arguably been better than Brewer. UVa's running backs are much healthier than Tech's. The offensive line has been shaky but arguably better than Tech's. The Hokies' WRs are good but young while UVa's have been solid. Tech's defense is very good again, but UVa's is also very good. And Tech's special teams are still solid, but not what they used to be, and UVa's haven't been awful. The confidence of Tech's fans is at an all-time low. Now is the time to strike for the Wahoos.
This game, however, usually defies logic. In the end, I'm not sure UVa can score touchdowns on the Tech defense. The Cavaliers have scored all of two offensive TDs against the Hokies during London's tenure, which dates back to 2010. The offense might move the ball between the 20s but will bog down in the red zone, like it usually does. And I think the Tech offense will bounce back. It has to. It can't be that bad again. I don't think it will be great, but it will be good enough. Perhaps Motley comes in and gives the Hokies a spark or a big play, maybe even a score. That might be all the Hokies end up needing if the defense performs as well as as it usually does vs. UVa.
Virginia Tech 17, Virginia 9
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