We have three games pairing ranked teams, and some other interesting match-ups, including some potential upsets. Let's start with Thursday...
Thurs Sept 23
Marshall Thundering Herd at Appalachian State Mountaineers : Two teams just outside the Top 25 square off, and it should be an interesting encounter. Expect lots of scoring, as both of these teams like to strike fast and often. I'll favor the home team, but these two are so evenly matched that it could be anybody's game. APPALACHIAN STATE by three
Fri Sept 24
UNLV Running Rebels at #19 Fresno State Bulldogs : The Rebels are looking for their first win of the season. They'll have to keep searching. FRESNO STATE by 16
Wake Forest Demon Deacons at Virginia Cavaliers : Nobody paid much attention to either of these teams in preseason, yet they have performed well. Wake beat Florida State last week (or course, everyone has beaten Florida State this season) while Virginia had been doing well until traveling to North Carolina last week. I'll give Wake the benefit of momentum, but Virginia might sharpen their game after last week's loss. WAKE FOREST by eight
Sat Sept 25
Top 25
Southern Miss Golden Eagles at #1 Alabama Crimson Tide : Bama will have a much easier time than against Florida. ALABAMA by 23
#2 Georgia Bulldogs at Vanderbilt Commodores : Both leaders of the SEC get easy opponents this week. GEORGIA by 27
Colorado State Rams at #3 Iowa Hawkeyes : Speaking of easy opponents, the Hawkeyes lost a floundering Rams team. IOWA by 23
Villanova (FCS) Wildcats at #4 Penn State Nittany Lions : And the Lions finish the slate of easy opponents for our top teams. PENN STATE by 27
#13 Rutgers Scarlet Knights at #5 Michigan Wolverines : Well, Rutgers enjoyed a great run, but I think it's over. In preseason I figured this might be a close game, but Michigan has really stepped it up this season, so they should be able to win here, and win decisively. MICHIGAN by 16
#21 Tennessee Volunteers at #7 Florida Gators : Tennessee usually does well in non-conference play, and then has trouble against conference opponents. This year, they start conference play against a team that gave Alabama everything they could handle. Oops. FLORIDA by 16
Arizona Wildcats at #8 Oregon Ducks : It's an 0-3 start for Arizona. Er, make that 0-4. OREGON by 20
Nebraska Cornhuskers at #9 Michigan State Spartans : Nebraska gave Oklahoma troubles last week, but don't expect them to excel this week. MICHIGAN STATE by 15
#10 Texas A&M Aggies at #14 Arkansas Razorbacks : Our last contest of Top 25 teams should be the most competitive. Arkansas has certainly been very impressive to start the season, even more than the Aggies. They are scrappers who you can never consider beaten until the very end. If it is a close game at the end, I favor Arkansas. However, the Aggies like to score early, so I think they'll establish (and keep) an early lead, despite a fourth quarter comeback by the Razorbacks. TEXAS A&M by four
#11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Wisconsin Badgers : The only game at a neutral site, Chicago's Soldier Field hosts two teams who are playing better than the Bears! Big Ten teams often play the Irish tough, and the Badgers will be no exception! Remember, they had an extra week to prepare for this game, which might give them time to devise an interesting game plan. I think the Irish has enough talent to win this game, but their early struggles against Purdue last week makes them ripe for an upset. NOTRE DAME by six
Akron Zips at #12 Ohio State Buckeyes : Easy win for the Buckeyes, as they continue to seal their defensive holes. OHIO STATE by 21
Georgia State Panthers at #16 Auburn Tigers : After a tough battle against Penn State, the Tigers get an easy game as a breather. AUBURN by 23
#17 Kansas State Wildcats at Oklahoma State Cowboys : Another upset potential, the Wildcats move into conference play. They did pick some tougher opponents this year, so they might be better prepared. They'd better hope so, as the Cowboys are no pushovers. Their offense is a bit off this season, so the Wildcats have a chance. KANSAS STATE by six
UMass Minutemen at #18 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers : UMass doesn't have much mass behind them, so the Chanticleers continue their sensational season. COASTAL CAROLINA by 23
#20 UCLA Bruins at Stanford Cardinal : Another upset watch, the Cardinal have improved since a poor early showing. UCLA stumbled last week, falling to Fresno State after allowing them to score in the last minute. This could be a fun game to watch. UCLA by two
Texas Tech Red Raiders at #22 Texas Longhorns : These Texas battles can always get intense, but the Longhorns have had Tech's number for years, and that will continue. TEXAS by 16
Clemson Tigers at #23 NC State Wolfpack : And here's where I truly go against the national analysts, who have basically ignored NC State. That's a mistake, as they are a good team. Their offense is certainly doing better than Clemson, who still do not seem to have figured out who is going to do what on offense. NC STATE by eight
Iowa State Cyclones at #24 Baylor Bears : Another game where I defy the national pundits, who refuse to let go of the fact that they were wrong in picking Iowa State as a favorite in the Big XII. Perhaps losing this game will finally convince them. BAYLOR by ten
Oregon State Beavers at #25 USC Trojans : The Beavers can be tough on their own turf, but they don't tend to travel well. USC by 13
Big Ten
Bowling Green Falcons at Minnesota Golden Gophers : Minnesota's offense is hot, and that should propel them over the Falcons. MINNESOTA by 14
Ohio Bobcats at Northwestern Wildcats : Ohio is struggling, even more so than Northwestern. NORTHWESTERN by eight
Illinois Fighting Illini at Purdue Boilermakers : Preseason, I figured this would be an easy game for the Illini. Since then, injuries (especially to running back) and a faltering defense has made Illinois' chances smaller, especially given how tough Purdue played against Notre Dame for three quarters. Of course, Purdue often challenges Notre Dame, so I'll still give the Illini a chance. ILLINOIS by six
Kent State Golden Flashes at Maryland Terrapins : The MAC is basically down this season. Even though they often challenge their Big Ten opponents, I don't see Kent State really pushing Maryland. MARYLAND by 16
Indiana Hoosiers at Western Kentucky Hilltoppers : Indiana's offense has not been as effective as expected, and the Hilltoppers defense looks good. Indiana has been slowly improving from their disappointing opening weekend, so I think they might squeak this out, but the Hilltoppers could win here. INDIANA by three
Other Games of Interest
SMU Mustangs at TCU Horned Frogs : This is an interesting battle of unbeaten teams. TCU looks good, but not so strong as they often have been. SMU, on the other hand, is impressive. Granted, SMU has not faced really challenging opponents, but they certainly seem to have the talent and drive to compete. This could be a close game, and SMU might win. TCU by six
Boise State Broncos at Utah State Aggies : Utah State is also looking very good, while Boise continues to struggle. In the past this would be an easy win for Boise, but they are almost an underdog in this game, and an upset would not be surprising. BOISE STATE by four
UTSA Roadrunners at Memphis Tigers : The Roadrunners have a strong team this year, while Memphis is inconsistent. I like UTSA's chances here. UTSA by six
South Florida Bulls at BYU Cougars : The Bulls are having a hard year, so BYU should roll. BYU by 17
No comments:
Post a Comment