Rambling's Week 13 CFB Picks

My favorite two weeks coupled together are right now with Rivalry week and Championship week back to back I'm looking to bounce back this week and look forward to the Thanksgiving weekend of sports both football and baseball. Now on to the picks....


Thursday, November 24th, 2011:
#25 Texas at Texas A&M, 7:00 pm ESPN, I'm not sure how Texas is still in the top 25, they lost each of the last two weeks and their best win is either BYU or Iowa State which is to say a middling team. Texas A&M looked like a top 10-15 team to start the year but has fallen flat in the second halves of games this season and appears to be a much better team than their record would show. Winner: Texas A&M ATS: Texas A&M -8
Friday, November 25th, 2011:
#8 Houston at Tulsa, 11:00 am, Houston's first of two tests happens this week in a square off for the C-USA West crown this week in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Houston is the odds on favorite here but a closer examination of Tulsa gives us a team that has only lost to top 10 teams this season (Oklahoma, Boise, Oklahoma State) and  has only had one other game decided by under 17 points. Could Houston be looking ahead to the C-USA championship game thinking they have a cake walk in Tulsa and is Tulsa better than anyone thinks. Winner: Tulsa ATS: Tulsa +3
Iowa at #21 Nebraska, 11:00 am ABC, Both these teams are enigmas, Iowa has played very well at points but then has a loss to Minnesota. Nebraska on the other hand can be described by two games, the blowout at Wisconsin and the win over Michigan State. Winner: Nebraska ATS: Iowa +9.5
#3 Arkansas at #1 LSU, 1:30 pm CBS, This game will decide who wins the SEC West one way or another and more than likely shape the BCS Championship game. LSU has the best resume in the country, with the best win, at Alabama, and a still very good non-con win against Oregon. Arkansas has only the loss at Alabama on their resume with their best wins over underwhelming A&M and Auburn teams or a South Carolina team without Marcus Lattimore. Winner: LSU ATS: Arkansas +13.5
Pittsburgh at West Virginia, 6:00 pm ESPN, Let me preface this pick by saying, my track record on Big East picks this year has been horrendous. The Backyard Brawl has produced some great games through the years the most memorable to me is the '07 version of the game that shook up the BCS. Both teams are nearing the end of year 1 of new regimes and West Virginia looks to be in better shape. Winner: West Virginia ATS: West Virginia -7
Saturday, November 26th, 2011:
Iowa State at #9 Oklahoma, 11:00 am FX, Iowa State is coming off the match that lit the powder keg last week over Oklahoma State and Oklahoma is coming off an upset loss to Baylor and both should come out a little sluggish. I don't think Iowa State has enough to hang on in this game as the emotional letdown should be too much to overcome. Winner: Oklahoma ATS: Iowa State +28
#13 Georgia at #23 Georgia Tech, 11:00 am ESPN, I don't have much to say on this game neither team is a top 10 team and Georgia may be more focused on LSU/Alabama/Arkansas next week. Winner: Georgia ATS: Georgia Tech +5.5
#14 Michigan State at Northwestern, 11:00 am BTN, Michigan State is on upset alert for the same reason Clemson should have been last week for me, they have nothing to play for after clinching their title game berth. Winner: Michigan State ATS: Michigan State -6.5
Ohio State at #15 Michigan, 11:00 am ABC, This years addition of The Game isn't lacking for story lines but won't be a great game on the field one team is trending up and one town but both are average at best. Winner: Michigan ATS: Ohio State +7
Wyoming at #7 Boise State, 1:00 pm, Wyoming is a solid MWC team but Boise is a good team in any conference. (even yours SEC fans) Winner: Boise State ATS: Boise State -33.5
#2 Alabama at #24 Auburn, 2:30 pm CBS, If you follow college football at all then all you need to hear is Roll Tide... War Eagle, if not just type in either slogan and read posts that show up and you'll get what is up. Winner: Alabama ATS: Auburn +21
#5 Virginia Tech at Virginia, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, The surprise of the year has to be the improvements made in year two of the Mike London era at Virginia, the Cavaliers are developing a stingy attitude to them that will challenge just about any team in the conference and most across the nation. Virginia Tech just keeps chugging along after the early loss to Clemson and the offense is continuing to come around after a slow start, the defense is uncharacteristically average for a Bud Foster led squad. Winner: Virginia Tech ATS: Virginia Tech -4.5
Oregon State at #10 Oregon, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, I know this is the Civil War but, ummmmm....yeah. Winner: Oregon ATS: Oregon State +28
#19 Penn State at #16 Wisconsin, 2:30 pm ESPN, This is the match-up I expected coming into the season that would decide the Big Ten Leaders division and it matches up a great rushing attack against a top 10 defense in the country that has one of the best DTs in Still, if the Badgers are with Konz and Wagner however this game will be a major struggle for the Badgers. Winner: Wisconsin ATS: Penn State +15
Texas Tech vs #18 Baylor, 6:00 pm, Tech is really bad. RG3 is really, really good. Winner: Baylor ATS: Baylor -13
#17 Clemson at #12 South Carolina, 6:45 pm ESPN, The Battle for South Carolina should be a very good game but a Lattimore-less team isn't #12 in the country and should be in for one heck of a fight when the Tigers come to town. Clemson is coming off a major letdown against a horrible Boston College team last week and doesn't appear to have a lot to play for. Winner: South Carolina ATS: Clemson +4
#22 Notre Dame at #6 Stanford, 7:00 pm ABC, Notre Dame isn't the 22nd best team in the country and I'm not completely sure that Stanford is the 6th but I am more sure that they are indeed a top 15 team at worst with the best quarterback in the country. Notre Dame had issues against a jump ball passer in Denard Robinson and those struggles should be tenfold against Andrew Luck. Winner: Stanford ATS: Stanford -7
UCLA at USC, 9:00 pm, The best team in the Pac-12 faces off against the current Pac-12 South representative to the championship game. Neuheisel, only a couple weeks removed from being fired now has a chance to have his team in a position that would likely make him unfireable for another year. Lane Kiffin, much like Matt Barkley for the Heisman, is being overlooked for the coach of the year award. I will concede he has a large amount of talent but he has kept a young team focused after a rough start to have a legitimate claim to being the best team in the country. Winner: USC ATS: -14

Rambling's Week 12 CFB Recap

A fun week of college football as some meh games became upsets or much better games as anticipated, and turmoil became the name by which this week will be referred. Without further ado let's look back on the week that was.

Thursday, November 17th, 2011:

North Carolina at #8 Virginia Tech, 7:00 pm EPSN, With this win Virginia Tech is now one win over Virginia away from a berth in the ACC Championship game for the fifth time in the last seven seasons. North Carolina is a good team again this year and continues to feel the effects of last summers NCAA issues. Winner: 1-0 ATS: 0-1

#20 Southern Miss at UAB, 7:00 pm, Just as Southern Miss was starting to gain traction with the national media they lay a complete egg against a far inferior UAB team. Southern Miss should still win the East division but looks a little less daunting to Houston's undefeated bid. Winner: 1-1 ATS: 0-2

Friday, November 18th, 2011:

#2 Oklahoma State at Iowa State, 7:00 pm ESPN, Winner: 1-2 ATS: 1-2

Saturday, November 19th, 2011:

Indiana at #15 Michigan State, 11:00 am BTN, Indiana looks to be making strides under Kevin Wilson but it will be a few years before they make any real noise in the Big Ten Legends division. Michigan State has secured a place in the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game against the winner of Penn State-Wisconsin this weekend. Winner: 2-2 ATS: 2-2

#16 Nebraska at #18 Michigan, 11:00 am ESPN, Nebraska has been a disappointment even if a bit overrated by most of us coming into the season. Michigan continues to surprise by putting together a much more complete season than anyone outside of Ann Arbor would have expected.Winner: 2-3 ATS: 2-3

#17 Wisconsin at Illinois, 11:00 am ESPN2 Wisconsin dropped behind by two scores on the road for the third time this season, unlike the previous two they were able to pull all the way back and win comfortably in Champagne. Illinois continues to crash since a 6-0 start to the season. Winner: 3-3 ATS: 2-4

Louisville at Connecticut, 11:00 am, If anyone out there can explain the Big East this season I would love to hear the theory on what this conference is. I would also like to hear anyone who thinks that they still deserve a BCS bid. this did nothing to determine who gets the BCS bid. Winner: 3-4 ATS: 2-5

Cincinnati at Rutgers, 11:00 am ESPNU, Cincinnati blew their chance to separate from the pack in the Big East but a loss in Piscataway helps to muddle it even further. Winner: 3-5 ATS: 2-6

Kentucky at #14 Georgia, 11:21 am SEC Network, Georgia locks up a berth in the SEC championship game while struggling with the Wildcats furthering the belief that the SEC East is the far inferior league in the SEC. Georgia will be the last test before the National Championship Game for the winner of the SEC West. Winner: 4-5 ATS: 2-7

Mississippi State at #6 Arkansas, 2:30 pm CBS, Mississippi State has been the biggest disappointment to me this season as I thought they would be primed to challenge LSU and Alabama in the SEC West this season. Arkansas now sets themselves up for a shot at the West crown but an uphill battle to say the least to get there with this weeks game in Baton Rouge. Winner: 5-5 ATS: 3-7

#7 Clemson at North Carolina State, 2:30 pm ESPN/ABC, We have a Clemsoning by the Tigers the week after locking up a berth in the ACC Championship Game. That is all. Winner: 5-6 ATS: 3-8

