NCAA 2024 Week 4 picks

 Thursday Sept 19

South Alabama Jaguars at Appalachian State Mountaineers : App State is not as strong as they have been in recent years, but they should still prevail against the weak Jaguars.  APPALACHIAN STATE by 13

Friday Sept 20

Stanford Cardinal at #18 Syracuse Orange : Stanford was still finding themselves when they went into their bye week.  Unless they worked out all of the kinks, Syracuse should not have a difficult time winning this game.  SYRACUSE by 18

Illinois Fighting Illini at #12 Nebraska Cornhuskers : The Illini have a crushing defense, but their offense can sputter.  I think the Conrnhuskers will push through the defense in the second half.  If they cannot overcome that stifling defense, the Illini have a chance at an upset.  NEBRASKA by eight

San Jose State Spartans at Washington State Cougars : Easy game for the Cougars.  WASHINGTON STATE by 26

Saturday Sept 21

Top 25

UL Monroe Warhawks at #1 Texas Longhorns : Easy win.  TEXAS by lots

Marshall Thundering Herd at #2 Ohio State Buckeyes : Another easy win.  OHIO STATE by lots

#4  Tennessee Volunteers at #6 Oklahoma Sooners : An early season Top Ten battle, this one should be exciting!  Tennessee has sported the most explosive offense so far this season, but the Sooners have a fast defense.  I think the Vols will find ways around that defense, but this game will be close, and could go the other way.  TENN by eight

 Georgia Southern Eagles at #5 Ole Miss Rebels : Another easy win for a Top Five team.  OLE MISS by lots

#8 USC Trojans at Michigan Wolverines : The Wolverines are still working out all of their new starters.  USC by 26

Vanderbilt Commodores at #9 Missouri Tigers : Lots of easy games this weekend.  MISSOURI by lots

#10 Arizona State Sun Devils at Texas Tech Red Raiders : If the Sun Devils don't hurt themselves, they should win this one fairly easily.  ARIZONA STATE by 24

Miami Ohio Redhawks at #11 Notre Dame Fighting Irish : Hmm, another MAC team comes to town.  Are Irish fans having nightmare flashbacks to the Huskies, or are they anxious for a strong revenge?  Won't matter, as the Redhawks don't have nearly the power of the Huskies.  NOTRE DAME by lots

#14 Miami Hurricanes at South Florida Bulls : The Battle of Southern Florida will be won easily by the Hurricanes.  MIAMI by 26

#15 Utah Utes at #17 Oklahoma State Cowboys : This fascinating match-up is now a conference game.  The Utes have gotten off to some slow starts this season, and I'm not sure they are equipped to come from behind.  Still, this game is likely to be close, and the Utes usually prevail in close games.  UTAH by four

#16 Kansas State Wildcats at BYU Cougars : Okay, the Wildcats proved that they might be for real.  A win here will ice that.  KANSAS STATE by 18

Kent State Golden Flashes at #19 Penn State Nittany Lions : Easy win.  PENN STATE by lots

#20 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at #23 Louisville Cardinals : The third matchup of ranked teams will again see the higher ranked team win, but, like the other two games, the lower rank could pull off the upset.  Louisville has some tricky plays in their playbook, and they might have to pull some of those out of the bag to stand a chance.  GEORGIA TECH by ten

James Madison Dukes at #22 North Carolina Tar Heels : The Heels get another easy opponent to loosen up for conference play.  NORTH CAROLINA by lots

Virginia Cavaliers at #24 Coastal Carolina Chanticleers : The Cavs have lot to fix on offense after their struggles against Maryland.  I don't think they'll get them fixed before the Chanticleers pulverize them.  COASTAL CAROLINA by 23

NC State Wolfpack at #25 Clemson Tigers : Did Clemson really need an extra to prepare for thsi?  NC State has some problems this season.  CLEMSON by 16

Big Ten

Charlotte 49ers at Indiana Hoosiers : After what the Hoosiers did to UCLA last week, this should be a breeze.  INDIANA by lots

UCLA Bruins at LSU Tigers : Speaking of those Bruins, there they are!  LSU may not be as sharp this year, but they don't need to be to smother the struggling Bruins.  LSU by lots

Rutgers Scarlet Knights at Virginia Tech Hokies : On paper, the Hokies look like an easy pick.  Rutgers can be tough, though, so it won't be so easy.  VIRGINIA TECH by nine

Northwestern Wildcats at Washington Huskies : The Huskies want a strong win to erase the Apple Bowl loss.  And the Wildcats come to town.  WASHINGTON by 23

Iowa Hawkeyes at Minnesota Golden Gophers : Iowa's defense is good, but they showed some cracks last week.  Minnesota may have lost to North Carolina, but the Gophers are a strong team this season.  I'll pick the home team, but watch out for the Hawkeyes defense.  MINNESOTA by six

Michigan State Spartans at Boston College Eagles : Michigan State has proven to be a much better team this year, but so has BC.  Both teams could win, but I have to favor the Eagles.  Not a good week for Big Ten teams.  BOSTON COLLEGE by eight

Purdue Boilermakers at Oregon State Beavers : It's a toos-up between UCLA and Purdue for worst team in the conference.  This game might break the tie.  OREGON STATE by lots

Other Games of Interest

Ohio Bobcats at Kentucky Wildcats : This cat fight will be won by the home team.  KENTUCKY by lots

Toledo Rockets at Western Kentucky Hilltoppers : Another strong victory for the Rockets.  They might be Top 25 bound.  TOLEDO by 24