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.
Thursday, October 6, 2011
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Rambling's CFB Week 5 Recap
Another wonderful weekend of college football brings us to another day of looking back on the action...
Thursday, September 29th, 2011:
#16 South Florida at Pittsburgh, 7:00 pm ESPN, had a hunch here and didn't follow it I was on the right track with a team firmly with it's back against the wall and they played like it. South Florida always had the holes on defense and they showed more of it against Graham. Winners: 0-1 ATS: 0-1
Saturday, September 1st, 2011:
#14 Texas A&M vs #18 Arkansas (Arlington), 11:00 am ESPN, well apparently A&M is a 3 quarter team and those quarters are 1, 2 and 4. They out played and physically beat Arkansas on both lines for most of the game but it didn't matter because of another team wide brain fart. Winner: 1-1 ATS: 1-1
Minnesota at #19 Michigan, 11:00 am BTN, the Wolverines utterly dominated this game from start to finish as Gophers could do nothing right in this game. Winner: 2-1 ATS: 1-2
Northwestern at #24 Illinois, 11:00 am ESPN2, Persa was a huge step up for the Wildcats and we saw just how much as they squandered a 4th quarter lead with him back on the sidelines with a re-injured ankle. The Illini found a way to come back and win this one at home. Winner: 3-1 ATS: 2-2
Mississippi State at Georgia, 11:00 am, Georgia pounded Mississippi State in this one and got themselves a keep conference victory between the hedges. Mississippi State can now focus on being a spoiler in the West. Winner: 4-1 ATS: 2-3
Air Force at Navy, 11:00 am CBS, this one came down to a blocked extra point and overtime. Air Force won a game in which they controlled and ultimately was decided on a personal foul committed by the Midshipman. Winner: 4-2 ATS: 3-3
Kentucky at #1 LSU, 11:21 am, Cupcake city. Winner: 5-2 ATS: 4-3
Nevada at #4 Boise State, 1:30 pm Versus, This one was much more lopsided than last years game, which isn't surprising because Kellen Moore is still at Boise and Nevada was on their second string QB. Winner: 6-2 ATS: 4-4
Auburn at #10 South Carolina, 2:30 pm CBS, the Gamecocks had this win in their hands, even if it was a sloppy and poorly played game by both teams. Auburn on the other hand continues to pull the proverbial rabbit out their butts just about every week. Winner: 6-3 ATS: 4-5
#15 Baylor at Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, RG3 put up another great game, but came up short on the drive to win the game with 3 minutes to go. The Wildcats came up with another big win and this one against a conference foe with top flight talent.Winner: 6-4 ATS: 4-6
SMU at #20 TCU, 2:30 pm, and just like that Boise State's BCS title hopes took a gigantic hit. Unfortunately that's the biggest take away from SMU's streak busting victory against TCU. June Jones has the Mustangs pointed in a upward direction and they should contend in Conference USA this season. Winner: 7-4 ATS: 5-6
#21 Georgia Tech at North Carolina State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Georgia Tech walked away a winner in this game and they did it with a slightly more balanced attack than in recent years at Tech. Tech used the triple option to perfection and purely outscored the Tom O'Brien led Wolfpack. Winner: 7-5 ATS: 6-6
Bowling Green at #22 West Virginia, 2:30 pm, Cupcake city. Winner: 8-5 ATS: 7-6
Arizona at USC, 2:30 pm, USC won but not without a whole lot of trouble. Lane Kiffin has the offense running on all cylinders but Monte's defense gave up a school record amount of yards. On the Arizona side Nick Foles threw for 400 yards again in a losing effort. Winner: 9-5 ATS: 8-6
Michigan State at Ohio State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Zzzzzzzzz, a snoozer out of Columbus as Michigan State outlasted Ohio State 10-7. Winner: 9-6 ATS: 8-7
#13 Clemson at #11 Virginia Tech, 5:00 pm ESPN2, Clemson has impressed with three straight victories over ranked teams. Virginia Tech disappoints on offense as they fail to score while entering Clemson territory. The Clemson defense should be what keeps this team in the ACC title hunt. Winner: 9-7 ATS: 9-7
Ball State at #2 Oklahoma, 6:00 pm, Cupcake city Winner: 10-7 ATS: 9-8