SMU at #11 Houston, 2:30 pm, SMU hasn't been as good as expected this year and was much less of a hinderence to Houston leading up to the C-USA West showdown with Tulsa this week. Houston looks to gain some respect nationally as one of only two undefeated teams along with LSU. Winner: 6-6 ATS: 3-9

Colorado State at #19 TCU, 2:30 pm Versus, ummm... yeah, TCU continues to mature as a team in front of our eyes. Winner: 7-6 ATS: 4-9

#21 Penn State at Ohio State, 2:30 pm ESPN/ABC, With the Wisconsin win earlier in the day over Illinois this game meant absolutely nothing as far as the Big Ten Leaders division was concerned as neither a win nor a loss made the winner certain. Penn State however looked like a different team with a weight off their shoulders and showed some more diversity on offense. Ohio State continues to lack the continuity it has shown over the past decade. Unfortunately it is not likely to get better any time soon. Winner: 7-7 ATS: 5-9

#1 LSU at Ole Miss, 6:00 pm ESPN, ummmm... Yeah.Winner: 8-7 ATS: 6-9

Virginia at #25 Florida State, 6:30 pm ESPN2, Florida State's season has been a couple series of good followed by the lowest lows of the season. Virginia has a chance to make the title game but must go through rival Virginia Tech to get there. Winner: 8-8 ATS: 7-9

USC at #4 Oregon, 7:00 pm ABC, Oregon still controls its destiny and should still be the Pac-12 representative in the Rose Bowl, however, USC is the best team in the conference in my opinion as Lane Kiffin's team has matured really well as the season has aged. Like him or not this is a very good coaching job by Kiffin especially without much of carrot to dangle in front of his team. Winner: 8-9 ATS: 8-9

#5 Oklahoma at #22 Baylor, 7:00 pm ABC, At least it wasn't at home again. RG3 should be a candidate for the Heisman as he has truly been exemplary this season for the Baylor Bears. Winner: 8-10 ATS: 8-10

#10 Boise State at San Diego State, 7:00 pm, Coming off of a crushing defeat to TCU Boise responded well on the road and took care of business against San Diego State. SDSU on the other hand has regressed this season with a new coach do to the departure of Brady Hoke. Winner: 9-10 ATS: 8-11

#13 Kansas State at #23 Texas, 7:00 pm FX, If someone can explain how Texas was favored in this game I would love to hear it because nothing that the Longhorns have done this year warrants them being a favorite over the Wildcats. Winner: 10-10 ATS: 9-11

California at #9 Stanford, 9:15 pm ESPN, Stanford took care of business against their rival but need another Oregon loss to represent the Pac-12 North in the title game and most likely the Rose Bowl this season. With Andrew Luck's career most likely in it's twilight let's try to enjoy it while it is still around. Winner: 11-10 ATS: 9-12


Rough week with a myriad of upsets and the F*#@$& Big East I struggled a bit but look to bounce back next week as we are now just two weeks from conference championship Saturday. On the season I am now 204-53 on winners and 120-107-4 ATS. No more poll recaps as I don't think much can be learned right now but will be looking to put a second blog out the next couple weeks.

Rambling's Week 11 CFB Picks

I'm ready for some football after the scandals that came out this week at Penn State (Most important) and UCF to a much much lesser extent. Remember all times are central and that comments are greatly appreciated...

Wednesday, November 9th, 2011:
Miami (OH) at Temple, 7:00 pm ESPN, Temple is a half game back of both Ohio and Miami (OH) but they can put themselves in a position to take advantage of an Ohio slip up with a win this season. Miami (OH) has been a bit of a surprise with a new coach and turnover at multiple positions but right now has themselves in a good spot to make it to the conference championship game again this year. Winner: Miami (OH) ATS: Miami (OH) +13
Thursday, November 10th, 2011:
#10 Virginia Tech at #21 Georgia Tech, 7:00 pm ESPN, Georgia Tech is right there with Texas for most overrated, they run the triple option which allows them to sneak up on teams especially in  non-conference but Virginia Tech and Bud Foster have seen this for the past couple years and shouldn't be too surprised by anything on Thursday. Winner: Virginia Tech ATS: Virginia Tech -1
#11 Houston at Tulane, 7:00 pm, until the final regular season game and the conference title game, the Cougars shouldn't be tested by anyone in C-USA. Winner: Houston ATS: Houston -34
Saturday, November 12th, 2011:
#2 Oklahoma State at Texas Tech, 11:00 am ABC, Texas Tech left it's game in Norman, Oklahoma and hasn't shown a glimmer of that same team the last two weeks against Texas and Iowa State. Oklahoma State rolls here. Winner: Oklahoma State ATS: Oklahoma State -17
Wake Forest at #9 Clemson, 11:00 am ESPNU, Clemson is coming off a bye after their road loss to Georgia Tech and they should be raring to go but Wake has shown they have a bit of the upset bug in them and should put up a fight in Death Valley. Winner: Clemson ATS: Wake Forest +16.5
#19 Nebraska at #12 Penn State, 11:00 am ESPN, Winner: Nebraska ATS: Nebraska -3
Florida at #13 South Carolina, 11:00 am CBS, South Carolina would have been at least a two score favorite for this game with Marcus Lattimore but this game should be tight in to the fourth quarter but should be able to pull out a W. Winner: South Carolina ATS: South Carolina -3.5 
#16 Texas at Missouri, 11:00 am FX, Missouri has been a challenge for good teams in the Big XII and Texas won't be any different. Texas comes in almost as overrated as they were coming into the Oklahoma game and Texas is going to have issues going point for point with Missouri. Winner: Missouri ATS: Missouri +1
#17 Michigan State at Iowa, 11:00 am ESPN2, Can Iowa do it two weeks in a row and knock off a Legends division competitor and continue to stay in the division race even after a loss to Minnesota. Will Michigan State look better than it did against the Gophers and be able to block out the memory of last years loss in Kinnick Stadium. Winner: Iowa ATS: Iowa +2.5
West Virginia at #23 Cincinnati, 11:00 am ABC, I'm done supporting West Virginia as they have laid eggs on their way to screwing up their Big East chances coming into this weeks match-up with conference leader Cincinnati. Winner: Cincinnati ATS: Cincinnati -3.5
Louisiana-Lafayette at Arkansas State, 2:00 pm, This game is ULLs last conference game and sets up a 3 way race that will be decided by Arkansas State and Western Kentucky the rest of the year. Winner: Arkansas State ATS: ULL +11
TCU at #5 Boise State, 2:30 pm Versus, TCU has looked forward to this game all week and has become a better team if not what they have been in the past couple years. Boise State has been very good this season and should be able to take advantage of the weaknesses of the TCU Secondary. Winner: Boise State ATS: Boise State -16
Texas A&M at #14 Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC, Kansas State is coming off of back to back losses to the Oklahoma schools but gets the perfect hangover cure in the Aggies from College Station. Kansas State looks like a team growing up as it got beat the last two weeks. Winner: Kansas State ATS: Kansas State +4.5
#20 Auburn at #15 Georgia, 2:30 pm CBS, Georgia is in the drivers seat in the SEC East after South Carolina's lost last week but should be challenged by Auburn this week in a game that will be closer than it appears at first glance considering Georgia's struggles this year against adequate competition. Winner: Georgia ATS: Auburn +13
#18 Wisconsin at Minnesota, 2:30 pm BTN, The Paul Bunyan Axe should reside in Madison for another year. Winner: Wisconsin ATS: Wisconsin -27.5 
#24 Michigan at Illinois, 2:30 pm ESPN/ABC, The Illini defense should be a tough test for the Wolverines offense that has stagnated against good competition this year. If the Illini offense can exploit holes in the Wolverines defense this game will come down to a handful of fourth quarter plays. Winner: Michigan ATS: Pk Michigan
Tennessee at #8 Arkansas, 5:00 pm ESPN2, With Tyler Bray still out Arkansas should have no real trouble with the Vols. Winner: Arkansas ATS: Arkansas -14.5
WKU at #1 LSU, 6:00 pm ESPNU, ummm, yeah... Winner: LSU ATS: WKU +41.5
#3 Alabama at Mississippi State, 6:45 pm ESPN, I thought that Mississippi State would be a much better team this year but it seems that they just can't climb that hill to routinely be a pest to the top tier of the SEC each year. Alabama is coming off a tough home loss to LSU which makes this a trap game for Alabama. Winner: Alabama ATS: Mississippi State +18
#7 Oregon at #4 Stanford, 7:00 pm ABC, Stanford bounded out to a quick lead last year but lost to Oregon on the way to the National Championship game. This year's game should be a barn burner once again as Oregon is finally getting healthy and Stanford is being hit with the injury bug. Winner: Oregon ATS: Oregon +3.5
UCF at #22 Southern Miss, 7:00 pm, Southern Miss has become a much more complete team as the year has gone along and this game against UCF should be no different as they are the more talented and better coached team on the field this week. UCF has been a major disappointment this season as they were expected to challenge for at least a division title in the East division of C-USA. Winner: Southern Miss ATS: Southern Miss -9

Rambling's Week 10 CFB Picks

Starting this week in my picks I have decided to try and do my best to include games with, division and conference championship implications. I will still be focusing on the top 25 BCS teams... (all times central)


