Pigskin Pickin' -- Part II

I felt pretty good about my prognostications from the opening week of football season. Went 11-1 and about nailed the Auburn-Kansas State final (I said 21-13), but it’s not as if there were very many balanced matchups.
Week 2 should provide a more stringent litmus test of my clairvoyance.
As always, feel free to make some predictions in the comments section.

Saturday’s games of interest

Southeastern Conference

No. 9 Virginia Tech (1-0) at No. 2 LSU (1-0)
Neither team did much to validate its ranking in the opening week. Virginia Tech sputtered in a 17-7 win over an East Carolina team playing its backup quarterback. LSU waxed Mississippi State 45-0, but didn't find the accelerator until the second half.
Prediction: LSU 14, Virginia Tech 10

South Carolina (1-0) at No. 11 Georgia (1-0)
This is a fun role reversal: After years of torturing Georgia fans while at Florida, Steve Spurrier considers a win over the Bulldogs to be a sign of validation for his South Carolina program. Given the Gamecocks’ potentially tumultuous quarterback situation, he’ll have to wait a while. You don’t suppose he’d want Matthew Stafford, do you?
Prediction: Georgia 31, South Carolina 16

South Florida (1-0) at No. 17 Auburn (1-0)
Auburn managed an appalling 1.7-yard-per-carry rushing average in a narrow win over Kansas State. The Tigers really, really, really miss Brad Lester, who is out indefinitely for academic reasons. Right now, behind an inexperienced offensive line, the offense looks even worse than it did in 2006. That's not encouraging at the moment since South Florida is expected to be better than Kansas State.
Prediction: Auburn 24, South Florida 20

Alabama (1-0) at Vanderbilt (1-0)
Vanderbilt receiver Earl Bennett went Coo-Coo For Cocoa Puffs last week, catching 13 passes for 223 yards and three TDs in a win over Richmond. I’m guessing Alabama’s defense will be a little better than what Richmond offered.
Prediction: Alabama 27, Vanderbilt 21

Troy (0-1) at No. 4 Florida (1-0)
Before the season, I thought Troy might scare the bejabbers out of Florida. The Trojans played Arkansas tough for three quarters, but got worn down by the Razorbacks’ running game. Without stud defensive end Kenny Mainor, who was arrested for possession of wacky weed, the Trojans will likely experience another second-half fade.
Prediction: Florida 49, Troy (the school, not the sports columnist) 21

Southern Miss (1-0) at No. 24 Tennessee (0-1)
If Tennessee defenders learned how to wrap up on tackles in the last few days, the Vols should be OK. If not, the trendy preseason SEC East pick can expect some problems down the road against Florida and Georgia.
Prediction: Tennessee 30, Southern Miss 17

Mississippi State (0-1) at Tulane (0-0)
I want to believe that Sylvester Croom is a decent coach caught in a horrible situation. While Croom inherited an undeniably atrocious situation at Mississippi State, a loss to Tulane would really undermine his efforts to make it better.
Prediction: Mississippi State 16, Tulane 13

Kent State (1-0) at Kentucky (1-0)
Kentucky QB Andre Woodson is one bad mutha. Just saying.
Prediction: Kentucky 41, Kent State 14

Missouri (1-0) at Ole Miss (1-0)
Mizzou QB Chase Daniel is an exciting player and he should be geeked up about playing against an Ole Miss defense that allowed 343 passing yards to Memphis last week. Ole Miss beat Memphis because it intercepted four passes, but Mizzou won't be nearly as mistake-prone.
Prediction: Mizzou 34, Ole Miss 24

Atlantic Coast Conference

Samford (0-1) at No. 21 Georgia Tech (1-0)
Georgia Tech exposed Notre Dame as being unfit for even the Carquest Bowl this season. Coach Chan Gailey has warned his team not to fall into the trap that consumed Michigan last week, but Samford isn’t nearly as good as Appalachian State.
Prediction: Georgia Tech 45, Samford 10

Miami (1-0) at No. 5 Oklahoma (1-0)
This doesn’t have quite the same appeal as it did in the mid-1980s when Brian Bosworth was rocking that gooberish haircut and the Hurricanes were accepting $100 handshakes from Luther Campbell. Randy Shannon should get Miami back on track before too long. New Okie QB Sam Bradford looked sharp last week, but should become well acquainted with 6-foot-8 Miami defensive end Calais Campbell.
Prediction: Oklahoma 21, Miami 20

No. 16 Nebraska (1-0) at Wake Forest (0-1)
Will somebody please explain to me how it worked out that Nebraska is traveling to Winston Salem? Shouldn’t it be the other way around?
As for the matchup, Wake Forest had problems stopping the pass last week and that’s not good since that’s sort of what Nebraska does now.
Prediction: Nebraska 38, Wake Forest 27

UAB (1-0) at Florida State (0-1)
UAB wanted to hire Jimbo Fisher in the offseason, but couldn't work out the right money. If UAB boosters happened to catch the FSU-Clemson game, they might be happy it didn’t happen. In fairness, Florida State's failings have more to do with diminished recruiting hauls and an apparent loss of energy by head coach Bobby Bowden. Right now, he looks like a lost old man whose coaching method seems to be wandering the sideline and whining ‘‘Where’s my pudding?’’
Prediction: FSU 28, UAB 14

Just for kicks

No. 19 TCU at No. 7 Texas
Texas moved the ball well, but let Arkansas State hang around last weekend. TCU has excellent team speed and should have a chip on its shoulder from playing in the Longhorns' shadow.
Prediction: TCU 27, Texas 24

Lenoir-Rhyne (0-1) at Appalachian State (1-0)
I’ve hopped aboard the Appy State bandwagon after last week’s cataclysmic upset of Michigan. Lenoir-Rhyne went 3-8 last year and sounds like a female country singer, so the Mountaineers should cruise.
Prediction: Happy Appy 45, Lenoir-Rhyne 3