#17 Texas at Iowa State, 6:00 pm FX, Texas avenged last years loss with a beat down this year. Texas is well on the road back to being Texas, Iowa State well is Iowa State and will be middle of the pack at best in a top heavy Big XII. Winner: 11-7 ATS: 9-9
#3 Alabama at #12 Florida, 7:00 pm CBS, Alabama showed the country why it deserves it's reputation, the defense was swarming and the offense avoided mistakes. Florida is definitely improved but it has a bit to go until it catches the LSU's and Alabama's of the country again. Winner: 12-7 ATS: 10-9
#8 Nebraska at #7 Wisconsin, 7:00 pm ABC, the Badgers looked like they were a full step above the Cornhuskers on Saturday night in Madison. It was much more lopsided than expected and the biggest surprise was most assuredly how the defense took a step forward. Winner: 13-7 ATS: 11-9
UCLA at #6 Stanford, 9:30 pm, Stanford still has Andrew Luck, UCLA is well on the way to getting rid of Rich Neuheisel. Winner: 14-7 ATS: 12-9
Oregon State at #25 Arizona State, 9:30 pm, Arizona State did what it had to and was suppose to do it beat a weak conference opponent at home. Winner: 15-7 ATS: 12-10
Thursday, September 29, 2011
Rambling's Week 5 CFB Picks
Sorry about not having a recap article this week I wasn't able to find the time yesterday to take care of that but I'm back for our new week of picks. Last week, I went 13-4 on winners and 7-9-1 ATS bringing my totals for the season to, 70-14 and 28-29-3 respectively. Now onto the week at hand we have three top 13 match-ups and a 7-8 match-up for the second week in a row. As always feel free to comment and all times Central time zone...
Thursday, September 29th, 2011:
#16 South Florida at Pittsburgh, 7:00 pm ESPN, a battle of two teams whose years have been defined by one game. South Florida became a media and fan darling by beating ND week one on a handful of Irish turnovers and have run with that momentum to an undefeated early season. Pittsburgh on the other hand is coming off back to back bad beats to Iowa and ND and looks to be a dejected team with its back firmly against the wall. Winner: South Florida 24-17 ATS: South Florida -2.5
Saturday, September 1st, 2011:
#14 Texas A&M vs #18 Arkansas (Arlington), 11:00 am ESPN, a preview of the SEC West for at least next year takes place in Arlington Saturday and we should see a pretty good game. Both these teams are coming off of disappointing performances against conference foes. A&M blew a 17 point lead at half-time in the 3rd quarter of a game in which they outscored Oklahoma State 29-9 in the other three quarters. Arkansas on the other team lost to a superior team in Alabama and looks to redeem some of their SEC buzz. Winner: Arkansas 38-34 ATS: Arkansas +2.5
Minnesota at #19 Michigan, 11:00 am BTN, this one is a mismatch I don't care what you think of Marquis Grey or the Michigan defense this one isn't close. The Gophers don't have the team defense to deal with a truly gifted player in Denard Robinson where as Grey is hit or miss at best on understanding what he's doing on the field. Winner: Michigan 45-28 ATS: Minnesota -19
Northwestern at #24 Illinois, 11:00 am ESPN2, the battle for the Land of Lincoln Trophy comes to Champagne this year as the Illini and Wildcats meet to open their conference slates. Northwestern gets Dan Persa back this week hopefully fully healthy which should help the passing game. Illinois looks like less of a certainty with this news. Winner: Illinois 28-27 ATS: Northwestern +8
Mississippi State at Georgia, 11:00 am, this one will go a long way in telling up which of these two teams will be a tough out for the contending teams in later in the year. Both teams still have a chance to win the SEC title with a win but neither has looked like they can knock off the tops in their divisions. Winner: Georgia 31-27 ATS: Mississippi State +6.5
Air Force at Navy, 11:00 am CBS, the top two service academies of the last decade face off in the first leg of the Commander in Chief's Trophy. I think this will be a fun game to watch and a nice showcase for the service academies and two good not great teams. Winner: Navy 28-27 ATS: Air Force +3
Kentucky at #1 LSU, 11:21 am, you don't get many cupcakes on the SEC conference schedule but Kentucky is looking the part this year. Winner: LSU 31-9 ATS: Kentucky +30
Nevada at #4 Boise State, 1:30 pm Versus, a rematch of a great game and upset in Reno last year comes to us in the non-conference this year. Nevada looks exactly how we expected them to look, young. Boise looks like we thought Boise would look, scary good. Winner: Boise State 48-17 ATS: Boise -27.5