Wednesday, November 3rd, 2011:
Temple at Ohio, 7:00 pm ESPN, This game will give a good idea about who holds the cards in teh MAC-East. Temple currently holds a half game edge on the Bobcats and have the more impressive resume with a win over Maryland and putting up very good showing against Penn State. Ohio has some bad losses on it's resume and a propensity to give up points in bunches. Winner: Temple ATS: Temple -3.5
Saturday, November 5th, 2011:
#15 Michigan at Iowa, 11:00 am ESPN, Iowa has been a bit of an anomaly this season oscillating between really bad and alright. Michigan comes in with only one blemish on the resume being a road loss in East Landing. Iowa however has a way of sneaking up on teams and a young team coming off a bad loss to Minnesota should be ready to play if only on pride. Winner: Iowa ATS: Iowa +4
Minnesota at #17 Michigan State, 11:00 am BTN, Minnesota is bottom 5% of the nation bad and Michigan State is a real contender for the conference championship. Winner: Michigan State ATS: Michigan State -27.5
Texas Tech at #21 Texas, 11:00 am FX, I don't like this version of Texas, it is undoubtedly better than last years installment but I think this team is far too overrated because of how bad last years team was. Tech has been a tale of two teams, one beat Oklahoma and almost beat A&M and the other lost to Iowa State last week. This game should tell us a little more about these teams. Winner: Texas ATS: Texas Tech +12.5
Louisville at #24 West Virginia, 11:00 am, although West Virginia is a talented team it has a tendency to allow inferior teams to outplay them in the first half, a habit which will inexorably catch up to them in the near future. Louisville has been a major disappointment in the second year of the Charlie Strong era as it has taken a step back across the board. Winner: West Virginia ATS: West Virginia -14
New Mexico State at #18 Georgia, 11:30 am, ummm, yeah. Winner: Georgia ATS: Georgia -35
TCU at Wyoming, 1:00 pm, you can see TCU starting to mature as the season passes the half way mark and under the guidance of Patterson they should continue to take steps forward but I don't think you can assume they'll blow out anyone other than the bottom tier of the MWC at this point. Wyoming sits at 2-0 in MWC standings and should challenge TCU into the second half as TCU looks forward to next weeks Boise game. Winner: TCU ATS: Wyoming +18.5
#4 Stanford at Oregon State, 2:30 pm ABC, Stanford is on a roll behind the Andrew Luck and that roll should continue this week as the Cardinal take their show to Corvallis. Oregon State has been horrible this season but should catch a Stanford team looking forward to a showdown with Oregon. Winner: Stanford ATS: Stanford +20.5
Texas A&M at #6 Oklahoma, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, This game held a lot more intrigue at the beginning of the year, because of the talent returning for both squads, but A&M's inability to hold a lead and Oklahoma getting shocked by Texas Tech this match-up is good not great. Winner: Oklahoma ATS: Texas A&M +13.5
Northwestern at #10 Nebraska, 2:30 pm BTN, Northwestern has been an okay defense away from being a very tough team to deal with in the Big Ten, however they have yet to show a pulse on the defensive side of the ball. Nebraska on the other hand has begun to play blackshirt defense the past couple of weeks as they continue in their quest towards the Big Ten Championship. Winner: Nebraska ATS: Northwestern +17
Purdue at #20 Wisconsin, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, I like Purdue and think they have more talent than they get credit for, but I just don't see enough to overcome a road game at Camp Randall against a hungry Badgers team. Winner: Wisconsin ATS: Purdue +25.5
#25 Southern Miss at East Carolina, 3:00 pm, This isn't close Southern Miss walks away in this one. Winner: Southern Miss ATS: Southern Miss -9.5
#13 Houston at UAB, 6:00 pm, Second, ummm, yeah game of the week. Winner: Houston ATS: Houston -28
Cincinnati at Pittsburgh, 6:00 pm ESPNU, Cincinnati can take a big leap towards winning the Big East with a win at Heniz Field Saturday. Pittsburgh has looked very good and very bad at home and just lost their leading rusher for the year. Winner: Pittsburgh ATS: Pittsburgh +2.5
#9 South Carolina at #7 Arkansas, 6:15 pm ESPN, This game lost some of it's luster with the injury of Marcus Lattimore but neither of these teams has looked overly impressive as of late. Arkansas had to squeak out two wins over Ole Miss and Vandy the last two weeks and hasn't looked as good as many expected this season. South Caorlina's troubles come down to the lack of the elite talent of Lattimore being missing. This game should go a long way in the Gamecocks bid for the East title. Winner: Arkansas ATS: Arkansas -5.5
#19 Arizona State at UCLA, 6:30 pm Versus, the Neuheisel era has been an unmitigated disaster and this year has been no different. Arizona State has been very good on offense but off and on on defense even with a stud like Vontaze Burfict. Winner: Arizona State ATS: Arizona State -10
#1 LSU at #2 Alabama, 7:00 pm CBS, LSU and Alabama meet up in the most anticipated regular season match-up in a long time with neither team being an overwhelming favorite of the public coming in. So let's just break-down the edges for each team. Secondary: LSU, Linebackers: Alabama, D-Line: LSU, O-Line:Alabama, WRs: LSU, RBs: Alabama, QBs: Push, Special Teams: LSU, final count: LSU 4-3 Winner: LSU ATS: LSU +7
#14 Kansas State at #3 Oklahoma State, 7:00 pm ABC/ESPN, Kansas State looks like it may have been a fraud after last weeks beat down from Oklahoma and should be out to prove other wrong. Oklahoma State has looked better than expected this year and should have plenty of offense in this game, but I still have questions about the defense. Winner: Oklahoma State ATS: Kansas State +21
#5 Boise State at UNLV, 9:30 pm, UNLV isn't good, period. Winner: Boise State ATS: UNLV +41
#8 Oregon at Washington, 9:30 pm, Washington has been better in year 1 sans Locker but the defense has been what has been most disappointing this season. Oregon is injured on offense but the back-ups have proven more than able to pick up the slack. Winner: Oregon ATS: Oregon -15.5
Louisiana Tech at Fresno State, 9:30 pm, This game will give us a clearer picture of the WAC in it's last year of even moderated relevance in college football. Fresno has played some solid and not so solid games against strong competition, while Tech has been gaining steam as the year goes on.Winner: Fresno State ATS: Fresno State -3.5


Please leave your thoughts and comments and I'll be back to recap the games and the rankings on Sunday.

Rambling's Week 9 CFB Recap

Another pleasant Saturday of couch surfing and college football, so without anymore than that let's look at the games and how the top 25 fared...

Thursday, October 27, 2011:

Rice at #17 Houston, 7:00 pm, After a sloppy start on a wet and slippery field Houston rolled Rice and had their way in this game. Keenum became the record holder for career touchdown passes. Winner: 1-0 ATS: 1-0

Saturday, October 30, 2011:

#11 Michigan State at #14 Nebraska, 11:00 am ESPN, Nebraska's defense showed up in a big way today as it held the Spartans to 3 points. The Blackshirts looked liked the defense we expected to start the season, with the cornerbacks being the most notable of the improvements. Michigan State looked flat and you could tell that there was some residual from the past couple weeks. Winner: 2-0 ATS: 1-1

Missouri at #16 Texas A&M, 11:00 am FX, A&M has decided to spit up again and like a small child the seem to be forgetting that they can play defense in the second half. Credit Missouri with a very good road win in conference play. Winner: 2-1 ATS: 1-2

Purdue at #18 Michigan, 11;00 am ESPN2, Michigan continues to show how much it has improved on defense under the guidance of Brady Hoke and Greg Mattison. Purdue is showing that even with Michigan down the talent still isn't available to win these games consistently. Winner: 3-1 ATS: 1-3

#10 Arkansas at Vanderbilt, 11:21 SEC Network, Arkansas got really lucky today in Nashville as they came back from a halftime deficit and then survived a late drive by Vandy to win by a missed FG. Winner: 4-1 ATS: 1-4

#12 Virginia Tech at Duke, 11:30 pm, And Just as you think Virginia Tech is starting to figure it out on offense they go and score 14 on Duke and you're right back to being worried about that side of the ball. David Cutcliffe has to be happy with the progress he's making at the toughest FBS coaching job. Winner: 5-1 ATS: 1-5

Washington State at #7 Oregon, 2:00 pm, Oregon beat Washington State convincingly but have yet to string together the type of wins that made them national title contenders a year ago. Winner: 6-1 ATS: 1-6

Baylor at #3 Oklahoma State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, RG3 is talented and an NFL talent but Oklahoma State was clearly the more talented and polished team in Stillwater. Winner: 7-1 ATS: 1-7

#9 Oklahoma at #8 Kansas State, 2:30 pm ESPN, I thought Kansas State would put up more of a fight in this game, but Oklahoma looked like a team that was pissed off and looking for someone to beat on. Winner: 8-1 ATS: 1-8 

Illinois at #19 Penn State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, I don't know why I continue to think that Penn State games will have scores above 20 but I do, however Penn State does continue to win and win in some surprising ways. This week they won on an 80 yard scoring drive win under two minutes to play. Winner: 9-1 ATS: 1-9

#22 Georgia vs Florida, 2:30 pm CBS, The SEC East just looks bad but the Bulldogs continue to set themselves up for a division title as they beat a Brantley led Gators team in a grind it out game in Jacksonville. Winner: 10-1 ATS: 2-9

#25 West Virginia at Rutgers, 2:30 pm ABC, This game was much closer than the final score would indicate as Rutgers was leading deep into the fourth quarter before two West Virginia scores wrapped up this contest and kept the Mountaineers alive in the Big East. Winner: 11-1 ATS: 2-10

Navy at Notre Dame, 2:30 pm NBC, ND finally exercised it's little brother demons by trouncing Navy at home on Saturday. Winner: 12-1 ATS: 3-10

Colorado at #21 Arizona State, 5:30 pm, Colorado is the Kansas/Ole Miss of the west and Arizona State reinforced that this week. Winner: 13-1 ATS: 3-11

