More on the "double down" later. First of all, here's a little bit in the week that went by. In last week's post, I was praising Gus Malzhan for the great job that he is doing at Auburn. Usually, when I praise someone's good fortune, they turn around and make a fool out of my thoughts. Not Gus. His team went into Knoxville and threw just nine passes, with half of them coming in the first drive. Who needs a passing attack when your team just had 444 yards on 53 carries. It seemed like every time that the Vols would get close to Auburn, the Tigers would answer twice. In addition to those rushing yards, Auburn returned a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown. Also in the SEC, how about Vanderbilt's stomp down at the Swamp, over Florida, 34-17. Honk if you saw that one coming. This marks the first time in the history of Vanderbilt football that they have beaten both Florida, and Georgia, in the same season.
Now, let us take a look at teams that have taken a dump and are starting to stink up the joint. First off, Michigan. The Wolverines offense looked offensive against Nebraska. They have no rushing attack against average to good teams, especially these last two games. The "U" (Miami) looked more like the Pee "U" with that lackluster performance against Virginia Tech (I still wouldn't take Tech over a hot dog vendor as long as Logan Thomas is at the controls). Poor Florida; the Gators are looking at a losing season for the first time since the 1979 season. A loss at South Carolina this Saturday, will probably seal the deal for Florida, since I give them a less than zero percent chance against Florida State. Then, there is Texas Tech, a team that is three weeks removed from the top 10, which has managed to lose three straight games. That's what happens when your games move from the cupcake category to the pound cake category; you start separating the pretenders form the contenders. I can't move on without saying something about D. Thomas running his mouth saying that Oregon would hang 40 points on Stanford. He must have been talking about three games worth to equal 40 points against the Cardinal, because in the last two games, the Ducks have scored just 34 points combined against Stanford. Ouch!!
Now, for the surprise teams for the season. In no particular order, okay. First one that comes to my mind is Duke. The Blue Devils were trailing NC State, 20-17, with less than four minutes to go in the fourth quarter; and, in a span of 27 seconds, Duke turned a close game into a blow out, 38-21. After a five yard TD run, the Blue Devils had two straight interceptions for touchdowns. The win was Duke's fifth in a row. Then there is Minnesota. With their win over Penn State, the Gophers are at 8-2, with an outside shot at winning the Legends division of the B1G. Other teams of note include, Missouri, Auburn (see above), Baylor, and Central Florida. Those last two (Baylor/UCF) were expected to be better; nevertheless, I think that they have exceeded most everyone's expectations, especially mine.
I can't fly the coop without saying something about the Jameis Winston story that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Considering the nature of the charge (sexual assault), why are we just now hearing about this situation after it occurred nearly a year ago? Now, in no way am I going to judge Jameis Winston; my beef is in the handling of this case by the Tallahassee Police Department. Why are they just now handing this case off to the state prosecutor's office. In my opinion, something smells a little ripe with this situation; or, as a friend of mine used to say: "Something's rotten in Denmark." Stay tuned, I'm sure that there is more to come with this case in the very near future.
Moving on. Now to the comedy section of this report, my selections. Last week, I tried a different technique; picking the slate like it was laid out, as far as confidence points were concerned. This week I'm "doubling down," and going the same way, again. Top to bottom, the way ESPN sent it to me. BTW-The new technique didn't help or hurt, so why not try it again. Last week, I was 7-3, with 41 tootsie rolls. For the year, the record stands at 79-31, with 458 points, good for 97.6%. You know the order of the points; all you need now is the check list of the teams that I'm going with. The wait is over because your chariot has arrived.
Stanford (10) @ USC - Since Mr. Ed (not the horse) took over the program after Kiffen's firing, the men of Troy are 4-1. Well zippity doo dah; they haven't played anybody during that stretch of games. That will change come Saturday night. Look for USC to keep it close until midway through the third quarter. That's when the constant pounding of the football from Stanford's running game will be too much for the Trojans to overcome. The Tree (Cardinal) comes crashing down on the White Horse, 31-17.
