Site: Ben Hill Griffin Stadium (Cap. 88,548)
Kickoff: 12 p.m.
TV/Radio: ESPN
After defeating Georgia last week in Jacksonville, the Gators return home for the first time since Oct. 3 when they upset then-No. 3 Ole Miss 38-10. Florida welcomes the Vanderbilt Commodores for a Homecoming matchup with a spot in Atlanta on the line. With a win, UF clinches the Southeastern Conference Eastern Division and a chance to win the SEC title on Dec. 5 in the Georgia Dome.
The AlligatorSports Brand Picks Column is now in its ninth week and arguing this week’s game between the Navy Midshipmen against the Memphis Tigers are alligatorSports assistant editor Luis Torres and alligatorSports staff writer Graham Hack.
Navy will win because…
The good-ole triple option has been the calling point for Navy for years and the Midshipmen are once again among the top in the nation in rushing yards. Navy averages 319.71 yards per game — fourth in the country — and they also average 34 points per game. The Midshipmen will control time of possession to make sure that Paxton Lynch and the Tigers stay off the field and they’ll score enough to win the game.
Plus, how can you pick against a service academy? It’s un-American.
— Luis Torres
Memphis will win because...
This is the same team that knocked off No. 18 Ole Miss — an Ole Miss team that went into Tuscaloosa and knocked off No. 4 Alabama. The Tigers’ offense ranks sixth in the country in total offense with more than 560 yards per game and ranks third nationally in scoring offense with nearly 48 points per game. On only one occasion has Memphis scored fewer than 35 points this season. That doesn’t bode well for Navy’s triple option offense, which has hit the 35-point mark just twice this year. In a shootout, the advantage clearly goes to Memphis.
— Graham Hack
Now onto the picks!
We have a two-way tie for first place with records of 39-31-2.
First up is the Palm Beach Post’s Anthony “P.F. Chang's” Chiang, who takes his wife out at the Asian restaurant in unincorporated Dade County. Hey Anthony, I know it’s the most exciting place to take your wife out for a dinner date, but how about coming up to Gainesville a bit more often and actually do your job?
Next is Alligator Managing Online Editor Jordan “Rampaging Elephant” McPherson, who during one of his classes had the chance to experiment with a virtual reality program that made him an elephant that was abducted by aliens. Hey Jordan, stop calling your day trips virtual reality programs, we’re here for you if you need an intervention.
In third place with a record of 38-22-2 is alligatorSports assistant editor Luis “Wedding Crasher” Torres, who is skipping Saturday’s Florida-Vanderbilt game to go party at a friend’s wedding. Be careful, man, if you have another Bourbon Street episode, your status for South Carolina might be in jeopardy.
We have another two-way tie, this time for fourth place with records of 37-33-2
First up is GatorCountry’s Nick “Squeeze in his shirts” De la Torre, who frequently wears tight shirts that accentuate his muscles. If we didn’t see Nick at media sessions I’d assume he was an Abercrombie model. Based on your physique, it’s no wonder you’re on top of Will Grier’s appeal.
Next is the Orlando Sentinel’s Edgar “Zach Abolverdi” Thompson, who called in to the SEC teleconference on Wednesday using the phone of the Gainesville Sun’s Zach Abolverdi to talk to Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason. Hey Edgar, we know you’re too busy shooting video to use your own phone, but this is getting out of hand. Maybe you should invest in a GoPro.
Guess what? We have another two-way tie for sixth place with records of 32-38-2.
First up is 247 Sports’ Thomas “Hazmat Suit” Goldkamp, who always gets sick when he visits press boxes that are not in the state of Florida. It’s OK, Thomas, we’re back in the comfort of Ben Hill Griffin Stadium this week, where you can easily breakdown film after the game without fear of a hospital trip.
Next is alligatorSports editor Graham “get a barber’” Hall, who cuts his own hair rather than forking out the cash to have it cut by a professional. We know you’re cheap Hall, but come on, you have missed tufts of hair on the back of your head. You can at least afford a mirror.
And STILL in dead-ass-last with a piss-poor record of 28-42-2 is alligatorSports’ staff writer Graham "Elevator Illiterate" Hack, who showed us on Wednesday that he doesn’t know how to work an elevator. Hey Graham, can you get any more dysfunctional as a human being? I mean, you don’t know how to work an elevator or tell time in different time-zones.
