NCAA Football Week 3 picks

Thursday games are avoided again.  Is the NCAA refusing to compete with the NFL?

Fri Sept 13
North Carolina Tar Heels at Wake Forest Demon Deacons:  Mack Brown has revitalized the Tar Heels and turning them into a true contender in the conference.  They knocked out Miami last week, and get a chance to do the same to Wake Forest this week.  NORTH CAROLINA

#7 Washington State Cougars at Houston Cougars:  The battle of the Cougars feature the new favorite in the Pac-12 North and a slightly declawed Houston squad.  If Washington State can prevent extending the streak of Pac-12 upsets, this should be an easy win. WASHINGTON STATE

Sat Sept 14
Top 25:
#1 Clemson Tigers at Syracuse Orange: This might have been a more interesting game if Syracuse hadn't been exposed by Maryland.  Now Clemson has a template for peeling the Orange.  CLEMSON

#2 Alabama Crimson Tide at South Carolina Gamecocks:  The Gamecocks can be tricky, but they just don't have the talent to beat the Tide.  ALABAMA

Northwestern State Demons (FCS) at #4 LSU Tigers:  After two tough games against Oregon and Texas, the Tigers get a breather before they start conference play.  LSU

#5 Ohio State Buckeyes at Indiana Hoosiers:  Indiana has had a couple of impressive games, but I think that ends.  Yes, Indiana surprised Ohio State last season. That element of surprise is gone, and Ohio State wants revenge.  OHIO STATE

Pittsburgh Panthers at #6 Penn State Nittany Lions:  Penn State sputtered at first against Buffalo, but then rolled.  Pitt has sputtered all season so far, so this will be a one-sided affair.  PENN STATE

Arkansas State Red Wolves at #8 Georgia Bulldogs:  Nice easy game for the Bulldogs.  They aren't really being stretched in their non-conference games.  I'm not sure that's a good warm-up for the SEC.  GEORGIA

#9 Iowa Hawkeyes at Iowa State Cyclones:  The Cyclones often give Iowa fits, and they had an extra week to prepare for this game, but the Cyclones didn't look really good during Week 1, so I have to favor the Hawkeyes.  IOWA

New Mexico Lobos at #10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish:  The Irish should coast through this one.  NOTRE DAME

#11 Oklahoma Sooners at UCLA Bruins:  In previous years, this could be an exciting match-up. Unfortunately, the Bruins aren't fierce this season, so the Sooners should have this one locked up in the first half.  OKLAHOMA

Arizona State Sun Devils at #12 Michigan State Spartans:  The Spartans have to be careful here.  The Sun Devils are a decent team, and if the Spartans start off too slowly, they may find themselves behind by a couple of scores.  The Spartans should bear down and take over the game, but this one may end closer than the Spartans would like.  MICHIGAN STATE

Idaho State Bengals (FCS) at #13 Utah Utes:  This easy victory won't help the Utes Top 25 rankings, but might not hurt them either. UTAH

#14 Texas Longhorns at Rice Owls:  The Longhorns get a break after their tough bout against LSU.  TEXAS

Montana Grizzlies (FCS) at #15 Oregon Ducks:  Montana is a good team, so this may not be as easy as Oregon would like, but I don't see an upset happening here.  OREGON

#16 Oklahoma State Cowboys at Tulsa Golden Hurricane:  Tulsa has a decent defense, but it's not strong enough to suppress the overwhelming Cowboys offense.  OKLAHOMA STATE

Kent State Golden Flashes at #17 Auburn Tigers:  Kent State nearly lost to Kennesaw State last week.  Auburn won't break a sweat.  AUBURN

#18 Maryland Terrapins at Temple Owls:  Maryland will wipe out another opponent.  Could they end up being the most impressive East team coming into conference play?  MARYLAND

Stanford Cardinal at #19 UCF Golden Knights:  Stanford got shocked by USC last week, so they may tighten their preparation.  However, the Trojans showed that Stanford's new QB needs work and gets flustered.  The UCF defense will charge him all day.  I expect at least 2 interceptions and lots of throwaways as UCF rolls.  UCF

Air Force Falcons at #20 Colorado Buffaloes:  Air Force had a bye last week, and an FCS opponent the first week.  This will be their first real challenge, and I'm not sure they are up to it.  COLORADO

#21 NC State Wolf Pack at West Virginia Mountaineers:  Remember when some national analysts were touting that West Virginia would compete for the Big 12 title?  That seems a long time ago.  NC STATE

Florida Gators at #23 Kentucky Wildcats:  Both SEC teams get their first real challenge of the season.  I've been more impressed with Kentucky's offense, but they haven't faced a defense like Florida.  The Gators may pull this one out, but I'll give a slight edge to the home team.  KENTUCKY

#24 USC Trojans at BYU Cougars:  The Trojans bring their newly-minted Top 25 ranking into Salt Lake City.  If they don't still live in the past, ecstatic about their victory over Stanford, that they ignore BYU, they should win this one.  USC

Big Ten:
Eastern Michigan Eagles at Illinois Fighting Illini:  Illinois gets their second MAC opponent.  They demolished Akron, but that is proving to be fairly easy.  Eastern Michigan isn't usually much of a force in the conference, and so far haven't really shown up.  ILLINOIS

Georgia Southern Eagles at Minnesota Golden Gophers:   The Eagles are flying low, and Minnesota needs a good game to wipe out the anxiety from the overtime squeaker at Fresno State.  I think they'll get it.  MINNESOTA

UNLV Running Rebels at Northwestern Wildcats:  Stanford's loss this week makes the Northwestern loss look worse.  The 'Cats had an extra week to prepare for this game, so they should pull it out, but it may be much closer than anyone (except UNLV fans) would like.  NORTHWESTERN

TCU Horned Frogs at Purdue Boilermakers:  Purdue can play tough against strong opponents, especially at home, but TCU just seems too strong to let this one slip away.  TCU

Northern Illinois Huskies at Nebraska Cornhuskers: Both of these teams have made critical mistakes in their games.  At least Nebraska has the talent to make up for it.  NEBRASKA

Other Games of Interest:
Kansas State Wildcats at Mississippi State Bulldogs:  K State hasn't really faced strong enough opposition to prepare for this game. While the Wildcats might win, as I'm not sure we've really seem them perform, I'll favor the Bulldogs.  MISSISSIPPI STATE

Hawaii Rainbow Warriors at Washington Huskies:  Can Washington bounce back from their loss to Cal?  Cal's defense is good, but really the Huskies offense was off.  If they don't fix that, the Rainbow Warriors will outscore them.  HAWAII

Florida State Seminoles at Virginia Cavaliers:  Florida State is not having a good year.  Virginia, on the other hand, is looking very good.  VIRGINIA