After three straight week's of at least 4 wins, last week brought us back down to earth with a 3-2 performance. Time to get back on track. Here are this week's picks.
Texas Tech vs Oklahoma
The Red Raiders travel to Norman and will look to beat the Sooners for the second straight time at Oklahoma Memorial Stadium. QB Davis Webb has taken over for Baker Mayfield and will look to keep the Red Raiders offensive success going Saturday in Norman. Webb has thrown for over 1400 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions so far this season with the last two games being starts. Webb has a plethora of offensive weapons including WR's Jace Amaro, Bradley Marquez and Eric Ward who have each caught over 30 passes so far this season. The Red Raiders ability to spread the ball all over the field has allowed them to have the second best passing offense in the country. While they don't run often, the Red Raiders have two capable running backs in Kenny Williams and DeAndre Washington. Both are averaging almost four yards a carry and have combined for 10 rushing touchdowns so far this year. The biggest improvement under first year Head Coach Kliff Kingsbury has been the defense. Texas Tech has always been able to score with anyone but has had real problems stopping opposing offenses the last several years. This year, however, the Red Raiders are 15th in points allowed and have only allowed one opponent to score more than 30 points. If the defense can keep Oklahoma under 30 points and the offense continues to execute the way it has the last few weeks, it could be a long day for Oklahoma.
The Sooners are coming off a 34-19 win over Kansas in Lawrence and will look to build on that momentum against the Red Raiders on Saturday. QB Blake Bell struggled for the second straight game completing only 60% of his passes for 131 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Bell will need to play much better against the Red Raiders if the Sooners are going to win on Saturday. The Sooners will also need to run the ball the way they did against Kansas to keep the Texas Tech offense on the sidelines and wear the Raiders defense out early in the game. Bell along with RB's Damian Williams and Roy Finch and FB Trey Millard should get some touches early and often for the Sooners. The biggest challenge for the Sooners will be stopping the Red Raider offense. The good news for the Sooners is that the Raiders can't pound the ball down the Sooners throat like Texas did two weeks ago in the middle of the Sooner defense so the weak part of the Sooner defense won't be as exposed. The bad news is that the Raiders hurry up offense can and will target many different offensive weapons to keep drives going and won't allow the Sooners to substitute fresh legs, so if the Sooners can't stop the Raider drives early, the defense could be in for a long day.
Prediction: While Oklahoma is a very difficult place for opponents to come in and win, Texas Tech has done it before. Oklahoma will try to establish the run early and often and while it will have success throughout the game, it will be forced to throw in the later stages as Tech will have the lead throughout the majority of the game. Bell's inability to complete passes consistently in crucial moments will be the deciding factor in this game and Texas Tech will go into Norman and come out with a W for the second straight time.
+Texas Tech University 34 - +The University of Oklahoma 24
UCLA vs Oregon
UCLA looks to get back on track after losing to Stanford last week, but is in for a tough task against the Oregon Ducks in Eugene. QB Brett Hundley, who has led the UCLA offense all year, struggled mightily last week against the Cardinal defense will need to play much better against the Ducks if the Bruins expect to pull off the upset. Hundley has completed 67% of his passes on the year with 13 touchdowns and six interceptions. He has also rushed for 287 yards and three touchdowns as well. Hundley will need to get the ball in the hands of his play makers including WR's Shaq Evans and Devin Fuller for the Bruins to score enough points to keep up with the Ducks offense. The Bruins running game of Hundley and RB's Jordon James and Paul Perkins has been very good this year averaging 200 rushing yards per game. This will be the X factor against the Ducks because if the Bruins can run the ball successfully early and often, they can keep the Ducks offense on the sideline, chew up some clock and wear down the Ducks defense to open some holes for Hundley. The Bruin defense will also look to win the line of scrimmage battle to prevent the Ducks from running on them all night. The Bruins have the physicality. Do they have the speed to keep up with Oregon is the question?
The Ducks offense just keeps on rolling after another 60+ point and 700+ yard performance last Saturday against Washington St. Heisman candidate QB Marcus Mariota has been sensational this year throwing for over 2000 yards to go along with 19 touchdowns and zero interceptions. He is also lethal on the ground where he averages over 10 yards per carry and has nine touchdowns as well. The Ducks up tempo offense begins and ends with Mariota. The Ducks are 2nd best in rushing yards per game and top 20 in passing yards per game, which would be higher if they didn't blow every team out of the stadium by the second quarter. Joining Mariota in the backfield are RB's Byron Marshall and Thomas Tyner. The two have combined for over 1100 yards and 16 touchdowns. The Ducks will also get RB De'Anthony Thomas back from his ankle injury adding even more firepower to the offense. WR's Josh Huff and Bralon Addison have been a nightmare for defenses to cover so far this year. The question for Oregon isn't will they score because they will definitely score enough points to win. The question will be whether they can deal with the Bruin physicality up front with regard to the Bruin run game.
Prediction: Both teams will come out and try to impose their will. The Bruins will have success early with their run game and with Hundley through the air. However, after a couple of solid drives leading to points, the Bruins offense sputters a bit and the Bruins fall behind the Ducks by two scores. This forces the Bruins to become over reliant on the pass, which plays into the Ducks hands. After a good first half, the game is decided by the end of the third quarter and the Ducks put on another offensive clinic.
+University of Oregon Ducks 56 - +UCLA Bruins 35
Texas vs TCU
After avenging its previous two beat downs at the hands of Oklahoma, the Texas Longhorns look to avenge last year's loss to TCU in Fort Worth. The Longhorns have had a week to prepare for this game after thoroughly manhandling Oklahoma and will look to lean on their running game for the second consecutive game. QB Case McCoy will look to manage the game and try not to make any mistakes against the talented TCU secondary. McCoy has completed less than 60% of his passes the last two games, however, the Longhorns aren't asking him to win the game for them, rather that responsibility falls on the running game. RB's Johnathan Gray and Malcolm Brown who have rushed for 745 yards and five touchdowns so far this year. Both are also reliable targets out of the backfield and will need to take care of the ball against TCU. The Longhorn defense has been much improved the last three games since Greg Robinson took the helm as defensive coordinator. The Longhorns will need to create pressure with the front seven and stop the run to force the Horned Frogs to air it out which TCU hasn't been very successful at so far this season. With Casey Pachall possibly playing on Saturday, the Longhorns had best stop the run early and take an early lead.
The Horned Frogs are looking to bounce back after a 24-10 loss to Oklahoma St last Saturday in Stillwater. Trevone Boykin struggled badly throwing for only 188 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions. The running game of Boykin and RB B.J. Catalon was decent but the offense as a whole has struggled all year and it doesn't appear to be getting better anytime soon. If Pachall can return, that might be the spark the Horned Frog offense needs to get the ball moving down the field. The defense has been good as it always is under Gary Patterson. Against Texas Tech, Oklahoma and Oklahoma St, the defense only gave up an average of 21 points per game. The defense is elite, but it needs help from the offense if the Horned Frogs expect to win those types of games.
Prediction: Texas won't have nearly the running lanes it had against Oklahoma two weeks ago and the offense will struggle at times. With the TCU offense struggling as well against an improved Texas defense, this game will come down to the fourth quarter. A costly turnover from Boykin will give the Longhorns a short field leading to a Johnathan Gray touchdown to seal the Longhorn victory.
+Texas Longhorns 20 - +TCU Athletics 13
Stanford vs Oregon St
Kevin Hogan and the Cardinal look to beat their fourth top 25 team this year when they take on the Oregon St Beavers Saturday Night. The Cardinal bounced back nicely last week beating UCLA 24-10 after losing to Utah the week before. Hogan threw for 222 yards, a touchdown and an interception and played much better than he did against the Utes. The Cardinal also leaned heavily on RB Tyler Gaffney, who ran 36 times for 171 yards and two scores. Gaffney only carried the ball 16 times in the loss to Utah, so it was expected the Cardinal would ride him and it sure did. The Stanford defense also played very well especially against the pass against a very good QB in Brett Hundley. The Cardinal picked Hundley off twice and only allowed 192 passing yards. The Cardinal defense will need to replicate that performance again on Saturday if it expects to beat the nations best passing attack in Sean Mannion and the Beavers.
Oregon St is coming off another impressive offensive performance that saw the Beavers put up 570 yards of total offense. QB Sean Mannion threw for 481 yards and four touchdowns and has now thrown for almost 3000 yards, 29 touchdowns to only three interceptions. Mannion will look to lead the Beavers to their first win over Stanford since 2009. The Beaver offense is pretty much a two man show with Mannion and WR Brandin Cooks leading the charge. Cooks already has 76 catches and 12 touchdowns through seven games. The Beavers have struggled to run the ball with any consistency, but will need Storm Woods or Terron Ward to get some tough yardage in the red zone against the Cardinal in order to keep the defense honest and allow Mannion some holes to throw in.
Prediction: Stanford will rely on Gaffney heavily to not only keep their drives going to score points, but also to keep the Oregon State offense on the sidelines. Mannion will find holes early and often against the Stanford defense that has struggled defending the pass this year. This will be a back and forth game with each team leading at different times in the game. The crowd will become a factor causing the Cardinal to punt and on the ensuing drive the Beaver duo of Mannion to Cooks will seal the upset win for the Beavers.
+Oregon State University 38 - +Stanford University 30
Upset Special
Penn St vs Ohio St
The Nittany Lions travel to Columbus and will look to knock off the Buckeyes at the Horseshoe for the second time in a row on Saturday.The Nittany Lions have prepared for this game for the last week after beating Michigan in four overtimes two weeks ago. Highly touted recruit Christian Hackenberg will lead the Nittany Lion charge on Saturday. Hackenburg has been efficient so far this year as a freshman throwing for over 1600 yards with 11 touchdowns and six interceptions. He has not only kept his team in games, but has also rallied the team as well so far this season. Hackenberg will look to get the ball in the hands of star WR Allen Robinson early and often against the Buckeyes. The Nittany Lions will also look to pound the ball with RB's Zach Zwinak and Bill Belton. The two have rushed for over 700 yards and 11 touchdowns and will play a pivotal role in the Nittany Lion offense on Saturday. Expect both to get 20+ carries against to Buckeyes to keep each other fresh and wear the defense down. While the Nittany Lions are a better passing team than running team, they will attack the Buckeyes early and often with the run on Saturday.
