Larry Munson rides again
SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. -- Pretty much halfway between Clemson's tale of two halves in Atlanta on Thursday night and South Carolina's bold effort to score more than one touchdown in Athens tonight is this delightful little burg.
Legend has it the local crossroads conversationalists and their "social circle" were so hospitable, a town was born on the friendliness brand.
What better place to converse about famously sociable Larry Munson, the iconic Voice of the Georgia Bulldogs for 42-plus years? He is nearly 87, not feeling very well and in his first full football season of retirement.
But Munson makes something off a comeback today at Sanford Stadium. He has a new autobiography, "From Herschel To a Hobnail Boot" and will sign copies from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. today at Georgia's main campus bookstore.
Like South Carolina, I must try to improve on a 7-3 start, already two back of Warren Peper in Pigskin Picks competition.
South Carolina at Georgia
Munson certainly has seen enough of Steve Spurrier -- at Florida and South Carolina -- to know this should be a close game. It means a lot more to the Bulldogs.
Sapakoff pick: Georgia, 17-16.
Peper pick: South Carolina.
CSU at Wofford
Wofford will bounce back from its South Florida loss and still has too much depth for the Bucs.
Sapakoff pick: Wofford, 31-20.
Peper pick: Wofford.
S.C. State at Bethune-Cookman
S.C. State got off to a great start with a close win over Grambling in Orlando. Another tight game.
Sapakoff pick: S.C. State, 24-21.
Peper pick: S.C. State.
UCLA at Tennessee
New Vols head coach Lane Kiffin knows how to beat the Bruins, having coached and recruited against them while at Southern California.
Sapakoff pick: Tennessee, 28-17.
Peper pick: Tennessee.
Mississippi State at Auburn
Auburn won this game 3-2 last season but the offenses are twice as good this year.
Sapakoff pick: Auburn, 6-4.
Peper pick: Auburn.
Vanderbilt at LSU
Vanderbilt just isn't the same team Bobby Johnson had last year.
Sapakoff pick: LSU, 34-10.
Peper pick: LSU.
Stanford at Wake Forest
Just can't see Jim Grobe losing two straight non-conference home games.
Sapakoff pick: Wake Forest, 27-24.
Peper pick: Wake Forest.
Notre Dame at Michigan
"Hunker down, you guys!" was one of Munson's rallying cries. The team that hunkers down most consistently wins in Ann Arbor.
Sapakoff pick: Notre Dame, 31-27.
Peper pick: Notre Dame.
East Carolina at West Virginia
ECU's Skip Holtz might be auditioning for the Virginia job. Or the Notre Dame job.
Sapakoff pick: West Virginia, 28-24.
Peper pick: West Virginia.
Southern Cal at Ohio State
The best in the Big Ten With 11 Teams Conference still doesn't compare favorably with the best of the Pac 10.
Sapakoff pick: Southern Cal, 38-17.
Peper pick: Southern Cal.
Peper last week: 9-1.
Sapakoff last week: 7-3.
Reach Gene Sapakoff at gsapakoff@postandcourier.com or 937-5593.
