No. 1 Mississippi State at No. 5 Alabama (-9.5) 3:30 pm CBS
Daniel: This has all the ingredients of an “upset,” as crazy as it is that the No. 1 team in the nation is a touchdown-plus dog. Alabama played a physical night overtime game last week while MSU had an easy matchup. Mobile quarterbacks have had fairly regular success against Alabama as well. So while that very well could happen, I’m sticking with my picking recipe. If the more talented team is playing at home I almost always pick them. Talent, coaching and home-field advantage are the three biggest factors in my book. Alabama has all three in this one, so I’m going with the Tide, though it will be another struggle. Pick: Tide 27-24
Houston: Alabama survived a tough one last week in Death Valley, and now get to welcome the number one team in the country to Tuscaloosa in Mississippi State. Dak Prescott and Josh Robinson have been sensational for the Bulldogs all year long, but how do they matchup against an Alabama defense that ranks at or near the top of the league in most statistical categories? Alabama’s defense will give up some big plays, in my opinion, but this game is all about Mississippi State’s defense against Alabama’s offense. State’s defense has been opportunistic this year, but they’ve also been inconsistent enough to cause Bulldog fans to lose sleep over this matchup against Alabama’s high-powered offense. I don’t think the Bulldogs have anyone capable of covering Amari Cooper in the way that LSU was able to last week, and I think that will ultimately prove to be the difference. Winner: Alabama 38-31
Reed: Mississippi State is exactly the type of team that gives Alabama trouble. They have a mobile quarterback who can beat you a variety of ways. Mullen’s offense has been lights out this year – the Bulldogs will put up some points in T-Town this weekend. State’s defense has been great in the red zone but not very good other wise – they ranked 12th in the SEC in total defense while Bama ranks 1st. Blake Sims proved last week that he can come through in big moments and the Bulldogs don’t have anyone that can stick with Amari Cooper. Miss State will battle, but their smokescreen defense can’t keep making huge plays in the red zone. That only gets you so far and it won’t get them past Bama this weekend. Winner: Tide 34-27
Seth: So undefeated, number 1 Mississippi St. travels to the taint of the south (Tuscaloosa) to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide. Dan Mullen has the ball rolling in an impressive manner with the Bulldogs team, and they have managed to go through this season unscathed despite having one of the worst defenses in the SEC. Alabama, for all of the great recruiting and one of the most impressive collections of talent and coaching in the country, has looked surprisingly pedestrian at times this season and needed a miracle to win in Baton Rouge last week against a middling LSU squad. If the Tide has that kind of showing on Saturday then they will get run out of the trailer park that the Bear built. I don’t expect them to have that bad of a showing again though. I look for this to be a high scoring affair with the self ordained inventor of football, Dan Mullen, and his best in the nation red zone defense walking out of Bryant-Denny victorious. Winner: Bulldogs 45-40
