BACK TO OUR WINNING WAYS. HOW SWEET IT IS.

It's been a crazy week. We experienced a system crash, an internet outage, and Chardonnay shortage.

So we were unable to issue our usual mid-week edition but hopefully you survived.

Home of the Great Eight™

Today's issue is a mash-up of "Sidelines", guest writer input from the esteemed Golden Gator, and of course our Great Eight™picks for Week Four.

So, grab some joe, sit back, and have a quick read as we head into another weekend of great College Football.

Where Are We?

We rebounded very nicely this past Saturday, going 6-2 with a huge UPSET SPECIAL pick of Louisville beating Florida State.

If you followed this pick, then you had a very very nice return. The nifty Mo Money Tracker™ shows we are now close to 60% of winning picks so we're starting to feel a little better about our prognostications.

Of course, our goal has always been to achieve close to a 70% hit rate where we can really make some serious cash. The kind of cash you need to keep the little lady happy and the debt collectors off your front porch.

Cardiologists were working overtime this past weekend as several games turned out to be heart stoppers and heart breakers...Nebraska holding off Oregon, Alabama escaping Oxford with a win, Georgia winning at the end, LSU squeaking past Mississippi State. Totally crazy but that's college football.

SIDELINES...What We learned in Week Three

• The Unknown...this past Saturday is a great example of the unknown when picking winners and losers. Who would of thought that Florida State would be totally undressed on national television by Louisville, 63-20? Well, we picked the Cardinals to upset FSU but not by that spread.

• Mississippi Burning...Nick Saban barely escaped Oxford with a 48-43 win. Mister Freeze seems to have Bama's number with the Rebs coming within an eye lash of grabbing its third victory in a row over Alabama.This game was not for the faint of heart.

• Husker Heaven...in another heart stopper, Mike Riley finally snapped whatever spell Oregon had over him as Nebraska battled back to win 35-32 late over the Ducks. Husker fans were delighted as they chowed down on post-game runzas and cold PBR.

• Smart...Kirby Smart is the first Georgia football head coach in Bulldawg history since 1938 to be undefeated after three games in their inaugural season. Their game with Mizzou was another game not decided until their final possession (28-27). We'll know more about the Dawgs after their match with Ole Miss but it's safe to say that UGA is a work in progress. A win on the road in SEC play is tough so give Smart some credit for making that happen.

• Tennessee...if you are a Vol fan then you have to be scratching your head and wondering why the Vols are under-performing with all of their experienced talent. After quickly putting up a touchdown on their opening drive, Tennessee settled into their underwhelming ways and barely held off an inferior Ohio team. In the process, Tennessee lost several key starters which will impact them as they head into big boy SEC play starting tomorrow with Florida. Ouch.

Today's guest featurette is penned by Golden Gator, another long time contributor to Woolard's Weekend Winners. Golden Gator grew up in the Sunshine State, graduated from UF junior college, and remains a huge Gator supporter to this day. He's been wearing a black arm band ever since Steve Spurrier left town for Columbia.

In His Words....Golden Gator

It's time for the annual FLORIDA- TENNESSEE battle!  Or as we say in Gator Country, another sure win.

Looking to make it a dozen

The Gators have won 11 in a row and REALLY want #12 as a get well gift to Del Rio and Callaway, neither of whom will play Saturday (editor's note: Florida always has a knack for overcoming QB injuries in big games, so no worries Gator fans).

How can they win without them? It's called defense. 

The Gator defense is the best in all of college football. And the Vols offense has been lucky but very inconsistent. The shame is that Joshua Dobbs, the Vols QB out of Alpharetta, is a very talented kid. But, with Butch Jones directing him, he's been erratic and mistake prone. The aggressive Gator defense will have a feast.

Florida's offense, already shaky, will struggle with Appleby filling in for Del Rio. So expect a low scoring game. The Vols won't be able to run against the Gator defense so Dobbs is the key. If he eliminates turnovers and mistakes, the Vols can win. But history says they won't! Butch blows another big game!

Gators win in an upset... 20- 13. You heard it here first from the Golden Gator!

Our GREAT EIGHT™ for Week Four...

#12 Georgia @ #23 Ole Miss...some how, some way, Mister Freeze has to keep his Rebels from giving up huge leads. They blew a 22 point lead over FSU and 21 point advantage over top-ranked Alabama. Meanwhile, Georgia was torched for 376 passing yards last week by Mizzou. Guess what Ole Miss is going to do?? Rebel qb Chad Kelly, who passed for 421 yards last week against Bama, is going to go right at the Dawg secondary. And he has plenty of capable targets. If the Rebs can eliminate turnovers (they rank last in the SEC and 102nd in the country) and the defense can contain UGA's ground game, the Rebs can rebound. Take Ole Miss as Mister Freeze puts the doggies on ice.

