Ladies and gentlemen welcome to the inaugural installment of the weekly SEC predictions. First, I'd like to thank those of you for writing me concerning my preseason analysis. The mailbag is overflowing with positive, uplifting support. All I can say is "Roll Tide!"

Now, let's get the season underway. Here are the ground rules that will be applied throughout the season. Each game's final score will be predicted. Take it as a general outlook on the game meaning don't write me that I blew the call if, for example, Wake Forest beats Vandy 33 to 20. Look at it more from a margin point of view. I will also give a short commentary and analysis for all SEC conference games and out of conference games of importance. At the end of each article I will give my prediction for which team will perform the best for the week.

USC coach Pete Carroll takes great pride in his defense. So much as a
matter of fact, that he was pretty livid the way his offense manhandled
his defense in recent scrimmages. You have to remember though, this USC
offense is EXPLOSIVE and will torch many good defenses in 2005. Luckily
for this defense that is replacing 6 starters, they won't have to see an offense like this during the season.

Notre Dame: A Juggernaut?
With offensive minded Charlie Weis calling the shots, and 10 starters returning on that side of the ball, there could be a little bit of value betting the "over". Couple that with the fact that the Fighting Irish have a lot of holes to fill of defense, we could be seeing some old fashioned shootouts in 2005. I believe Brady Quinn will excell in Weis' new offense. Weis is a master at creating mismatches.