Week 4 College FB Preview: Spurrier, Saban Face Tests

With the out-of-conference games mostly finished, Week Four of the college football season promises to be an exciting one.

The marquee matchup has to be South Carolina at LSU. In a meeting of two top-15 teams, Steve Spurrier's Gamecocks will look to show the nation that they're for real.

Nick Saban also gets his second test of the year, with Alabama hosting Georgia after narrowly surviving last week's showdown with Arkansas.

But enough with the talk—let's get to the picks.

South Carolina at LSU

Les Miles' offense faces another tough defense after embarrassing Virginia Tech two weeks ago. Look for Spurrier to game plan well enough to give his team a shot—but the hostile environment in Death Valley will be too much for Blake Mitchell to handle, and LSU will roll.

That said, it'll be closer than the Virginia Tech game.

My Pick: LSU

Georgia at Alabama

Alabama's win over Arkansas proved that Nick Saban's team isn't going to play dead while the coach waits to fill the program with his own recruits.

Though 'Bama looks like a contender in the SEC West, I feel a letdown coming this week—and some officiating that may not be so favorable to the Tide. 

My Pick: Georgia

Penn State vs Michigan

Is Michigan as solid as they looked last week....or as bad as they played in their first two games?

My guess is somewhere in the middle.

While Penn State struggled to put away Notre Dame, their early-season success pegs them as contenders in a weak Big 10. Still, Michigan will come into this one with a renewed swagger, and RB Mike Hart will lead his team to another victory.

My Pick: Michigan

Kentucky at Arkansas

A lot of people are expecting Kentucky to have a letdown this weekend at Arkansas, but I don't see it happening.

Rich Brooks can coach, and André Woodson isn't going to make many—if any—mistakes. Points shouldn't be hard to come by for the Wildcats.

Arkansas, of course, has Darren McFadden, and they'll give him the ball early and often. If Kentucky can make him work for his yards, I believe McFadden will wear out. If McFadden and Felix Jones can make big plays throughout the game, on the other hand, this one will become a shootout—and the home crowd may give Arkansas the edge.

My Pick: Kentucky

Florida at Ole Miss

Florida hasn't won in the state of Mississippi since 1994, and has lost its last three games against Mississippi teams.

Look for those trends to end this week.

BenJarvis Green-Ellis (the best name in football, by the way) will be hoping for a rain-soaked game to allow him to run all over the young Florida defense. The Gators showed last week, though, that they're able to shut down the ground game.

This weekend marks Tim Tebow's first road game as a starter—but if there's any young QB I trust in this situation, it's Tim Tebow.

Look for Tebow to lead his Gators to another big win as they get a week closer to their October 6th titlt with LSU.

My Pick: Florida

Washington State at USC: USC
North Carolina at USF: USF
Georgia Tech at Virginia: Virginia
Iowa at Wisconsin: Wisconsin
Michigan St vs Notre Dame: Michigan St