Standings reshuffle in local ESPN College Football Pick 'Em contest

According to this week’s SEC football schedule, there are four head-to-head games between SEC teams this Saturday. Alabama will play Texas A&M at 2:30 p.m. in Tuscaloosa (CBS), and Auburn will play Arkansas at 5 p.m. in Auburn (ESPN). Mississippi State will play Kentucky at 6:30 p.m. in Lexington (SECN), and Ole Miss will play LSU at 8 p.m. in Baton Rouge (ESPN).

In other games involving SEC teams this week, South Carolina will play UMass at 11 a.m. in Columbia (SECN), Missouri will play Middle Tennessee State at 3 p.m. in Columbia (SECN), and Vandy will play Tennessee State at 6:30 p.m. in Nashville (ESPNU). Florida, Georgia and Tennessee all have open dates this week.

Here are my predictions as to how those games will turn out. I like Alabama over Texas A&M, Auburn over Arkansas, LSU over Ole Miss, Mississippi State over Kentucky, Missouri over Middle Tennessee State, South Carolina over UMass and Vandy over Tennessee State.

Last week: 4-2. So far this season: 53-10.

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The seventh weekend of our local ESPN College Football Pick ‘Em Contest wrapped up on Saturday night, and there was more than a little shake up in the standings this week. I held on to first place for the third week in a row, and Drew Skipper moved into sole possession of second place. Last week, he was tied with Steve Stacey for the second-place spot.

Steve dropped from second to third place. Eric Byrd went from sixth place to fourth place, and Rod Sims held on to fifth place for the second straight week. Hunter Norris went from ninth place to sixth place.

Travis Presley held down the No. 7 spot for the second week in a row. Justin Chandler jumped into the eighth-place spot, and Eric Talbot jumped into the No. 9 spot. Ricky Taylor finished the week in the tenth-place spot.

If you’re playing in the contest and didn’t finish in the Top 10 this week, don’t feel bad. We’ve got seven more weeks left in the contest, and there’s a lot of football left to be played. The Top 10 changes pretty much every week, and you can bet that next week will be no different.

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As of Monday, there were only four teams left in the Major League Baseball playoffs. In the National League, you had the Chicago Cubs and the Los Angeles Dodgers duking it out for the league championship. Over in the American League, the Cleveland Indians were battling the Toronto Blue Jays for the American League crown.

As of Monday, Cleveland had a 2-0 lead over the Blue Jays in their best-of-seven series, and the series between the Cubs and the Dodgers was tied at one game apiece. I’m hoping to see a World Series between Cleveland and Chicago. I’m not pulling for the Blue Jays simply because they’re from Canada, and the idea of them winning the “American” league pennant just doesn’t sit well with me. The Indians are only slightly more palatable. I’m pulling for the Cubs to win it all, mainly because they haven’t won a World Series since 1908.