Saturday night brings two SEC games with significant playoff implications. Kentucky, currently atop the conference, travels to Tennessee at 6:15 p.m. ET. At 7:30 p.m. ET, Georgia visits Ole Miss in a rematch of last season’s College Football Playoff quarterfinal.
Kentucky has emerged as an unexpected conference leader. The Wildcats are 7-1 overall and 5-1 in SEC play, with several narrow wins helping put them in first place. They edged LSU 35-34, beat South Carolina by the same score on the road, and won 21-13 at Oklahoma. A bye week gave them extra time to prepare.
Tennessee is 6-2 after a disappointing 27-24 defeat at South Carolina. The Vols have a notable win of their own, having beaten Alabama 26-10, and they routed Kentucky 56-34 last season. Kentucky’s most recent win in Knoxville came in 2020, when it prevailed 34-7.
Pick: Adam Zouagui kicking points — higher. The Wildcats have played several close games, and Zouagui has come through in important moments, including with a tying field goal against South Carolina. If Kentucky’s drives stall in Tennessee territory, field-goal attempts could follow. In a tight SEC matchup, his kicking opportunities may add up.
The Georgia-Ole Miss rivalry has taken on extra edge. Georgia won 43-35 in Athens last October, but Ole Miss later ended the Bulldogs’ playoff run with a 39-34 victory in the Sugar Bowl. The Rebels have a new head coach after Lane Kiffin departed for LSU. Quarterback Trinidad Chambliss is back, and Ole Miss is coming off a 45-15 win over Auburn.
Georgia has had some bumps during a demanding stretch of its schedule, including a 27-24 loss to Auburn. Still, Gunner Stockton has been among the SEC’s more efficient quarterbacks.
Pick: Trinidad Chambliss passing yards — higher. Ole Miss has averaged more than 300 passing yards per game, with Chambliss leading the way. Playing at home at night, the Rebels could lean on the passing game against a Georgia secondary that has faced its share of challenges.
Pick: Gunner Stockton passing yards — higher. If this turns into the high-scoring game the 56.5-point total suggests, Stockton may need to throw often to keep Georgia in it. The teams’ previous two meetings produced 78 and 73 combined points.