The Buckeyes are coming off a so so performance against Iowa in Iowa City and will look to get their offense clicking again against the Nittany Lions. QB Braxton Miller was very efficient completing 22 of 27 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns against the Hawkeyes. Carlos Hyde also played extremely well rushing for 149 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries. Both Miller and Hyde will need to duplicate these performances against a hungry and determined Nittany Lion defense that has had a week to prepare for them. The biggest area for improvement is the Ohio St defense. The Buckeyes defense was shredded by Wisconsin and Northwestern and for three quarters against Iowa. While the Buckeye offense has been scoring at will, the defense has struggled and the Nittany Lions will look to replicate the Iowa game plan, which kept a less talented Hawkeye team in the game for 3 and 1/2 quarters against the Buckeyes.
Prediction: The Nittany Lions will try to come into the Horseshoe and punch Ohio St in the mouth early to see if the Buckeyes will fall. With an emphasis on clock management, while also taking some shots down field with Hackenberg, the Nittany Lions will be in this game throughout contest. Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde will have success of their own and keep the Buckeyes in a tight one in the fourth quarter. After a defensive stop, the Nittany Lions will have the ball with less than three minutes to go down 28-27. A couple of completions from Hackenberg put the Nittany Lions in field goal position. Zwinak busts a 10 yard run and another seven yard run to put the field goal attempt at the Ohio St 20 yard line. The attempt is good with no time left on the clock and the Nittany Lions stun the Buckeyes
+Penn State University 30 - +Ohio State Buckeyes 28
Last Week: 3-2
2013 Season: 27-13
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Saturday, October 26, 2013
Saturday, October 19, 2013
College Football Week 8 Picks
Another 4-1 week in the books and we will look to carry the momentum over the last three weeks into this week's picks.
Florida vs Missouri
The Gators look to right the ship Saturday when they travel to Columbia to take on the unbeaten Tigers. Florida is coming off a 17-6 loss to LSU in which the offense couldn't mount any momentum throughout the entire game. QB Tyler Murphy was 15-27 for just 115 yards and no touchdowns. The Gators will need to rely on RB's Mack Brown and Kelvin Taylor against the Tigers in an effort to continue to not force the young quarterback to make too many plays himself. Both Brown and Taylor are averaging around four yards a carry and the Gators will hope for that kind of production on Saturday against a tough front seven as the Tigers defense ranks 25th against the rush. The Gators will also need to rely on their stout defense to stop the Missouri spread offensive attack. With James Franklin out, it will be interesting to see what the Gators do on defense with Maty Mauk running the Tiger offense.
The Tigers are roaring after beating #7 Georgia last week 41-26 and are now 6-0 for the third time under Head Coach Gary Pinkel. The Tigers offense was balanced throughout the game and did a good job mixing up the play calling. QB James Franklin accounted for 182 and two touchdowns but was injured late in the game and is now out for the regular season. QB Maty Mauk will look to fill his shoes albeit against a very good defensive team in Florida. RB Henry Josey will look to help his QB out but that might prove to be extremely difficult as the Gators are third in the nation against the run. Mauk will need to make some plays not only with his arm, but with his feet as well if the Tigers are going to beat the Gators. L'Damian Washington and Dorial Green-Beckham will try to put themselves in position against the Gator defensive backs to help out Mauk.
Prediction: This will be an ugly game to start with both teams offenses struggling to put any points on the board. Both teams will stack the box forcing the opposing QB to beat them through the air. While Florida has the better defense, the Tigers can put pressure on the QB with their defensive line and that will be huge on Saturday against the Gators and their inexperienced QB. Also the Gators don't really have any huge offensive play makers while the Tigers have three and they will come up big in the fourth quarter. This will be a tight game throughout with the Tigers finally pulling away in the final minutes.
+Mizzou Athletics 24 - +Florida Gators 14
UCLA vs Stanford
Brett Hundley and the Bruins travel to Palo Alto and will look to knock off the Cardinal for the first time since 2008. The Bruins are coming off a 37-10 offensive clinic against the Cal Golden Bears and the offense has been proficient all year. Hundley threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns despite the running game struggling a bit against the Golden Bears. Even with that game, the Bruins average over 223 yards a game on the ground to go along with 323 yards through the air. To say the Bruin offense has been lethal is an understatement. The Bruins offense will be tested against the Cardinal defense as this will be the best defense the Bruins have played so far this season. Stanford is very good against the run and won't need to put an extra man in the box like Cal did in an effort to stop the run. This will also help the Cardinal in the pass where Cal was shredded so Hundley will need to pick his spots and continue to play the way he has and not make any mistakes.
The Cardinal will look to rebound after losing last week 27-21 to Utah and what better way to try and rebound than to go back home. Stanford has beaten two ranked opponents at home so far this year and will look to make it three on Saturday. QB Kevin Hogan will need to play better against the Bruins than he did against the Utes. Hogan was 15-27 for 246 yards and a touchdown. However, the offense had trouble moving the ball consistently and lacked the big play. RB Tyler Gaffney was huge for the Cardinal rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown and will look to continue that success against the Bruins. The biggest need for improvement for the Cardinal is the rushing defense. The Cardinal allowed 176 yards on the ground against the Utes and now face a Bruin team that is better running the ball than Utah. Expect the Cardinal to play better against the run and rely on Tyler Gaffney while taking some more shots down field with Hogan to open up the Bruin defense.
Prediction: This is going to be a great, physical game. Both teams will have their way against each other early and will need to make adjustments to their game plan to stop their opponent. Hundley will be dominant throughout this game picking his shots against the Cardinal defense. Hogan will try and keep up by taking more shots down the field and spreading the ball around to someone other than Ty Montgomery. This game will come down to the final possession and with a tie game, Hogan will lead the Cardinal into field goal position and the Cardinal will go onto win a thriller as the kick is good with no time left on the clock.
+Stanford University 34 - +UCLA Bruins 31
USC vs Notre Dame
The Trojans travel to South Bend to take on one of their arch rival's in Notre Dame. The Trojans are coming off a 38-31 win over Arizona in Ed Orgeron's first game as head coach. The Trojan offense moved the ball at will against the Wildcat defense racking up 546 total yards. QB Cody Kessler threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns while the rushing attack totaled 249 yards and three touchdowns spread across six rushers. This offensive explosion will need to continue if USC wants to beat Notre Dame in South Bend. USC's defense has struggled this year, however, they are playing an offensively challenged team and if the Trojans can force a turnover or two, they will be in great position to win.
The Fighting Irish are coming off a bye week and will look to continue the success it had against Arizona St the week before. Against the Sun Devils, QB Tommy Rees threw for 279 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Rees moved the ball down the field well and outside of the interception was very good with his decision making. RB's Cam McDaniel and George Atkinson rushed for 136 yards combined as well. The Irish will look to stifle the USC offense, which at times has struggled this year, while managing the game on offense with Rees and trying to run the ball down the Trojans throat.
Prediction: The Trojans will look to come out and run the ball as well as they did against the Wildcats the week before. While the Trojans will have some success, they won't have nearly the success they did against the Wildcats and will need Cody Kessler to move the team down the field. Much like the Trojans, the Irish will need to rely on Tommy Rees to move the team down the field as the Trojans will stack the box and force him to beat them. This will be a low scoring game throughout much of the contest until the game is decided by a Tommy Rees interception deep in the Irish territory that turns into a USC touchdown. Rees tries to bring the team back, but throws another late interception and the Trojans run out the clock.
+USC Trojans 20 - +Notre Dame Athletics 10
Florida St vs Clemson
The game everyone has been looking forward to since last year if finally here. Florida St travels to Memorial Stadium to take on the Clemson Tigers. Florida St is coming off a bye after throttling Maryland 63-0 at home two weeks ago. QB Jameis Winston has been sensational this year completing 73% of his passes as well as throwing for 17 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He will look to get the ball to his play makers early and often against the Tigers. RB's Devonta Freeman and Karlos Williams have combined to rush for 629 yards and nine touchdowns so far this season. Winston also has wheels of his own rushing for 135 yards and two touchdowns. The real question for the Seminoles is how will their defense hold up. The Seminoles have only been tested by Boston College so far and the Eagles have far less offensive talent than the Tigers do so the Seminoles will benefit from the week off to prepare for the Tigers.
Clemson is coming off their own close call against Boston College beating them 24-14 in a game that saw the Clemson offense move the ball extremely well but failed to put up many points. QB Tajh Boyd threw for 334 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 33 yards and another touchdown. RB Roderick McDowell ran for 91 yards while star wideout Sammy Watkins had 101 yards receiving and a score. These three will need to play big against the Seminoles if the Tigers want to stay in the National Championship picture. The Tiger defense will also need to keep playing at their current level and force some turnovers against the Seminoles if Clemson is going to win this game.
Prediction: If you thought the Tiger crowd was loud against Georgia, just wait for this game. The atmosphere will be absolutely electric and this game will exceed the hype. Both QB's will put on Heisman like performances and will move their teams down the field at will. This will be a back and forth game with each team leading by 10 at some point in the game. The breakthrough will come early in the fourth quarter when the Tigers force a turnover from Winston, leading to a touchdown. The Seminoles will be down 14 but will drive down the field quickly to get back within seven. After a Tiger field goal, the Seminoles get another touchdown with a minute left but can't get the onside kick and the Tigers get another close home win over a top 10 opponent.
+Clemson Tigers 41 - +Florida State Seminoles 38
Upset Special:
BYU vs Houston
Its the Cougar bowl as the BYU Cougars look to knock off the undefeated Houston Cougars. BYU is coming off an impressive victory over Georgia Tech in which the offense moved the ball both through the air and on the ground consistently against the Yellow Jackets. Taysom Hill was 19-27 for 244 yards and a touchdowns and also ran for 65 yards and a touchdown. Hill has improved his accuracy dramatically over the last three games compared to the first three games. Through three games, Hill was completing 34.8% of his passes. Over the last three games, Hill is completing 66.8% of his passes. The team will go as Hill's arm goes. The Cougars can pound it down any opponents throat, but if Hill can't throw accurately, than opponents will stack the box and force him to throw. It will be interesting to see what the Houston defense does to try and throw Hill off his game as it is very good against the run.
The Houston Cougars are coming off a 25-15 win over Memphis in a game that saw the defense play great but the offense wasn't very good. John O'Korn was 13-30 for 198 yards and a touchdown. His accuracy will need to be much better against an even better defensive team in BYU if Houston wants to win. Along with this, Houston only ran for 38 yards in their win over Memphis. Houston will need to run for their average of 188 yards a game because if Houston turns one dimensional against BYU, they will lose.
