While I understand it isn’t the equivalent of climbing Mount Everest, I feel as if Week 8 was my best week of the season for predicting stat leaders in the SEC.

And yes, I understand I predicted a 90-yard receiving game for Auburn’s Ryan Davis and was left with all of 12. And Mississippi State’s Kylin Hill didn’t exactly reach my prediction of 100 rushing yards, falling short by, oh, 58 yards.

But, we basically nailed the Missouri predictions, missing Drew Lock’s passing yards by just 5 and Jalen Knox’s receiving yards by 4.

Week 9 figures to be the most challenging yet, since 95 percent of this conference is on a bye week. Okay, only four teams are on a bye, but those teams have a lot of the players I usually count on in my predictions.

No Tua Tagovailoa or Jerry Jeudy from Alabama. No Jordan Ta’amu and his group of receivers. No Nick Brossette and his 1 or 2 rushing TDs every week.

Nope, this week I’ll have to work.

Most Passing Yards
1. Kellen Mond, Texas A&M (at Mississippi State)

Prediction: 300 yards
Why? Mond came up with a huge game at South Carolina two weeks ago before the Aggies’ bye week, throwing for 353 yards in the win. Now, coming off that bye, he faces a Mississippi State defense that, while good (second in the SEC in passing yards per game allowed – 167.9), hasn’t exactly faced a who’s who of quarterbacks.

2. Drew Lock, Missouri (vs. Kentucky)

Prediction: 295 yards
Why? Lock is almost a lock to make these predictions every week the rest of the season. Like Mond, Lock will be facing a tough defense in Kentucky (allowing 190 passing YPG, fourth in the SEC), but Lock is solid at home this season, completing 67 percent of his passes and averaging 315 YPG.

3. Kyle Shurmur, Vanderbilt (at Arkansas)

Prediction: 275 yards
Why? Since Shurmur threw for 326 yards at Notre Dame in mid September, fans have been waiting for that next big game. It hasn’t come just yet, but it might this weekend. Arkansas has allowed at least 380 yards three times this season.

Most Passing TDs
1. Drew Lock, Missouri (vs. Kentucky)

Prediction: 3
Why? Over his last three seasons at home, Lock has 55 TD passes in 18 games. That comes out to 3 a game. Kentucky’s defense has allowed only 6 TD passes all season, but 4 have come in the last two games.

2. Jake Bentley, South Carolina (vs. Tennessee)

Prediction: 2
Why? Bentley is coming off a 3-TD passing game against Texas A&M, and now he will be facing a Tennessee defense that looked as if it might be improving. That was until the last two games, when the Vols allowed 300 passing yards in each game and 6 TD passes total. The last time South Carolina hosted Tennessee in 2016, Bentley threw 2 touchdowns in his first SEC game.

3. Feleipe Franks, Florida (vs. Georgia)

Prediction: 2
Why? Georgia figures to be an angry team after suffering its first loss of the season to LSU two weeks ago. Now the Bulldogs are coming off a bye week. So why in the world would anyone think Franks is going to have a multi-TD passing game? Because I’m looking for Franks to try to redeem himself after last year’s Georgia game, when Franks suffered the worst game of his career (7-for-19, 30 yards).

Most Rushing Yards
1. Benny Snell Jr., Kentucky (at Missouri)

Prediction: 175 yards
Why? Snell shook off a disappointing game against Texas A&M two games ago by running for 169 yards against Vanderbilt. Two years ago at Missouri, Snell rushed for 192 yards, then a career high. In two games against the Wildcats, Snell is averaging 154.5 YPG.

2. Elijah Holyfield, Georgia (vs. Florida)

Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Prediction: 100 yards
Why? Holyfield has yet to rush for 100 yards against an SEC opponent in his career. So why will this be his first? The Gators are 11th in the SEC in run defense, allowing 163 YPG. Florida has also allowed three players to rush for at least 95 yards in a game this season, including two 100-yard rushers in the same game – Kentucky’s Benny Snell Jr. and quarterback Terry Wilson. Holyfield is still productive when he gets the ball (7.5 yards per carry), so if given the carries, he can reach the century mark.

3. Trayveon Williams, Texas A&M (at Mississippi State)

Prediction: 90 yards
Why? No team in the SEC is allowing fewer yards per rush this season than the Bulldogs (3.23), so it won’t be easy for Williams to get his yards. But, as we mentioned before, this season when Williams isn’t facing Clemson or Alabama, he is averaging 147 YPG.

Most Rushing TDs
1. Benny Snell Jr., Kentucky (at Missouri)

Prediction: 3
Why? Along with his impressive yards per game average against Missouri, Snell has rushed for at least 2 TDs in both games against the Tigers. Since LSU is on a bye this week, expect Snell to overtake Nick Brossette for the rushing TD lead in the conference.

2. Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State (vs. Texas A&M)

Prediction: 3
Why? Maybe it’s because we have come to accept Fitzgerald’s impressive ability to run the ball, but not much has been made of the fact that the senior QB has rushed for 100 yards in four of his six games this season. Two years ago when the Bulldogs hosted Texas A&M, Fitzgerald rushed for a pair of touchdowns. I’m predicting one more on top of that.

3. Rakeem Boyd, Arkansas (vs. Vanderbilt)

Prediction: 2
Why? Boyd has been productive lately for the Razorbacks, averaging 103 YPG over his last three contests. Now, with just 1 rushing touchdown on the season, it’s time to see Boyd get in the end zone. He is facing a Vanderbilt defense that has allowed 10 rushing TDs in its last six games.

Most Receiving Yards
1. Kalija Lipscomb, Vanderbilt (at Arkansas)

Prediction: 120 yards
Why? We expected to see more performances like the 174 yards Lipscomb had against Tennessee State back in late September. But since that game, Lipscomb is averaging just 36 receiving yards a game over his last three. He’s too good of a receiver to expect that to continue. And the Razorbacks are 12th in the SEC in pass defense, allowing 268 YPG.

2. Deebo Samuel, South Carolina (vs. Tennessee)

Prediction: 100 yards
Why? He’s oh so close to having that breakout game. Two games ago against Missouri, he had 88 yards receiving. And in his last game against Texas A&M, he had another 88 yards. Now, he gets to face a Tennessee defense that has allowed 300-plus yards passing in each of its last two games.

3. Jalen Knox, Missouri (vs. Kentucky)

Prediction: 90 yards
Why? Knox came up big last week against Memphis with 104 yards receiving and a TD. With Emanuel Hall still questionable for this week, Knox should once again get the attention of his QB, Drew Lock. Even if he isn’t targeted too often, with an average of 19 yards a reception Knox won’t need too many catches to make an impact.

Most Receiving TDs
1. Albert Okwuegbunam, Missouri (vs. Kentucky)

Prediction: 2
Why? Okwuegbunam was Lock’s go-to guy last week as he finished with 159 yards receiving and 3 TDs, both career highs. I’m expecting more of the same this week against the Wildcats.

2. Deebo Samuel, South Carolina (vs. Tennessee)

Prediction: 2
Why? If you’re going to have that breakout game, you can’t just do it with yards. You have to get in the end zone. Samuel has one multi-TD reception game in his career (last year’s season opener vs N.C. State), but he is going to get another before his career is over. His play of late suggests he is due for just such a game Saturday.

3. Van Jefferson, Florida (vs. Georgia)

Prediction: 2
Why? This may be viewed as one of the all-time reaches in this column, but hear me out. Jefferson is improving each week, with 29 receiving yards three games ago, 44 two games ago and 65 in his last game. Rivalry games tend to bring out surprise performances, and this will be one of them Saturday.