Skip to main content
Join Now
Get a profile. Be recruited.

College GameDay podcast split on LSU at Vanderbilt picks

IMG_0985by: Griffin McVeigh3 hours agogriffin_mcveigh
LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier, Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia
Stephen Lew | Imagn Images - Gary Cosby Jr. | USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images

Nashville, TN, calls a big-time ranked SEC matchup home on Saturday. The Vanderbilt Commodores welcome the LSU Tigers to town, with kickoff scheduled for 11 a.m. ET. A big one for both teams, looking to keep pace in what’s turning into an SEC arms race.

Predictions for the game continue to roll in, including from ESPN’s Rece Davis and Pete Thamel. Starting with the former, he is going with LSU to walk out of FirstBank Stadium with a win. Something caught his attention during last Saturday’s win over South Carolina, believing quarterback Garrett Nussmeier is back healthy.

“I am going to not trust my eyes, which has glazed over the LSU offense and take LSU on the road,” Thamel said via College GameDay Podcast. “I feel like Nussmeier, even though they didn’t score a ton in the South Carolina game, I saw Garrett Nussmeier again… He, to me, took a step forward the other night vs. South Carolina. I feel like they will be able to muster enough offense and have enough explosion to beat Vandy.”

Davis was not as confident with his pick initially. Wanting to side with LSU, he eventually decided to take Vanderbilt to get the win. Some of the thought process comes from what College GameDay saw a week ago in Eugene, while also explaining why going with the Commodores makes him nervous.

“I’m going to go with Vanderbilt,” Davis said. ” … I’m going to need to see it to believe it but there’s something about this year and the upstarts. I just saw it last week. Even though my eyes told me Indiana was better than last year, my eyes didn’t say they’d go into Oregon and dominate the game, largely… I don’t know if Vanderbilt can do that against them and it does scare that Vanderbilt has allowed 11 touchdown passes. If there is a way for LSU to put up points, it is certainly through the air and not through the ground. But I’m going to trust (Diego) Pavia with this one and say Vanderbilt wins one.”

To find Vanderbilt’s last ranked-on-ranked win, you have to go back to Oct. 4, 2008, against the Auburn Tigers. They rose all the way up to No. 13 in the AP poll as a result, maybe something they can surpass with a win vs. LSU. Doing so would bring another great achievement for Clark Lea, and on the flip side, Davis says the fire might begin to turn up for Brian Kelly.