Prediction: This will be a very physical and defensive game with each team trying to force the opposing teams quarterback to beat them. Both running attacks will be stuffed early but will see some holes later in the game. While Houston's defense has been great and has kept the team in games when the offense has struggled, the power running attack of Jamaal Williams and Taysom Hill takes it toll on teams and wears them down by the third quarter. Throw in the fact that Hill has been extremely accurate of late and that does not bode well for Houston. This will be a close game until early in the fourth quarter, when BYU will finally pull away.
+BYU 27 - +University of Houston 14
Last Week: 4-1
2013 Season: 24-11
Florida vs Missouri
The Gators look to right the ship Saturday when they travel to Columbia to take on the unbeaten Tigers. Florida is coming off a 17-6 loss to LSU in which the offense couldn't mount any momentum throughout the entire game. QB Tyler Murphy was 15-27 for just 115 yards and no touchdowns. The Gators will need to rely on RB's Mack Brown and Kelvin Taylor against the Tigers in an effort to continue to not force the young quarterback to make too many plays himself. Both Brown and Taylor are averaging around four yards a carry and the Gators will hope for that kind of production on Saturday against a tough front seven as the Tigers defense ranks 25th against the rush. The Gators will also need to rely on their stout defense to stop the Missouri spread offensive attack. With James Franklin out, it will be interesting to see what the Gators do on defense with Maty Mauk running the Tiger offense.
The Tigers are roaring after beating #7 Georgia last week 41-26 and are now 6-0 for the third time under Head Coach Gary Pinkel. The Tigers offense was balanced throughout the game and did a good job mixing up the play calling. QB James Franklin accounted for 182 and two touchdowns but was injured late in the game and is now out for the regular season. QB Maty Mauk will look to fill his shoes albeit against a very good defensive team in Florida. RB Henry Josey will look to help his QB out but that might prove to be extremely difficult as the Gators are third in the nation against the run. Mauk will need to make some plays not only with his arm, but with his feet as well if the Tigers are going to beat the Gators. L'Damian Washington and Dorial Green-Beckham will try to put themselves in position against the Gator defensive backs to help out Mauk.
Prediction: This will be an ugly game to start with both teams offenses struggling to put any points on the board. Both teams will stack the box forcing the opposing QB to beat them through the air. While Florida has the better defense, the Tigers can put pressure on the QB with their defensive line and that will be huge on Saturday against the Gators and their inexperienced QB. Also the Gators don't really have any huge offensive play makers while the Tigers have three and they will come up big in the fourth quarter. This will be a tight game throughout with the Tigers finally pulling away in the final minutes.
+Mizzou Athletics 24 - +Florida Gators 14
UCLA vs Stanford
Brett Hundley and the Bruins travel to Palo Alto and will look to knock off the Cardinal for the first time since 2008. The Bruins are coming off a 37-10 offensive clinic against the Cal Golden Bears and the offense has been proficient all year. Hundley threw for 410 yards and three touchdowns despite the running game struggling a bit against the Golden Bears. Even with that game, the Bruins average over 223 yards a game on the ground to go along with 323 yards through the air. To say the Bruin offense has been lethal is an understatement. The Bruins offense will be tested against the Cardinal defense as this will be the best defense the Bruins have played so far this season. Stanford is very good against the run and won't need to put an extra man in the box like Cal did in an effort to stop the run. This will also help the Cardinal in the pass where Cal was shredded so Hundley will need to pick his spots and continue to play the way he has and not make any mistakes.
The Cardinal will look to rebound after losing last week 27-21 to Utah and what better way to try and rebound than to go back home. Stanford has beaten two ranked opponents at home so far this year and will look to make it three on Saturday. QB Kevin Hogan will need to play better against the Bruins than he did against the Utes. Hogan was 15-27 for 246 yards and a touchdown. However, the offense had trouble moving the ball consistently and lacked the big play. RB Tyler Gaffney was huge for the Cardinal rushing for 106 yards and a touchdown and will look to continue that success against the Bruins. The biggest need for improvement for the Cardinal is the rushing defense. The Cardinal allowed 176 yards on the ground against the Utes and now face a Bruin team that is better running the ball than Utah. Expect the Cardinal to play better against the run and rely on Tyler Gaffney while taking some more shots down field with Hogan to open up the Bruin defense.
Prediction: This is going to be a great, physical game. Both teams will have their way against each other early and will need to make adjustments to their game plan to stop their opponent. Hundley will be dominant throughout this game picking his shots against the Cardinal defense. Hogan will try and keep up by taking more shots down the field and spreading the ball around to someone other than Ty Montgomery. This game will come down to the final possession and with a tie game, Hogan will lead the Cardinal into field goal position and the Cardinal will go onto win a thriller as the kick is good with no time left on the clock.
+Stanford University 34 - +UCLA Bruins 31
USC vs Notre Dame
The Trojans travel to South Bend to take on one of their arch rival's in Notre Dame. The Trojans are coming off a 38-31 win over Arizona in Ed Orgeron's first game as head coach. The Trojan offense moved the ball at will against the Wildcat defense racking up 546 total yards. QB Cody Kessler threw for 297 yards and two touchdowns while the rushing attack totaled 249 yards and three touchdowns spread across six rushers. This offensive explosion will need to continue if USC wants to beat Notre Dame in South Bend. USC's defense has struggled this year, however, they are playing an offensively challenged team and if the Trojans can force a turnover or two, they will be in great position to win.
The Fighting Irish are coming off a bye week and will look to continue the success it had against Arizona St the week before. Against the Sun Devils, QB Tommy Rees threw for 279 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Rees moved the ball down the field well and outside of the interception was very good with his decision making. RB's Cam McDaniel and George Atkinson rushed for 136 yards combined as well. The Irish will look to stifle the USC offense, which at times has struggled this year, while managing the game on offense with Rees and trying to run the ball down the Trojans throat.
Prediction: The Trojans will look to come out and run the ball as well as they did against the Wildcats the week before. While the Trojans will have some success, they won't have nearly the success they did against the Wildcats and will need Cody Kessler to move the team down the field. Much like the Trojans, the Irish will need to rely on Tommy Rees to move the team down the field as the Trojans will stack the box and force him to beat them. This will be a low scoring game throughout much of the contest until the game is decided by a Tommy Rees interception deep in the Irish territory that turns into a USC touchdown. Rees tries to bring the team back, but throws another late interception and the Trojans run out the clock.
+USC Trojans 20 - +Notre Dame Athletics 10
Florida St vs Clemson
The game everyone has been looking forward to since last year if finally here. Florida St travels to Memorial Stadium to take on the Clemson Tigers. Florida St is coming off a bye after throttling Maryland 63-0 at home two weeks ago. QB Jameis Winston has been sensational this year completing 73% of his passes as well as throwing for 17 touchdowns and only two interceptions. He will look to get the ball to his play makers early and often against the Tigers. RB's Devonta Freeman and Karlos Williams have combined to rush for 629 yards and nine touchdowns so far this season. Winston also has wheels of his own rushing for 135 yards and two touchdowns. The real question for the Seminoles is how will their defense hold up. The Seminoles have only been tested by Boston College so far and the Eagles have far less offensive talent than the Tigers do so the Seminoles will benefit from the week off to prepare for the Tigers.
Clemson is coming off their own close call against Boston College beating them 24-14 in a game that saw the Clemson offense move the ball extremely well but failed to put up many points. QB Tajh Boyd threw for 334 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 33 yards and another touchdown. RB Roderick McDowell ran for 91 yards while star wideout Sammy Watkins had 101 yards receiving and a score. These three will need to play big against the Seminoles if the Tigers want to stay in the National Championship picture. The Tiger defense will also need to keep playing at their current level and force some turnovers against the Seminoles if Clemson is going to win this game.
Prediction: If you thought the Tiger crowd was loud against Georgia, just wait for this game. The atmosphere will be absolutely electric and this game will exceed the hype. Both QB's will put on Heisman like performances and will move their teams down the field at will. This will be a back and forth game with each team leading by 10 at some point in the game. The breakthrough will come early in the fourth quarter when the Tigers force a turnover from Winston, leading to a touchdown. The Seminoles will be down 14 but will drive down the field quickly to get back within seven. After a Tiger field goal, the Seminoles get another touchdown with a minute left but can't get the onside kick and the Tigers get another close home win over a top 10 opponent.
+Clemson Tigers 41 - +Florida State Seminoles 38
Upset Special:
BYU vs Houston
Its the Cougar bowl as the BYU Cougars look to knock off the undefeated Houston Cougars. BYU is coming off an impressive victory over Georgia Tech in which the offense moved the ball both through the air and on the ground consistently against the Yellow Jackets. Taysom Hill was 19-27 for 244 yards and a touchdowns and also ran for 65 yards and a touchdown. Hill has improved his accuracy dramatically over the last three games compared to the first three games. Through three games, Hill was completing 34.8% of his passes. Over the last three games, Hill is completing 66.8% of his passes. The team will go as Hill's arm goes. The Cougars can pound it down any opponents throat, but if Hill can't throw accurately, than opponents will stack the box and force him to throw. It will be interesting to see what the Houston defense does to try and throw Hill off his game as it is very good against the run.
The Houston Cougars are coming off a 25-15 win over Memphis in a game that saw the defense play great but the offense wasn't very good. John O'Korn was 13-30 for 198 yards and a touchdown. His accuracy will need to be much better against an even better defensive team in BYU if Houston wants to win. Along with this, Houston only ran for 38 yards in their win over Memphis. Houston will need to run for their average of 188 yards a game because if Houston turns one dimensional against BYU, they will lose.
Prediction: This will be a very physical and defensive game with each team trying to force the opposing teams quarterback to beat them. Both running attacks will be stuffed early but will see some holes later in the game. While Houston's defense has been great and has kept the team in games when the offense has struggled, the power running attack of Jamaal Williams and Taysom Hill takes it toll on teams and wears them down by the third quarter. Throw in the fact that Hill has been extremely accurate of late and that does not bode well for Houston. This will be a close game until early in the fourth quarter, when BYU will finally pull away.
+BYU 27 - +University of Houston 14
Last Week: 4-1
2013 Season: 24-11
Saturday, October 12, 2013
College Football Week 7 Picks
We finally did it. After coming close a couple of times, last week was the first 5-0 week in the short existence of this blog. Lets keep the momentum going and try to do it again this week. Here are this weeks picks.
