2026 Staff Pick’em Week 5
Nobody was a loser!
Week 5 of the Staff Pick’em competition kicked off on September 26 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, where the South Carolina Gamecocks faced off against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Head coach Shane Beamer of the Gamecocks reacted after the Crimson Tide took advantage of an Alabama interception, turning it into a touchdown at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Jason Clark of Getty Images captured the moment.
The Week 4 results had been successful for most participants, with CDA placing last at 5-5. Cole, Andrew, and the reporter all achieved a respectable 6-4 record, while the editor and his audience matched a 7-3 performance. Import stood out as the clear winner, with an impressive 8-2 record.
Overall, the staff's success during the week was reflected in their 38-22 record, while the competition stood at 194-184. The keys to a winning week were correctly predicting Georgia's victory over Oklahoma by more than 13.5 points, Alabama's win over South Carolina by more than 12.5 points, and Oregon's triumph over USC by more than 2.5 points.
The reporter, the only one to miss the Vanderbilt pick against Auburn, also missed on Arkansas' blowout of Tulsa. With only six SEC-SEC games, an FCS matchup against a non-betting line opponent, and bye weeks for Ole Miss, Texas, and Oklahoma, the slate was relatively short for this week.
The dealer's choice for this week fell on an ACC matchup between Pittsburgh and Virginia Tech. The rules for the competition required picks to be made against the spread, and the picks would be made for all SEC games. This week also served as a public service announcement regarding the risks of sports gambling, especially considering its legalization in Tennessee. The betting lines for the week were taken from FanDuel, a partner of SB Nation, and may not have matched the lines available at the time of publication.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
