Welcome to our second edition of the picks panel, where we’ll give winners for 10 games a week every Friday during football season. In addition to yours truly, Thomas Duggins (a regular contributor and UT JEM school graduate) and Andrew Robertson (co-host of U.G.O. Sports Saturday’s) will offer weekly predictions with a short explanation for each selection.

Andrew: I really wish this game could be played 2-3 years from now when Butch Jones has had ample time to install his system and recruit to his scheme. As it is, I’m not convinced Tennessee has the offensive firepower to match the Oregon offense score for score. Justin Worley would have to improve by a great margin over the first 2 games, and even then, that might not be enough. I think the Vols have a good chance at covering what is an extraordinarily high point spread, but they just don’t have the horses to win a game like this against a team this good…YET. Winner: Oregon

Thomas: Butch Jones has the Vols doing the right things. That is, taking care of the football and not committing unnecessary penalties. Unfortunately, the Vols will have to do all the right things and then pray for “fowl” play (see what I did there) on the Ducks part to stand a chance at Autzen. If Tennessee manages to keep it within three TD’s, that will be a job well done by Butch Jones and Co. Winner: Oregon

Reed: For the Vols to win this one, Justin Worley has to consistently complete passes downfield, the Vols will have to dominate the line of scrimmage and win the turnover battle. Even that may not be enough to keep Tennessee in the game against the most talented Oregon team I’ve seen in years. The Vols should cover the spread, but simply don’t have the firepower to fly with the Ducks. Winner: Oregon

Andrew: This is it. The game college football fans and pundits have been waiting on for about 8 months now. There’s just no way the game can match the massive build-up that it has gotten, but I still expect it to be a great game. Regardless of your personal feelings for Johnny Manziel, there’s no denying the fact that he is a phenomenal college quarterback. I do believe Nick Saban’s pandering in the offseason to outlaw hurry-up offenses was at least partly because he finds it to be the most challenging offense to stop, and Sumlin/Manziel run it better than anyone. I’m tempted to take A&M in the upset, but I can’t overlook the fact that Bama has had 2 full weeks to prepare and gameplan for this game. I think that makes the difference in a tight game. Winner: Alabama

Thomas: I’m going against the grain here. Nick Saban is 7-1 in rematches during his tenure with the Tide. Alabama is swimming in NFL talent on both sides of the ball. However, antics aside, Johnny Manziel is a helluva football player, A&M has an abundance on the offensive side of the ball and the game is at Kyle Field. If A&M fortifies its’ rushing defense, I genuinely feel the Aggies win for the second straight year. Bama’s performance against Va. Tech was also tremendously lackluster and they can’t afford that type of performance against the Aggies. Winner: Texas A&M

Reed: Alabama didn’t look sharp in a season opening win against Va. Tech, but they will field a loaded team once again. The Aggie defense has been porous in the first couple of games, and unless it improves, even Johnny Football’s magic won’t be enough to beat Bama for the second consecutive year. Defense wins football games, and I’m going with the team with the more proven D. Winner: Alabama

Andrew: Prior to the season, I would have felt confident picking the Longhorns in this game, but after 2 weeks, I have ZERO confidence in Texas (or Mack Brown). Firing Manny Diaz and bringing in Greg Robinson looks like a desperate move to salvage what could end up being a disappointing season and the end of Brown’s tenure in Austin. Couple that with David Ash’s in jury, and things look pretty for the Rebels, who had a layup against SEMO last week. Ole Miss is a talented, albeit young, football team and they are catching Texas at the perfect time. I’m thinking DeLoss Dodds will be checking out coaching resumes by Sunday morning. Winner: Ole Miss

Thomas: Texas has more talent, but after the ghastly defensive performance of the Longhorns’ defense last week I just don’t see them stopping a balanced Rebel Black Bear offense. BYU showed how the read option can kill the Longhorns and Bo Wallace is a pretty good read option QB. It’s hard for me to buy Texas losing at home to an opponent of lesser talent, but I just can’t buy them fixing all of their issues on defense in one week. Winner: Ole Miss

Reed: The Longhorns are in disarray. Simply put, Texas is the more talented team here, but their program is floundering under a lack of leadership/coaching from Mack Brown. The Ole Miss’ defense hasn’t been impressive this season, but their offense should put a ton of pressure on a Texas defense that’s breaking in a new coordinator. Winner: Ole Miss

Andrew: The Trojans are in total disarray. They can’t even figure out if they had team meetings or not. Lucky for them, Boston College is not a very good team. (neither was Washington St.) I think the Trojans can muster just enough offense to squeak out a close victory over the Eagles. Winner: USC

Thomas: Coming off their resounding victory (sarcasm) over Wake Forest. BC continues USC’s misery and stokes the coals beneath Lane Kiffin’s already scorching hot seat. USC doesn’t have a QB, and that will continue to kill them this week. Winner: Boston College

Reed: USC lost to a TERRIBLE Washington State team at home last week, while Boston College is coming off a win against a bad Wake Forest team. No way to sugar coat it, this will be a battle between two bad teams. If Kiffin loses, that may be enough to seal his fate, but I don’t see that happening…this week. Winner: USC