Iowa State at #20 Texas Tech, 6:00 pm, Iowa State pulled it of in blowout fashion giving them 2 wins no one expected heading into the respective weeks. Winner: 14-1 ATS: 4-11

Ole Miss at #23 Auburn, 6:00 pm ESNPU, Ole Miss is a bad bad team in any conference. I had this game called perfectly til' a end of game score by Ole Miss. Winner: 15-1 ATS: 5-11

Kansas at #24 Texas, 6:00 pm Longhorn Network, Kansas continues to prove that futility can span coaching staffs, while also proving that all teams can look good. Winner: 16-1 ATS: 6-11

#13 South Carolina at Tennessee, 6:15 pm ESPN2, The ending left me as empty with the initial promise of this game. Winner: 17-1 ATS: 7-11

#5 Clemson at Georgia Tech, 7:00 pm ABC, Clemson finally Clemson'd and I should have known it with a bye week to come and Tech running the triple option. Georgia Tech finally looks like the team they were 3 weeks a go. Winner: 17-2 ATS: 8-11

#6 Stanford at USC, 7:00 pm ABC, A week after crushing Notre Dame, USC loses on a fumble by on e of the key contributors to their success up until that point. Stanford squeaks out a victory in 3 OT. Applause needs to be given to USC and the effort their showing. Winner: 18-2 ATS: 9-11

#15 Wisconsin at Ohio State, 7:00 pm ESPN, Wisconsin losses it's second heart breaker in a row on the road on a late touchdown by Ohio State making the race for the Leaders division completely in the much maligned hands of the Nitanny Lions of Penn State. Winner: 18-3 ATS: 9-12


Another Banner evening for college football as we saw a great finish in Columbus, Georgia Tech knocking of Clemson, Iowa State ripping through Texas Tech and Stanford and USC in 3 overtimes. That all came after a good finish to Ark-Vandy, A&M-Missouri and Penn State-Illinois.

Rambling's Week 9 CFB Picks

Welcome back for week 9 of my CFB Picks, as always I'll give my thoughts on the games, the spread and hopefully some insight into the conferences races as they continue to heat up and clear up. As always I would enjoy to hear form those who read and all times are central. So without further ado let's get to it...

Thursday, October 27, 2011:
Rice at #17 Houston, 7:00 pm, Houston comes in riding the wave of Case Keenum's final year on campus and an undefeated record which shouldn't stop this week as they take on the Rice Owls. Winner: Houston 59-14 ATS: Houston -28
Saturday, October 30, 2011:
#11 Michigan State at #14 Nebraska, 11:00 am ESPN, Michigan State is coming of a game ending Hail Mary touchdown against Wisconsin last week, as Nebraska comes off of a blow out of the Golden Gophers. Michigan State has the best defense in the Big Ten and an offense that can do enough as long as Kirk Cousins is on his game. Nebraska has disappointed on both sides of the ball but Lincoln is a tough place to play. Winner: Nebraska 31-28 ATS: Michigan State +4 
Missouri at #16 Texas A&M, 11:00 am FX, Missouri is a solid mid-tier team in the Big XII but Texas A&M is one of the four best teams in what is this year's deepest conference. Texas A&M doesn't pose much on the defensive side of the ball but Missouri's only hope is to contain the Aggie offense if they have a chance in this game. Winner: Texas A&M 45-20 ATS: Texas A&M -10
Purdue at #18 Michigan, 11;00 am ESPN2, Michigan has been a team that has looked very good against foes it should crush but against anybody with a pulse on defense has been a little bit shaky and the basics start to muddle within the offense leaving them in wholes they can't dig out of. Winner: Michigan 38-35 ATS: Purdue +13.5
#10 Arkansas at Vanderbilt, 11:21 SEC Network, Vanderbilt has shown some positive improvements in its first year under James Franklin. Arkansas continues to look like the 3rd best team in the West and would probably be the front runner in the SEC East. Winner: Arkansas 34-13 ATS: Arkansas -8 (sorry forgot to put this in during the week)
#12 Virginia Tech at Duke, 11:30 pm, Duke has been improving every year under David Cutcliffe but they still lag behind the majority of AQ schools in talent and facilities. Virginia Tech continues to gel even after an early season loss at the hands of Clemson. Logan Thomas continues to make strides in his game as he replaces Tyrod Taylor. Winner: Virginia Tech 35-14 ATS: Virginia Tech -14.5
Washington State at #7 Oregon, 2:00 pm, Washington State has improved this year and actually beat an FBS team, however Oregon is out of their league in both talent and coaching and it'll show this week in Autzen Stadium. Winner: Oregon 63-20 ATS: Oregon -35
Baylor at #3 Oklahoma State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, With an undefeated Kansas State team on the schedule next week and a Baylor team that can put up points behind RG3, I think this is a major trap game for the Cowboys. Winner: Oklahoma State 45-38 ATS: Baylor +14
#9 Oklahoma at #8 Kansas State, 2:30 pm ESPN, In the line of week from talking heads, Oklahoma was the team you expected to be undefeated coming into this game. Bill Snyder has now resurrected this program multiple times and has his team set up to control their own destiny in the conference and national title race. Oklahoma is coming off a horrible loss to Texas Tech and considering Bob Stoops' .808 win percentage they don't lose two in a row too often. Winner: Oklahoma 31-28 ATS: Kansas State +13.5 
Illinois at #19 Penn State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, Illinois is much much worse than their 6-0 record to start the year indicated. Penn State is better than anyone thought other than maybe Joe Paterno but has one of the countries best defenses. Winner Penn State 27-13 ATS: Penn State -5
#22 Georgia vs Florida, 2:30 pm CBS, the artist formerly known as The World's Largest Cocktail party comes to us from Jacksonville again this year and should be the launching pad for Georgia's SEC East title run. If the Bulldogs stumble however there are a myriad of possibilities that come into play for the division. Winner: Georgia 31-20 ATS: Georgia -3
#25 West Virginia at Rutgers, 2:30 pm ABC, to me a more who would have thought game is this weeks Big East game between the Mountaineers and the Scarlet Knights. WVU is a half game back in the standings to Rutgers which just doesn't seem right. Winner: WVU 31-28 ATS: Rutgers +7
Navy at Notre Dame, 2:30 pm NBC, Navy has pulled off the upset of ND multiple times in the last four years with senior laden teams and dysfunction in South Bend. I think Brian Kelly can pull this team together after the USC loss and invokes the pride of his team to show up for this game. Winner: Notre Dame 35-20 ATS : Notre Dame -21.5
Colorado at #21 Arizona State, 5:30 pm, Colorado is the Kansas/Ole Miss of the west. Winner: Arizona State 52-24 ATS: Colorado +31 
Iowa State at #20 Texas Tech, 6:00 pm, Trap game, coming off an upset of a top 3 team this Tech team has to play an Iowa state team that would appear to have taken a step back from last years progress. Winner: Iowa State 31-28 ATS: Iowa State +14.5
Ole Miss at #23 Auburn, 6:00 pm ESNPU, Ole Miss is a bad bad team in any conference. Winner: Auburn 41-17 ATS: Auburn -12.5
Kansas at #24 Texas, 6:00 pm Longhorn Network, Kansas comes in as one of the worst teams in the country and Texas comes in as the most overrated team in the country. Winner: Texas 38-10 ATS: Texas -28 (Push)
#13 South Carolina at Tennessee, 6:15 pm ESPN2, This is a game of what could have been, with Lattimore and Bray injured this game has lost much of what it had earlier in the season. South Carolina has the greater talent especially on defense and should walk away. Winner: South Carolina 31-17 ATS: South Carolina -3.5
#5 Clemson at Georgia Tech, 7:00 pm ABC, Georgia Tech's last two games have been disappointments and struggles that may signal that teams have figured out how to prepare for Paul Johnson's triple option. Clemson comes in with a ton of positive feelings behind it but I feel the pressure of a disappointing history beginning to build as it continues it's run. This feels like a Clemson team preparing to Clemson all over itself. Winner: Clemson 31-28 ATS: Georgia Tech +3.5
#6 Stanford at USC, 7:00 pm ABC, USC is coming off a big win in South Bend last week and the best win of the Kiffin era. Stanford is coming off a blowout of Washington at home and should be looking forward to it's chance to solidify it's standing before the Oregon game to come. I think this game comes down to how Monte Kiffin and the defense, a unit that has struggled throughout much of the season, does against Andrew Luck. Winner: Stanford 31-27 ATS: USC +7.5
#15 Wisconsin at Ohio State, 7:00 pm ESPN, Coming off a tough loss to Michigan State we will be able to tell a lot about this Wisconsin team and how they bounce back after a gut wrenching loss. Ohio State on the other hand has been solid since the return of three of their suspended players and should pose a good test on the heals of an emotional loss. Winner: Wisconsin 28-20 ATS: Wisconsin -7


Enjoy the week of college football and I'll be back to recap the games and the polls on Sunday. All times are central and all rankings are BCS. Please feel free to leave thoughts and comments.

