As usual, I always try to work in a theme from week to week before trying to pick the games. Last week, I listed five coaches who I believed were on the hot seat. The only one that I will remove (as bad as I hate to do this), is Terry Bowden, the head coach at Akron. His team took Michigan to the wire, and if the refs that were calling the game, had a backbone among them, they would have flagged Michigan for defensive holding on the last play. Oh well. So it goes. As far as the other four coaches on my list, they are staying put, especially Mack Brown. I'm replacing one Pillsbury dough boy (Terry Bowden), with another Pillsbury dough boy, Charlie Weis of Kansas. I've come to the conclusion that Weis isn't head cheese material, no matter where he coaches.
Now back to the Michigan/Akron game and the officials. Last week was not a good week for the Zebras in general. They blew that holding call (what should have been a holding call), on the last play of the Michigan/Akron game. How about the Wisconsin/Arizona State game, in the last few seconds. The refs allowed the ASU players to delay the game by standing over the ball, which basically allowed the clock to run out. Heck the Wisconsin quarterback's knee never touched the ground; ASU should have been awarded the football by a fumble recovery. In the Texas A&M/Alabama game, the refs threw a flag on a Tide defender that was going for the ball, stating that the Tide defender was targeting the A&M receiver's head. Thank goodness for instant replay because a flag should never have been thrown on that play. Pretty soon, the players are going to replace their shoulder pads with maxi pads. This game is starting to look like powder puff football instead of tackle football. For all of the good teams that we have in the SEC, there are only two officiating crews that do a respectable job from week to week. They are led by Hubert Owens' and Matt Austin's crew. I cringe whenever I see Tom Ritter and his crew calling a game in which Alabama is playing in. There are always questionable calls with that bunch. Oh well, enough about the officials. I'm sure all of you can name a few other calls that I have omitted. Feel free to do so.
As for last week, how about a big shout out for Celtic618 and his UCF Knights and their huge win in Happy Valley, over Penn State. That's right iejoe951, they are the University of Central Florida Knights, and not FCU, as you posted earlier in the week. By the way, how did that Texas A&M over Alabama prediction work out for you?
For those of you that might have missed it, iejoe951 had been crowing since Alabama played Virginia Tech, that Texas A&M and Johnny Football would WIPE THE FIELD (his words), against the Tide. There were more than four occasions last week, where iejoe951 posted that Texas A&M would have too mush offense for Alabama to overcome; and, when push came to shove, who did this dipstick pick on his pick'em account; that's right, he chose Alabama with a confidence of four points. You sir, have ZERO credibility (not that you care, mind you) on this board. You have been exposed for the fraud that you are. I may not agree with everything that Leehawk, Conwell, Celtic, Nottabugeater, Phillip and some of the other guys say; however, I applaud them for taking a stand and making their mark, and their allegiance to their respective teams. Unlike you, who is all over the map, when it comes to your opinions about college football in general.
Nough said, I can't believe I've wasted this much space on you. Time to move on and pick some games. Last week I went 8-2, with 48 style and profile points. This week appears to be a tough one to navigate. What the heck, let's jump right in; and, anchors away. On to the comic relief portion of this report, also known as the selections.
Auburn @ LSU (10) - A lot of crazy things have happened when these two teams have met. There was the earthquake game in LSU. Tiger stadium was shaking so hard that the seismic instruments in the geology lab recorded tremors. In Auburn, there was a barn that caught fire and burned while these two were playing each other. Then there was the interception game back in the 90's, when LSU had Auburn dead to rights going into the fourth quarter, and, Auburn took multiple interceptions back for touchdowns to win a close game. As far as this year's edition of Auburn/LSU, look for LSU to be more physical on both sides of the ball, especially on offense. Meanwhile, Auburn is trying to find an identity for its offense. After three games, it looks pretty vanilla. Based on that situation, I'll take the Tigers (oops better be more specific), I'll take LSU over Auburn, 37-21.