Auburn at #10 South Carolina, 2:30 pm CBS, The Gamecocks host a young and slightly faltering Auburn team. Unless Auburn's defense finds a way to slow down the best running back in the country they don't have a chance in this game. Winner: South Carolina 38-17 ATS: South Carolina -10
#15 Baylor at Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, RG3 is putting up ridiculous numbers this season for a surprise Bears team. Kansas State is coming off a win over the Miami Hurricanes but look to be the inferior team from a talent perspective. Winner: Baylor 38-24 ATS: Baylor -3.5
SMU at #20 TCU, 2:30 pm, this game holds Boise State's BCS hopes in the balance if SMU wins TCU falls out of the top 25 and Boise has no top 25 teams left on the schedule. SMU under June Jones is seeing it's first sustained success and upward trend since the death penalty. TCU is struggling for the first time in a while in the Gary Patterson era, and it's due to a lack of experience on both sides of the ball. Winner: SMU 28-24 ATS: SMU +13
#21 Georgia Tech at North Carolina State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, the winner becomes a contender in their division the loser becomes the spoiler in their division. NC State looks like it could use Russell Wilson right about now on an offense that looks even more anemic than usual. Georgia Tech is coming off of back to back routes of so-so teams. Winner: North Carolina St. 24-21 ATS: North Carolina St. +10
Bowling Green at #22 West Virginia, 2:30 pm, Winner: West Virginia 58-17 ATS: WVU -20
Arizona at USC, 2:30 pm, these two teams are coming off of big losses last week to conference foes and both are struggling this season despite solid QB play. This one comes down to which defense stiffens up the best and which team gets the most out of their talent. Winner: USC 38-35 ATS: Arizona +13
Michigan State at Ohio State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Another see which team has what game in Columbus between Big Ten Co-Champions from last season. Ohio State has looked good, bad and ugly this season and Michigan State has looked great and horrible. This game is much like both the Miss St. at GA and Ga Tech at NC State games the winner challenges for a division title the loser most likely becomes the conference spoiler. Winner: Ohio State 24-21 ATS: Ohio State -3 (Push)
#13 Clemson at #11 Virginia Tech, 5:00 pm ESPN2, this is the most un-Clemson team we have seen this late into a season for a long time. Virginia Tech is still working out kinks on offense but the defense is a Frank Beamer defense and has held some pretty good offenses down this season. This comes down to which young QB you like better Boyd or Thomas. Winner: Virginia Tech 27-21 ATS: Clemson +7
Ball State at #2 Oklahoma, 6:00 pm, ummmm....yeah. Winner: Oklahoma 45-20 ATS: Ball State +38
#17 Texas at Iowa State, 6:00 pm FX, Iowa State pulled off the upset last year and looks to be a team on the rise to the middle of the Big XII pack. Texas looks to be at least Texas lite. Winner: Texas 24-23 ATS: Iowa State +9.5
#3 Alabama at #12 Florida, 7:00 pm CBS, Florida is better in year 1 is better than any of thought they would be, Bama is a Nick Saban coached team. Florida's offense has the most dynamic set of backs in the country, Alabama might have the best set of backs in the country. Florida's defense has speed and talent, Alabama's has at least 3 first round NFL players. Winner: Alabama 27-20 ATS: Alabama -3.5
#8 Nebraska at #7 Wisconsin, 7:00 pm ABC, Jim Delany's wet dream is here. Two top ten teams, one is the newbie one is the rising star of the conference, both are exciting (Wisconsin was top 10 in points per play last year), and both bring buzz to ABC on Saturday night. Winner: Wisconsin 31-21 ATS: Wisconsin -9
UCLA at #6 Stanford, 9:30 pm, Stanford has Andrew Luck, UCLA has Rich Neuheisel. Winner: Stanford 45-20 ATS: Stanford -20.5
Oregon State at #25 Arizona State, 9:30 pm, Arizona State is Arizona State week on the road good at home but will let inferior competition sneak up on them and keep it so much closer than it should be. Oregon State is inconsistent. Winner: Arizona State 41-17 ATS: Arizona State -18
Enjoy week 5 of the college football season.