Missouri vs Georgia
Gary Pinkel and the Tigers travel to Athens to take on the Bulldogs in what will be the Tigers' first ever game in the state of Georgia. The Tigers come into the matchup with a 5-0 record and are coming off a 51-28 dismantling of Vanderbilt in Nashville. QB James Franklin will look to continue to lead the Tiger's spread offensive attack that has been clicking on all cylinders so far this season. Franklin, due to his dual threat ability, has amassed almost 1700 total yards, 15 touchdowns and only three turnover so far this season. The Tigers have plenty of weapons to help take pressure off of Franklin including the running back tandem of Henry Josey and Russell Hansbrough. The pair have rushed for almost 700 yards and nine touchdowns combined and are lethal in the zone read option the Tigers like to run. Franklin also has a plethora of receiving weapons as well including L'Damian Washington and five star recruit Dorial Green-Beckham. Both receivers are averaging over 15 yards per catch and have accounted for nine of Franklin's 13 touchdown passes. Franklin will need all of his weapons on Saturday as the Tigers should find themselves in a shootout with the Bulldogs. The question for the Tigers will be how will their defense hold up? So far the Tiger defense has been average at best and that has been against sub par competition. The defense will need to amass some turnovers against a banged up Georgia offense if they are to win in Athens on Saturday.
The Bulldogs came from behind and scored in the final minute to force overtime, where they went on to beat the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville 24-21 in a tough, physical game that saw the Bulldogs suffer more injuries on offense. RB Keith Marshall and WR Justin Scott-Wesley each tore their ACL last Saturday and RB Todd Gurley missed the game with a sprained ankle. QB Aaron Murray had to step up after the injuries and did throwing for 200 yards and three touchdowns and no interceptions. He will have to play even bigger on Saturday against the Tigers. The Bulldog defense will also need to play better as well if Georgia expects to beat the Tigers. The Bulldog defense is ranked 95th in scoring defense and has been pretty porous so far this season. Expect the Bulldogs to stack the box in order to take away the Tiger running game and force James Franklin to beat them through the air.
Prediction: This is many people's pick to be the upset of the week with all the injuries Georgia has on both sides of the the ball. Despite the injuries, QB Aaron Murray will rally his team and lead another fourth quarter comeback at home and the Bulldogs will escape by the skin of their teeth for the second week in a row.
+Georgia Bulldogs 24 - +Mizzou Athletics 21
Florida vs LSU
The Gators travel to Baton Rouge to take on the LSU Tigers. The Gators are coming off a dominant 30-10 victory over Arkansas and are 3-0 since Tyler Murphy took over the starting QB role after Jeff Driskel was lost for the season. Murphy has completed 72% of his passes and has thrown five touchdowns to only one interception. He has also been a rushing threat, running for 135 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns. The Gators will need to run the ball with RB's Mack Brown and Matt Jones to wear the LSU defense down early and keep Zach Mettenberger on the sidelines.The Florida defense will also need to keep playing as well as it has. The Gators are ranked second in total defense and fourth in points per game and if it can keep playing up to those standards, it will be tough for the LSU offense to move the ball.
The Tigers are coming off their own impressive victory beating Mississippi St in Starkville 59-26. Zach Mettenberger has been much improved this year under first year offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and will look to continue that success against Florida on Saturday. Mettenberger has thrown for 1740 yards to go along with 15 touchdowns and only two interceptions. 72% of Mettenbergers throws go to WR's Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry and it is safe to say this will continue on Saturday. Perhaps Mettenberger's best offensive weapon is his run game led by RB Jeremy Hill, who is averaging seven and a half yards per carry to go with nine touchdowns so far this season. The Tiger run game helps take pressure off of Mettenberger, however, he has shown that he is capable of leading his team this year and the Tigers haven't relied on the run as much as they have in the past.
Prediction: Expect a physical, run it down your throat kind of game. Florida's offense has been clicking on all cylinders recently and should get some scoring opportunities on a rebuilding LSU defense. At the same token, LSU's offense is much more well rounded then the teams Florida has faced so far this season so expect the Gator defense to struggle at times in this game. While Murphy has Florida moving in the right direction, he has never faced a team nor an atmosphere like he will face at Tiger stadium on Saturday. He will put up a valuable effort but Hill and Mettenberger will be too tough for the Gators to overcome.
+LSU Football 24 - +Florida Gators 17
Oregon vs Washington
The Oregon Ducks look to stay perfect when they travel to Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies. The Ducks are coming off a 57-16 blowout win over Colorado and look to continue their offensive success against the Husky defense. The Oregon Ducks high octane offense is led by QB Marcus Mariotta, who has totaled almost 1700 yards to go along with 21 total touchdowns and zero turnovers. Joining Mariotta in the backfield are two dynamic running backs in Byron Marshall and speedster De'Anthony Thomas. The pair have rushed 113 times for 786 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Ducks read option has been tough for opponents to stop over the past few years and Washington can expect a heavy dose of it on Saturday. The Ducks offense ranks third in rushing yards and second in points per game. The main benefit of these two stats is that the defense has been able to pin its ears back and rush the passer as the opposing team has to throw to make up the early deficit. The Oregon defense is second in points per game and 20th in total defense. If Oregon builds and early lead, look for the defense to continue to force turnovers and keep their opponents out of the end zone.
The Huskies look to rebound after a close 31-28 loss to Stanford in Palo Alto. QB Keith Price looks to continue his early season success and throw his name in hat of first round quarterbacks in next year's NFL draft. Price has thrown for 1400 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions so far and has done it against some good competition. RB Bishop Sankey looks to keep building on an already impressive resume that has seen him rush 131 times for 732 yards and seven touchdowns. Look up the definition for workhorse back and Sankey's name will pop up. Expect a heavy dose of Sankey on Saturday as the Huskies will look to keep the Oregon offense on the sidelines and eat up time off the clock. Washington's defense has been great so far this season ranking 10th in total defense and while they have faced good competition, nothing compares to offensive attack the Ducks will feature. The Huskies will look to stack the box and force Mariotta to throw in this match up.
Prediction: This will be a highly competitive game throughout. Both teams will have success on offense throughout the first half and the game will be won by which teams makes better second half adjustments. Mariotta will force the Huskies to respect his arm throughout the game which will open up running lanes later on for himself and Marshall. The Huskies will be forced to try and make up and deficit but it will be too much to overcome and the Huskies will drop their second in a row.
+University of Oregon 38 - +Washington Huskies Athletics 30
Oregon St vs Washington St
The Beavers travel to Pullman Washington to take on the Cougars and will be looking to win their fifth game in a row. The Beavers are coming off a bye week after defeating Colorado the week before 44-17. QB Sean Mannion will look to add to his already gaudy numbers. Mannion has thrown for over 2000 yards, 21 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Mannion has spread most of his passes across four receivers including star wideout Brandin Cooks. Cooks has tallied 52 catches for 800 yards and nine touchdowns so far in five games. The Beaver running attack has struggled a bit so far this season, ranking 121st in rushing yards per game. This has forced Mannion to carry the load and so far he has.The question for the Beavers is how will their defense stack up against the Cougar offense. Washington St ranks eight in the country in passing yards per game and that is an area where the Beavers have struggled a bit so far this season. It will be interesting to see the Beaver game plan after coming off a bye week to see how their defense plans to stop the Cougar passing attack.
Washington St has already surpassed last year's win total under second year Head Coach Mike Leach and will look to continue the success Saturday against the Beavers. The Cougars are coming off a 44-22 win over Cal at Berkley. Like the Beavers, the Cougars are a heavy pass team that struggles to run the football. QB Connor Halliday has thrown for 2000 yards, 13 touchdowns but has also thrown 10 interceptions. He will need to be better with his decision making if the Cougars are to stay in the game. Like Mannion. Halliday has spread the ball around to a plethora of receivers with most of the big plays going to Gabe Marks, who has tallied 41 catches and four touchdowns so far. The Cougars are one spot worse than the Beavers when it comes to their running game ranking 122nd in rushing offense, as they only average 59 yards per game. The Cougars will need to run at some point to keep the Beavers off balance and to try and keep the Beavers offense on the sidelines.
Prediction: Both teams are going to air it out all game long. This should be the highest scoring game of the week. The game will come down to turnovers as Mannion will keep the ball out of his opponents hands, while Halliday will have two costly interceptions. It will be close game for much of three quarters, but Oregon St will pull away in the fourth quarter.
+Oregon State University 38 - +Washington State Cougars 31
Upset Special:
Northwestern vs Wisconsin
The Wildcats look to get back on track after a heartbreaking loss to Ohio St last week and travel to Madison to take on the Badgers. The Wildcats will be led by their two quarterback system of Trevor Siemian and Kain Coulter. Siemian is the passer and has thrown for almost 1000 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions while Coulter is the runner and has amassed 250 yards and three touchdowns. The Wildcat spread offensive attack runs through RB Treyvon Green who is averaging almost seven yards per carry and has five touchdowns himself. The Wildcat offense has been extremely balanced and has been difficult for teams to stop to this point. The Wildcats will look to attack the Badger defense much like the Buckeyes attacked the Badgers a few weeks ago. The Wildcat defense has been improved this year but will need to stop the heavy rushing attack of the Badgers if they expect to contend in this match up.
The Badgers are coming off a bye week after losing the Buckeyes the week before. The Badgers played well but had trouble running the ball against the Buckeyes which is the Badgers strong suit. The Badgers are led by QB Joel Stave who has done a great job keeping his team in games and managing the game. Stave has thrown for over 1000 yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions this year. Stave isn't asked to light it up through the air, instead the Badgers rely heavily on RB's Melvin Gordon and Josh White. The pair have rushed 137 times for 1171 yards and 11 touchdowns. Expect a heavy dose of both Gordon and White Saturday afternoon. It will be interesting to see what the Badger's defense practiced during the bye week to stop the Wildcat offense. This should be a thriller that comes down to who has the ball last.
Prediction: Both teams will look to impose their will early with the Badgers leaning on the run and the Wildcats doing a little bit of both. Both Gordon and White will rush for over 100 yards and the Badgers will look to keep the Wildcat offense off the field and milk as much clock as they can. The Wildcats will use their up tempo offense to get back in the game and try and tire out the Badger defense. A costly fumble by Coulter will allow the Badgers to run out the clock and have the Wildcats drop their second straight game.