Tennessee @ Florida (9) - Hanging nine points on this one; here's why. After Florida takes Tennessee to the woodshed on Saturday, it will be the ninth straight win in a row for the Gators over the Vols. Never mind that beat down that occurred in Eugene, last Saturday. Right now, the Vols are on vapor after traveling to the left coast, and then having to travel again to the Swamp. Butch Jones may eventually turn things around for the Vol faithful; however, Saturday it ain't happening. BTW-I see where Tennessee returned 3500 tickets out of their alotment of 8000, for this game. Seems like the people of Tennessee already know how this game is going to turn out. Swamp people over Rocky Top, 27-10.
Arizona State @ Stanford (8) - If there is going to be an upset in my top three, this is where it will happen. Stanford was a 35 point favorite to beat Army, last week. Forget the line, they couldn't even score 35 points on the Cadets. As for Arizona State, by now everyone knows, or should, about the crazy ending to their game with Wisconsin, last week. Why do I feel so confident about Stanford over ASU? Simple, the game is being played down on the farm, or in ASU's case, up on the farm. Anyway you slice it, I like the Cardinal over Sun Devils, 34-24.
Utah @ BYU (7) - Utah has had BYU's number, winning the last three in a row, and eight of the last eleven in this series. Talk about two teams that hate each other; and, they call this game The Holy War. How about that. Mormons vs Mormons. Utes vs Cougars. As for this contest, BYU took last week off in preparation to end Utah's current win streak. If BYU plays like they did against Texas, the Cougars will win easily. If the Cougar team that played Virginia, shows up for this contest, the Utes will make it four in a row. With that being said, I like BYU's chances of ending the streak of losses against Utah; especially after the Utes lost a heart breaker in overtime, to Oregon State, last week. Cougars win a thriller, 34-27.
North Carolina @ Georgia Tech (6) - I probably have this game too high on the confidence total. Georgia Tech is another one of those Iowa teams that I seem to lose, no matter which side that I'm on. The only reason that I'm on them is that the Yellow Jackets have won seven in a row at home over the Tar Heels. If you don't like that stat, then flip a coin; Tech over UNC, 35-28.
Michigan State @ Notre Dame (5) - Can anyone believe this, I'm picking the Irish over Sparty. Translation, you might need to consider Michigan State since I'm on the Dome. Realistically, neither one of these teams have impressed anybody this season. Should be an ugly game, whoever wins. I still can't believe that I drank the kool-aid, I just hope that Jim Jones didn't spike it. Irish over the Spartans, 21-17.
Utah State @ USC - (4) - Earlier in the week, I had Utah State and two points. I have no idea as to why I changed my mind; nevertheless, the Trojans are my final answer. In reality, Lane Kiffin has to win this game to keep his job alive. The Kiffin meister lives on for another week of college football coaching. The men of Troy over the Aggies, 31-28.
Wyoming (3) @ Air Force - Tough call here. The Fly Boys have been grounded to a halt in recent weeks. Their starting QB is still out; and, I can't get that Wyoming/Nebraska game out of my mind. You know the one where the Cowboys nearly caught the Cornhuskers before losing, 37-34. Any who, I'll take a chance that Falcon attack will be marginal at best; Wyoming over Air Force, 35-24.
Kansas State (2) @ Texas - When picking these tight games, I look for a trend that stands out. In this contest, Kansas State has won five in a row going back to 2003, over the Longhorns; and, from what I've seen of Texas in the past two weeks, isn't going to get fixed anytime soon. After this game, Mack Brown will probably be changing the OC next week. Wildcats over the Horns, in a close one, 30-24.
Pittsburgh (1) @ Duke - And now, to the "who cares" game of the week. The only thing that I know about this game, other than where it is being played, is that Duke's starting quarterback is injured, and not expected to play on Saturday. That's enough for me, Panthers over the Blue Devils, 28-24.
Alas, another one bites the dust. Remember, tread at your own risk. Also, if you study long, you study wrong; go with your first impression. You are just as good as the next person, and certainly better than some of these jokers that get paid to spew their knowledge. Well, that's it. In the words of Jimmy Buffett, I'm off to see the lizard, and It's five o'clock somewhere. Enjoy the games and have a safe weekend. Until later, Roll Tide.
Jljmbaker
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