The MAC killed me again last week, as I picked only 50% correctly. Of course, it was a major upset weekend, but I still think I'll prevent embarrassing myself and keep my MAC picks to myself. That starts us on Thursday.
Thurs Nov 11
North Carolina Tar Heels at #25 Pitt Panthers : Hot off their heels of upsetting Wake Forest, North Carolina travels to Ohio to try to unseat division-leading Pitt. For Wake, it was their toughest game of the season. Pitt has already faced stiff competition, so they are better prepared for this game. It might be close, but I like the Panthers to pull it out. PITT by six
Fri Nov 12
#2 Cincinnati Bearcats at South Florida Bulls : Still looking for impressive win to boost their ranking with the playoff committee, the Bearcats face the defense of the South Florida Bulls. The Bulls don't have much of an offense to speak of, but they will keep the Bearcats stuffed enough that this game will fail to impress, too. CINCINNATI by 12
Wyoming Cowboys at Boise State Broncos : The Cowboys, after a hot start, have faded. Boise State still has a (remote) chance to win their division. BOISE STATE by 14
Sat Nov 13
Top 25:
#1 Georgia Bulldogs at Tennessee Volunteers : Rocky Top will rock, but unfortunately to the howls of charging Bulldogs. GEORGIA by 23
Purdue Boilermakers at #3 Ohio State Buckeyes : Will the Spoilermakers make it three ranked upsets in a single year? I don't think so. Purdue rarely strings wins together, and the Buckeyes almost never have two poor games in a row, and they had a tough time last week. The Buckeyes should get it together and be impressive this week. OHIO STATE by 17
New Mexico State Aggies at #4 Alabama Crimson Tide : Geez, do I even have to announce this one? ALABAMA by lots
#5 Oklahoma Sooners at #18 Baylor Bears : A battle of ranked teams, something sorely lacking last week. Baylor lost last week, which might make them more hungry for this upset. Oklahoma should win, but watch out for Baylor. OKLAHOMA by four
#6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish at Virginia Cavaliers : If this game was held earlier in the season, I'd give Virginia a fighting chance. Now the fight seems to have drained from them, giving the Irish a nice victory. NOTRE DAME by 16
Maryland Terrapins at #7 Michigan State Spartans : The Spartans should bounce back from their first loss of the season last week, although the Maryland offense might give them some difficulty. MICHIGAN STATE by 12
#8 Michigan Wolverines at #16 Penn State Nittany Lions : Definitely the most interesting and exciting of the Big Ten games this weekend, it won't be the most exciting Top 25 matchup. Still, this one should be interesting. Both Michigan and Penn State have stronger offenses than defenses, but both offenses are capable of big plays and controlling the flow of the game. The Wolverines have a better running attack than Penn State, and Illinois proved how porous the Nittany Lions run defense can be. That will be the advantage Michigan needs. MICHIGAN by ten
Washington State Cougars at #9 Oregon Ducks : The Cougars can play tough against strong opponents, so this won't be an easy game for Oregon, but it should be a victory. OREGON by 12
TCU Horned Frogs at #10 Oklahoma State Cowboys : It has not been a good year for TCU. If they suddenly find some flashes of past performances they can put a scare into the Cowboys, but it won't last. OKLAHOMA STATE by 18
Southern Miss Golden Eagles at #11 UTSA Roadrunners : Southern Miss is exemplifying the term "down year". UTSA by 23
#12 Texas A&M Aggies at #24 Ole Miss Rebels : The Aggies have a slew of tough games to close the season, but they just seem to get stronger each week. They should knock the Rebels out of the rankings. TEXAS A&M
Georgia State Panthers at #13 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers : Easy win for the Chanticleers. COASTAL CAROLINA by 24
#17 NC State Wolfpack at #14 Wake Forest Demon Deacons : HERE is likely the closest and most exciting game between ranked opponents this weekend. Expect the lead in this game to change hands several times. It might be won by the last team with the ball. That means the team who can better manage their time, and that seems to be Wake Forest. WAKE FOREST by four
#15 Houston Cougars at Temple Owls : Temple can be tough, but Houston is tougher. HOUSTON by 17
Minnesota Golden Gophers at #19 Iowa Hawkeyes : The Hawkeyes are still short on offense, but I think Illinois proved last week that if you slow down Minnesota, you don't need a strong offense to beat them. IOWA by 12
#20 Iowa State Cyclones at Texas Tech Red Raiders : After heavy pre-season hype, the Cyclones are finally starting to show the talent and tenacity that they were touted for. IOWA STATE by 11
#21 Louisiana Ragin Cajuns at Troy Trojans : It is never easy facing Troy, and this game will be now exception. However, the Trojans can't close games, so watch Louisiana own the fourth quarter. LOUISIANA by 12
UAB Blazers at #22 Marshal Thundering Herd : Marshall gets to "celebrate" their first week in the rankings by facing a hungry Blazers team who KNOW they need to win out in order to have a chance at the division title. That type of incentive could lead to an upset, but we'll see how Marshall handles the challenge. MARSHALL by three
UCF Golden Knights at #23 SMU Mustangs : UCF is suffering a down year, but never count out their defense. Could they frustrate SMU enough to win? I don't think so, but this game will be closer than Mustang fans would like. SMU by six
Big Ten
Northwestern Wildcats at Wisconsin Badgers : Despite some impressive defensive performances, Northwestern keeps coming up short. I think that'll happen again here, as Wisconsin sees their opening to winning the division. WISCONSIN by 11
Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Indiana Hoosiers : The Hoosiers are looking for their first conference win. Keep looking, guys! RUTGERS by six
Other Games of Interest
Utah Utes at Arizona Wildcats : The Utes get to pad their divisional lead by manhandling the Wildcats, who finally gained a conference win last week. UTAH by 23
South Alabama Jaguars at Appalachian State Mountaineers : Easy win for the Mountaineers. APPALACHIAN STATE by 24
Air Force Falcons at Colorado State Rams : The Rams can play tough at home, but their defense just isn't physically capable of holding back the "brute force" pounding ground assault of Air Force. AIR FORCE by 16
Nevada Wolf Pack at San Diego State Aztecs : Ooh, this should be a game worth staying up late to watch! The Aztecs are heavily favored, but they'd better not let that get in their heads, because Nevada can be stiff competition. If the Aztecs aren't careful, they'll lose here. SAN DIEGO by eight
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