Rambling's Week 8 CFB Recap

Friday, October 21st, 2011:

#15 West Virginia at Syracuse, 7:00 pm ESPN, I should have known better as WVU's wins have been over: Marshall, Norfolk State, Maryland, Bowling Green and Connecticut. Syracuse on the other hand hasn't looked good but is actually getting some crowd support in the Carrier Dome. Syracuse was the better team for the entire game on Friday. Winner: 0-1 ATS: 0-1

Saturday, October 2nd, 2011:

#4 Oklahoma State at Missouri, 11:00 am FX, This game was closer than the score indicates as Missouri made several pushes in the second half to keep this game within striking distance but they came up just short and ultimately were sunk by their inability to stop the running attack. Winner: 1-1 ATS: 1-1

North Carolina at #7 Clemson, 11:00 am ESPN, Alright I'll take my lumps on this one I thought that North Carolina would be more competitive and I think this match-up is much closer than the score indicated but with Clemson scoring multiple defensive touchdowns, the Tar Heels didn't stand much of a chance today. Winner: North Carolina 1-2 ATS: North Carolina 1-2

#11 Kansas State at Kansas, 11:00 am, Kansas is the worst AQ team in the country and Kansas State proved that once again. Winner: 2-2 ATS: 2-2

#23 Illinois at Purdue, 11:00 am ESPN2, Purdue tried to give this game back in the four quarter as Illinois scored two touchdowns to make this a one score final, however it just wasn't meant to be for the Fightin' Zookers who drop two in a row against division foes. Winner: 3-2 ATS: 3-2

Cincinnati at South Florida, 11:00 am, Well South Florida managed to throw this game away after taking a lead late in the fourth quarter and reminding us that USF is indeed who we thought they were. USF falls to 0-3 in the conference, while Cincinnati goes to 2-0 and puts USF in a giant holee in a conference with only 7 conference games. Winner: 3-3 ATS: 3-3

#9 Arkansas at Ole Miss, 11:21 am SEC Network, Arkansas played down to it's competition this week as it squeaked out a win at Ole Miss. Winner: 4-3 ATS: 3-4

Boston College at #12 Virginia Tech, 2:00 pm, Virginia Tech, like Arkansas, played down to its opponent this week. Winner: 5-3 ATS: 3-5

#20 Auburn at #1 LSU, 2:30 pm CBS, The intrigue in this match-up was lost by halftime as it was evident that LSU is way too good in the two deep to be beaten by this Auburn team. Winner: 6-3 ATS: 3-6

Air Force at #5 Boise State, 2:30 pm Versus, Boise hasn't been challenged this year and the triple option can be a bit tricky, but I don't think they have nearly the firepower to keep up. Winner: 7-3 ATS: 3-7

#10 Oregon at Colorado, 2:30 pm, In the ummmm... yeah game of the week pt. 2, Oregon runs roughshod all over the Buffs. Winner: 8-3 ATS: 4-7

#13 Nebraska at Minnesota, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, Nebraska visits the Golden Gophers which was just the remedy the Cornhusker need to reinvigorate a season that has been lackluster if not downright disappointing. Winner: 9-3 ATS: 5-7

#17 Texas A&M at Iowa State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2,. Iowa State's season continues to be a let down of the early season promise but that's the issue for a low level team in the deepest conference in the country. Winner: 10-3 ATS: 5-8

#22 Georgia Tech at Miami (FL), 2:30 pm ESPN, Al Golden has his team playing its best ball of the season as we pass the midway point. Georgia Tech continues it's slide as we get deeper into conference play. Winner: 11-3 ATS: 6-8 

Marshall at #19 Houston, 3:30 pm, Houston's defense did a better job than I thought it would and came away with a very impressive conference win on the road. Stat of note Case Keenum became the FBS all-time total offense leader. Winner: 12-3 ATS: 6-9

#21 Penn State at Northwestern, 6:00 pm BTN, Penn State continues to win games by double digits and will more than likely continue to get no credit. The Nitanny Lions actually put up points Saturday and to be honest I don't care who the defense was. The Wildcats continue to struggle on defense and against a top 20 defense they struggled to score which is a nasty combination. Winner: 13-3 ATS: 6-10

Tennessee at #2 Alabama, 6:15 pm ESPN2, The first half was just weird, but Alabama's depth in the two deep showed up in the second half and won the game for the Tide. Winner: 14-3 ATS: 7-10

USC at Notre Dame, 6:30 pm NBC, Notre Dame's turnover woes showed up again this week against USC. The Trojans played well for four quarters in the best game of the Kiffin era. Winner: 15-3 ATS: 8-10

Texas Tech at #3 Oklahoma, 7:00 pm ABC, Texas Tech pulls the upset of the year so far with a win in Norman. The Sooners gave it their best shot but two botched field goal attempts and an offense that never really caught it stride and a defense that had troubles slowing down the Red Raiders. Winner: 15-4 ATS: 9-10

#6 Wisconsin at #16 Michigan State, 7:00 pm ESPN, Incredible game, with both teams coming back from 14 pt deficits, MSU in the first half and Wis in the second. Michigan State won the game on a twice tipped hail mary caught at the half yard line that replay determined broke the plane of the goal line. Winner: 15-5 ATS: 10-10

#25 Washington at #8 Stanford, 7:00 pm ABC, Luck and the Cardinals played a great game with the Huskies in town and showed us more than they have all season. I didn't think they would win by this much or put it away this early.  Winner: 16-5 ATS: 10-11

SMU at Southern Miss, 7:00 pm, Southern Miss shut down SMU at home allowing 3 points to a June Jones team that hasn't been held down often. This game could very well be a preview of the conference championship game but we'll have to wait until SMU plays Houston Nov. 19 to find out. Winner: 17-5 ATS: 10-12


Well a good slate of late games highlighted by Wisconsin at MSU and Texas Tech at Oklahoma brought the fans what they wanted, excitement. I went 17-5 to bring my record on winners to 140-31 on the season and 10-12 against the spread bringing my season total to 75-69-3. Please let me know what you think in the comments below and I will have a Poll recap out tomorrow night after the BCS rankings.

Rambling's Week 8 CFB Picks

We are now squarely in the middle of the season and the national and conference title pictures are starting to come into focus throughout most of the country. This weekend features intriguing match-ups in the SEC, Big Ten, Pac-12 and C-USA which should tell us more about their respective races and the team involved in the games. So without further ado let's get to this weeks games... (all times central)

Friday, October 21st, 2011:

#15 West Virginia at Syracuse, 7:00 pm ESPN, West Virginia has looked like the class of the Big East so far this season but have been sluggish at the start of games and on the road. Syracuse has played some close games but doesn't look like it has the team speed to keep up in this game. Winner: West Virginia 45-20 ATS: West Virginia -14

Saturday, October 2nd, 2011:

#4 Oklahoma State at Missouri, 11:00 am FX, Missouri is an interesting team this year because they have been relegated to spoiler status. With this game being played in Columbia I think Missouri has a chance to shock Oklahoma State who is coming off a win in Austin. Oklahoma State needs to put up points like it normally does if it doesn't wish to slip up at Missouri this week. Winner: Oklahoma State 38-31 ATS: Oklahoma State -6.5

North Carolina at #7 Clemson, 11:00 am ESPN, I keep awaiting the week when Clemson returns to the glorious ways of it's past. With North Carolina coming this week we have a team that can match-up with the Tigers' athletes. Clemson is on a roll right now and Dabo has them playing good football which is making decisions about this team extremely hard. Winner: North Carolina 31-28 ATS: North Carolina +10.5

#11 Kansas State at Kansas, 11:00 am, Kansas is right in the running for worst AQ team in the country right alongside Indiana, Minnesota and Boston College. Kansas State is the story of the year as long as they keep winning Big XII games. Winner: Kansas State 48-21 ATS: Kansas State -11

#23 Illinois at Purdue, 11:00 am ESPN2, A leaders division match-up in West Lafayette as the Illini visit the Boilermakers. I think Purdue has the talent to compete in this game and give the Illini fits especially with their defense. Illinois will be looking to bounce back after a terrible showing last week against the Buckeyes. Winner: Purdue 24-21 ATS: Purdue +4

Cincinnati at South Florida, 11:00 am, This one intrigues me because it will go a long way in sorting out the hierarchy behind West Virginia in the Big East. Aside from a loss at a healthy Tennessee, Cincy has won every game since since that as they were suppose to. South Florida on the other hand has been inconsistent in it's performance, combining unexpected wins with crippling defeats. Winner: USF 28-24 ATS: South Florida -3

#9 Arkansas at Ole Miss, 11:21 am SEC Network, Arkansas walks away victorious in our ummmmm... yeah game of the week. Winner: Arkansas 59-13 ATS: Arkansas -16

Boston College at #12 Virginia Tech, 2:00 pm, Virginia Tech walks away from really bad BC team. Winner: Virginia Tech 49-10 ATS: Virginia Tech -21

#20 Auburn at #1 LSU, 2:30 pm CBS, This game got a lot more intriguing with the suspensions of Ware, Mathieu and Simon. Both sides of the ball will obviously be effected, the question seems to be to what extent will the Tigers be limited on either side of the ball and will we get our first Mad Hatter moment of the year. Winner: LSU 27-13 ATS: Auburn +21

Air Force at #5 Boise State, 2:30 pm Versus, Boise hasn't been challenged this year and the triple option can be a bit tricky, but I don't think they have nearly the firepower to keep up. Winner: Boise State 56-17 ATS: Boise State -30

#10 Oregon at Colorado, 2:30 pm, In the ummmm... yeah game of the week pt. 2, Oregon runs roughshod all over the Buffs. Winner: Oregon 59-10 ATS: Oregon -30.5

#13 Nebraska at Minnesota, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, Nebraska visits the Golden Gophers which could be just the remedy the Cornhusker need to reinvigorate a season that has been lackluster if not disappointing 

#17 Texas A&M at Iowa State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN2, Iowa State fans were taking big about moving on up in the Big XII to that deluxe apartment of mediocrity. Well they fallen short this year and with the Aggies coming to town things are gonna continue to look down. Winner: Texas A&M 38-17 ATS: Texas A&M -20.5