#18 LSU @ Auburn...last week the Bengals seemed to right the ship with a new quarterback, Purdue transfer Danny Etling, who delivered a solid performance beating Mississippi State. Meanwhile Auburn is still trying to forge its identity with its lone win being over Arkansas State. LSU fans are hoping for a repeat of last season when Leonard Fournette cranked out 228 rushing yards and 3 touchdowns against the Plainsmen. Auburn will attempt to be the first team to score a first quarter point against LSU this season. Can they do it? Perhaps. But they ain't beating Les Miles. Take the Crazy Cajuns over damn war eagle.

#7 Stanford @ UCLA...the Bruins defense held BYU to just 23 rushing yards last week but they will have their hands full tomorrow as Stanford's Christian McCaffrey hits the Rose Bowl in Pasadena. Last season, McCaffrey rolled up 243 yards rushing and 4 touchdowns. UCLA answers with a pretty deep collection of running backs and qb Josh Rosen who posted 300+ passing yards against BYU. Can UCLA slow down Stanford? We don't think so. Book the Cardinal to win in Pasadena.

#19 Florida @ #14 Tennessee...from the land of bizarre (aka Gainesville, FL) comes this very strange quote from Gator DB Quincy Wilson. "Have you ever seen a duck pull a truck? Ducks don't pull trucks. Gators are going win, simple as that." Florida is not known for its mental prowess and this leaves us wondering what the hell ole Quincy has been smoking. In any case, this is a huge game for both teams and represents the opening bell for the SEC East. Butch has to have his team up for this one otherwise the 2000 lb. bull gator remains squarely on his back. The Ohio game was not kind to Tennessee as they lost some key starters to injury. But Florida lost its starting quarterback Del Rio as well. But have no fear, Gator fans. We've seen this before where a third string QB enters the game to lead the swamp things to victory. Key to the game: Josh Dobbs' mind set. At times he looks brilliant. More often, though, he looks like a freshman in his decision making. If you're a Vols fan, start praying that the disappointing offensive line can give Dobbs some protection and offer Hurd/Kamara a chance to break some big ones. Otherwise Neyland Stadium starts emptying in the third stanza. In a UPSET SPECIAL take Florida. Gators chomp down on Rocky Top.

#11 Wisconsin @ #8 Michigan State...this is a huge game with Big Ten title ramifications despite being only week four. The Spartans are coming off a big road win over Notre Dame while the Badgers are still smarting over its meager 6 point win over lowly Georgia State. Wisconsin hopes to play keep away as they lead the Big Ten and are 3rd in the country in time of possession. Will this matter? Don't think so. Sparty skins the Badgers.

#16 Baylor @ Oklahoma State...Baylor is the lone remaining undefeated team in the Big 12 thanks in part to a pretty soft non-conference schedule. And the Big 12 wonders why they get little credibility come playoff time. Meanwhile, the Cowboys are one lousy stinking bad call from being undefeated after they got jobbed in their game with Central Michigan. QB Mason Rudolph loves to throw the ball passing for a school record of 540 yards. But the Pokes will not have it easy in Waco where the Bears have the nation's best home record since 2011 at 31-3. Make that 32-3. Bears claw the Cowboys.

#20 Nebraska @ Northwestern...after last week's tango with the Ducks, the Huskers are looking  for another win, this time in Evanston. After spending most of the week in an ice tub, Husker qb Tommy Armstrong is ready to keep the mojo going for the Bug Eaters. He can kill you with his arm as well as  his legs as evidenced by his game winning touchdown run against Oregon. We think this is the season that the Huskers flip the page and start winning the close ones, and it should be a close one against the Wildcats. Take the Huskers by the Lake.

Pitt @ North Carolina...this is a big game between two schools vying for the ACC Coastal title. The Panthers offense is averaging 36 points per game with James Conner leading the ground attacked with a 4.5 yards-per-carry average. But Pitt's biggest weakness is its secondary, having been torched for 540 yards by Oklahoma State. So expect Larry Fedora's Tar Heels to pass early and often with qb Mitch Trubisky. This should be a good afternoon treat...especially if you're a Tar Heel fan. UNC edges Pitt.

Let's check back next week and see how we fared. Have a great football weekend.

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