I knew that perfection wasn't long for my neck of the woods when I first saw the pick'em slate for week two games. Same rule applies for this week's mess. More on that later.
There were a lot of things that struck my fancy during this past week. I finally narrowed it down to three items of business. The Ray Rice debacle, the Big 10 demise, and the SEC's tough (chuckle, chuckle) slate of games, from this past week.
Starting with Rice. First question; what the heck did the NFL think happened to Janey Palmer (before she became Mrs. Rice), when Ray dragged her body out of the elevator. She didn't have a problem walking in, and the NFL certainly saw that footage. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that something occurred on that elevator for her to be in that position. Now you have a law enforcement official telling the AP, that a copy of the video was sent to a lady at the NFL's office; and, as an extra bonus, there is a 12 second response stating that (I'm paraphrasing here) she did receive it and that it was worse than she expected it to be. On the other hand, we have Roger Goodell telling CBS news in his interview, that NO ONE from his office had seen the actual video that was released by TMZ sports. Opps. Like I said earlier in the week; Lucy, you got some splanning to do. As for Ray Rice, I believe that he was truthful with his information as to what happened when he talked with the Ravens, as well as the NFL office. My thinking is that the NFL figured that if they could keep that video from hitting the public airwaves, all would be well. What they didn't count on was the public outcry after the two game suspension was placed on Rice. Therefore, Lord Goodell decided that he might be able to calm the masses by increasing the first offense to a six game suspension, and a second offense would lead to a permanent ban from the NFL. In the end, there's that darn video. Time for Goodell to Exit, Stage Right. In other words, he needs to go,or be let go.
Now for the Big 10. Correct me if I'm wrong because I didn't look this up; but, at the start of the season, wasn't the Big-10 rated fifth out of the five power conferences? If they weren't, after last Saturday, they are last now. In three nationally televised games (Michigan/Notre Dame, Michigan State/Oregon, Virginia Tech/Ohio State), the combined score for all three were 113-47. As if that weren't bad enough, two other Big-10 schools (Northwestern, Purdue), both lost to MAC schools; and a third, Iowa, had to come from behind in the fourth quarter to beat Ball State. Least we not forget that Nebraska had to pull out a miracle run in the closing seconds to beat FCS McNeese State. Talk about a rough weekend.
As for the SEC. What the heck was that crap, last week. I'm ashamed as a follower of the SEC, that this conference would even think of playing a schedule like last week's. Talk about cupcake central. It doesn't get any easier than what the SEC played last week. With only one conference game (Ole Miss/Vandy), which wasn't any good, here's the rest of the line up from a week ago: Florida Atlantic, Toledo, Arkansas State, University of Alabama (Birmingham), Ohio, Eastern Michigan, Nicholls State, San Jose State, East Carolina, Lamar, and Sam Houston State. Enough said.
As for last week, I went back to being my usual self going 7-3, with 40 cheese crackers. For the season, I'm 17-3, with 95 points, good for 96.4%. As for this week's games, I'll be lucky to see 40 points. Heck, I would take 40 points if ESPN would give it to me without having to pick this mess of games. Let the laughing begin.
Central Florida @ Missouri (10) - Central Florida has had an extra week to recover from their Ireland adventure. Meanwhile, Missouri stepped up their game in that blowout over Toledo, last week. For Central Florida, I don't think they have enough horses for their Knights to ride into Columbia, and be very effective against these hungry Tigers. Too much Maty Mauk for UCF to overcome. Tigers over the Knights, 34-20.
UCLA (9) vs Texas @ Dallas - Let's face it, Texas is one big train wreck, right now. And, from what I saw against BYU, last Saturday; you don't fix that problem in one week. On the other hand, UCLA hasn't lived up to its potential, either; nevertheless, they do own a 2-0 record, no matter how they got there. Time for Bret Hundley to shine in the prime (time), and find another gear for his Bruins. As for the Horns, it's looking more like wait till next year; or two. Bruins over the Longhorns, 37-17.
Louisville (8) @ Virginia - Louisville looked good in their season open victory against Miami. Virginia looked good, even though they lost to UCLA, to begin the season. Last week Virginia beat Richmond; but, they were out gained by the Spiders, 422 to 330 yards. The thing that beat the Spiders was that they turned the ball over seven times. What surprises me about Louisville is that they are running the ball pretty efficiently. That fact doesn't bode very well for the Cavs. Look for the Cardinals to take a 2-0 lead in the Atlantic division of the ACC, with a win over Virginia, 34-24.
