NCAA Week 7 picks

It's been a hectic week and this post is a bit late.  Fortunately, tonight's game is between two Sun Belt teams, so it won't really affect anything on the national scale.

Wed Oct 14
#4 Boise State Broncos at Tulsa Golden Hurricane:  Tulsa can be a tough team, but Boise is poised to run the table now.  BOISE STATE

Thurs Oct 15
#7 Cincinnati Bearcats at South Florida Bulls:  This battle between unbeatens will determine the front-runner in the Big East race.  I would have made this my Game of the Week, but not everyone pays attention to the Big East anymore.  Perhaps this game will garner some attention.  South Florida's defense is tough, but they haven't been playing with the same fire we've seen from them the past two seasons.  Perhaps this game will spark it, but until I see it, I'll go with the Bearcats.  CINCINNATI

Fri Oct 16
#19 Pittsburgh Panthers at Rutgers Scarlet Knights:  The Knights aren't the force they've been, so Pitt shouldn't have too much difficulty here.  PITT

Top 25
#25 South Carolina Gamecocks at #1 Alabama Crimson Tide:  The Gamecocks and Coach Spurrier can be unpredictable, but I don't think even the brilliant Steve Spurrier can come up with a plan to consistently outsmart the tough Tide defense.  Despite what most of the country thinks, Alabama is clearly the best team in the SEC.  Florida should be thankful they don't play 'Bama, at least not until the SEC Championship Game.  ALABAMA

Arkansas Razorbacks at #2 Florida Gators:  Florida has looked anemic even before Tebow's concussion.  Arkansas has already surprised one SEC team.  I'm not sure they can do it again, but they'll shock Florida.  Arkansas will lead at one point in the second half, and Florida will win by less than seven.  FLORIDA

#24 Oklahoma Sooners at #3 Texas Longhorns:  Despite both teams being ranked, I don't think this year's Red River Rivalry will be as exciting.  Oklahoma seems a bit lethargic, and Sam Bradford's injured arm adds to their woes.  Texas ought to give the Dallas fans plenty to cheer.  TEXAS

#5 Kansas Jayhawks at Colorado Buffaloes:  Colorado is looking better than their atrocious start to the season, but they still have a long way to go to battle Top Ten teams like Kansas and Texas.  KANSAS

#6 Iowa Hawkeyes at Wisconsin Badgers:  Wisconsin seems to have lost some of their rhythm, but they can still be dangerous.  Iowa is more dangerous this season, and remains the only unbeaten team in the Big Ten.  IOWA

#8 Ohio State Buckeyes at Purdue Boilermakers:  Ohio State hasn't lost a Big Ten game yet, and Purdue doesn't have enough offense to give them their first.  OHIO STATE

#9 USC Trojans at #20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish:  USC doesn't have the power we're used to, but Notre Dame isn't quite up to their historical power level, either.  However, with an extra week to prepare for the Trojans, and clips of the Washington upset to review, the Irish could scare them.  USC

Texas Tech Red Raiders at #11 Nebraska Cornhuskers:  Tech is dangerous, and has generated lots of offense this season, but Nebraska has generated more, and the Raiders don't have much of a defense.  NEBRASKA

Minnesota Golden Gophers at #13 Penn State Nittany Lions:  Penn State has a tough defense this year, and Clark is running the offense well, too.  PENN STATE

Colorado State Rams at #15 TCU Horned Frogs:  Colorado State can be dangerous, but TCU is loaded nicely this year.  I like the home team here, but it may be closer than they'd like.

#22 Missouri Tigers at #16 Oklahoma State Cowboys:  This is where the Tigers must really step up.  They lost last week, and it was an ugly game.  The Cowboys have rebounded nicely from their early troubles, and they're ready to compete with the "big boys" in the Big XII.  OKLAHOMA STATE

Kentucky Wildcats at #17 Auburn Tigers:  Kentucky can do some interesting things, but Auburn will want a good showing after their embarrassing loss last week.  AUBURN

#18 BYU Cougars at San Diego State Aztecs:  The Cougars are a force in the Mountain West, with only TCU their serious competitor.  BYU

Delaware State at #21 Michigan Wolverines:  Michigan's turn to beat up on an FCS team.  MICHIGAN

#23 Stanford Cardinal at Arizona Wildcats:  The Wildcats can be tricky, and Stanford can completely collapse at least once a year, but I'm not sure this will be the game for either one.  STANFORD

Big Ten
Northwestern Wildcats at Michigan State Spartans:  Northwestern is having a decent year, but the Spartans can be dangerous, especially at home (just ask the Wolverines).  MICHIGAN STATE

Illinois Fighting Illini at Indiana Hoosiers:  As much as I'd like to pick my Alma Mater, they're a team in disarray this season.  Indiana has some tools, and that should be enough to propel them past the hapless Illini.  INDIANA

Other Games of Interest
Central Michigan Chippewas at Western Michigan Broncos:  Central Michigan owns the MAC, and should stand for the rest of the season.  CENTRAL MICHIGAN

Marshall Thundering Herd at West Virginia Mountaineers:  The Mountaineers are marching on, even if they don't dominate the Big East this year.  Marshall is struggling, so the Mountaineers will keep marching.  WEST VIRGINIA

Hawaii Warriors at Idaho Vandals:  Who would have thunk it, but Idaho is competing with Boise State for the WAC lead.  THAT is a once in a lifetime experience, and the Vandals will stretch it out as long as they can.  IDAHO

Utah Utes at UNLV Running Rebels:  Utah needs to regain some ground in the Mountain West.  This game will be a good start.  UTAH

Game of the Week:  #14 Virginia Tech Hokies at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets:  Virginia Tech may be the favorite currently in the ACC, but they need to get past the ever-tough Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.  I think they will, but the Jackets will make it extremely tough.  VIRGINIA TECH