Thursday, September 29th, 2011:
#16 South Florida at Pittsburgh, 7:00 pm ESPN, a battle of two teams whose years have been defined by one game. South Florida became a media and fan darling by beating ND week one on a handful of Irish turnovers and have run with that momentum to an undefeated early season. Pittsburgh on the other hand is coming off back to back bad beats to Iowa and ND and looks to be a dejected team with its back firmly against the wall. Winner: South Florida 24-17 ATS: South Florida -2.5
Saturday, September 1st, 2011:
#14 Texas A&M vs #18 Arkansas (Arlington), 11:00 am ESPN, a preview of the SEC West for at least next year takes place in Arlington Saturday and we should see a pretty good game. Both these teams are coming off of disappointing performances against conference foes. A&M blew a 17 point lead at half-time in the 3rd quarter of a game in which they outscored Oklahoma State 29-9 in the other three quarters. Arkansas on the other team lost to a superior team in Alabama and looks to redeem some of their SEC buzz. Winner: Arkansas 38-34 ATS: Arkansas +2.5
Minnesota at #19 Michigan, 11:00 am BTN, this one is a mismatch I don't care what you think of Marquis Grey or the Michigan defense this one isn't close. The Gophers don't have the team defense to deal with a truly gifted player in Denard Robinson where as Grey is hit or miss at best on understanding what he's doing on the field. Winner: Michigan 45-28 ATS: Minnesota -19
Northwestern at #24 Illinois, 11:00 am ESPN2, the battle for the Land of Lincoln Trophy comes to Champagne this year as the Illini and Wildcats meet to open their conference slates. Northwestern gets Dan Persa back this week hopefully fully healthy which should help the passing game. Illinois looks like less of a certainty with this news. Winner: Illinois 28-27 ATS: Northwestern +8
Mississippi State at Georgia, 11:00 am, this one will go a long way in telling up which of these two teams will be a tough out for the contending teams in later in the year. Both teams still have a chance to win the SEC title with a win but neither has looked like they can knock off the tops in their divisions. Winner: Georgia 31-27 ATS: Mississippi State +6.5
Air Force at Navy, 11:00 am CBS, the top two service academies of the last decade face off in the first leg of the Commander in Chief's Trophy. I think this will be a fun game to watch and a nice showcase for the service academies and two good not great teams. Winner: Navy 28-27 ATS: Air Force +3
Kentucky at #1 LSU, 11:21 am, you don't get many cupcakes on the SEC conference schedule but Kentucky is looking the part this year. Winner: LSU 31-9 ATS: Kentucky +30
Nevada at #4 Boise State, 1:30 pm Versus, a rematch of a great game and upset in Reno last year comes to us in the non-conference this year. Nevada looks exactly how we expected them to look, young. Boise looks like we thought Boise would look, scary good. Winner: Boise State 48-17 ATS: Boise -27.5
Auburn at #10 South Carolina, 2:30 pm CBS, The Gamecocks host a young and slightly faltering Auburn team. Unless Auburn's defense finds a way to slow down the best running back in the country they don't have a chance in this game. Winner: South Carolina 38-17 ATS: South Carolina -10
#15 Baylor at Kansas State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, RG3 is putting up ridiculous numbers this season for a surprise Bears team. Kansas State is coming off a win over the Miami Hurricanes but look to be the inferior team from a talent perspective. Winner: Baylor 38-24 ATS: Baylor -3.5
SMU at #20 TCU, 2:30 pm, this game holds Boise State's BCS hopes in the balance if SMU wins TCU falls out of the top 25 and Boise has no top 25 teams left on the schedule. SMU under June Jones is seeing it's first sustained success and upward trend since the death penalty. TCU is struggling for the first time in a while in the Gary Patterson era, and it's due to a lack of experience on both sides of the ball. Winner: SMU 28-24 ATS: SMU +13
#21 Georgia Tech at North Carolina State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, the winner becomes a contender in their division the loser becomes the spoiler in their division. NC State looks like it could use Russell Wilson right about now on an offense that looks even more anemic than usual. Georgia Tech is coming off of back to back routes of so-so teams. Winner: North Carolina St. 24-21 ATS: North Carolina St. +10
Bowling Green at #22 West Virginia, 2:30 pm, Winner: West Virginia 58-17 ATS: WVU -20
