Arkansas Business

This story is from the archives of ArkansasSports360.com.

I’ve had a ton of fun writing Saturday Roulette in this space since the beginning of the 2011 season. I need to thank Chris Bahn for the opportunity, and all of you for reading and picking games along with me. This column has led to several great things for me, things I never thought I’d have a shot at doing, and I haven’t taken a second of it for granted.

But the good news is that I’m not totally going away. One of the aforementioned opportunities I’ve gotten is to become the editor of ArkansasExpats.com, the SB Nation site for the Razorbacks. I took over the site just before football season started, and we’re working on growing our audience by doing a lot of the same types of things we’ve done here at ArkansasSports360.com. We have a fantastic lineup of contributors comprised of current and aspiring sports journalists as well as fans who are talented writers and passionate about the Razorbacks. We post columns, recaps, previews, and the like. The SB Nation network is at our disposal for breaking news, insight from opponents, and more. We also boast what I think is the best hub of Razorback-themed podcasts on the Internet. 

I’d like to invite all the ArkansasSports360.com readers to check out ArkansasExpats.com this weekend. We’ve got a lot of great things on the site now, and plan to have lots of coverage and commentary for the Tulsa game. We would love to have you as part of our community.

By the way, since the beginning, Saturday Roulette is 98-81-2 (36-27 this year). If a few certain people had listened to us more, monetizing this site could have been taken care of [wink]. I’ll be taking Saturday Roulette over to Expats next week, so for the last time in this space, here are this week’s winners:

Tulsa (+9) @ Arkansas: How many lives does this Razorback team have? We thought they were dead. Then we thought they were really dead. Then we thought they were cremated. Then they came out of a coma for a few weeks, and now the life is out of the room again. I’m not sure if the Hogs are more like this Monty Python clip or this one. I’m taking Tulsa and the points.

Alabama (-8) @ LSU: The whole point-scoring concept has proved difficult for LSU this season. They’ll need Alabama to make a few mistakes like they did in Tuscaloosa last year to have a chance. Unfortunately for them, the Crimson Tide rarely make mistakes this year. Take Alabama.

Ole Miss (+14) @ Georgia: The Bulldogs were once considered dead after being destroyed by South Carolina. Unlike Arkansas, Georgia appears to be thriving at this point. They beat rival Florida last week and now sit in the drivers seat in the East. Which means they’re probably ripe for a let down against an improved Rebels squad coming off a hard-fought victory in Little Rock last week. Two touchdowns is a lot of points, so I’ll roll with Ole Miss.

Texas A&M (-7) @ Mississippi State: Johnny Manziel is destined to end up in the special circle of SEC players that are really good and really hyped to the point that he is loathed by opposing SEC fans more than he is loved by his own fan base. Tim Tebow and Cam Newton started the club. The thing about those players? They’re all winners. The Aggies have only gotten better as the year has gone on. I’m going with the A&M.

Vanderbilt (-7) @ Kentucky: Before the season, James Franklin was a rising star on the coaching hot boards. Then Vanderbilt started 1-3 and everyone stopped talking about him. Now, Vanderbilt is 4-4 and will likely be favored in at least 3 of their last 4 games. Could he climb back in the picture? They’re not slowing down. Pick Vandy.

Oregon (-8) over USC, Texas Tech (-6.5) over Texas, Kansas State (-8.5) over Oklahoma State

Remember, as always, on-field wins and losses can be vacated, but your picks live forever.

Thanks, y’all.

---

Doc Harper is the editor of ArkansasExpats.com and is a columnist for ArkansasSports360.com and CollegeFootballNews.com. You can email him at heydocharper@gmail.com and follow him on twitter @doc_harper.