Alabama (9) @ Mississippi State - I might be a little worried about this game; but, all Saban has to do is put in the 2007 video tape from his first season's game against the Bulldogs, and that should be enough to keep the Tide rolling. In that game in 2007, John Parker Wilson threw a pick six with less than a minute to go before the half, that went for 100 yards. Alabama never recovered from that situation, and eventually lost the game 19-12. Hopefully by halftime, those cow bells will turn into cow patties. The Tide continues its march towards Atlanta, with a win over State, 41-13.
Florida @ South Carolina (8) - Well, Will Muschamp can start looking for a new gig. The AD, Jeremy Foley, came out two days ago and said he was 1000% (That's right, he said one thousand) sure that Muschamp was the right coach to get the Gators back on track. His statement is the sure kiss of death. Don't look for Spurrier to show any compassion for his old team, either. Look for the roosters to skin the Gators and put one more nail in Muschamp's coffin, 33-10.
Georgia (7) @ Auburn - Welcome to the Deep South's oldest rivalry. These two teams have met on the gridiron 116 times, and the series is a dead heat at 54-54-8. However, recently Georgia has had Auburn's number, winning six out of the last seven. Plus, Aaron Murray is 2-0 against the Tigers. Auburn has had a great year; but, this is where the Tigers will run into trouble. With no scent of a passing game, and the fact that Georgia is pretty good at stopping the run, the Dawgs will have enough to win out at Auburn, 35-24.
Oklahoma State (6) @ Texas - In this series, the visitor has won the past four games. I like that stat. I also like that the Pokes are hitting their stride, winning the last five games that they have played. Meanwhile, Texas will start seeing the effects of the injury bug, come Saturday. The winner of this game is still in the hunt for the Big-12 Championship, and virtually controls its own destiny, because both of them still have Baylor on the schedule. Look for the Stillwater crew to go 4-0 in the state of Texas, for this season, 39-31.
Michigan State (5) @ Nebraska - Who knew that the Cornhuskers could pull off another Hail-Mary, for the second week in a row. Don't think that they will find another one against Sparty. I realize that the Spartans have NEVER beaten Nebraska; however, all good things must come to an end; and after Saturday, Michigan State will finally have that monkey off of their backside. Spartans over Big Red, 24-13.
Miami @ Duke (4) - Now, that just doesn't look right, Duke over Miami. Maybe in basketball; but football, you gotta be kidding me, right? Duke has managed to win five in a row, and Miami has lost two in a row; and, the Hurricanes looked down right crappy against a team which Duke beat, Virginia Tech. A win over the Canes would put the Blue Devils in the driver seat for the ACC Coastal Division championship (that just doesn't sound right). The Tropical depression continues for Miami, with Duke winning a close one, 34-31.
Michigan @ Northwestern (3) - Northwestern has had two weeks to get over that heart breaking loss at Nebraska. On the other hand, Michigan has looked down right pathetic, in the last two weeks. The slide has to stop at some point for the Wildcats; it might as well be this week. Northwestern over the Wolverines, 28-24.
North Carolina (2) @ Pittsburgh - I think that Larry Fedora's team is coming together on both sides of the ball. Yes, I know that Pittsburgh beat Notre Dame, last week. Well, kiss my grits and name a mud puddle after me. Considering how great a team that Notre Dump is this season, that's no big deal. Heels over the Panthers, 30-21.
Cincinnati @ Rutgers (1) - Two weeks in a row. Got to hand it to ESPN, for they have managed to put the "Who Cares" game of the week at the bottom of the list, again. Now that's what I call consistency. By now, you know the drill for this spot. Taking Rutgers over Cincinnati, for one point, and by one point, 31-30.
Okay, that does it for me. May all of your picks be winners. Just remember to tread at your own risk when you are looking at mine. Before I go, I see where Winston's lawyer has come out and stated that he has two witnesses to back up Jameis' story about what did, or did not happen, eleven months ago. Remember the song from the 70's from the Sanford Townsend Band, Smoke From a Distant Fire; I think that scenario applies to this situation. I just hope that Jameis Winston didn't start the fire. Any who, have a great and safe weekend. Roll Tide.
Jljmbaker
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