Week 10 saw several upsets, but almost none affected Top 25 teams. Army shocked Air Force, and put themselves in contention for the Commander-in-Chief trophy. Miami Ohio saw their MAC title hopes jeopardized by a loss to Buffalo. Conference USA contender Tulsa was spanked by Arkansas, and the battle for Louisiana went to the Ragin Cajuns instead of the Warhawks. The only upset that did affect a Top 25 team struck Boise State, as they fell to San Diego State. The loss put their Mountain West title hopes in jeopardy, too. Notre Dame almost suffered an upset, needing three overtime periods to shake off Pitt, and Texas A&M was amazingly dominant over Mississippi State, who may not see that cherished eighth victory.
Tuesday night: Ball State Cardinals at Toledo Rockets: Toledo's run for the MAC Championship hits a crucial stage. They need to beat Ball State, or else toppling Northern Illinois next week will be their only hope. I think Toledo will win, but Ball State will make it tough. TOLEDO by six
Wednesday night: Bowling Green Falcons at Ohio Bobcats: The other MAC division takes the spotlight on this night. The winner of this contest officially assumes second place in the division, and faces off against Kent State. I give Ohio that opportunity. OHIO by eleven
Thursday games
Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks at Arkansas State Red Wolves: Since they lost the battle for Louisiana, the Warhawks find themselves among a crowded bunch atop the Sun Belt. The Warhawks have been a strong team this season, but the Ragin Cajuns showed how vulnerable they can be. The Red Wolves have not been as dominant as the Warhawks, but they've steadily won this season. If it's a close game, I like the Red Wolves, but I think the Warhawks will want to take a quick and early lead, to compensate for last week. LOUISIANA-MONROE by twelve
#5 Florida State Seminoles at Virginia Tech Hokies: Normally stiff competition, the Hokies have been pretty weak this season, so the Seminoles should register one more victory towards their division title. FLORIDA STATE by 20
Friday night: Pittsburgh Panthers at UConn Huskies: Pitt has not been having a stellar season, but UConn hasn't won a single conference game. I think that'll continue. PITT by eight
Top 25
#11 Texas A&M Aggies at #1 Alabama Crimson Tide: The Aggies defense isn't strong enough to halt 'Bama (I think only LSU has a defense like that), so they'll have to outscore them. I don't think they'll do that. BAMA by 18
#2 Oregon Ducks at Cal Golden Bears: Oregon slashed USC, so their only tough competition remaining is Oregon State. They'll cruise here, although Cal may have some moments of brilliance. OREGON by 21
#3 Kansas State Wildcats at TCU Horned Frogs: The Wildcats' QB Collin Klein was hurt last game, but he'll be back for this one. TCU has no defense, but they have a powerful offense. This will be a high-scoring affair, with Kansas State's defense making the difference. KANSAS STATE by 13
#6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Boston College Eagles: This may be the easiest game the Irish will play this season. NOTRE DAME by 24
Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns at #8 Florida Gators: While Florida waits to see if they will win the SEC East, they'll take out their tension on the Cajuns. FLORIDA by 23
#23 Mississippi State Bulldogs at #9 LSU Tigers: The Bulldogs face their third tough SEC opponent in a row, and I think they'll leave with their third consecutive loss. LSU by nine
Maryland Terrapins at #10 Clemson Tigers: Clemson is in a battle for the division title, so they know every win matters. Maryland won't be too tough a challenge. CLEMSON by 18
Arkansas Razorbacks at #12 South Carolina Gamecocks: The Razorbacks beat a tougher opponent last week, looking like the team people expected to see this season. They should enjoy that high, as it won't last. South Carolina took a break last week, so you know Steve Spurrier took the extra time to devise some interesting plays. SOUTH CAROLINA by sixteen
Baylor Bears at #13 Oklahoma Sooners: Baylor has been tormented by Big XII teams all season, and Oklahoma is the next tormentor. The Sooners have a strong defense and the offense has been getting steadily better. They will stretch Baylor until they break. OKLAHOMA by 17
#14 UCLA Bruins at Washington State Cougars: The Bruins now lead the Pac-12 South, and they'll keep that lead after this game. We've seen how teams have beating on Colorado, and the Cougars have been even worse. UCLA by 31
Arizona State Sun Devils at #15 USC Trojans: The Sun Devils may have dropped out of the Top 25, but they are still dangerous. Will they surprise USC? The Trojans will likely have problems with them, but I think USC will emerge victorious. USC by six
#16 Oregon State Beavers at Stanford Cardinal: Another Pac-12 game with the potential to be an upset, I'll pick the Beavers, but they may be in for a shock. If they lose, they basically give Oregon the division crown. OREGON STATE by four
#18 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs at Texas State Bobcats: This one will be an easy victory for the Bulldogs. LOUISIANA TECH by 31
#19 Louisville Cardinals at Syracuse Orange: While they struggled early in the season, Syracuse has been a contender in Big East play. Just how much they can contend will be proven in this game. If they win, they knock Louisville off their pedestal and remain viable for the conference title. If they lose, they lose all hope of winning the conference. Syracuse will fight hard, but the Cardinals will emerge victorious. LOUISVILLE by nine
