Football Picks: It was a nice catch-up weekend. The record was 9-1 (the loss being Auburn).

I was mad with my Arkansas prediction. It was not a pick in the column but our staff contest. They blew it! I'm glad this is just for "fun." The overall is 18-6 (75%).

Congrats to Coach L.A. O'Neal on his first 'dub' as a Tallassee Tiger. There are many more to come. That's a prediction I feel good about.

Reeltown at Ranburne: Last week I picked the Rebs to blank the Horseshoe. They did, but I was off a bit as they put up 61 improving to 21-0 all-time against the Generals.

This week, Reeltown takes on a team that they actually have a losing record against overall. Ranburne is 10-4 in the series having won the previous two. The Rebels get one back this week. Reeltown 35, Ranburne 6

Handley at St. James: When Tallassee was reclassified back to 4A, these are the two teams that folks said were the ones to beat. The team the Tigers get this week may be the toughest of all. More on that in a minute.

It's a rebuilding year with a new coach at St. James. They did escape with a one-point win over Bullock County last week at least.

Handley looks to still be pretty good, but who wins this region is still very much in the air. This is only week two of region play. Handley 21, St. James 14

Holtville at Elmore County: I thought rebuild for Holtville too after the 0-2 start, but the Bulldogs came back strong last week with a dominating win over Sylacauga - a team I thought was on the upswing.

Elmore County has played Holtville more than any other program. They've met 75 times. Kyle Caldwell is 2-0 against the guys from Slapout. Elmore County 35, Holtville 21

Wetumpka at Pike Road: The Indians have dropped a couple of close ones after the opening win over Beauregard. Pike Road got their first win after losing two against 7As.

The Patriots look to be the team to beat in this region. They ran the table last year on their way to the semifinals. Pike Road 30, Wetumpka 17

Tallassee at Booker T. Washington: Last year's 44-0 defeat at J.E. "Hot" O'Brien Stadium was the most-lopsided in the history of the series. The winning coach will be on the opposite sideline this year. Tallassee is 10-4 against the Eagles all time.

Booker T. turned the corner with Coach O'Neal last year. And although we might have expected a dropoff, they picked up right where they left off after last year's semifinal run. They're 2-0.

That win last year broke a seven-game win streak by Tallassee over BTW. Last week's first win of the O'Neal era at THS was impressive despite several miscues.

The Tigers can't turn it over and pile up penalty yardage to win this week. Clean up that part of the game and they've got a good chance to double up last season's win total. Tallassee 28, BTW 22

Boston College at Missouri: BC enjoyed some of the early love after beating Florida State. Georgia Tech even got a Top 25 ranking off of the FSU win, but the Ramblin' Wreck wrecked last week at Syracuse.

It's time that Boston College sees (like Tech) that the win was not about them but the Seminoles. They're not very good, nor is BC. Missouri 30, BC 17

Texas A&M at Florida: "Oh what a game!" That's what we heard after the A&M/Notre Dame 'showdown' in week one. Lo and behold, the Fighting Irish couldn't handle success either. They lost at home to Northern Illinois.

All of this early-season stuff doesn't mean all these teams are pretenders. It just means it's early. We don't know what anybody's got. And there are bound to be bumps in the road.

One thing that seems sure is that Florida had better get its act together quickly. Billy Napier might not have long to figure it out. Texas A&M 20, Florida 17

LSU at South Carolina: The Gamecocks figured some things out last week after sleepwalking in the opener, a narrow victory over Old Dominion.

Thank goodness for Kentucky on Saturday. The Cats were awful against Carolina getting embarrassed at home.

LSU's Brian Kelly has simmered down some after beating Nicholls State last week. Suprisingly, ESPN Gameday is in Columbia this week. Slow week. LSU 24, S. Carolina 21

New Mexico at Auburn: This is supposed to be the turnaround year for Auburn. Cal was supposed to be a win. Many have shared the post-Malzahn record this week. It's 18-23.

Auburn has picked up some big-time wide receiver talent. They need some help around them. It's not all on Payton Thorne, although he could definitely be better.

Last year's New Mexico State game became Cal this year. That was New Mexico State - different team than the one from the same state coming to the Plains on Saturday. Auburn 38, New Mexico 10

Alabama at Wisconsin: Alabama was as bad as Auburn for three-plus quarters on the day they honored Nick Saban by naming the field after him. Kalen DeBoer said the team needs games like this. He might be right, but they don't need many.

The Badgers were struggling on Saturday as well with South Dakota. It's a good thing one week doesn't make a season for a lot of these programs.

These long treks can be tough for traveling teams. Like I noted with Auburn vs. Cal, this is a game that was marked as a win in the preseason. If Bama messes around they'll have the same fate as the Tigers.

If the Crimson Tide plays close to their abilities, they'll win by two scores. I'm banking on the latter. Alabama 27, Wisconsin 15