Andrew: I get the feeling that South Carolina is an angry football team, and no, I’m not just talking about their coaches. Jadeveon Clowney was supposed to have around 20 sacks by this point in the season if you listen to some media, but it just hasn’t happened for him yet. I think he takes it to another level this week and starts looking like the player most were expecting to see this year. Vandy had a breather against Austin Peay last week and should be well rested for this game, but I don’t think it matters. I think the Gamecocks easily cover in this one. Winner: South Carolina

Thomas: This could be the most fun SEC game of the weekend. Both teams are desperate not to start 0-2 in league play. If Vandy is going to upset one of the SEC favorites this is the game for them. Unfortunately for ‘Dore fans, I don’t foresee the Gamecocks dropping this contest at home. Maybe Clowney finally shows up this week. Winner: South Carolina

Reed: Is this the week Vanderbilt finally beats one of the best teams in the SEC East? No. Winner: South Carolina

Andrew: If you like watching good defensive football, stay far away from this game. Both teams have explosive offenses, but not much on the defensive side. Brett Hundley vs. Taylor Martinez is a really good quarterback matchup, and I think both will have great days throwing the football. Expect a shootout with lots of points on the board, with the Bruins scoring late to get out of Lincoln with the win. Winner: UCLA

Thomas: Nebraska’s defense is bad. UCLA is a hot program. Both teams probably end up with more than 30 points, but the Bruins will have the higher number. Winner: UCLA

Reed: This one should be a shootout. Cornhusker head coach Bo Pelini’s defense has struggled the last couple of years and if he loses this one, his seat could start getting warm. UCLA’s offense will be too much for him to contain. Winner: UCLA

Andrew: Even if Tyler Russell is healthy, the Bulldogs were a team I had pegged for a disappointing year in the preseason. Their opening day loss to Oklahoma St. made me feel even more confident about that prediction. Auburn has their own question marks at quarterback, but Nick Marshall has been fair so far, and he has a better team around him than what Russell has. Auburn looked a lot better in a Week 2 win over Arkansas St. than they did in their first game against Washington St. I expect to see even more improvement this week as they match their win total from last season in only the third week. Winner: Auburn

Thomas: The Bulldogs are “meh” as any program in the nation. Give me Auburn’s zany offense, especially if Tyler Russell is still MIA for the Bulldogs. And if the crowd shows at Jordan-Hare stadium, it will be a solid home-field advantage . Gus Malzahn scores his first SEC win. Winner: Auburn

Reed: If Auburn QB Nick Marshall continues to improve, the Tigers should win comfortably…and I think he will. Winner: Auburn

Andrew: For the life of me, I can not understand why the point spread on this game is so low. The Cardinals are a superior football team, and with the Wildcats being the hated in-state rival, I don’t see any way that Louisville will come out flat for this game. Louisville should be ahead comfortably by the 4th Quarter, and Teddy Bridgewater will help his Heisman campaign on this national TV blowout. Winner: Louisville

Thomas: Teddy Bridgewater will name his score against BBN. Mark Stoops and company will be lucky to keep this game within a 35 point margin. Winner: Louisville

Reed: Mark Stoops and the Wildcats don’t have the horses to keep up with Louisville’s explosive offense. This one could get ugly. Winner: Louisville

Andrew: Duke went on the road and got a nice win at Memphis last week, while Georgia Tech had the week off. While you can’t take much from Georgia Tech’s opening week massacre of Elon, they sure did look to have their triple option humming, and Vad Lee is a really good fit for Tech at QB. The Yellow Jackets are a tough matchup for most teams given their archaic offense, and the Blue Devils are one of such teams. Winner: Georgia Tech

Thomas: Coach Cutcliffe is a damn fine coach, but it’s Duke. Georgia Tech rolls in with its triple option and Vad Lee and rolls up a bunch of points against the Blue Devils. Winner: Georgia Tech

Reed: The Yellow Jacket triple option attack will be tough for the Blue Devils to stop. Duke should keep this one close, but Georgia Tech’s ball control offense will be too much for the home team. Winner: Georgia Tech

Andrew: It’s looking like Braxton Miller is going to play, which is a boost for the Buckeyes. I don’t think he has to play for OSU to win, but Cal definitely has the potential to put a lot of points on the board and put a scare in the Buckeyes if they don’t come out ready to play. I’m interested in seeing if Cal still has the tree-dwellers outside their stadium. Honestly, that interests me more than the game, which probably won’t be that close. Winner: Ohio St.

Thomas: I’m curious to see what OSU looks like without Braxton Miller against quality competition, but I’m not sure the Golden Bears qualify as quality competition and Miller hasn’t been ruled out for Saturday yet. That’s not an indictment of Sonny Dykes coaching ability, but more of the lack of talent currently at Cal. That said, this game could be close. Winner: Ohio St.

Reed: Looking for an upset this week? Cal can put up some points and will be fired up for this one. The Buckeyes have more than enough talent to win this one, but it could be close. Winner: Ohio St.