#22 Georgia Tech at Miami (FL), 2:30 pm ESPN, Coming off a loss to Virginia last week Tech goes on the road to Miami where the Hurricanes come in playing their best football of the Al Golden's first year. Tech needs to return being explosive out of the triple option. Winner: Miami (FL) 31-28 ATS: Miami (FL) -3 

Marshall at #19 Houston, 3:30 pm, Houston visits Marshall who currently sits atop the East division of Conference USA, although I don't think Marshall is really the best team in that division I do think that Houston could have more trouble than expected because of their complete lack of defense. Winner: Houston 52-45 ATS: Marshall +23

#21 Penn State at Northwestern, 6:00 pm BTN, Both these teams are enigmas on one side of the ball with Northwestern's D going up against the Lion's O whichever unit show's up should be a difference in the game. Winner: Penn State 20-17 ATS: Northwestern +4.5

Tennessee at #2 Alabama, 6:15 pm ESPN2, This game would have been interesting had Tyler Bray not been interested now it should be over by 7:00. Winner: Alabama 41-10 ATS: Alabama -30

USC at Notre Dame, 6:30 pm NBC, a game that hasn't had the same luster the past couple of seasons finally has it's glow back. USC comes in with sanctions looming over their program and depth hampering their growth. Brian Kelly has made strides in year 2 at Notre Dame which makes this a tale of two programs seemingly moving in opposite directions. Winner: USC 35-34 ATS: USC +9

Texas Tech at #3 Oklahoma, 7:00 pm ABC, Tech travels to Norman where the Sooners are very good. This game should be shootout for one half but I think Oklahoma's D makes all the difference as the game goes along. Winner: Oklahoma 63-35 ATS: Texas Tech +29

#6 Wisconsin at #16 Michigan State, 7:00 pm ESPN, Michigan State is coming off of a physical mauling of Michigan in East Lansing but also a game which cost them William Gholston. Wisconsin is coming off a thrashing of Indiana has had a year to stew over last years loss at the hands of the Spartans. This should be a wonderful game pitting a great front seven and a great offensive line. Winner: Wisconsin 28-24 ATS: Michigan State +7.5

#25 Washington at #8 Stanford, 7:00 pm ABC, Washington has been sneaky good year 1 sans-Locker and the Huskies pose the first real threat to Stanford this season. Stanford still has Andrew Luck at center, who this season has taken over much of the play calling duties as well. Winner: Stanford 35-24 ATS: Washington +20.5

SMU at Southern Miss, 7:00 pm, This is the sneaky good match-up of the week as it could be a preview of the conference championship game and the best two teams in the conference. SMU is coming off a dismantling of UCF and Southern Miss is the most talented team in the East. Winner: Southern Miss 28-27 ATS: SMU +3

Thank you for reading and comments and thoughts are always welcome. I'll be back again with a week recap and poll thoughts Sunday.

Rambling's Week 7 CFB Picks

For the first time this year I'm actually less than enthused for this weeks slate. That being said this week should go a long way in answering some questions in the SEC, Big Ten, Big XII, ACC and Pac-12 through some very good conference games. (All times Central Standard and let me know what you think)

Saturday, October 14th, 2011:

#15 South Carolina at Mississippi State, 11:00 am, with the dismissal of embattled QB Stephen Garcia, current  Gamecocks QB Connor Shaw no longer has to look over his shoulder while preparing and playing in games. Mississippi State has it's own quarterback controversy with as Chris Relf  has really struggled to find his stride at the helm of the Bulldogs offense. I think this comes down to the more stable QB situation which, and this is hard to believe, is the Steve Spurrier led team. Winner: South Carolina 24-20 ATS: South Carolina -2.5

#11 Michigan at #23 Michigan State, 11:00 am ESPN, the battle for Michigan football supremacy and the Paul Bunyan trophy is an intriguing match-up from all sides. Michigan's offense is averaging 491.4 yards a game with 270 coming on the ground good for 14th and 7th respectively in the nation. Michigan State's defense ranks 3rd nationally against the run allowing 64 yards a game and 1st in total defense at 173.4 yards a game. Something has to give, but the biggest match-up may be the abilities of the Wolverine D vs. the Spartans O and which unit has shown the most improvement so far this season. Winner: Michigan 27-20 ATS: Michigan +2

#20 Baylor at #21 Texas A&M, 11:00 FX, is RG3 talented enough to lead this team to a top five team in  a top heavy Big XII, is Texas A&M gonna finally fulfill the promise that we all saw in the preseason? This game will continue to clear the picture of these two teams and the season that await them. Winner: Texas A&M 38-27 ATS: Texas A&M -9

Indiana at #4 Wisconsin, 11:00 am ESPN2, last year the Badgers put up 80 on the Hoosiers, this year should be much of the same in Madison. Winner: 62-17 ATS: Wisconsin -40

#12 Georgia Tech at Virginia, 2:30 pm ESPNU, Virginia is a team climbing it's way back out of oblivion under the tutelage Mike London. Paul Johnson's Yellow Jacket team is one of the surprise teams out of the ACC this year. With Miami and Clemson coming up on the schedule I think this is a definite trap game for Georgia Tech on the road. Winner: Georgia Tech 27-24 ATS: Virginia +7.5

#6 Oklahoma State at #22 Texas, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, the Longhorn's finish the Oklahoma portion of their schedule with a visit from the Cowboys of Oklahoma State. Unfortunately for Mack Brown's team the biggest weakness of his squad matches up with the greatest strength of the Cowboys which should make for a long day in Austin. Winner: Oklahoma State 55-31 ATS: Oklahoma State -7.5

#1 LSU at Tennessee, 2:30 pm CBS, if Tyler Bray were playing this game would be a "so you're saying there's a chance?" games for the Vols, unfortunately that won't be the case Saturday. LSU's defense will eat a young Vols offense alive. Winner: LSU 31-13 ATS: LSU -15.5

Ohio State at #16 Illinois, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, this game will decide which team will battle PSU for the right to be #1 contender to Wisconsin in the Leaders division. If Braxton Miller plays in this game, which looks likely as of today then Ohio State has a shot to leave Champagne with a victory on Saturday. If he isn't I have little faith in Bauserman or the freshman that are below Miller on the depth chart to win this game. Winner: Ohio State 24-21 ATS: Ohio State +4

UCF at SMU, 2:30 pm, a game that has lost a little bit of it's luster from the start of the season but is a still a very enlightening non-AQ match-up this week in Texas. SMU looks to be a legit contender in C-USA after beating, an admittedly down, TCU and improving under June Jones every year. UCF was a preseason darling for fans and media alike and has been underwhelming to say the least so far this season, but can also make a difference in how Conference USA shakes out. Winner: SMU 41-31 ATS: SMU -3

#5 Boise State at Colorado State, 5:00 pm, after back to back contests against former and future conference foes Boise starts it's seven week run through it's Mountain West schedule. I think this is the first of at least four cakewalks in conference for Boise. Winner: Boise State 55-10 ATS: Boise -32

#2 Alabama at Mississippi, 5:00 pm ESPN2, the Mississippi Rebels are really bad and will battle Kentucky for title of worst in the SEC. Winner: Alabama 48-9 ATS: Alabama -25.5

#19 Virginia Tech at Wake Forest, 5:30 pm, both teams come in with one loss on the resume, but Virginia Tech's is in conference if it wants to avoid a similar fate to the Seminoles it would be advised to not take the Deacons too lightly this week. Winner: Virginia Tech 31-17 ATS: Virginia Tech -7

#17 Kansas State at Texas Tech, 6:00 pm, Kansas State is the surprise of the Big XII season so far with wins over Miami (FL), Baylor and Missouri the past three weeks but still don't seem to be getting any respect from most college football fans and analysts. Texas Tech is coming off a back door cover against the  A&M last week and welcomes the Wildcats to Lubbock. I think Kansas State has some trouble with the high flying Tech offense but I have my doubts about the Red Raiders D. Winner: Kansas State 41-38 ATS: Kansas State +3

Florida at #24 Auburn, 6:00 pm ESPN, Florida is a young team on it's 3rd quarterback of the season, Auburn is young with it's original starter and have won big games this season. Florida will be able to get pressure on Auburn with their defense as they have had success with talented group to this point in the season but I think it all comes down to the effectiveness of the Gators offense on the road. Winner: Auburn 31-14 ATS: Auburn +2

#8 Clemson at Maryland, 6:00 pm ESPNU, Clemson takes a trip to a Maryland team that has had it's fair share of issues this season in the transition under Randy Edsall and no one embodies that more than Danny O'Brien. Clemson is having the most Clemson season in recent memory led by Tajh Boyd and an explosive group of talent surrounding him. Winner: Maryland 28-27 ATS: Maryland +8.5

Northwestern at Iowa, 6:00 pm BTN, Northwestern has dominated this match-up in recent years both at Iowa and at home. Iowa is coming off of a disappointing loss in a series in which it has been the more successful team recently, does the trend busting continue this week in Iowa City or do Dan Persa and company get back on track. Winner: Northwestern 31-28 ATS: Northwestern +6 P.S. if Iowa loses this game its chances of making the Big Ten Championship game go from slim to practically none.