+Wisconsin Badgers 28 - +Northwestern Athletics 24
Last Week: 5-0
2013 Season: 20-10
Missouri vs Georgia
Gary Pinkel and the Tigers travel to Athens to take on the Bulldogs in what will be the Tigers' first ever game in the state of Georgia. The Tigers come into the matchup with a 5-0 record and are coming off a 51-28 dismantling of Vanderbilt in Nashville. QB James Franklin will look to continue to lead the Tiger's spread offensive attack that has been clicking on all cylinders so far this season. Franklin, due to his dual threat ability, has amassed almost 1700 total yards, 15 touchdowns and only three turnover so far this season. The Tigers have plenty of weapons to help take pressure off of Franklin including the running back tandem of Henry Josey and Russell Hansbrough. The pair have rushed for almost 700 yards and nine touchdowns combined and are lethal in the zone read option the Tigers like to run. Franklin also has a plethora of receiving weapons as well including L'Damian Washington and five star recruit Dorial Green-Beckham. Both receivers are averaging over 15 yards per catch and have accounted for nine of Franklin's 13 touchdown passes. Franklin will need all of his weapons on Saturday as the Tigers should find themselves in a shootout with the Bulldogs. The question for the Tigers will be how will their defense hold up? So far the Tiger defense has been average at best and that has been against sub par competition. The defense will need to amass some turnovers against a banged up Georgia offense if they are to win in Athens on Saturday.
The Bulldogs came from behind and scored in the final minute to force overtime, where they went on to beat the Tennessee Volunteers in Knoxville 24-21 in a tough, physical game that saw the Bulldogs suffer more injuries on offense. RB Keith Marshall and WR Justin Scott-Wesley each tore their ACL last Saturday and RB Todd Gurley missed the game with a sprained ankle. QB Aaron Murray had to step up after the injuries and did throwing for 200 yards and three touchdowns and no interceptions. He will have to play even bigger on Saturday against the Tigers. The Bulldog defense will also need to play better as well if Georgia expects to beat the Tigers. The Bulldog defense is ranked 95th in scoring defense and has been pretty porous so far this season. Expect the Bulldogs to stack the box in order to take away the Tiger running game and force James Franklin to beat them through the air.
Prediction: This is many people's pick to be the upset of the week with all the injuries Georgia has on both sides of the the ball. Despite the injuries, QB Aaron Murray will rally his team and lead another fourth quarter comeback at home and the Bulldogs will escape by the skin of their teeth for the second week in a row.
+Georgia Bulldogs 24 - +Mizzou Athletics 21
Florida vs LSU
The Gators travel to Baton Rouge to take on the LSU Tigers. The Gators are coming off a dominant 30-10 victory over Arkansas and are 3-0 since Tyler Murphy took over the starting QB role after Jeff Driskel was lost for the season. Murphy has completed 72% of his passes and has thrown five touchdowns to only one interception. He has also been a rushing threat, running for 135 yards on 24 carries and two touchdowns. The Gators will need to run the ball with RB's Mack Brown and Matt Jones to wear the LSU defense down early and keep Zach Mettenberger on the sidelines.The Florida defense will also need to keep playing as well as it has. The Gators are ranked second in total defense and fourth in points per game and if it can keep playing up to those standards, it will be tough for the LSU offense to move the ball.
The Tigers are coming off their own impressive victory beating Mississippi St in Starkville 59-26. Zach Mettenberger has been much improved this year under first year offensive coordinator Cam Cameron and will look to continue that success against Florida on Saturday. Mettenberger has thrown for 1740 yards to go along with 15 touchdowns and only two interceptions. 72% of Mettenbergers throws go to WR's Odell Beckham and Jarvis Landry and it is safe to say this will continue on Saturday. Perhaps Mettenberger's best offensive weapon is his run game led by RB Jeremy Hill, who is averaging seven and a half yards per carry to go with nine touchdowns so far this season. The Tiger run game helps take pressure off of Mettenberger, however, he has shown that he is capable of leading his team this year and the Tigers haven't relied on the run as much as they have in the past.
Prediction: Expect a physical, run it down your throat kind of game. Florida's offense has been clicking on all cylinders recently and should get some scoring opportunities on a rebuilding LSU defense. At the same token, LSU's offense is much more well rounded then the teams Florida has faced so far this season so expect the Gator defense to struggle at times in this game. While Murphy has Florida moving in the right direction, he has never faced a team nor an atmosphere like he will face at Tiger stadium on Saturday. He will put up a valuable effort but Hill and Mettenberger will be too tough for the Gators to overcome.
+LSU Football 24 - +Florida Gators 17
Oregon vs Washington
The Oregon Ducks look to stay perfect when they travel to Seattle to take on the Washington Huskies. The Ducks are coming off a 57-16 blowout win over Colorado and look to continue their offensive success against the Husky defense. The Oregon Ducks high octane offense is led by QB Marcus Mariotta, who has totaled almost 1700 yards to go along with 21 total touchdowns and zero turnovers. Joining Mariotta in the backfield are two dynamic running backs in Byron Marshall and speedster De'Anthony Thomas. The pair have rushed 113 times for 786 yards and 10 touchdowns. The Ducks read option has been tough for opponents to stop over the past few years and Washington can expect a heavy dose of it on Saturday. The Ducks offense ranks third in rushing yards and second in points per game. The main benefit of these two stats is that the defense has been able to pin its ears back and rush the passer as the opposing team has to throw to make up the early deficit. The Oregon defense is second in points per game and 20th in total defense. If Oregon builds and early lead, look for the defense to continue to force turnovers and keep their opponents out of the end zone.
The Huskies look to rebound after a close 31-28 loss to Stanford in Palo Alto. QB Keith Price looks to continue his early season success and throw his name in hat of first round quarterbacks in next year's NFL draft. Price has thrown for 1400 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions so far and has done it against some good competition. RB Bishop Sankey looks to keep building on an already impressive resume that has seen him rush 131 times for 732 yards and seven touchdowns. Look up the definition for workhorse back and Sankey's name will pop up. Expect a heavy dose of Sankey on Saturday as the Huskies will look to keep the Oregon offense on the sidelines and eat up time off the clock. Washington's defense has been great so far this season ranking 10th in total defense and while they have faced good competition, nothing compares to offensive attack the Ducks will feature. The Huskies will look to stack the box and force Mariotta to throw in this match up.
Prediction: This will be a highly competitive game throughout. Both teams will have success on offense throughout the first half and the game will be won by which teams makes better second half adjustments. Mariotta will force the Huskies to respect his arm throughout the game which will open up running lanes later on for himself and Marshall. The Huskies will be forced to try and make up and deficit but it will be too much to overcome and the Huskies will drop their second in a row.
+University of Oregon 38 - +Washington Huskies Athletics 30
Oregon St vs Washington St
The Beavers travel to Pullman Washington to take on the Cougars and will be looking to win their fifth game in a row. The Beavers are coming off a bye week after defeating Colorado the week before 44-17. QB Sean Mannion will look to add to his already gaudy numbers. Mannion has thrown for over 2000 yards, 21 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Mannion has spread most of his passes across four receivers including star wideout Brandin Cooks. Cooks has tallied 52 catches for 800 yards and nine touchdowns so far in five games. The Beaver running attack has struggled a bit so far this season, ranking 121st in rushing yards per game. This has forced Mannion to carry the load and so far he has.The question for the Beavers is how will their defense stack up against the Cougar offense. Washington St ranks eight in the country in passing yards per game and that is an area where the Beavers have struggled a bit so far this season. It will be interesting to see the Beaver game plan after coming off a bye week to see how their defense plans to stop the Cougar passing attack.
Washington St has already surpassed last year's win total under second year Head Coach Mike Leach and will look to continue the success Saturday against the Beavers. The Cougars are coming off a 44-22 win over Cal at Berkley. Like the Beavers, the Cougars are a heavy pass team that struggles to run the football. QB Connor Halliday has thrown for 2000 yards, 13 touchdowns but has also thrown 10 interceptions. He will need to be better with his decision making if the Cougars are to stay in the game. Like Mannion. Halliday has spread the ball around to a plethora of receivers with most of the big plays going to Gabe Marks, who has tallied 41 catches and four touchdowns so far. The Cougars are one spot worse than the Beavers when it comes to their running game ranking 122nd in rushing offense, as they only average 59 yards per game. The Cougars will need to run at some point to keep the Beavers off balance and to try and keep the Beavers offense on the sidelines.
Prediction: Both teams are going to air it out all game long. This should be the highest scoring game of the week. The game will come down to turnovers as Mannion will keep the ball out of his opponents hands, while Halliday will have two costly interceptions. It will be close game for much of three quarters, but Oregon St will pull away in the fourth quarter.
+Oregon State University 38 - +Washington State Cougars 31
Upset Special:
Northwestern vs Wisconsin
The Wildcats look to get back on track after a heartbreaking loss to Ohio St last week and travel to Madison to take on the Badgers. The Wildcats will be led by their two quarterback system of Trevor Siemian and Kain Coulter. Siemian is the passer and has thrown for almost 1000 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions while Coulter is the runner and has amassed 250 yards and three touchdowns. The Wildcat spread offensive attack runs through RB Treyvon Green who is averaging almost seven yards per carry and has five touchdowns himself. The Wildcat offense has been extremely balanced and has been difficult for teams to stop to this point. The Wildcats will look to attack the Badger defense much like the Buckeyes attacked the Badgers a few weeks ago. The Wildcat defense has been improved this year but will need to stop the heavy rushing attack of the Badgers if they expect to contend in this match up.
The Badgers are coming off a bye week after losing the Buckeyes the week before. The Badgers played well but had trouble running the ball against the Buckeyes which is the Badgers strong suit. The Badgers are led by QB Joel Stave who has done a great job keeping his team in games and managing the game. Stave has thrown for over 1000 yards, eight touchdowns and four interceptions this year. Stave isn't asked to light it up through the air, instead the Badgers rely heavily on RB's Melvin Gordon and Josh White. The pair have rushed 137 times for 1171 yards and 11 touchdowns. Expect a heavy dose of both Gordon and White Saturday afternoon. It will be interesting to see what the Badger's defense practiced during the bye week to stop the Wildcat offense. This should be a thriller that comes down to who has the ball last.
Prediction: Both teams will look to impose their will early with the Badgers leaning on the run and the Wildcats doing a little bit of both. Both Gordon and White will rush for over 100 yards and the Badgers will look to keep the Wildcat offense off the field and milk as much clock as they can. The Wildcats will use their up tempo offense to get back in the game and try and tire out the Badger defense. A costly fumble by Coulter will allow the Badgers to run out the clock and have the Wildcats drop their second straight game.
+Wisconsin Badgers 28 - +Northwestern Athletics 24
Last Week: 5-0
2013 Season: 20-10
Friday, October 4, 2013
College Football Week 6 Picks
A nice 4-1 performance last week to keep the season win column moving up. Now to this week's picks.
