It’s tough to predict the future. But, that doesn’t stop us from trying.

Those who can even predict the future with a 60% success rate are considered geniuses.

Why do I mention this? Well, every single question in this week’s Mailbag involves me trying to predict the future, so I want y’all to remember that 60% success rate threshold for “genius.”

Keep that in mind as we dive into this week’s Mailbag, please!

Rob from Tampa:

Seeing a question last week in the Mailbag made me start to think. Do you foresee a situation where Nick Saban is forced out as head coach (Bobby Bowden, Joe Paterno, for example), or will he be able to retire on his own terms?

I don’t think Nick Saban’s ego will allow him to hold on to his job too long. Inevitably, at some point, even if it’s at age 80, he’ll start to slow down. But, I think there’s something that separates him from Paterno and Bowden.

That would be his media savvy. There was, of course, the report from John Talty’s new book on Saban’s leadership secrets about how he almost left coaching to join ESPN after the Kick-Six loss in 2013.

That’s his out. Once coaching isn’t fun, or once he stops having a truly insane level of success every year, I think he’ll join the media ranks. Any network would be lucky to have him in any role.

So, while I’d predict that Saban coaches another 4-5 years (and adds another title or 2 to his collection), I do think he’ll eventually end up at ESPN as an analyst and GameDay crew member. Thus, he won’t stick around long enough to be forced out at Alabama. Not that the Tide would ever try to force him out, anyway.

@SChinni12:

If a non-QB were to win the Heisman Trophy this year, who would you give the best odds to?

Will Anderson Jr. will be a popular choice here, and I think he’s an absolute monster who will likely be the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NFL Draft. But, if he didn’t get an invitation to the ceremony in New York last year after posting 101 tackles (31 for a loss) and 17.5 sacks, what would he have to do this year to make it?

Texas RB Bijan Robinson and Ohio State RB TreVeyon Henderson will be popular non-QBs to bet on, too, but give me USC WR Jordan Addison. He won the Biletnikoff Award last year and joins an offense with potentially even more firepower than Pitt has last year.

I also think Kayshon Boutte, the talented LSU WR, deserves a mention here. He had 509 yards and 9 touchdowns in 6 games last year before getting hurt. A 20-touchdown season from a wide receiver would certainly merit an invitation to New York!

Check out a full list of Heisman odds here.

Michael:

Well, it only took you 2 games to blow your attempt to be perfect picking winners this year (with Northwestern beating Nebraska ruining your “streak”). But you went 1-0 picking SEC games (Vanderbilt over Hawaii). Can you stay perfect picking SEC games this year?

Harsh, but fair. I did blow my perfect picks record almost immediately. I blame Ireland.

But, let’s try to stay perfect with SEC picks this year, shall we? You’re going to have to trust me on the first 2 games, as I’m picking them on Thursday morning as I write this. Hopefully, Tennessee and Mizzou win easily on Thursday night as I expect they will, saving me any embarrassment.

OK, here we go:

  • Tennessee over Ball State
  • Mizzou over Louisiana Tech
  • Texas A&M over Sam Houston
  • Georgia over Oregon
  • Arkansas over Cincinnati
  • Ole Miss over Troy
  • Utah over Florida
  • Kentucky over Miami (OH)
  • Auburn over Mercer
  • Vanderbilt over Elon
  • Alabama over Utah State
  • Mississippi State over Memphis
  • South Carolina over Georgia State
  • LSU over Florida State

That’s right. I’m predicting a 13-1 weekend for the SEC! And, I predict the Florida-Utah game will be a one-possession game either way. That should be one of the most-exciting games of the entire weekend, in fact.

@Dobbe8:

What are your gambling locks for Saturday’s games?

I absolutely love Arkansas -6.5 over Cincinnati. I think I’d go as far as to call that my lock of the week. The Hogs have consistency at both coordinator positions, head coach, quarterback and at some key spots on defense.

That’s so important, especially when going up against a team that lost a coordinator, its star quarterback and an elite defender this offseason.

I’m not saying Luke Fickell won’t have his team ready to play, but they don’t make environments like Razorback Stadium in the AAC. I’ve got the Hogs winning by 11, easily covering the 6.5-point spread. Here are my 3 locks of the week (lines via DraftKings Sportsbook):

  • Arkansas (-6.5) over Cincinnati
  • Houston (-4) over UTSA
  • LSU (-3) over Florida State

Those are the picks I’m riding with this weekend! We’ll see how things play out, but I’m feeling good about a 3-0 start to the season.

Have a question for next week’s Mailbag? Tweet at us using #SDSMailbag or email me at Adam.Spencer@XLMedia.com.