SEC Football 2009: Hot Games of the Week

Each week will provide some big games for the SEC this coming year.  Let's take a look at some of them and mark the calendar now for the "must see" games of each week for this coming season.

Week One

No other team plays a "must see" game other than Alabama this week.  Just like last year when Alabama started off with a bang, not only jump starting their own season, but helping to kill Clemson's, the Tide starts off against another top 20 foe.  This year it's Virginia Tech who steps up.

A win could propel either team to upper status and high expectations for the rest of the season.  The loser will go home and lick their wounds and start rebuilding the season. 

Larry's pick - Alabama

Week Two

South Carolina at Georgia.  Can Georgia fill in the blanks and continue their dominance over the ball coach?  Will that stingy Gamecock defense throttle the dogs and keep it close til the end? 

A win here sets up the winner for a shot at the division championship if they can beat Florida, and that appears to be a long shot right now for either team. 

Larry's pick - Georgia

Week Three

Tennessee is coming to the swamp for a butt kicking.  This is the marquee game, but not because it will mean much in the standings.  Everyone knows Florida will win.  The big question is by how much?  Does Urban Meyer want to hang 60 on this loudmouth upstart?  Will Tebow take it up a notch to take up for his coach and his school?

Even people who don't care for either school are going to tune in to this one just to see how ugly it's going to be.  Anything less than a 24 point win by Florida will be a morale victory for the Vols. 

Larry's pick - Do I really need to say?

Week Four 

Arkansas comes over to Tuscaloosa to tangle with the Tide.  Bobby Petrino had some late season improvement to make this game important enough to be a game of the week.  A loss here could hurt Alabama's chance of repeating as Western Division champions or end the Hogs altogether.

The Hogs could make this an entertaining game, as Alabama may still be putting the right pieces together on the offensive line. 

Larry's pick - Alabama

Week Five

LSU goes to Georgia and these two top SEC schools will duke it out, virtually crippling the loser's chances to win their division.  Both these schools were picked to finish second in their division, and this game could end up showing which division has the most Juju at about the midway point.

In a game that right now could go either way, this will be the game of the week without any question.  They should be evenly matched and equally motivated.  Both should come into this game undefeated. 

Larry's pick - Georgia

Week Six

Boy, what a week this midway point is!  Auburn is at Arkansas, Florida is at LSU, but my pick of the week has to be Alabama going to Ole Miss.  Why?  Florida is expected to and should beat LSU, but it won't determine a division championship for either school like Alabama at Ole Miss.  The winner of this game will, in all likelihood, play LSU for the division championship and an SEC Championship Game appearance.

Both teams should be more than motivated to play their best, and this game could be as good as last year's battle.  Houston Nutt has the Rebels believing they are ready to contend for titles, not just wins. 

Larry's pick - Alabama

Week Seven

Arkansas at Ole Miss has begun to have the same kind of feel as the Bama - LSU game.  It seems old coaches aren't all that welcomed to play their old teams.  The Hogs would like nothing better than to show Ole Miss why it was glad to be rid of Houston Nutt. 

Pride is the name of the game here and I think Ole Miss has a slight edge. 

Larry's pick - Ole Miss

Week Eight

The third Saturday in October in the SEC always means Alabama and Tennessee.  The Vols come to Tuscaloosa after have already been beat up by Florida and Georgia and Nick Saban has no intention of easing their pain.  Whether Alabama will win this game is in much less doubt than if Lance Thompson will get punched in the mouth by any one of the many Tide coaches who now want a piece of him.

Urban Meyer is more likely to call off the dogs before Nick will.  Much like the earlier Florida game, fans from across the nation will tune in just to see how big the ass whipping will be and to see if Nick can make Little Boy Kiffin cry. 

Larry's pick - Nick will make Kiffin's eye's puddle...

Week Nine

Cocktails anyone?  The biggest cocktail party will overshadow the rest of the SEC this week as Florida and Georgia do their annual tango in Jacksonville.  This game is for all the marbles in the SEC East. 

Most are expecting Florida to continue its dominance, especially since they're bringing in the defending national championship team.  But if Georgia gets off to a good start, gets the new QB in rhythm, and the defense stays tough, it could be a thrilling game. 

Larry's pick - Florida

Week 10

No question over this game either, it's LSU coming to Alabama.  This should be the game that decides the SEC West Champion, much like last week's game did for the East.  Has LSU settled in enough to try and take back the West?  Can Bama truly prove that they are back and not just another flash in pan?

This is a game with major ramifications in recruiting, too, and is a weekend Nick Saban has already penciled in a bunch of recruits to witness. 

Larry's pick - Alabama

Week 11

OK, we'd better mention here that Auburn is also in the SEC.  This week, Auburn can show whether its rebuilding efforts are working or not.  With the proximity of the two schools, much closer than Alabama and Auburn, this is also a battle for recruits for this part of the country.

The key will be whether Auburn has settled on a QB by this time and whether or not the new offense is working.  For Auburn, this is the time of year they could be looking to become bowl eligible, so a win would mean a lot to them. 

Larry's pick - Georgia

Week 12

Oh, I want to say that the big game will be the battle between Vandy and Tennessee, but the implications of the LSU Tigers going to Ole Miss just overshadows it.  Depending how both these teams have done against Alabama earlier, this game could determine either going to the SEC Championship game or being the SEC West runner up.

Week 13

Everything ends with a bang.  It's rivalry week all across the SEC, both inside and out. This last week is less cut and dried that any week so far, and could just come down to wanting to pull for your favorite team against a big rival.

For example, South Carolina plays big rival Clemson, an in-state rivalry.  Georgia plays Georgia Tech in what could be a great game.  Arkansas plays LSU in what has become a good rivalry. Ole Miss plays Mississippi State in yet another longstanding in-state feud. Alabama plays Auburn and even though it was a mismatched butt whipping last year, Auburn is expected to try and make it respectable this year.  Even Tennessee and Kentucky is developing into a nice little grudge game.

But the game with the biggest implication could very well be Florida State coming to the swamp to play Florida.  This game will show just how good both teams are and could have major bowl implications for both as well. 

Larry's pick - Florida

Bonus Week

For two lucky teams, there will be a week 14—the two division champions who will play in the SEC Championship Game.  Though it's way too early to say definitively, the best guess is that it may very well be a repeat of last year's great game.

Las Vegas and the sporting world will all be on the Gator bandwagon.  Although this may not be the year of the big upset like many years past in the NCAA, there could be one here. 

Larry's pick - Alabama

Whether or not you agree with the winners I've picked, you have to agree with the games of the weeks.  They'll be some good ones this year and just like all the fans out there, this writer can't wait either.