#7 Stanford at Washington State, 6:30 pm Versus, Washington State is making strides toward being competitive in the Pac-12 but Stanford has Andrew Luck and a punishing defense. Winner: Stanford 52-17 ATS: Stanford -21

#3 Oklahoma at Kansas, 8:15 pm ESPN2, Kansas gave up 56 in the first half of the against Oklahoma State, Landry Jones and company should give that mark a run for it's money. Winner: Oklahoma 76-13 ATS: Oklahoma -34.5

#18 Arizona State at #9 Oregon, 9:15 pm ESPN, This match-up is intriguing because it should tell us something about both teams, however Arizona State hasn't won a big game in what feels like a decade and Oregon has been pretty much unstoppable in conference play the last couple years. Winner: Oregon 45-24 ATS: Oregon -16

Enjoy week 7 of the College football season and I'll see you soon to think fondly on this weekend's games.

Rambling's Poll Recap (10/9/11)

First off let me establish what you're gonna see here, I'm going to compare my top 25 to the AP, USA Today and BCS top 25's in the coming weeks on and share my ideas on the teams in each 5 team tier. To make this clear if I say a team is overrated or underrated I mean in relation to the polls and not necessarily in real life...

AP Top 5: LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, Boise State
USA Today Top 5: Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama, Wisconsin, Stanford
My Top 5: LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma, Boise State, Wisconsin
Reaction: One could make an argument for any arrangement of the top 3 but I believe that LSU has the best resume of the 3 and deserves it's place at the top. I have Boise at 4 because it has the next best win and resume. Wisconsin rounds out the top five on the strength of it's Nebraska win and it's demolishing of the teams it should beat in it's non-con just edging out Stanford.

AP 6-10: Oklahoma State, Stanford, Clemson, Oregon, Arkansas
USA Today 6-10: Boise State, Oklahoma State, Clemson, Oregon, Michigan
My 6-10: Stanford, Clemson, Oklahoma State, Oregon, Arkansas
Reaction: Stanford is still a top 5 team with Luck at QB but it falls due to no marquee wins on it's resume. I have Clemson so high because they won three straight against ranked opponents including one at Lane Stadium  and have looked impressive all year. Oklahoma State's only such win is Texas A&M otherwise the resume is a little flat. Oregon and Arkansas round out the top ten having top 5 losses but nothing spectacular to fill out their respective resumes so far.

AP 11-15: Michigan, Georgia Tech, West Virginia, Nebraska, South Carolina
USA Today 11-15: Arkansas, Georgia Tech, South Carolina, Nebraska, Illinois
My 11-15: Georgia Tech, South Carolina, Michigan, Nebraska, Illinois
Reaction: Georgia Tech, Michigan and Illinois are gained their spots through going undefeated and are ranked according to strength of opponents and wins. South Carolina lost a "meh" game to Auburn but also has a good win over Georgia, Nebraska had a nice bounce back against Ohio State and has a good win over a top 30-35 Washington team. The AP has WVU up here but until they show that they can play a complete game I think 13 is a bit overrated for the Mountaineers.

AP 16-20: Illinois, Kansas State, Arizona State, Virginia Tech, Baylor
USA Today 16-20: West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Kansas State, Michigan State, Arizona State
My 16-20: Kansas State, Arizona State, West Virginia, Virginia Tech, Texas A&M
Reaction: First off let me just say that Kansas State is getting no respect coming off wins over Miami (FL), Baylor and Mizzou. I know Miami is down but on winning on the road there is still tough and Baylor and Mizzou have better talent than they do. I also think A&M has fallen a bit too far, they blew leads to two very good offenses in back to back weeks but have shown they have the team to compete with both of them for an entire game.

AP 21-25: Texas A&M, Texas, Michigan State, Auburn, Houston
USA Today 21-25: Texas, Houston, Texas A&M, Baylor, Penn State
My 21-25: Houston, Michigan State, Baylor, Notre Dame, Penn State
Reaction: First off, let me just say that this was the toughest 5 to figure out as I made my top 25. Houston Baylor and Michigan State were all right there in the conversation around 20 so lets focus on the last two teams I put in and the two that appear in the polls that I didn't. Notre Dame has two blown lead losses to teams that are much better than we expected them to be and have gone on to win convincingly in 3 out of the next four games. Penn State on the other hand keeps winning and their only loss is to the #2 team in the country. I left Auburn out of my top 25 because I just don't believe they are a top 25 team, yes they find ways to win but you could see how much the youth hurts this team this week against Arkansas and that was enough for me to drop them. Similarly, Texas' youth is a detriment to them and they seem to be partially back to being Texas but not quite, which makes them a top 35 or so team instead of a top 25 team.

Feel free to leave comments below and I'll have my week 7 picks blog posted Tuesday or Wednesday.

Rambling's Week 6 Recap

The Chalk was pretty good this week which no doubt aided my picks...

Thursday, October 6th, 2011:

California at #9 Oregon, 8:00 pm ESPN, Oregon looked like a team with a mission to prove that last year was a fluke game against the Bears. Scary looking injury to LaMichael James is something to watch for this week and will be a harbinger for the rest of the Ducks' season. Winner: 1-0 ATS: 1-0

Friday, October 7th, 2011:

#5 Boise State at Fresno State, 8:00 pm ESPN, Boise State steamrolled this game, and the starters were out by the 3rd quarter. Winner: 2-0 ATS: 2-0

Saturday, October 8th, 2011:

#3 Oklahoma vs #11 Texas (Dallas), 11:00 am ABC, Oklahoma came out swinging in this game and it was never really in question. Some positives for the Texas defense early as they stopped the Sooners multiple times in the red zone but ultimately Landry Jones and company were just too much for the Longhorns. Winner: 3-0 ATS: 3-0

Maryland at #13 Georgia Tech, 11:00 am ESPNU, Maryland did a nice job of containing Georgia Tech's triple option today even bouncing back from a 21-3 deficit at the end of the 3rd quarter. Ultimately Maryland came up short losing by 5 but at least there are signs of life from Randy Edsall's squad. Winner: Georgia Tech 4-0 ATS: 4-0

Connecticut at #16 West Virginia, 11:00 am, another sluggish start for the Mountaineers, down 6-3 at half time but yet again a huge second half. WVU pulled away from UCONN in this game, finally exerting it's talent advantage over the Huskies. Winner: 5-0 ATS:5-0

Kentucky at #18 South Carolina, 11:21 am SEC Network, Connor Shaw was better than expected even against Kentucky and the Gamecocks easily walk away with a victory. Kentucky is in for a long season  of bad bad games in the SEC. Winner: 6-0 ATS: 5-1

#23 Florida State at Wake Forest, 11:30 am, Think this says it all, FSU's two wins are over Charleston Southern and Louisiana-Monroe. That is all. P.S. Congrats Wake Forest on a well played game and on the win. Winner: 6-1 ATS: 6-1

#19 Illinois at Indiana, 1:30 pm BTN, I had Illinois as being 18 points better and they won by 19. Not much to say other than Illinois will put up a fight for Wisconsin and Indiana won't worry just about anyone. Winner: 7-1 ATS: 7-1

Boston College at #8 Clemson, 2:00 pm, for a while it looked like Clemson might have something to worry about but they won going away. The bigger news out of this game is the injury of Tahj Boyd for the Tigers, that should be the Clemson faithfuls biggest concern. Winner: 8-1 ATS: 7-2

#17 Florida at #1 LSU, 2:30 pm CBS, Florida never really had a chance with it's two best quarterbacks injured on the road against the best defense in the country. Winner: 9-1 ATS: 8-2

Kansas at #6 Oklahoma State, 2:30 pm, as said in the picks column... ummmmmm, yeah. Stat of note in this game however, Oklahoma State had 56 points at halftime. Winner: 10-1 ATS: 9-2

Missouri at #20 Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Kansas State won held on to win a tough Big XII game at home further cementing them as the best of the second tier of teams in the conference behind Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Texas A&M and maybe tied if not better than Texas. Winner: 11-1 ATS: 10-2

Miami (FL) at #21 Virginia Tech, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, the Fightin' Beamers pulled out the late victory at home over the Hurricanes. A late ground based drive was the Hokies response to the Canes touchdown with around 2 minutes left. Winner: Virginia Tech 12-1 ATS: 10-3

#22 Arizona Sate at Utah, 2:30 pm, Utah didn't have much of a chance in this game with Jordan Wynn out and that showed in the final score against Arizona State. Osweiller and company were just too much for a team that had trouble scoring when healthy. Winner: 13-1 ATS: 11-3

Iowa at Penn State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, another ugly game and another win for the Nittany Lions. The defense is top 15-20 in the country but the offense is but 10% which isn't helped by the inability of Joe Pa and staff to pick a QB. Iowa continues to have growing pains with a young team including a myriad of drops by wide receivers in this game. Winner: 14-1 ATS: 11-4

Vanderbilt at #2 Alabama, 6:00 pm ESPNU, Alabama pitched a shutout at home against the commodores in what was another less than satisfying game leading up to the LSU game in 2 weeks. Winner: 15-1 ATS: 11-5

#15 Auburn at #10 Arkansas, 6:00 pm ESPN, Finally an Auburn outcome that makes sense, their weak defense especially a young secondary were taken advantage of by the Razorbacks in Fayetteville. Auburn put up a good fight through halftime but then the cracks started to show and the team with superior talent emerged. Winner: 16-1 ATS: 11-6

#12 Michigan at Northwestern, 6:00 pm BTN, Dan Persa makes a difference for the Wildcats but the Michigan defense continued it's opportunistic ways and forced a couple turnovers on the road to get the victory. Northwestern once again doesn't have much defense to speak of under Pat Fitzgerald in a quest that continues to perplex. Winner: 17-1 ATS: 11-7

