Both teams are incredibly similar. And neither coach has any reason to open up the offense. Both know they have strong defenses and a long season. With both teams on top of the rankings and so close to each other, both know the loser will not drop far so long as a blowout can be avoided. Both teams realize they can endure a loss in Week One and still probably absorb another regular season loss to a quality opponent as long as they win their respective conference championships. The mobility of each QB will result in a few more scoring drives than each team had in '07. Otherwise I see a very similar game to '07: boring, conservative, competitive, lots of punts, offenses stalling in the red zone. In Week One of the season, I have to give the nod to the FSU QB over Hurts, and the FSU kicker over our kicker.
FSU 27
Ala 23
HOWEVER, I like our chances to win it all IF we can avoid any injuries at DL and make improvements throughout the season. We will rely on lots of inexperience to contribute at multiple positions and Hurts must gradually settle into the new offensive system. If these things happen, we will make the play off again.