#20 Boise State Broncos at Hawaii Warriors: The Warriors often battle hard at home, but this season they haven't been much of a threat. Boise needs to catch up in the Mountain West, and this game will help. BOISE STATE by 18
Iowa State Cyclones at #21 Texas Longhorns: The Cyclones were an early season threat, but they a little more than a stiff breeze now. Texas may take their foot off the gas a bit, to rest after the game against Texas Tech, but even a more relaxed Texas team should beat the Cyclones. TEXAS by sixteen
#22 Kent State Golden Flashes at Miami Ohio Redhawks: A loss here removes any chance the Redhawks have to take the MAC East title. I think that'll happen, although it may be such an easy win for Kent State. KENT STATE by nine
Kansas Jayhawks at #24 Texas Tech Red Raiders: The Raiders will roll this week, as Kansas has not been a threat all season. TEXAS TECH by 24
Big Ten
Wisconsin Badgers at Indiana Hoosiers: I correctly picked one Hoosier upset, and I'd love to pick them again. However, since Wisconsin had a bye week, they will be more rested. This game will be a lot closer than the Badgers would like, and Indy could still pull off the win. WISCONSIN by four
Northwestern Wildcats at Michigan Wolverines: The Wildcats have an outside chance to win the Legends division, but they need to get past both Michigan and Michigan State on the road. It's tough to win in the Big House, and Michigan has some punch this season. QB Denard Robinson didn't play last week, but he should be back for this game. They may need him. MICHIGAN by six
Purdue Boilermakers at Iowa Hawkeyes: Purdue is looking for their first Big Ten win of the season. Keep looking. IOWA by twelve
Penn State Nittany Lions at Nebraska Cornhuskers: The Michigan game will be done (or nearly so) when this games starts, so the Cornhuskers will know if their Legends division lead is in jeopardy. I've got prescient news for them -- it is. Penn State has a stiff defense and a working offense, and they have the second best turnover ratio in the conference. Nebraska has the worst turnover ratio, so they will make a couple of mistakes that Penn State will exploit. PENN STATE by ten
Minnesota Golden Gophers at Illinois Fighting Illini: Can my Illini muster their first conference win of the season? Their offense showed some life last week against the stiff Ohio State defense, and their defense held for a little over a quarter. Minnesota won't press them as much, but I don't think the defense can last an entire game. If they do, they can win, but I'm afraid Minnesota will pull this one out, even though the Illini may lead at halftime. MINNESOTA by six
Other Games of Interest
Army Black Knights at Rutgers Scarlet Knights: Army pulled off a great victory last week, but Rutgers had a bye week to prepare for this Knight-ly battle. RUTGERS by sixteen
Cincinnati Bearcats at Temple Owls: Temple struggled early in the season but has shown strength recently. Unfortunately, that strength won't be enough to get them past Cincy. The Bearcats still have a shot at the conference title, but they need to win games they are supposed to, and they are supposed to win this one. CINCY by 16
Miami Hurricanes at Virginia Cavaliers: This should be an easy victory for Miami to remain atop the ACC Coastal division. MIAMI by 21
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at North Carolina Tar Heels: Don't let Tech's 3-3 conference record fool you. They've beaten the three worst teams in the conference: BC, Maryland, and Virginia. Their offense is working, but their defense is weak. North Carolina scores lots of points, so that weak defense will lose the game for them. NORTH CAROLINA by 23
West Virginia Mountaineers at Oklahoma State Cowboys: The Mountaineers have no defense, and their vaulted offense is faltering now, too. For the life of me, I don't understand why they are still ranked in some polls, but hopefully this loss will convince everyone to dump them. OKLAHOMA STATE by 15
Tulsa Golden Hurricane at Houston Cougars: Tulsa's success outside of the Conference USA is mediocre, but they have dominated conference opponents. Houston can have good games, but they can't maintain momentum. Tulsa looks for weaknesses and openings in their opponents and exploits them. Houston has enough weaknesses for Tulsa to exploit. TULSA by 16
UCF Golden Knights at UTEP Miners: The other Conference USA division leader gets a nice easy game to maintain their lead and remove Marshall from title contention. UCF by 26
Fresno State Bulldogs at Nevada Wolf Pack: This will be a closer game than Fresno State would like. Nevada can be sneaky, and might pull off an amazing fourth quarter come from behind win, but no matter who wins, it will be close. FRESNO STATE by six
FCS Game of the Week: South Dakota State Jackrabbits at North Dakota State Bison: The two teams leading the Missouri Valley Conference vie for the title, and both have only been in the FCS for less than five seasons. North Dakota State has been in this position before in Division II and Division III, so they understand the pressure. That, as well as a strong defense, has me favor the Bison. NORTH DAKOTA STATE by eleven
GAME OF THE WEEK: #7 Georgia Bulldogs at Auburn Tigers: The Bulldogs will win the SEC East with this win, and the participants of the SEC Championship Game will be set before any other conference even decides ONE division winner. There is no greater indication that the competitiveness of SEC is not as high as previous years, although so many teams finishing with non-conference games helps push these division results forward. GEORGIA by 25
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