#24 Texas A&M at Texas Tech, 6:00 pm FX, better game than I thought it would be as Tech drove late to bring it within 5 but A&M finally won a game after a solid first half lead. Texas Tech's offense is still rolling but the defense hasn't taken that step forward that was expected under Tuberville. Winner: 18-1 ATS: 11-8

Iowa State at #25 Baylor, 6:00 pm, RG3 and Baylor have cemented themselves behind Kansas State in the middle tier of the Big XII whilst Iowa State seems to have taken a step back from last year. Winner: 19-1 ATS: 11-9

Georgia at Tennessee, 6:00 pm ESPN2, Georgia pretty much dominated  Winner: 20-1 ATS: 12-9

Colorado at #7 Stanford, 6:30 pm Versus, ummmmmm... yeah Winner: 21-1 ATS: 12-10

Ohio State at #14 Nebraska, 7:00 pm ABC, Ohio State played well well into the 3rd quarter until Braxton Miller went out with a right ankle injury. Nebraska showed good heart to come back after another tough game a lagging defensive showing to start the game. Burkhead and Martinez both showed up to propel the Cornhuskers to the victory. Winner: 22-1 ATS: 12-11

TCU at San Diego State, 9:30 pm, TCU got a big bounce back conference win on the road late Saturday night in San Diego. San Diego shows that they still haven't quite made it to the point in which they will be a constant headaches for the top of the conference. Winner: 23-1 ATS: 12-12


Had a really good weed this week going 23-1 on winners, I'll grant you that it was a pretty weak week but still I didn't get greedy and try for too many upsets after a rough week 5. Keep an eye out on later today or early tomorrow for a poll recap, with a week until the BCS rankings come out I wanted to start adding my two cents to how teams are ranked.

Rambling's Week 6 CFB Picks

Welcome back for another week of college football action it's hard to believe we're already to the 6th week of the season but it's been fun so far and hopefully the fun will continue. Last week was a rough week for me as far as picking was concerned, I went 15-7 on winners and 12-10 against the spread to move my season totals to, 85-21 and 40-39-3 respectively. Every AP top 25 team except #4 Wisconsin is in play this week which should make the slate enjoyable if not overtly exciting. So without further ado lets get to the picks.... (all times are central time zone)


Thursday, October 6th, 2011:
California at #9 Oregon, 8:00 pm ESPN, Cal played the Ducks tough last year playing them to within two points, however, I don't expect this years contest to be that close or that low scoring. Cal has been hit or miss and Oregon looks to be running on all cylinders. Winner: Oregon 41-17 ATS: Oregon -24 (Push)
Friday, October 7th, 2011:
#5 Boise State at Fresno State, 8:00 pm ESPN, for the second straight week Boise plays a former and future conference foe. I like the Fresno program and how they schedule each year but Boise has too much firepower for this team. Winner: Boise State 48-23 ATS: Bosie -21
Saturday, October 8th, 2011:
#3 Oklahoma vs #11 Texas (Dallas), 11:00 am ABC, another addition of the Red River Rivalry comes to us from the Cotton Bowl. I keep hearing this will be a close one but the last 10 contests have been won by an average of 19.5 points which suggests the winners will walk away in the fourth quarter. Winner: Oklahoma 38-20 ATS: Oklahoma -10
Maryland at #13 Georgia Tech, 11:00 am ESPNU, Georgia Tech has been the second biggest surprise in the ACC this year behind Clemson be the anti-Clemson and the triple option is tough to prepare for in the middle of the season. Maryland looks to be having a tough time with the coaching transition and haven't shown much life this year. Winner: Georgia Tech 24-13 ATS: Maryland +14
Connecticut at #16 West Virginia, 11:00 am, last years Big East champion versus this years front-runner heading into the heart of the conference schedule looks like a mismatch on paper. The Holgersen offense seems to be gaining some steam after some sluggish starts to open the season. Connecticut has look bad so far this year with losses to Vandy, Iowa State and WMU. Winner: West Virginia 58-24 ATS: WVU -20
Kentucky at #18 South Carolina, 11:21 am SEC Network, if the Gamecocks hadn't lost to Auburn last week this would have been that game that South Carolina loses each year that you hear Homer Simpson in your head going, "Dope". Winner: South Carolina 24-10 ATS: Kentucky +21
#23 Florida State at Wake Forest, 11:30 am, Florida State had a week to stew over a loss to Clemson and Wake Forest has looked like it could at least contend with some of the better teams in the ACC. With the turmoil at QB for FSU and a home game for Wake a perfect storm could be a brewing. Winner: FSU 24-21 ATS: Wake Forest +10
#19 Illinois at Indiana, 1:30 pm BTN, Indiana gave Penn State a run for their money but I don't think that matters in this weeks game. Illinois is 5-0 for the first time since the Truman administration brings a stout defense and a meh offense with some pop. Indiana brings a loss to Ball State. Winner: Illinois 27-9 ATS: Illinois -14.5
Boston College at #8 Clemson, 2:00 pm, is this the week Clemson returns to being Clemson, I say know but put this down as a trap game for the Tigers. Boston College has looked bad and have some major injuries but the Tigers have to regress to past levels of Clemson one of these weeks and a bad team after three ranked wins just sounds right. Winner: Clemson 21-20 ATS: Boston College +21
#17 Florida at #1 LSU, 2:30 pm CBS, Florida comes in bruised and battered from it's match-up with Alabama and it's bag of oranges defense, this week it gets LSU and it's bag of potatoes. Florida has talent on both sides of the ball and the Defense has shown flashes of brilliance along the way. Winner: LSU 34-17 ATS: LSU -13.5
Kansas at #6 Oklahoma State, 2:30 pm, like Oklahoma last week, ummmmmm, yeah. Winner: Oklahoma State 58-20 ATS: Oklahoma State -31.5
Missouri at #20 Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Kansas State has two esteem building wins in row now beating Miami (FL) and Baylor back to back which makes this match-up all the more intriguing. The Wildcats are young but so is Missouri which makes this a very close match-up. Winner: Kansas State 31-27 ATS: Kansas State +3.5
Miami (FL) at #21 Virginia Tech, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, the Fightin' Beamers are coming off of a really poor showing against Clemson and with conference black-eye coming to town I think we see a beating at Lane Stadium. Winner: Virginia Tech 24-7 ATS: Virginia Tech -7.5
#22 Arizona Sate at Utah, 2:30 pm, Utah looks bad and it gets worse with Jordan Wynn out with injury, Arizona State has been everyone's favorite, "am I good, I'm not sure" team. Winner: Arizona State 38-24 ATS: Arizona State -4
Iowa at Penn State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Penn State looks like Bama lite on defense and Fordham on offense. Iowa looks like a good young team that has grown in-season but looks like the wobbly infant learning to walk. Winner: Penn State 17-16
Vanderbilt at #2 Alabama, 6:00 pm ESPNU, Vanderbilt is improving in year one of the Franklin regime, Alabama is team 1B in the country. Winner: Alabama 27-10 ATS: Vanderbilt +29
#15 Auburn at #10 Arkansas, 6:00 pm ESPN, Auburn is coming off of a sloppy come from behind win at South Carolina, Arkansas is coming off an impressive come from behind game against the Fighting Gaggies of A&M. Auburn looks like it's starting to find it's stride defensively but Arkansas has Tyler Wilson. Winner: Arkansas 41-38 ATS: Auburn +10
#12 Michigan at Northwestern, 6:00 pm BTN, the second real test for the Michigan defense looks to be legitimate because of the return of Dan Persa. With his return we can judge the strides taken since the Notre Dame game in the weakest part of the defense, it's secondary. Northwestern on the other hand has less defense than Michigan which will make it very tricky to stop Denard Robinson from tearing them apart. Winner: Michigan 38-35 ATS: Northwestern +7.5
#24 Texas A&M at Texas Tech, 6:00 pm FX, the presumed last of the A&M-Tech match-ups for a while should leave A&M with fond memories and Tech saying good riddance. Winner: Texas A&M 45-20 ATS: Texas A&M -9.5
Iowa State at #25 Baylor, 6:00 pm, two lower tier Big XII teams trying to move up a tier and put themselves squarely on the minds of those fighting for the conference championship. This one should be a fun quarterback match-up between Steele Jantz and RG3.Winner: Baylor 31-28 ATS: Iowa State +15.5
Georgia at Tennessee, 6:00 pm ESPN2, two teams that have fallen on hard times to varying degrees during the SEC's time a top the college football hierarchy. Tennessee has some good pieces in place especially at QB but seems to still be lacking up front on both sides of the ball. Georgia lost it's opening two games to very good teams but winning this one keeps them in the East division race. Winner: Georgia 31-17 ATS: Georgia -2
Colorado at #7 Stanford, 6:30 pm Versus, ummmmmm... yeah Winner: Stanford 45-17 ATS: Colorado +30
Ohio State at #14 Nebraska, 7:00 pm ABC, Ohio State is struggling with issues on and off the field right now and there doesn't appear to be much help in sight with Posey and Herron being put back on suspension. Nebraska is coming off a beat down at Camp Randall in which their defense looks average and their offense proved it lacked the ability to play well from behind. Winner: Nebraska 34-13 ATS: Nebraska -11
TCU at San Diego State, 9:30 pm, TCU is down and San Diego State looks to keep the momentum from  the Brady Hoke era going. TCU has been bad this year with the combination of youth and injuries on defense and youth on offense. San Diego has some pieces in place to make this game interesting especially at home. Winner: TCU 28-27 ATS: San Diego State +4.5


Enjoy the week of football and as always please leave your comments and thoughts below, I would love to hear from you.