GO MOUNTAINEERS, SATURDAY PREVIEW INCLUDING "THE BIG PILLOW FIGHT PART III"
I made a wager this evening on the West Virginia Mountaineers -6 1/2. They are playing at UConn, a shutout loser at Louisville, a game I won with last Saturday.
Tomorrow marks another weekend of unbeatens on the road against very formidable opposition. Here's my analysis of these matchups:
TCU -34 at UNLV
10 PM CBS College HD(613 on DirecTV)
I doubt 34 will be enough because I doubt the Rebels will score more than 3 points tomorrow night.
TCU 41 UNLV 3
Utah -7 at Air Force
7 PM CBS College HD
Air Force is capable of giving anyone a fight, they run the ball with the best of them, don't commit penalties & are very disciplined on defense. That said, in no way shape or form are the Falcons a match for Utah talent-wise. The one thing that could be a problem for the Utes is the "look ahead factor." They play undefeated TCU next Saturday in Salt Lake City for the Mountain West Conference crown & it might cause them to lose focus on Air Force & that could be a huge mistake.
Utah 34 Air Force 24
Michigan State at Iowa -6 1/2
2:30 PM ESPN
This game is huge, if Sparty wins, they essentially wrap up the BIG TEN conference & most likely an undefeated regular season. Iowa, with a win, stays in the hunt for the conference title as they have their revenge game with Northwestern the 13th & Ohio State the 20th. If Iowa wins this game & Wisconsin wins out, the Badgers win the BIG TEN. So as you can see there's a lot at stake in Iowa City tomorrow. Michigan State has had a Cinderella season so far, the fake field goal touchdown pass in O.T. vs. Notre Dame & the 3-touchdown 4th quarter against Northwestern last week. Iowa confounds me, I think they have the most talented team in the conference but sometimes they play like knuckleheads or Kirk Ferentz coaches like one. I'm going with the Hawkeyes one more time.
Iowa 27 Michigan State 24
Missouri at Nebraska -7 1/2
2:30 PM ABC
Can the Tigers get up for one more huge opponent after the past two weeks? I think they're capable of it, but will they? Nebraska rolled Oklahoma State last week, 51-41. But giving up 41-points, 495-yards of total offense, 212 of it on the ground doesn't scare anybody. In fact, since the departure of Ndamakong Suh, Nebraska hasn't shown to be very tough vs. the run at all. Texas, Kansas State, Washington & even Western Kentucky ran for 175 or more yards against Nebraska. The Huskers are 4-10 against the spread at home since Pelini arrived. The Huskers have been very tough against the pass which is Mizzou's forte. Can the Tigers run the ball as well as they did last Saturday against OU? If they can, they win. If they can shut down Roy Helu Jr. & Taylor Martinez, like last week making Nebraska one dimensional, they can squeak out a win. Nebraska has a real glaring stat, 24-fumbles with only 9-lost, pretty remarkable but very,very lucky to recover way more than 50%. Special teams are just about a push, 2 superior kickers & both have decent return games. I'm sticking with the Tigers till they lose.
Mizzou 27 Nebraska 20
Auburn -7 at Ole Miss
5:00 PM ESPN2
The Rebels' coach, Houston Nutt, has pulled a number of major upsets since he joined the SEC. Tomorrow evening his troops could do it again. I just don't see it. Cam Newton runs toward the November 26th showdown with Alabama & a possible Heisman Trophy.
Auburn 31 Ole Miss 20
Oregon -7 at USC
7PM ABC
The Ducks should wear out the Trojan defense which lacks much depth. The Ducks should win this game by simply scoring every time they have the ball. The Ducks should retain their #1 ranking in both of the human polls. But because this is USC's only chance in the 2010 spotlight, the Ducks should look out, they could lose this game. USC has no bowl season with their sanctions, this should be their only nationally televised game this year & when was the last time that happened? The Trojans are very talented on offense & could ruin Oregon's dream season. USC is 5-2 with both losses occurring on last play field goals. They could easily be 7-0, so Oregon had better pay attention. The Ducks have played the easier portion of their schedule, with USC, Cal, Arizona & Oregon State remaining, it gets tougher starting tomorrow.
Oregon 45 USC 38
When was the last time "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party," as it's known down in Jacksonville, didn't have a ranked participant? Well the last time either Florida or Georgia wasn't ranked when this game rolled around was way, way back in 1979. Tomorrow afternoon, the 4-3 Gators face the 4-4 Bulldogs in a game that has truly lost it's luster.
If Mizzou falls out of the BCS chase, you can honestly say "wait till next year." The Tigers return everybody on offense except center Tim Barnes, 4-deep at WR & RB too. They return 5 of the front 7 on defense.The new conference schedule where you play everybody starts next season & Mizzou gets OU, Ok St, TX, Tech & ISU in Columbia next season. Road slate of Kansas State, A&M, Baylor plus KU at Arrowhead. They could be great.
And finally, the "Big Pillow Fight Part III" goes Saturday night in Las Cruces, New Mexico between the Aggies & the San Jose State Spartans. It's 1-6 vs 1-7 & that's not all. Of the 120 FBS schools, New Mexico State ranks 112th in passing, 88th in rushing, 119th in points scored & 113th in points allowed. The Spartans are equally inept ranking 87th in passing, 117th in rushing, 120th in scoring & 104th in points allowed. So what we have here is the two worst offensive teams, in terms of scoring, in the entire nation. Bet this is a hot ticket huh?
I'll have my Saturday plays in the morning, but I'll tell you right now, unless the Navy line blows up, I'm taking the Midshipmen again tomorrow vs Duke. Since Nebraska has shown they have a real tough time covering at home, I'm going to play the Tigers +7 1/2, no less. Be here before 11 AM & see which way I'm going.