Penn State (7) @ Rutgers - For Penn State, they received a bit of good news this week; the bowl ban and the scholarship reduction were lifted. For Rutgers, the news wasn't so good, with all the Ray Rice mess to deal with. As for this game, don't read too much in the fact that the Scarlet Knights are 2-0. Those two wins came against an awful Washington State team, and Howard University. Who the heck is Howard University? Sounds like some of the competition that the SEC feasted on, last week. As for Penn State, I was quite surprised that they were able to pull out that Irish miracle to begin the season; and, as an added bonus, they are learning to play on the defensive side of the ball. Look for Mount Nittany to come alive in New Jersey. Lions over the Scarlet Knights, 28-20.
Georgia (6) @ South Carolina - If history is worth anything, Georgia doesn't score too many points when it plays in Columbia. The last six times that the dawgs have played at South Carolina, they have averaged just 13 points. However, this South Carolina team doesn't possess its usual cast of out standing roosters; nor is this the same dog pound that tucked its tail and ran the last time they played in Columbia, with the chickens winning that one 35-7. This one stat alone is amazing; South Carolina is giving up 416 passing yards per game. In addition to Georgia being able to run the ball, they have play makers at the receiver position, as well. Just check out number 82. The woes continue for the old ball coach, Georgia over South Carolina, 34-24.
West Virginia (5) @ Maryland - They call this game the backyard brawl, and that anything can happen, so throw all the stats out the window. Okay, the first thing that I'm going to do is throw this year's edition of the Turtles back into the pond. In two games this season, Maryland has turned the ball over seven times against not-so-good competition. Plus West Virginia wants to make amends for that 37-0 loss, a year ago. Maryland runs the ball pretty well (minus the turnovers), but their passing game is in the crapper. I'll take the better balanced team here in West Virginia. The Mountaineers over the Turtles, 33-24.
North Carolina State @ South Florida (4) - The three wins by these two teams came against Georgia Southern, Old Dominion, and Western Carolina. State has to hit the road for the first time this season. I don't have a clue as to how the Wolfpak have looked so far; however, if the score of their two wins is an indicator to measure by, I'll take the team that has played the tougher schedule so far. South Florida gets bullish over the Wolfpack, but not by much, 24-21.
Iowa State (3) @ Iowa - Another rivalry game where you can expect the unexpected to occur. With that in play, I'll take the Cyclones; they are 0-2, and the Hawkeyes are 2-0. Sounds reasonable to me. You can also add that Iowa trailed Ball State going into the fourth quarter, 13-3. They did manage to score the go ahead touchdown with a minute remaining in the game to eek out a 17-13 win. Look for the Cyclones to twist a few Hawkeyes necks and score a much needed win, 27-24.
Arkansas (2) @ Texas Tech - For one half, Arkansas went toe to toe with Auburn. Meanwhile, Texas Tech had to hold on for dear life in their season opener against Central Arkansas, and then followed that fine win (cough, cough), with a late fourth quarter score to beat a very bad UTEP team (they were 2-10, last year), 30-26. Arkansas can throw the ball. We know they can run the ball, as well, which doesn't bode well for that porous defense of the Red Raiders. Looking for the Hogs to run (and throw) wild against the Red-Raiders, say 35-31.
Indiana (1) @ Bowling Green - And now for the "who cares" game of the week. I swear, they get worse with every week that passes. This one is a true clunker. I'll donate my one point to the flip of the coin, which came up tails for the visiting team. In other words I have no clue with this one. Only that Indiana has had an extra week so that they can look beyond terrible, considering that they only beat Indiana State, 28-10, in week one. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the Big-10 laid another big one and lost another game to a MAC foe. Oh well, Hoosiers over the Falcons, 28-27.
Man, this is one sorry selection of games. ESPN could have done a heck of a lot better than this showing. Heck, you can't even watch the West Virginia/Maryland game unless you have ESPN 3, or subscribe to that stupid game plan of ESPN's. Does anybody have ESPN's game plan? There was a time when I used to have it; but those days are long gone. Any who, tread carefully and follow the above at your own risk. Have a great weekend and enjoy the games. Until we meet again, Roll Tide.
Jljmbaker
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