Alabama football heads up to Rocky Top in search of its first win at Neyland Stadium since 2020, after a tough loss to No. 1 Georgia last week.
Several other key contests will take place, including a rematch of last season’s Big Ten Championship Game and quarterback Austin Simmons’ return to Oxford, Mississippi. Here are my Week 7 picks.
No. 4 Ohio State at No. 5 Indiana: Memorial Stadium, 11 a.m. CT on FOX
At long last, the Buckeyes get their chance at redemption against the defending national champion.
A rematch appeared a possibility entering last season’s College Football Playoff, but Ohio State sputtered and was upset by No. 10 Miami in the Cotton Bowl. The Hoosiers escaped a late comeback effort from that same Hurricanes team en route to their first-ever national title, leaving a bad taste in the Buckeyes’ mouths.
Despite the revenge factor, head coach Ryan Day isn’t focused on what happened in Indianapolis 10 months ago.
“Nothing that happened in the past has anything to do with what’s going on this weekend,” Day said. “We can learn from the past, so some of the guys who played in that game can learn about all the reasons that we came up short. And that’s fine, that’s good, but the focus has to be on right now.”
Indiana escaped a potential trap game against Nebraska and entered this one with the most efficient offense in the country, averaging 7.6 yards per play. Quarterback Josh Hoover has impressed as the replacement for last season’s Heisman Trophy winner, Fernando Mendoza, and has yet to throw an interception on 129 pass attempts.
I expect this game to come down to the final minutes, similarly to the Big Ten title game last season. Though I believe Buckeyes receiver Jeremiah Smith produces a Heisman moment en route to a statement win for Ohio State in Bloomington.
Prediction: No. 4 Ohio State 24, No. 5 Indiana 21
No. 13 Missouri at No. 9 Ole Miss: Vaught-Hemingway Stadium, 2:30 p.m. CT on SEC Network
Somehow, one of the SEC’s best Week 7 games landed on SEC Network. But regardless of the television channel, this game should deliver plenty of points.
Tigers quarterback Ole Miss transfer Austin Simmons will look to beat his former team and the quarterback that took the starting job from him, Trinidad Chambliss. With Rebels running back Kewan Lacy — a Missouri transfer — back on the field, I expect Ole Miss to be less reliant on the abilities of its star quarterback.
Lacy should see a larger role in the offense this week as he continues to work back from a shoulder injury suffered against LSU, after recording seven carries for 39 yards and a touchdown in a blowout win over Vanderbilt last week.
“I think he’s feeling really good,” head coach Pete Golding said of Lacy. “He came in yesterday [and] I thought he was going to be a lot sorer than he was. I think the way the game went helped a little bit, as far as from a management standpoint of it.”
I expect Simmons and his former Ole Miss teammate Cayden Lee to give their former head coach’s defense problems, but it will not be enough. Similarly to Kamario Taylor in Mississippi State’s thrilling win over the Tigers on Sept. 26, Chambliss will get in a rhythm late and keep the Rebels’ SEC championship hopes alive in a one-score win.
Prediction: No. 9 Ole Miss 38, No. 13 Ole Miss 30
No. 6 Alabama at No. 14 Tennessee: Neyland Stadium, 2:30 p.m. CT on ABC
Alabama football should enter this game with a vengeance.
The Crimson Tide has not won on the road in Knoxville since the COVID-19 pandemic. But with how last weekend’s 20-17 loss to Georgia ended, Alabama may have the motivation necessary to defeat Tennessee in its own backyard.
“I’ve told the team, ‘You can’t let Georgia beat us twice,’” head coach Kalen DeBoer said Monday.
Quarterback Keelon Russell struggled early but settled in against a tough Bulldogs defense. I expect some early blunders from the sophomore to begin this game as the Crimson Tide could be down to its backup center after starter Racin Delgatty suffered a lower-leg injury late against Georgia.
Fortunately for the Crimson Tide, the Volunteers’ offense is not nearly as explosive as it was two years ago, averaging 30.4 points per game — 44th-most in the Football Bowl Subdivision — and 370.2 yards per game — 68th-most in the FBS. Tennessee also has a quarterback debacle on its hands, as talented freshman Faizon Brandon has dealt with an injury.
With it unclear whether Brandon will return as the starter this weekend or if head coach Josh Heupel will turn to sophomore George MacIntyre again, I am picking the Crimson Tide to pull away in the second half after an offensive slugfest in the first half.
Prediction: No. 6 Alabama 27, No. 14 Tennessee 17
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