Local ESPN college football pick 'em contest enters final weekend

The tenth week of our local ESPN College Football Pick ‘Em contest wrapped up on Saturday and when the last second ticked off the clock in the final game Saturday night, we had another shuffle in the local standings.

Steve Stacey and John Johnston found themselves in a two-way tie for first place. Casey Grant and Justin Mixon were tied for third. I was in fifth place, and Robert Bozeman was in sixth place.

Vanessa Sales, Jesse Jordan, Brett Loftin and Tristan McPhaul were all tied for seventh place. Arthur Ingram III was in 11^th place. Those tied for 12^th place were Clint Hyde and Justin Lowe.

This coming weekend will mark the final week of this year’s contest, so by this time next week we’ll have another “grand champion” in the local contest. This distinction carries all sorts of high honors and accolades, plus bragging rights for the ensuing year. Will Steve and John be able to hold on to the lead for another week or will someone rise from the ranks at the last second to knock them off? Only time will tell, so check back next week for the final word.

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The tenth weekend of the SEC football season also closed out on Saturday, and college football fans had six conference games to enjoy.

This week, we’ve got six more SEC games lined up for Saturday, presuming one or more don’t get cancelled due to COVID-19: Alabama at LSU, Texas A&M at Auburn, Arkansas at Missouri, Florida at Tennessee, Vanderbilt at Georgia and South Carolina at Kentucky.

For what it’s worth, here are my predictions for that slate of games. I like Alabama over LSU, Auburn over Texas A&M, Missouri over Arkansas, Florida over Tennessee, Georgia over Vandy and Kentucky over South Carolina. (Last week: 5-0. So far this season: 39-12)

Alabama and LSU are scheduled to kick off at 7 p.m. and will be televised by CBS. Auburn and A&M are scheduled to get going at 11 a.m. and will be broadcast by ESPN. As of Monday morning, Alabama was a 28.5-point favorite, and A&M was a 6.5-point favorite.

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Also during the past week, 37-year-old right-handed pitcher Charlie Morton returned to the Atlanta Braves. Morton played for the Tampa Bay Rays last season, but on Tuesday of last week he signed a one-year, $15 million contract to pitch for the Braves next season. Many Braves fans in the reading audience will remember that the Braves originally drafted Morton in 2002, and he made his Major League debut with the Braves in 2008.

In 2009, he moved on to the Pittsburgh Pirates and went on to play for the Phillies, Astros and the Rays. Morton should be a good addition to the Braves pitching staff. Not only is he a frontline caliber pitcher, but he’s also a veteran who can provide guidance to Atlanta’s up-and-coming pitchers. Atlanta finished just one win shy of a World Series appearance last season, and one is left to wonder how the Braves would have faired had Morton been on their team.