Maryland vs Florida St
After beating West Virginia for the first since 2004, the Maryland Terrapins look to get another big win and beat the Florida State Seminoles for the first time since 2006. The Terps have been rejuvenated by the stellar play of QB C.J. Brown. Brown has completed 67% of his passes and has thrown for seven touchdowns and only one interception. He has also ran 45 times for 283 yards and six touchdowns. WR Stefon Diggs has added an explosive element to the Terrapin offense averaging 22.2 yards per catch to go along with three touchdowns. The Terps have spread the ball around well through the first four games, which has led to a very balanced approach on offense. The biggest improvement for the Terps has been their defense. The Terps gave up 28 points per game last season including three games in which their opponent scored more than 40 points. So far this season, the Terps rank sixth in total defense and have only allowed 10 points per game. The defense will need to continue to play as well as it has if the Terps expect to beat an explosive offensive team like the Seminoles.
The Seminoles are 4-0 for the first time since 2005 after beating Boston College last week in a game that was closer than many expected it to be. QB Jameis Winston threw for 330 yards, four touchdowns and one interception against the Eagles and will look to put on a similar show at home against the Terps. Winston is an early Heisman candidate, racking up 1159 total yards, 14 touchdowns and one turnover. The Seminoles also have a plethora of talent on the offensive side of the ball including RB Devonta Freeman and the touchdown machine that is Rashad Greene. 26% of Green's catches have been for touchdowns as he and Winston have developed a chemistry early on this season. Freeman hasn't been a slouch either, averaging almost nine yards per carry with his speed and versatility. Both teams should put up points early and often.
Prediction: Florida St will come out early with a touchdown drive on a Winston pass to Greene to go up 7-0 early. Maryland will strike back with a touchdown pass to Diggs to even the score. After forcing a Seminole punt, the Terps score again on a Diggs end around to go up 14-7 nearing the end of the first quarter. The Terps catch a break and force a fumble on a sack on Winston and recover deep in Seminole territory. The Seminole defense holds and only gives up a field goal, increasing the Terp lead to 10. Winston scores on the Seminoles ensuing drive to cut the lead down to three with five minutes to go in the half. After forcing a punt the Seminole's get the ball back with a few minutes left. After a couple short dink and dunks, Winston goes for the home run and connects with Kenny Shaw for the score to put the Seminoles up at the half 21-17. After both steams stumble to start the second half, Maryland takes the lead again on a C.J. Brown touchdown run to go up 24-21 midway through the third. Winston drives the Seminoles down field but they have to settle for a field goal to tie the game up. Brown leads his team downfield on a 12 play drive but can't punch it in the end zone and the Terps have to settle for a field goal. Down three with a little over seven minutes to play, Winston makes some plays with his feet to drive his team to midfield with four minutes left. After a couple of short yardage gains, Winston completes a slant to Greene to put his team in field goal range with two minutes to play. Making sure the Seminoles get last possession, Winston calls his own number two plays in a row to set up another short third down at the Terrapin 15 yard line with a minute left. After a timeout, the Seminoles surprise the Terps with a draw to Freeman and he scampers in for a touchdown with 50 seconds remaining. Brown tries to lead his team down the field for the game winning drive but runs out of time as he is tackled in bounds trying to get the first down before the hail mary and Florida St hangs on.
+Florida State Seminoles 31 - +Maryland Terrapins 27
Michigan St vs Iowa
The Spartans travel to Iowa City to take on the Hawkeyes, who after a first game disappointment, are looking to improve to 5-1. The Spartans are coming off a buy week after losing to Notre Dame in South Bend 17-13 and are looking to get back on track against the Hawkeyes. After splitting snaps through the first three games of the season, the Spartans have turned to Connor Cook to take over the reigns at QB. Cook will look to improve upon his last performance in which he completed 16 of 32 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame. The Spartans will also look to get their running back tandem of Jeremy Langford and Nick Hill back on track. The Spartans, who average 187 rushing yards per game, rushed for only 115 yards against the Irish with the longest rush accounting for 11 yards. Michigan St will need to get the running game going against a very tough Iowa defense, who only give up 79 rushing yards per game in order to take some pressure off of Cook. The Spartans can also help Cook out by using their own stout defense to create turnovers and flip field position. The Spartans rank first in total defense, which can help take some pressure off of Cook if they can't get their running game going throughout the game.
The Hawkeyes come into their game against the Spartans on a roll of their own. The Hawkeyes have won four games in a row, including last week against a previously undefeated Minnesota team in Minneapolis. QB Jake Rudock was efficient throwing for 218 yards with a touchdown and an interception to go along with a strong running performance from RB Mark Weisman. Weisman is averaging 5.2 yards per carry so far this season and will look to add to that average against a very physical and tough front seven of the Spartans.The Hawkeyes also sport an impressive defense of their own, ranking seventh in the country in total defense and only give up 15 points per game. Look for the Hawkeyes to try and run the ball against the Spartans early and often in an attempt to prevent their young quarterback from making any mistakes.
Prediction: This will be a physical and hard hitting game from beginning to end. Both teams will struggle in the beginning against each others tough defense's. Michigan St will strike first on a touchdown run from Jeremy Langford at the beginning of the second quarter. On the ensuing drive, Rudock will throw a costly interception that will lead to a Michigan State field goal, putting the Spartans up 10. The next drive for both teams will result in a punt and Iowa will get the ball back with only a few minutes left in the half. After a couple short completions from Rudock, Weisman will go up the middle for a big gain leading to a field goal to end the half. The physicality will spill over into the second half with each team trying to ground and pound their opponent to submission. Iowa kicks another field halfway through the third to make it a 10-6 ball game. After forcing a punt, Rudock throws a touchdown pass to Kevonte Martin-Manley to put the Hawkeyes up 13-10. Michigan St drives down the field on a long and methodical drive that eats up almost 8 minutes of clock. A short touchdown run by Langford puts the Spartans back up 17-13 with nine minutes left in the 4th quarter. After a couple of three and outs, the Spartans work a short field into a field goal going up seven with only four minutes to play. Forcing the Hawkeyes to throw, the Spartans pick Rudock off again at mid field to put the game away.
+Michigan State Athletics 20 - +University of Iowa 13
Ohio St vs Northwestern
The Buckeyes will face another tough Big 10 opponent this week when they travel to Evanston to take on the 4-0 Northwestern Wildcats. The Buckeyes are coming off a nice win over Wisconsin, in which Braxton Miller came back from his ankle injury to throw for 198 yards and four touchdowns in the 31-24 victory. He also ran 22 times for 83 yards to go along with Carlos Hyde's 17 rushes for 85 yard performance. The Buckeyes were proficient against the Badgers all night, especially against the run, holding the Badgers, one of the nations leading rushing teams, to 104 rushing yards. The Buckeyes also won the turnover battle last Saturday, which has been a habit for them recently. The Buckeyes will look to exploit a much softer defense than the Badgers this week, especially on the ground with Miller and Hyde. The Buckeyes defense will have to adjust however, as this week it will face a spread offense attack with more weapons compared to the power running attack of the Badgers. The Buckeyes will need to adjust to the Wildcat speed and put pressure on the two quarterbacks in order to win this game.
The Wildcats will host the Buckeyes in what quite possibly might be the biggest game in Northwestern football history. The Wildcats are 4-0 and are looking to beat a top 5 team for the first time since 1959. The Wildcats offense has been explosive so far this season, averaging 41 points per game along with 484 yards of total offense. QB's Trevor Siemian and Kain Coulter split snaps with Siemian being the threat through the air and Coulter the threat on the ground. Both have been efficient with Siemian almost 70 yards and 4 touchdowns while Coulter has averaged six yards per carry and has three touchdowns. RB Treyvon Green is another integral part of the Northwestern attack, rushing for 400 yards and five touchdowns so far this season. Green will need to run the ball effectively on Saturday if the Wildcats are to have any chance at beating the Buckeyes. The defense will also need to play a monster game as well and crate some turnovers.
Prediction: Both teams will score on their first two possessions with Ohio State getting two touchdowns and Northwestern a touchdown and a field goal. Ohio State will amass a 75 yard touchdown drive to go up 21-10 to end the first quarter. Siemian throws an interception on his next possession and the Buckeyes cap it off with another touchdown to go up 28-10. The Wildcats stay true to form and keep splitting QB reps which leads to a 44 yard touchdown run from Coulter. After Ohio State's only punt of the first half, Northwestern gets a nice return which leads to a field goal to end the half 28-20. Siemian throws a touchdown pass to open the third quarter and Coach Pat Fitzgerald rolls the dice and goes for two and gets it. Miller answers with his only 65 yard touchdown strike to Philly Brown. Green gashes the Buckeye defense on the next drive, but a costly drop causes the Wildcats to kick a field goal. Miller slows the pace down and leads a long methodical touchdown drive to go up 11 points with only six minutes left. Siemian comes out firing on his next possession and gets the Wildcats in the red zone where Green finishes it off on an option from Coulter. The Wildcats go for two again but this time miss. With only two and a half minutes to go an one time out, the Wildcats kick the onside kick, but the Buckeyes recover. The Wildcats need to force a three and out to try for the game winning touchdown, but Hyde gets a first down on a second and short run to finish off the Wildcats.
+Ohio State Buckeyes 41 - +Northwestern Athletics 36
Washington vs Stanford
Washington will look to upset Stanford for a second year in a row as the Huskies travel to Palo Alto to take on the Cardinal. The Huskies are coming off an impressive performance against the Arizona Wildcats, in which the Huskies imposed their punishing running game and held the Wildcats to 13 points. QB Keith Price threw for 165 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, while RB Bishop Sankey rushed for a school record 40 times for 161 yards and a touchdown. The most impressive improvement for the the Huskies has been their defense. The Husky defense is much more physical than in years past and has allowed only 11 points per game. The Huskies will need to be physical as Stanford is one of the most physical teams in the country.
The Cardinal will look to avenge last years loss to the Huskies and improve to 5-0 and stay in contention for a national championship. The Cardinal annihilated the Washington St Cougars 55-17 last week in Pullman. QB Kevin Hogan threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns while the rushing attack mounted 238 rushing yards on 40 attempts. The Cardinal will no doubt try and run against the Huskies to impose its will on them as well as keep the Husky offense off the field. The Cardinal defense hasn't been as good as it has been in the past, but it is still physical and capable of stopping the opponents run. The Cardinal are only giving up 105 rushing yards a game and will need to be just as tough against a tough runner like Sankey.
