Paschall: Vanderbilt ending on road again

photo Vanderbilt Commodores head coach James Franklin

OTHER PICKSVandy 32, Wake Forest 13Miss. State 31, Ole Miss 24Virginia Tech 16, Virginia 15Miami 27, Duke 24North Carolina 49, Maryland 6N.C. State 30, Boston Coll. 11Texas 24, TCU 19Nebraska 35, Iowa 28Ohio State 28, Michigan 17Oregon 33, Oregon State 20Oklahoma 29, Okla. State 26UCLA 26, Stanford 23Louisville 31, Connecticut 28Northwestern 44, Illinois 21Washington 38, Wash. St. 9MTSU 37, Troy 30Wisconsin 20, Penn State 17

Vanderbilt second-year football coach James Franklin has been able to answer just about everything thrown his way this season.

His Commodores are 7-4 entering Saturday's game at Wake Forest after finishing their SEC schedule with a 5-3 record, marking the first time Vandy has notched five league wins since 1935. The 'Dores went to Wake Forest a year ago and rolled 41-7 to clinch a sixth win for bowl eligibility, so why are they having to go to Winston-Salem again?

"I wish I could answer that question," Franklin said Wednesday with a laugh. "I've been doing this for over 20 years now, and I've never ever heard of a college doing this. It was something with scheduling years ago before I got here, where maybe there was an adjustment of trying to get enough home games one year so they had to go two in a row.

"I don't know. I don't understand it, and I've never seen it before."

The Commodores lost at Northwestern earlier this season and are one of just two SEC teams playing two nonconference games against programs from BCS leagues. Missouri hosted Arizona State and Syracuse.

Mississippi State and Texas A&M didn't play any, while the rest of the league scheduled one such game.

"I don't want to play multiple schools like that every year," Franklin said. "I think one of those types of schools that is a similar profile to us on our schedule each year makes sense."

Pasquali's Pix:

LSU at Arkansas: Forget the game. Which coach will have the more abnormal news conference afterward? Tigers 37, Razorbacks 16.

Georgia Tech at Georgia: The Bulldogs have proven to be really good this season when they're not getting suspended. Bulldogs 41, Yellow Jackets 24.

Kentucky at Tennessee: In the 80th year of the SEC, there is finally a matchup of teams with 0-7 league records. Volunteers 34, Wildcats 25.

Auburn at Alabama: Both the Tigers and Crimson Tide have won two of their last three coming in, so this is anybody's game. Crimson Tide 42, Tigers 3.

Florida at Florida State: This rivalry last pitted 10-win teams in 1996, when the Seminoles won in Tallahassee and the Gators claimed the rematch in the Sugar Bowl for the national title. Seminoles 13, Gators 10.

South Carolina at Clemson: The Palmetto State rivalry has become year-round fun thanks to -- what else? -- Steve Spurrier's needling. Tigers 31, Gamecocks 30.

Missouri at Texas A&M: The Newcomer Bowl also is a potential stage in which Aggies quarterback Johnny Manziel can clinch the Heisman Trophy. Aggies 45, Tigers 16.

Notre Dame at Southern Cal: Some team from northern Indiana is about to hang a fifth loss on the preseason No. 1. Irish 19, Trojans 10.

Last week:

Winners.........................21

SEC street parties........4

Pasquali is 229-71 overall (76.3 percent) this season.

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