Arizona at USC, 2:30 pm, these two teams are coming off of big losses last week to conference foes and both are struggling this season despite solid QB play. This one comes down to which defense stiffens up the best and which team gets the most out of their talent. Winner: USC 38-35 ATS: Arizona +13
Michigan State at Ohio State, 2:30 pm ABC/ESPN, Another see which team has what game in Columbus between Big Ten Co-Champions from last season. Ohio State has looked good, bad and ugly this season and Michigan State has looked great and horrible. This game is much like both the Miss St. at GA and Ga Tech at NC State games the winner challenges for a division title the loser most likely becomes the conference spoiler. Winner: Ohio State 24-21 ATS: Ohio State -3 (Push)
#13 Clemson at #11 Virginia Tech, 5:00 pm ESPN2, this is the most un-Clemson team we have seen this late into a season for a long time. Virginia Tech is still working out kinks on offense but the defense is a Frank Beamer defense and has held some pretty good offenses down this season. This comes down to which young QB you like better Boyd or Thomas. Winner: Virginia Tech 27-21 ATS: Clemson +7
Ball State at #2 Oklahoma, 6:00 pm, ummmm....yeah. Winner: Oklahoma 45-20 ATS: Ball State +38
#17 Texas at Iowa State, 6:00 pm FX, Iowa State pulled off the upset last year and looks to be a team on the rise to the middle of the Big XII pack. Texas looks to be at least Texas lite. Winner: Texas 24-23 ATS: Iowa State +9.5
#3 Alabama at #12 Florida, 7:00 pm CBS, Florida is better in year 1 is better than any of thought they would be, Bama is a Nick Saban coached team. Florida's offense has the most dynamic set of backs in the country, Alabama might have the best set of backs in the country. Florida's defense has speed and talent, Alabama's has at least 3 first round NFL players. Winner: Alabama 27-20 ATS: Alabama -3.5
#8 Nebraska at #7 Wisconsin, 7:00 pm ABC, Jim Delany's wet dream is here. Two top ten teams, one is the newbie one is the rising star of the conference, both are exciting (Wisconsin was top 10 in points per play last year), and both bring buzz to ABC on Saturday night. Winner: Wisconsin 31-21 ATS: Wisconsin -9
UCLA at #6 Stanford, 9:30 pm, Stanford has Andrew Luck, UCLA has Rich Neuheisel. Winner: Stanford 45-20 ATS: Stanford -20.5
Oregon State at #25 Arizona State, 9:30 pm, Arizona State is Arizona State week on the road good at home but will let inferior competition sneak up on them and keep it so much closer than it should be. Oregon State is inconsistent. Winner: Arizona State 41-17 ATS: Arizona State -18
Enjoy week 5 of the college football season.
Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Rambling's Week 4 CFB Picks
Welcome back for another round of college football picks and thank you for reading. Week 4 seems like the season just started but the bus keeps rolling on. I've been pretty good this year picking winners with a 57-10 record but need some work against the spread (ATS) at 21-20-2. As always feel free to let me know what you think in the comments section below and lets look towards this weeks games...
Friday, September 23rd, 2011:
UCF at BYU, 7:00 pm ESPN, both teams are coming off of tough but different losses. BYU is coming off a 40 point beat down from Utah and UCF a close loss to in-state non-AQ FIU. I think UCF is in a better place overall than BYU is but I think that BYU front four could give their offense fits. Winner: UCF 27-24 ATS: UCF +2.5
Saturday, September 24th, 2011:
North Carolina at #25 Georgia Tech, 11:00 am ESPN, an ACC match-up between two very different teams. Georgia Tech is coming off a dismantling of Kansas last week in which they put up some gaudy offensive numbers but can they do that against a much more physically gifted Tar Heels defense. The Tar Heels on the other hand have been dealing with a myriad of off the field issues for over a year now and turmoil surround the team. Winner: North Carolina 27-21 ATS: UNC +6.5
San Diego State at #22 Michigan, 11:00 am, the battle for Hoke's soul takes place in Ann Arbor this weekend as Brady's former team visits his Alma Mater. Although he left a solid base in place at his last stop I think that he inherited a more talented team in the Wolverines. Winner: Michigan 38-21 ATS: Mich -10.5
Notre Dame at Pittsburgh, 11:00 am ABC, Notre Dame is coming off its first loss of the season, where as Pitt is coming off what will most likely be their most devastating. The trouble of the Wannstedt era seem to be seeping over into the this team and I don't like the direction. Notre Dame on the other hand looked like it learned a few lessons from it's heartbreaks and should cruise here. Winner: Notre Dame 34-21 ATS: Notre Dame -6.5