Prediction: The Cardinal will score on its first possession eating almost seven minutes of clock in the process on a short touchdown pass from Hogan. After stuffing the Husky offense, the Cardinal march down the field again and score another touchdown on a Tyler Gaffney touchdown run. After both teams punt, the Huskies finally get on the board with a field goal halfway through the second quarter. On the ensuing Stanford drive, the Cardinal answer back with a field goal of their own to go back up by 14. The Huskies are led down the field by Price and the drive is capped off with a touchdown run by Sankey with only a few seconds left in the half. The Huskies start the second half giving it to Sankey. Sankey finds some holes in the Cardinal defense to lead a quick drive down the field but after a miscommunication between Price and a receiver, the Huskies are forced to kick a field goal. The Cardinal roll off a 12 play drive capped off by a Hogan touchdown run on 4 and goal from the one yard line to go up 24-13 with two minutes left in the third. Price forces a throw on the next drive and is intercepted leading to a Cardinal field goal. The Huskies don't abandon the run just yet which pays dividends as the Sankey picks up chunks of yardage and leads to a touchdown run by price in only three minutes. After a Cardinal punt, the Huskies drive down the field again on a tired Cardinal defense. With five minutes left in the game, the Huskies go for it on fourth down from the Cardinal 27 yard line but fail to convert. The Huskies force a punt, but not after giving up a first down and using all three timeouts. With only two minutes to go, the Huskies need to drive 77 yards to get the game tying touchdown. Price can't get out of the pocket and is forced to dink and dunk at the start of the drive, eating up precious seconds off the clock. After a nice 20 yard reception to Kevin Smith, the Huskies are only 25 yards away from the end zone, but only have 20 seconds to get the score. After two incompletions, Price is forced to throw for the end zone with only eight seconds left on the clock and it falls incomplete. The game comes down to one play and Price connects with Kasen Williams, but he is tackled before he can keep the play alive with a lateral and Stanford survives the upset.
+Stanford University 27 - +Washington Huskies Athletics 20
Upset Special:
Ole Miss vs Auburn
Bo Wallace and the Rebels look to bounce back after losing to Alabama last week as they take on the Auburn Tigers. Wallace has led an impressive spread offensive attack that has put up over 30 points three times this season and will look to do it again on Saturday. Wallace has accounted for 932 total yards and seven touchdowns so far this season. RB Jeff Scott brings explosive speed to the Rebel offensive, averaging over eight yards per carry. WR's Donte Moncrief and Laquan Treadwell have stretched opponents defenses early this season, which has allowed TE Evan Engram to attack the defense underneath. Ole Miss has had trouble stopping opponents' offenses so far this season and will need to do a better job if it expects to beat Auburn.
Auburn is off to an impressive 3-1 start under first year Head Coach Gus Malzahn. The Tigers are looking to rebound after losing to LSU last week in Baton Rouge. Junior QB Nick Marshall has been up and down so far this season and will need to play better if the Tigers expect to bounce back. Marshall has accounted for 957 yards and four touchdowns but has thrown four interceptions and has been sacked five times. The Tigers will look to continue their up tempo offensive style, specifically leaning on their ground game with their three headed running back attack. The Tigers average 232 yards per game on the ground and have scored eight rushing touchdowns through four games with two of those games being against SEC competition. Expect the Tigers to run the ball early and often to try and keep the Rebel offense off the field.
Prediction: The Tigers crowd will be roaring to start the game. The Tigers will get the ball first and immediately try and run on the Rebel defense. After a couple of first downs, the Tigers run a play action and get Marshall some confidence with a nice completion Sammie Coates to get into Rebel territory. On the ensuing play, Tre Mason scores on a 45 yard run to put the Tigers up 7-0. A quick three and out by the Rebels and the Tigers set up a nice return to get good field position. Marshall gets his first touchdown run of the year from 20 yards out to put the Tigers up 14-0 halfway through the first. After a great kick return by Jeff Scott, Wallace hits Donte Moncrief for a 35 touchdown pass to get within seven. Both teams punt on their next two possessions and only amount two first downs during those four drives. With six minutes to go in the first half, Marshall moves the ball down field with a couple of short passes leading to some nice yards after the catch. Three plays later, Corey Grant runs by the Rebel defense for the score putting the Tigers back up 14. The score stays that way until the third quarter when the Rebels get a field goal on their opening drive. The Rebels get the ball right back after Robert Nkemdiche sacks Marshall and forces a fumble. Two plays later, the Rebels score on a screen pass to Scott. The score stays 21-17 at the end of the third quarter. The Rebels are forced to punt on their first possession of the fourth quarter and the Tigers send the house resulting in a block and the Tigers recover at the goal line. Marshall sneaks it in from a yard out to put the Tigers up 28-17. The Rebels know time is not on their side and are forced to start airing the ball out. After a nice drive to get within field goal range, the Rebels kick the field goal to get within one possession at 28-20. With eight minutes to go, the Tigers get the ball back and look to break the Rebels back. With the Rebels selling out to stop the run, Marshall throws a bomb to Sammie Coates who beats his man in one on one coverage to put the Tigers up 15 with five minutes to go. Wallace tries to get his team back in it with a late drive but it is to little to late as the Tigers pick him off in the end zone and run the clock out on the ensuing possession.
+Auburn Athletics 35 - +Ole Miss 20
Week 5 Picks: 4-1
2013 Season: 15-10
Maryland vs Florida St
After beating West Virginia for the first since 2004, the Maryland Terrapins look to get another big win and beat the Florida State Seminoles for the first time since 2006. The Terps have been rejuvenated by the stellar play of QB C.J. Brown. Brown has completed 67% of his passes and has thrown for seven touchdowns and only one interception. He has also ran 45 times for 283 yards and six touchdowns. WR Stefon Diggs has added an explosive element to the Terrapin offense averaging 22.2 yards per catch to go along with three touchdowns. The Terps have spread the ball around well through the first four games, which has led to a very balanced approach on offense. The biggest improvement for the Terps has been their defense. The Terps gave up 28 points per game last season including three games in which their opponent scored more than 40 points. So far this season, the Terps rank sixth in total defense and have only allowed 10 points per game. The defense will need to continue to play as well as it has if the Terps expect to beat an explosive offensive team like the Seminoles.
The Seminoles are 4-0 for the first time since 2005 after beating Boston College last week in a game that was closer than many expected it to be. QB Jameis Winston threw for 330 yards, four touchdowns and one interception against the Eagles and will look to put on a similar show at home against the Terps. Winston is an early Heisman candidate, racking up 1159 total yards, 14 touchdowns and one turnover. The Seminoles also have a plethora of talent on the offensive side of the ball including RB Devonta Freeman and the touchdown machine that is Rashad Greene. 26% of Green's catches have been for touchdowns as he and Winston have developed a chemistry early on this season. Freeman hasn't been a slouch either, averaging almost nine yards per carry with his speed and versatility. Both teams should put up points early and often.
Prediction: Florida St will come out early with a touchdown drive on a Winston pass to Greene to go up 7-0 early. Maryland will strike back with a touchdown pass to Diggs to even the score. After forcing a Seminole punt, the Terps score again on a Diggs end around to go up 14-7 nearing the end of the first quarter. The Terps catch a break and force a fumble on a sack on Winston and recover deep in Seminole territory. The Seminole defense holds and only gives up a field goal, increasing the Terp lead to 10. Winston scores on the Seminoles ensuing drive to cut the lead down to three with five minutes to go in the half. After forcing a punt the Seminole's get the ball back with a few minutes left. After a couple short dink and dunks, Winston goes for the home run and connects with Kenny Shaw for the score to put the Seminoles up at the half 21-17. After both steams stumble to start the second half, Maryland takes the lead again on a C.J. Brown touchdown run to go up 24-21 midway through the third. Winston drives the Seminoles down field but they have to settle for a field goal to tie the game up. Brown leads his team downfield on a 12 play drive but can't punch it in the end zone and the Terps have to settle for a field goal. Down three with a little over seven minutes to play, Winston makes some plays with his feet to drive his team to midfield with four minutes left. After a couple of short yardage gains, Winston completes a slant to Greene to put his team in field goal range with two minutes to play. Making sure the Seminoles get last possession, Winston calls his own number two plays in a row to set up another short third down at the Terrapin 15 yard line with a minute left. After a timeout, the Seminoles surprise the Terps with a draw to Freeman and he scampers in for a touchdown with 50 seconds remaining. Brown tries to lead his team down the field for the game winning drive but runs out of time as he is tackled in bounds trying to get the first down before the hail mary and Florida St hangs on.
+Florida State Seminoles 31 - +Maryland Terrapins 27
Michigan St vs Iowa
The Spartans travel to Iowa City to take on the Hawkeyes, who after a first game disappointment, are looking to improve to 5-1. The Spartans are coming off a buy week after losing to Notre Dame in South Bend 17-13 and are looking to get back on track against the Hawkeyes. After splitting snaps through the first three games of the season, the Spartans have turned to Connor Cook to take over the reigns at QB. Cook will look to improve upon his last performance in which he completed 16 of 32 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown against Notre Dame. The Spartans will also look to get their running back tandem of Jeremy Langford and Nick Hill back on track. The Spartans, who average 187 rushing yards per game, rushed for only 115 yards against the Irish with the longest rush accounting for 11 yards. Michigan St will need to get the running game going against a very tough Iowa defense, who only give up 79 rushing yards per game in order to take some pressure off of Cook. The Spartans can also help Cook out by using their own stout defense to create turnovers and flip field position. The Spartans rank first in total defense, which can help take some pressure off of Cook if they can't get their running game going throughout the game.
The Hawkeyes come into their game against the Spartans on a roll of their own. The Hawkeyes have won four games in a row, including last week against a previously undefeated Minnesota team in Minneapolis. QB Jake Rudock was efficient throwing for 218 yards with a touchdown and an interception to go along with a strong running performance from RB Mark Weisman. Weisman is averaging 5.2 yards per carry so far this season and will look to add to that average against a very physical and tough front seven of the Spartans.The Hawkeyes also sport an impressive defense of their own, ranking seventh in the country in total defense and only give up 15 points per game. Look for the Hawkeyes to try and run the ball against the Spartans early and often in an attempt to prevent their young quarterback from making any mistakes.
