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Woah! The 2024 kickoff did not allow the CFB fans to witness any dull moments. And here arrives analyst Josh Pate with his big prophecy that this weekend, September 28, things are going to be even more exciting. No.4 Alabama Crimson Tide will be facing off against No. 2 Georgia. While Pate already has his answers ready about who is going to be the winner, he comes with a big claim for fans who think that the match-up isn’t worth the hype. Meanwhile, it’s not only Pate, even ESPN analyst Paul Finebaum believes that Kalen DeBoer’s army will upset the Dawgs. 

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Week 5 is going to leave fans at the edge of their seats, for sure! The Dawgs are making the trip to Tuscaloosa and the Draft Kings are standing in favor of Kirby Smart’s squad. Georgia is favored by two points with the over/under set at 48.5 points. But Pate comes up with a surprising claim at  Josh Pate’s College Football Show. It’s the DeBoer and Alabama for him.  “I couldn’t shake out of my head from last year of DeBoer going up against [Dan] Lanning twice and beating him,” claimed the analyst.

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Of course, you didn’t forget how the Alabama HC gave Oregon a tough time winning against them in the Pac-12 Championship. So there are no second thoughts about “Alabama to win the game outright.” Then Pate took into account the CFB fans who believes that “this expanded playoff these games don’t mean anything.” All they have to do is break off from the playoff craze as Pate highlighted, “there’s stuff that’s mattered in this sport for a lot longer than that playoffs existed.”

But the fans can’t be blamed. Smart’s Bulldogs have won a total of 16 conference championships and would be facing off Alabama who no longer have Nick Saban as their mentor. However, DeBoer should not be taken lightly as this weekend is going to be a nail-biting match. So much so, the analyst dropped a bold claim, “Three or four months down the road I promise you and I’m as anti-playoff expansion as it gets but I promise you there’s meaning on this game.” Meanwhile, Finebaum too made his pick.

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How Kalen DeBoer found himself in Paul Finebaum’s confidence

Finebaum being Finebaum came up with his brutal yet striking reality check. Even though it’s the first time for DeBoer to face Smart and Co., according to the analyst, it should end up going Crimson Tide’s way. “I’m not feeling the love right now for the Dawgs,” he dropped a spicy take. Well, he decided to wake up and chose violence for the Dawgs fans, “I’m not feeling the love right now for the Dawgs.”

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Going by the hype, Georgia is always expected to win with a huge lead. But things went topsy-turvy on September 14 when the Bulldogs won against Kentucky Wildcats by only one point in 12-13. This has been enough for Finebaum to pin all his hopes on DeBoer’s Alabama as he claimed, “And two weeks ago, they were ruling the nation. But that game against Kentucky has a lot of people very nervous.” Maybe it’s because Georgia’s biggest weapon QB Carson Beck failing as a Dawg coming off without any touchdown.

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Meanwhile, it will be a path full of thorns now that Kirby Smart is heading towards Tuscaloosa with their defensive line all “banged up” losing their offensive guard Tate Ratledge. On the other hand, Kalen DeBoer has the big advantage of keeping an open door to GOAT Nick Saban. 

Besides, the pre-game predictions in case other areas like NIL and NFL hold your interest, you can check on the latest episode of the Think Tank podcast with Dawg Sanders! 

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Soheli Tarafdar

4,135 Articles

Soheli Tarafdar is the Lead College Football Writer at EssentiallySports, anchoring the ES Marquee Saturdays Live NewsCenter. In this role, she leads real-time coverage on game days, delivering breaking news and insights as the action unfolds. Some of her most popular work has come from digging into locker room chatter and social media clues that reveal the stories behind the scoreboards. She joined EssentiallySports with a strong grasp of college football circuits and a genuine love for the game. What began as a fan’s voice has grown into a career shaped by sharp reporting and impactful storytelling. Soheli also continues to refine her voice as part of the EssentiallySports Journalistic Excellence Program, helping drive a fan-first approach to football coverage.

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Jagriti Choudhry

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