#11 Florida State at #21 Clemson, 2:30 pm ESPN, we see a similar story to this game as we did the ND-Pitt match-up with one major difference there were positives to take from a tough loss to Oklahoma for FSU. Jimbo Fisher is making strides in his second year as head man and we should continue to see signs of that this week in Death Valley. Clemson is shouting from the mountain tops in joy of its streak snapping victory over the defending national champs but can Dabo and his team keep this from being just another mirage of what could have been for the Tigers. Winner: Clemson 24-21 ATS: Clemson -2
#7 Oklahoma State at #8 Texas A&M, 2:30 pm ABC, an afternoon showcase for a conference which will most likely be no more with-in the next year. This should be as exciting as last years contest was but the story on the field will see which style of offense is better suited for victory. A&M brings it's pro style attack will most definitely try to slow the game down, as to not give Justin Blackmon and Brandon Weeden from racking up points like it's Super Mario Brothers. Winner: Texas A&M 31-28 ATS: Ok State +4
#13 Virginia Tech at Marshall, 2:30 pm, this one shouldn't be close but if the last few weeks have taught us anything is that Va Tech is struggling more than most of us thought with their QB transition and it shows in the points differential. However, this game shouldn't be too much of a struggle for Beamer and Co. but will be a close one past halftime. Winner: Va Tech 35-20 ATS: Marshall +20
#14 Arkansas at #3 Alabama, 2:30 pm CBS, big time SEC West match-up this week, the Hogs going to Tuscaloosa to face a top tier 'Bama defense. Offense wins games but defenses wins championships is the motto which means Arkansas has a chance here but I think the home field advantage and the strength of this Bama D win the day. Winner: Alabama 24-14 ATS: Arkansas +11
Western Michigan at #24 Illinois, 2:30 pm BTN, this will be a closer game than many think but I still don't give WMU much chance to win this one. Winner: Illinois 35-27 ATS: WMU +13.5
#15 Florida at Kentucky, 6:00 pm ESPN, Kentucky has been bad, I mean really bad, losing to Louisville and only scoring 14 on a WKU team that lost to an FCS team this weekend bad. Florida has shown signs of being, well, Florida. Winner: Florida 31-10 ATS: Florida -19
Rice at #17 Baylor, 6:00 pm, see: Robert Griffin III Winner: Baylor 45-21 ATS: Baylor -20
Vanderbilt at #12 South Carolina, 6:00 pm ESPN2, a battle of unbeaten SEC teams in Columbia this week as the Commodores visit the Gamecocks. With a newly aggressive defensive strategy and a competent offense so far this season we will see if Vandy can get a surprise SEC upset. The key will be how well Lattimore runs. Winner: South Carolina 27-24 ATS: Vandy +16
#9 Nebraska at Wyoming, 6:30 pm Versus, Nebraska visits Wyoming in a warm-up to the the Huskers first Big Ten game at Camp Randall next weekend which suggests we may see a sluggish Nebraska team. Winner: Nebraska 38-17 ATS: Wyoming +23
Tulsa at #4 Boise State, 7:00 pm, Boise State has Kellen Moore, Tulsa has given up over 360 yards to both Landry Jones and Brandon Weeden. Winner: Boise State 52-17 ATS: Boise State -28.5
Missouri at #1 Oklahoma, 7:00 pm FX, a week after a big win at Florida State they come home to avenge last years loss at the hands of the Tigers in Columbia last year. The Tigers don't have the talent that says they have a chance but you never know coming off an emotional game last week. Winner: Oklahoma 38-20 ATS: Missouri +21
#2 LSU at #16 West Virginia, 7:00 pm ABC, the ABC game of the week is a mirror of the Arkansas-Alabama contest and I think the same thing applies although, West Virginia does have the added advantage of playing at home making this a closer game in my opinion. Winner: LSU 21-20 ATS: West Virginia +5.5
#23 USC at Arizona State, 9:15 pm ESPN, the better of the two late night Pac-12 match-ups in the deserts Arizona is between USC and ASU. The men of Troy come in undefeated and looking to prove that although they can't play for the Pac-12 Championship they are the best in the South. Winner: USC 38-35 ATS: +2.5
#10 Oregon at Arizona, 9:15 pm ESPN2, this one isn't much of a contest but you will see Nick Foles puts up huge numbers in a loss, again. Winner: Oregon 48-27 ATS: Oregon -15.5
Enjoy the football and a NFL preview to come in the next day or two.
