For the past four seasons, Southeastern Conference linebackers and defensive backs have dreamed of getting a good shot at Florida quarterback Tim Tebow running down the field.

Yet the first wicked hit Tebow sustained was by an unblocked defensive end last Saturday at Kentucky.

"I've said all along that option-football quarterbacks rarely take a pounding," Florida coach Urban Meyer said Wednesday. "Tim has taken some hits when he tries to run over someone on a scramble, but he's got good pad level, and he's extremely strong. He's a good north-south runner.

"But that's not where you see the high-impact collisions. The high-impact collisions are usually on kickoff returns, when a receiver is defenseless down the field, and when a quarterback is in the pocket."

Meyer said Kentucky's Taylor Wyndham made a clean hit and that the freak part of the play was how Tebow landed.

"The vision of that is the thing that bothers myself and a lot of people," he said.

Alabama's Nick Saban defended Meyer for having Tebow in the game, saying "31-7 in the third quarter is not a game that's out of reach." Saban added that he didn't pull his starters until the fourth quarter, when his Crimson Tide led Arkansas 35-7.

Pasquali's Pix:

Alabama at Kentucky: Wildcats coach Rich Brooks is on the verge of getting barraged with "Who's better between Florida and Alabama?" questions. Tide 33, Wildcats 10.

LSU at Georgia: The Tigers are the shakiest No. 4 team since Ole Miss last week. Bulldogs 24, Tigers 20.

Ole Miss at Vanderbilt: Bobby Johnson has more wins (three) over the Rebels than any other SEC team. Rebels 20, Commodores 13.

S.C. State at South Carolina: Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier, when asked at what point starting quarterbacks should be removed from runaway wins: "I haven't had to worry about that in a while." Gamecocks 37, Bulldogs 14.

Texas A&M vs. Arkansas: Lose this, and the Razorbacks could be headed for a fourth losing season in six years. Hogs 27, Aggies 24.

Georgia Tech at Miss. State: The Bulldogs have the greatest home schedule of all time with six games against current AP Top 25 teams (LSU, Georgia Tech, Houston, Florida, Alabama and Ole Miss). Yellow Jackets 28, Bullies 21.

Auburn at Tennessee: The Tigers have scored 181 points through four games, which is a program record. They've also allowed 97, which is the most in 60 years. Vols 31, Tigers 30.

Oklahoma at Miami: Those Sooners still seem quite perturbed about that opening loss to BYU. Sooners 35, Hurricanes 19.

Last week:

Winners.....................18

Monsoons....................7

Pasquali is 77-23 (77.0 percent) overall this season.

OTHER PICKS

West Virginia 31, Colorado 16

FSU 30 Boston College 9

Clemson 34, Maryland 16

Virginia Tech 32, Duke 13

North Carolina 27, Virginia 10

N.C. State 19, Wake Forest 17

Southern Cal 17, California 10

Ohio State 24, Indiana 3

Iowa 26, Arkansas State 7

Michigan 23, Michigan State 20

Cincinnati 49, Miami (Ohio) 7

Penn State 30, Illinois 16

Notre Dame 31, Washington 24

TCU 44, SMU 13

Boise State 56, UC-Davis 6

Houston 38, UTEP 29

Oregon 45, Washington St. 17