Tomorrow marks another weekend of unbeatens on the road against very formidable opposition. Here's my analysis of these matchups:
TCU -34 at UNLV
10 PM CBS College HD(613 on DirecTV)
I doubt 34 will be enough because I doubt the Rebels will score more than 3 points tomorrow night.
TCU 41 UNLV 3
Utah -7 at Air Force
7 PM CBS College HD
Air Force is capable of giving anyone a fight, they run the ball with the best of them, don't commit penalties & are very disciplined on defense. That said, in no way shape or form are the Falcons a match for Utah talent-wise. The one thing that could be a problem for the Utes is the "look ahead factor." They play undefeated TCU next Saturday in Salt Lake City for the Mountain West Conference crown & it might cause them to lose focus on Air Force & that could be a huge mistake.
Utah 34 Air Force 24
Michigan State at Iowa -6 1/2
2:30 PM ESPN
This game is huge, if Sparty wins, they essentially wrap up the BIG TEN conference & most likely an undefeated regular season. Iowa, with a win, stays in the hunt for the conference title as they have their revenge game with Northwestern the 13th & Ohio State the 20th. If Iowa wins this game & Wisconsin wins out, the Badgers win the BIG TEN. So as you can see there's a lot at stake in Iowa City tomorrow. Michigan State has had a Cinderella season so far, the fake field goal touchdown pass in O.T. vs. Notre Dame & the 3-touchdown 4th quarter against Northwestern last week. Iowa confounds me, I think they have the most talented team in the conference but sometimes they play like knuckleheads or Kirk Ferentz coaches like one. I'm going with the Hawkeyes one more time.
Iowa 27 Michigan State 24
Missouri at Nebraska -7 1/2
2:30 PM ABC
Can the Tigers get up for one more huge opponent after the past two weeks? I think they're capable of it, but will they? Nebraska rolled Oklahoma State last week, 51-41. But giving up 41-points, 495-yards of total offense, 212 of it on the ground doesn't scare anybody. In fact, since the departure of Ndamakong Suh, Nebraska hasn't shown to be very tough vs. the run at all. Texas, Kansas State, Washington & even Western Kentucky ran for 175 or more yards against Nebraska. The Huskers are 4-10 against the spread at home since Pelini arrived. The Huskers have been very tough against the pass which is Mizzou's forte. Can the Tigers run the ball as well as they did last Saturday against OU? If they can, they win. If they can shut down Roy Helu Jr. & Taylor Martinez, like last week making Nebraska one dimensional, they can squeak out a win. Nebraska has a real glaring stat, 24-fumbles with only 9-lost, pretty remarkable but very,very lucky to recover way more than 50%. Special teams are just about a push, 2 superior kickers & both have decent return games. I'm sticking with the Tigers till they lose.
Mizzou 27 Nebraska 20
Auburn -7 at Ole Miss
5:00 PM ESPN2
The Rebels' coach, Houston Nutt, has pulled a number of major upsets since he joined the SEC. Tomorrow evening his troops could do it again. I just don't see it. Cam Newton runs toward the November 26th showdown with Alabama & a possible Heisman Trophy.
Auburn 31 Ole Miss 20
Oregon -7 at USC
7PM ABC
The Ducks should wear out the Trojan defense which lacks much depth. The Ducks should win this game by simply scoring every time they have the ball. The Ducks should retain their #1 ranking in both of the human polls. But because this is USC's only chance in the 2010 spotlight, the Ducks should look out, they could lose this game. USC has no bowl season with their sanctions, this should be their only nationally televised game this year & when was the last time that happened? The Trojans are very talented on offense & could ruin Oregon's dream season. USC is 5-2 with both losses occurring on last play field goals. They could easily be 7-0, so Oregon had better pay attention. The Ducks have played the easier portion of their schedule, with USC, Cal, Arizona & Oregon State remaining, it gets tougher starting tomorrow.
Oregon 45 USC 38
When was the last time "The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party," as it's known down in Jacksonville, didn't have a ranked participant? Well the last time either Florida or Georgia wasn't ranked when this game rolled around was way, way back in 1979. Tomorrow afternoon, the 4-3 Gators face the 4-4 Bulldogs in a game that has truly lost it's luster.
If Mizzou falls out of the BCS chase, you can honestly say "wait till next year." The Tigers return everybody on offense except center Tim Barnes, 4-deep at WR & RB too. They return 5 of the front 7 on defense.The new conference schedule where you play everybody starts next season & Mizzou gets OU, Ok St, TX, Tech & ISU in Columbia next season. Road slate of Kansas State, A&M, Baylor plus KU at Arrowhead. They could be great.
And finally, the "Big Pillow Fight Part III" goes Saturday night in Las Cruces, New Mexico between the Aggies & the San Jose State Spartans. It's 1-6 vs 1-7 & that's not all. Of the 120 FBS schools, New Mexico State ranks 112th in passing, 88th in rushing, 119th in points scored & 113th in points allowed. The Spartans are equally inept ranking 87th in passing, 117th in rushing, 120th in scoring & 104th in points allowed. So what we have here is the two worst offensive teams, in terms of scoring, in the entire nation. Bet this is a hot ticket huh?
I'll have my Saturday plays in the morning, but I'll tell you right now, unless the Navy line blows up, I'm taking the Midshipmen again tomorrow vs Duke. Since Nebraska has shown they have a real tough time covering at home, I'm going to play the Tigers +7 1/2, no less. Be here before 11 AM & see which way I'm going.
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