Josh Pate previews marquee games of the week in the SEC

The Southeastern Conference will feature three games, one in each broadcast window, between Top 20 teams on Saturday. Those were then the three matchups previewed and picked by Josh Pate on Tuesday night.

On ‘Josh Pate’s College Football Show,’ Pate made his predictions for the trio of ranked versus ranked matchups that morning, afternoon, and night in the SEC. That schedule, with conference and playoff implications in each, will feature one first in Norman, one in Nashville, and one that night in Baton Rouge.

Here were those previews and picks made by Pate for Saturday in the Southeastern Conference:

No. 3 Texas A&M vs. No. 20 LSU

Pate saw Texas A&M vs. LSU as an offensive question, as he wanted to know which one of those units could best find success on a Saturday night in Death Valley. In the end, though, even in a tough spot on the road, A&M is who Pate thinks makes more plays on that side of the ball, meaning a win and cover for the Aggies and the end of any postseason hopes for the Tigers.

“Now, some of these things are overrated and overstated, but LSU is 20-1 at night in Tiger Stadium under Brian Kelly. Well, there is a follow-up, unfortunately, on this piece of paper in front of me. Brian Kelly? Also, 5-10 in ranked games,” Pate said. “This is the fifth-straight game for A&M – back-to-back road stretch, second leg. There’s a lot of noise around LSU. Okay, well, how do we quiet that? Well, we quiet that by winning a football game, and it is a classic, here we go again situation for LSU.

“…So, can A&M’s offense scale, at night in Death Valley against LSU’s defense? … I think the model may have overweighted it a little bit, because I took all of it into account and I still think A&M is going to win the game and cover.”

No. 8 Ole Miss vs. No. 13 Oklahoma

In the morning, it’s a playoff-level game in Norman for Pate of Ole Miss vs. Oklahoma, as he would go on to highlight the Sooners’ offense against the Rebels’ defense as the key matchup in this one. But, he, in expecting enough stops and containment by the home team, chose a win and a cover by OU.

“This feels like a College Football Playoff game. It’s not an elimination game. Both teams, especially Ole Miss, would still be very much in the hunt if they lost the game. But it feels like the winner of this one is in it for everything, and I’m not sure we’re going to see the loser of this game in the postseason. That’s how it feels to me,” Pate said. “I’m thinking about Oklahoma’s offense and Ben Arbuckle versus Pete Golding and the Ole Miss defense. … The catch was, for Oklahoma, last week was good enough, because last week you played South Carolina…I’m not sure 20 points is good enough against Ole Miss. Could be, defensive is really good there but I would not bank on 20 points being good enough.

“…The model loves Ole Miss this week – loves Ole Miss. In fact, the model has Ole Miss -1.5. It almost makes the game a pick ’em. I disagree, so all the stock everyone thinks I’ve sold on Oklahoma? I didn’t. It’s just been in my pocket. I’m pulling it all out. Give me Oklahoma to win. Give me Oklahoma to cover.”

No. 15 Missouri vs. No. 10 Vanderbilt

Finally, on Saturday afternoon in Music City, Pate will be in attendance for Missouri vs. Vanderbilt, which he views as nearly identical teams facing one another. By game’s end, Mizzou is the team that he thinks will have done enough to avoid their second respective loss.

“Two of six SEC teams with one conference loss. That’s what we have on display here…Which side of the mirror wins this game? It is shocking how similar these teams’ profiles look,” Pate said. “So, I’m thinking to myself, you look in the mirror and the dude staring right back at you is you.

“…I like the team that grabs the lead…Who gets to play with the lead here? If there’s so much similarity, who gets to play with the lead? We think the wrong team is favored. By we, I mean the model…I’m taking Missouri to win, and I’m taking Missouri to cover.”

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