Friday, September 23rd, 2011:
UCF at BYU, 7:00 pm ESPN, both teams are coming off of tough but different losses. BYU is coming off a 40 point beat down from Utah and UCF a close loss to in-state non-AQ FIU. I think UCF is in a better place overall than BYU is but I think that BYU front four could give their offense fits. Winner: UCF 27-24 ATS: UCF +2.5
Saturday, September 24th, 2011:
North Carolina at #25 Georgia Tech, 11:00 am ESPN, an ACC match-up between two very different teams. Georgia Tech is coming off a dismantling of Kansas last week in which they put up some gaudy offensive numbers but can they do that against a much more physically gifted Tar Heels defense. The Tar Heels on the other hand have been dealing with a myriad of off the field issues for over a year now and turmoil surround the team. Winner: North Carolina 27-21 ATS: UNC +6.5
San Diego State at #22 Michigan, 11:00 am, the battle for Hoke's soul takes place in Ann Arbor this weekend as Brady's former team visits his Alma Mater. Although he left a solid base in place at his last stop I think that he inherited a more talented team in the Wolverines. Winner: Michigan 38-21 ATS: Mich -10.5
Notre Dame at Pittsburgh, 11:00 am ABC, Notre Dame is coming off its first loss of the season, where as Pitt is coming off what will most likely be their most devastating. The trouble of the Wannstedt era seem to be seeping over into the this team and I don't like the direction. Notre Dame on the other hand looked like it learned a few lessons from it's heartbreaks and should cruise here. Winner: Notre Dame 34-21 ATS: Notre Dame -6.5
#11 Florida State at #21 Clemson, 2:30 pm ESPN, we see a similar story to this game as we did the ND-Pitt match-up with one major difference there were positives to take from a tough loss to Oklahoma for FSU. Jimbo Fisher is making strides in his second year as head man and we should continue to see signs of that this week in Death Valley. Clemson is shouting from the mountain tops in joy of its streak snapping victory over the defending national champs but can Dabo and his team keep this from being just another mirage of what could have been for the Tigers. Winner: Clemson 24-21 ATS: Clemson -2
#7 Oklahoma State at #8 Texas A&M, 2:30 pm ABC, an afternoon showcase for a conference which will most likely be no more with-in the next year. This should be as exciting as last years contest was but the story on the field will see which style of offense is better suited for victory. A&M brings it's pro style attack will most definitely try to slow the game down, as to not give Justin Blackmon and Brandon Weeden from racking up points like it's Super Mario Brothers. Winner: Texas A&M 31-28 ATS: Ok State +4
#13 Virginia Tech at Marshall, 2:30 pm, this one shouldn't be close but if the last few weeks have taught us anything is that Va Tech is struggling more than most of us thought with their QB transition and it shows in the points differential. However, this game shouldn't be too much of a struggle for Beamer and Co. but will be a close one past halftime. Winner: Va Tech 35-20 ATS: Marshall +20
#14 Arkansas at #3 Alabama, 2:30 pm CBS, big time SEC West match-up this week, the Hogs going to Tuscaloosa to face a top tier 'Bama defense. Offense wins games but defenses wins championships is the motto which means Arkansas has a chance here but I think the home field advantage and the strength of this Bama D win the day. Winner: Alabama 24-14 ATS: Arkansas +11
Western Michigan at #24 Illinois, 2:30 pm BTN, this will be a closer game than many think but I still don't give WMU much chance to win this one. Winner: Illinois 35-27 ATS: WMU +13.5
#15 Florida at Kentucky, 6:00 pm ESPN, Kentucky has been bad, I mean really bad, losing to Louisville and only scoring 14 on a WKU team that lost to an FCS team this weekend bad. Florida has shown signs of being, well, Florida. Winner: Florida 31-10 ATS: Florida -19
Rice at #17 Baylor, 6:00 pm, see: Robert Griffin III Winner: Baylor 45-21 ATS: Baylor -20
Vanderbilt at #12 South Carolina, 6:00 pm ESPN2, a battle of unbeaten SEC teams in Columbia this week as the Commodores visit the Gamecocks. With a newly aggressive defensive strategy and a competent offense so far this season we will see if Vandy can get a surprise SEC upset. The key will be how well Lattimore runs. Winner: South Carolina 27-24 ATS: Vandy +16
#9 Nebraska at Wyoming, 6:30 pm Versus, Nebraska visits Wyoming in a warm-up to the the Huskers first Big Ten game at Camp Randall next weekend which suggests we may see a sluggish Nebraska team. Winner: Nebraska 38-17 ATS: Wyoming +23
Tulsa at #4 Boise State, 7:00 pm, Boise State has Kellen Moore, Tulsa has given up over 360 yards to both Landry Jones and Brandon Weeden. Winner: Boise State 52-17 ATS: Boise State -28.5
Missouri at #1 Oklahoma, 7:00 pm FX, a week after a big win at Florida State they come home to avenge last years loss at the hands of the Tigers in Columbia last year. The Tigers don't have the talent that says they have a chance but you never know coming off an emotional game last week. Winner: Oklahoma 38-20 ATS: Missouri +21
#2 LSU at #16 West Virginia, 7:00 pm ABC, the ABC game of the week is a mirror of the Arkansas-Alabama contest and I think the same thing applies although, West Virginia does have the added advantage of playing at home making this a closer game in my opinion. Winner: LSU 21-20 ATS: West Virginia +5.5
#23 USC at Arizona State, 9:15 pm ESPN, the better of the two late night Pac-12 match-ups in the deserts Arizona is between USC and ASU. The men of Troy come in undefeated and looking to prove that although they can't play for the Pac-12 Championship they are the best in the South. Winner: USC 38-35 ATS: +2.5
#10 Oregon at Arizona, 9:15 pm ESPN2, this one isn't much of a contest but you will see Nick Foles puts up huge numbers in a loss, again. Winner: Oregon 48-27 ATS: Oregon -15.5
Enjoy the football and a NFL preview to come in the next day or two.