Prediction: This will be a physical and hard hitting game from beginning to end. Both teams will struggle in the beginning against each others tough defense's. Michigan St will strike first on a touchdown run from Jeremy Langford at the beginning of the second quarter. On the ensuing drive, Rudock will throw a costly interception that will lead to a Michigan State field goal, putting the Spartans up 10. The next drive for both teams will result in a punt and Iowa will get the ball back with only a few minutes left in the half. After a couple short completions from Rudock, Weisman will go up the middle for a big gain leading to a field goal to end the half. The physicality will spill over into the second half with each team trying to ground and pound their opponent to submission. Iowa kicks another field halfway through the third to make it a 10-6 ball game. After forcing a punt, Rudock throws a touchdown pass to Kevonte Martin-Manley to put the Hawkeyes up 13-10. Michigan St drives down the field on a long and methodical drive that eats up almost 8 minutes of clock. A short touchdown run by Langford puts the Spartans back up 17-13 with nine minutes left in the 4th quarter. After a couple of three and outs, the Spartans work a short field into a field goal going up seven with only four minutes to play. Forcing the Hawkeyes to throw, the Spartans pick Rudock off again at mid field to put the game away.
+Michigan State Athletics 20 - +University of Iowa 13
Ohio St vs Northwestern
The Buckeyes will face another tough Big 10 opponent this week when they travel to Evanston to take on the 4-0 Northwestern Wildcats. The Buckeyes are coming off a nice win over Wisconsin, in which Braxton Miller came back from his ankle injury to throw for 198 yards and four touchdowns in the 31-24 victory. He also ran 22 times for 83 yards to go along with Carlos Hyde's 17 rushes for 85 yard performance. The Buckeyes were proficient against the Badgers all night, especially against the run, holding the Badgers, one of the nations leading rushing teams, to 104 rushing yards. The Buckeyes also won the turnover battle last Saturday, which has been a habit for them recently. The Buckeyes will look to exploit a much softer defense than the Badgers this week, especially on the ground with Miller and Hyde. The Buckeyes defense will have to adjust however, as this week it will face a spread offense attack with more weapons compared to the power running attack of the Badgers. The Buckeyes will need to adjust to the Wildcat speed and put pressure on the two quarterbacks in order to win this game.
The Wildcats will host the Buckeyes in what quite possibly might be the biggest game in Northwestern football history. The Wildcats are 4-0 and are looking to beat a top 5 team for the first time since 1959. The Wildcats offense has been explosive so far this season, averaging 41 points per game along with 484 yards of total offense. QB's Trevor Siemian and Kain Coulter split snaps with Siemian being the threat through the air and Coulter the threat on the ground. Both have been efficient with Siemian almost 70 yards and 4 touchdowns while Coulter has averaged six yards per carry and has three touchdowns. RB Treyvon Green is another integral part of the Northwestern attack, rushing for 400 yards and five touchdowns so far this season. Green will need to run the ball effectively on Saturday if the Wildcats are to have any chance at beating the Buckeyes. The defense will also need to play a monster game as well and crate some turnovers.
Prediction: Both teams will score on their first two possessions with Ohio State getting two touchdowns and Northwestern a touchdown and a field goal. Ohio State will amass a 75 yard touchdown drive to go up 21-10 to end the first quarter. Siemian throws an interception on his next possession and the Buckeyes cap it off with another touchdown to go up 28-10. The Wildcats stay true to form and keep splitting QB reps which leads to a 44 yard touchdown run from Coulter. After Ohio State's only punt of the first half, Northwestern gets a nice return which leads to a field goal to end the half 28-20. Siemian throws a touchdown pass to open the third quarter and Coach Pat Fitzgerald rolls the dice and goes for two and gets it. Miller answers with his only 65 yard touchdown strike to Philly Brown. Green gashes the Buckeye defense on the next drive, but a costly drop causes the Wildcats to kick a field goal. Miller slows the pace down and leads a long methodical touchdown drive to go up 11 points with only six minutes left. Siemian comes out firing on his next possession and gets the Wildcats in the red zone where Green finishes it off on an option from Coulter. The Wildcats go for two again but this time miss. With only two and a half minutes to go an one time out, the Wildcats kick the onside kick, but the Buckeyes recover. The Wildcats need to force a three and out to try for the game winning touchdown, but Hyde gets a first down on a second and short run to finish off the Wildcats.
+Ohio State Buckeyes 41 - +Northwestern Athletics 36
Washington vs Stanford
Washington will look to upset Stanford for a second year in a row as the Huskies travel to Palo Alto to take on the Cardinal. The Huskies are coming off an impressive performance against the Arizona Wildcats, in which the Huskies imposed their punishing running game and held the Wildcats to 13 points. QB Keith Price threw for 165 yards, two touchdowns and one interception, while RB Bishop Sankey rushed for a school record 40 times for 161 yards and a touchdown. The most impressive improvement for the the Huskies has been their defense. The Husky defense is much more physical than in years past and has allowed only 11 points per game. The Huskies will need to be physical as Stanford is one of the most physical teams in the country.
The Cardinal will look to avenge last years loss to the Huskies and improve to 5-0 and stay in contention for a national championship. The Cardinal annihilated the Washington St Cougars 55-17 last week in Pullman. QB Kevin Hogan threw for 286 yards and three touchdowns while the rushing attack mounted 238 rushing yards on 40 attempts. The Cardinal will no doubt try and run against the Huskies to impose its will on them as well as keep the Husky offense off the field. The Cardinal defense hasn't been as good as it has been in the past, but it is still physical and capable of stopping the opponents run. The Cardinal are only giving up 105 rushing yards a game and will need to be just as tough against a tough runner like Sankey.
Prediction: The Cardinal will score on its first possession eating almost seven minutes of clock in the process on a short touchdown pass from Hogan. After stuffing the Husky offense, the Cardinal march down the field again and score another touchdown on a Tyler Gaffney touchdown run. After both teams punt, the Huskies finally get on the board with a field goal halfway through the second quarter. On the ensuing Stanford drive, the Cardinal answer back with a field goal of their own to go back up by 14. The Huskies are led down the field by Price and the drive is capped off with a touchdown run by Sankey with only a few seconds left in the half. The Huskies start the second half giving it to Sankey. Sankey finds some holes in the Cardinal defense to lead a quick drive down the field but after a miscommunication between Price and a receiver, the Huskies are forced to kick a field goal. The Cardinal roll off a 12 play drive capped off by a Hogan touchdown run on 4 and goal from the one yard line to go up 24-13 with two minutes left in the third. Price forces a throw on the next drive and is intercepted leading to a Cardinal field goal. The Huskies don't abandon the run just yet which pays dividends as the Sankey picks up chunks of yardage and leads to a touchdown run by price in only three minutes. After a Cardinal punt, the Huskies drive down the field again on a tired Cardinal defense. With five minutes left in the game, the Huskies go for it on fourth down from the Cardinal 27 yard line but fail to convert. The Huskies force a punt, but not after giving up a first down and using all three timeouts. With only two minutes to go, the Huskies need to drive 77 yards to get the game tying touchdown. Price can't get out of the pocket and is forced to dink and dunk at the start of the drive, eating up precious seconds off the clock. After a nice 20 yard reception to Kevin Smith, the Huskies are only 25 yards away from the end zone, but only have 20 seconds to get the score. After two incompletions, Price is forced to throw for the end zone with only eight seconds left on the clock and it falls incomplete. The game comes down to one play and Price connects with Kasen Williams, but he is tackled before he can keep the play alive with a lateral and Stanford survives the upset.
+Stanford University 27 - +Washington Huskies Athletics 20
Upset Special:
Ole Miss vs Auburn
Bo Wallace and the Rebels look to bounce back after losing to Alabama last week as they take on the Auburn Tigers. Wallace has led an impressive spread offensive attack that has put up over 30 points three times this season and will look to do it again on Saturday. Wallace has accounted for 932 total yards and seven touchdowns so far this season. RB Jeff Scott brings explosive speed to the Rebel offensive, averaging over eight yards per carry. WR's Donte Moncrief and Laquan Treadwell have stretched opponents defenses early this season, which has allowed TE Evan Engram to attack the defense underneath. Ole Miss has had trouble stopping opponents' offenses so far this season and will need to do a better job if it expects to beat Auburn.
Auburn is off to an impressive 3-1 start under first year Head Coach Gus Malzahn. The Tigers are looking to rebound after losing to LSU last week in Baton Rouge. Junior QB Nick Marshall has been up and down so far this season and will need to play better if the Tigers expect to bounce back. Marshall has accounted for 957 yards and four touchdowns but has thrown four interceptions and has been sacked five times. The Tigers will look to continue their up tempo offensive style, specifically leaning on their ground game with their three headed running back attack. The Tigers average 232 yards per game on the ground and have scored eight rushing touchdowns through four games with two of those games being against SEC competition. Expect the Tigers to run the ball early and often to try and keep the Rebel offense off the field.
Prediction: The Tigers crowd will be roaring to start the game. The Tigers will get the ball first and immediately try and run on the Rebel defense. After a couple of first downs, the Tigers run a play action and get Marshall some confidence with a nice completion Sammie Coates to get into Rebel territory. On the ensuing play, Tre Mason scores on a 45 yard run to put the Tigers up 7-0. A quick three and out by the Rebels and the Tigers set up a nice return to get good field position. Marshall gets his first touchdown run of the year from 20 yards out to put the Tigers up 14-0 halfway through the first. After a great kick return by Jeff Scott, Wallace hits Donte Moncrief for a 35 touchdown pass to get within seven. Both teams punt on their next two possessions and only amount two first downs during those four drives. With six minutes to go in the first half, Marshall moves the ball down field with a couple of short passes leading to some nice yards after the catch. Three plays later, Corey Grant runs by the Rebel defense for the score putting the Tigers back up 14. The score stays that way until the third quarter when the Rebels get a field goal on their opening drive. The Rebels get the ball right back after Robert Nkemdiche sacks Marshall and forces a fumble. Two plays later, the Rebels score on a screen pass to Scott. The score stays 21-17 at the end of the third quarter. The Rebels are forced to punt on their first possession of the fourth quarter and the Tigers send the house resulting in a block and the Tigers recover at the goal line. Marshall sneaks it in from a yard out to put the Tigers up 28-17. The Rebels know time is not on their side and are forced to start airing the ball out. After a nice drive to get within field goal range, the Rebels kick the field goal to get within one possession at 28-20. With eight minutes to go, the Tigers get the ball back and look to break the Rebels back. With the Rebels selling out to stop the run, Marshall throws a bomb to Sammie Coates who beats his man in one on one coverage to put the Tigers up 15 with five minutes to go. Wallace tries to get his team back in it with a late drive but it is to little to late as the Tigers pick him off in the end zone and run the clock out on the ensuing possession.
+Auburn Athletics 35 - +Ole Miss 20
Week 5 Picks: 4-1
2013 Season: 15-10
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