Monday, September 19, 2011
Ramblings Week 3 CFB Review
Well for a bad week of college football it sure was entertaining, I enjoyed games during each time slot, although the 2:30 slate left a little to be desired. On to my picks I went 18-4 on winners and 12-10 ATS this week making my season totals 57-10 and 21-20-2. So lets take a look at the games I lost and anything that caught my eye.
Michigan State disappointed me this week with their running game against the Notre Dame defense. That young offensive line was dominated by the ND tackles and MSU had no choice but to go to the air with Kirk Cousins which ultimately led to their demise. I was impressed again by the strides on defense that Brian Kelly and his staff have made so far this season. Should be two interesting teams to watch the rest of the season. As I highlighted in my preview I thought that this game would give us an early indication of who would challenge for #2 Non-AQ buzz after Boise State. You have to be impressed with FIU's ability to win without it's best offensive weapon this week as T.Y. Hilton got hurt early on. UCF disappoints me because it was the more talented team in the match-up and had the chance to win this game. Both teams will challenge for bowl wins at the end of the season. The Sun Devils were the most disappointing team in America this weekend in their road loss to an Illinois team that will be middle of the pack Big Ten team. They set themselves up for a letdown after a good not great win over Missouri and they played like a content team on Saturday night. Illinois looks good especially on defense but the offense seems to get stymied way too easily. Ohio State just isn't Ohio State right now and that was very evident at Miami. They are sloppy on defense and have no ability to move the ball on offense. Neither Joe Bauserman nor Braxton Miller moved the offense down the field and this was against a Miami defense that got walked over by Maryland. I think that both teams will struggle through their respective conferences. Tough losses but everything happens for a reason. There wasn't a whole lot that caught my eye this week sorry but things went pretty much the way everyone thought.
Please leave comments and suggestions below.
Michigan State disappointed me this week with their running game against the Notre Dame defense. That young offensive line was dominated by the ND tackles and MSU had no choice but to go to the air with Kirk Cousins which ultimately led to their demise. I was impressed again by the strides on defense that Brian Kelly and his staff have made so far this season. Should be two interesting teams to watch the rest of the season. As I highlighted in my preview I thought that this game would give us an early indication of who would challenge for #2 Non-AQ buzz after Boise State. You have to be impressed with FIU's ability to win without it's best offensive weapon this week as T.Y. Hilton got hurt early on. UCF disappoints me because it was the more talented team in the match-up and had the chance to win this game. Both teams will challenge for bowl wins at the end of the season. The Sun Devils were the most disappointing team in America this weekend in their road loss to an Illinois team that will be middle of the pack Big Ten team. They set themselves up for a letdown after a good not great win over Missouri and they played like a content team on Saturday night. Illinois looks good especially on defense but the offense seems to get stymied way too easily. Ohio State just isn't Ohio State right now and that was very evident at Miami. They are sloppy on defense and have no ability to move the ball on offense. Neither Joe Bauserman nor Braxton Miller moved the offense down the field and this was against a Miami defense that got walked over by Maryland. I think that both teams will struggle through their respective conferences. Tough losses but everything happens for a reason. There wasn't a whole lot that caught my eye this week sorry but things went pretty much the way everyone thought.
Please leave comments and suggestions below.
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