I was 4-5 last weekend on college picks, but had one of my best weeks ever for NFL picks, going 5-1. I was second in my office pool for Week 7 NFL picks, narrowly missing out on a cool cash prize of $120. I'm now 59-38 on the year.
COLLEGE
Noon
No. 17 Oklahoma State at Kansas State
K-State is coming off a road loss at Baylor (Congrats to Baylor, by the way, for cracking the top 25 for the first time in who knows how long). Oklahoma State is coming off its first loss of the season, a home loss to Nebraska. The Cowboys put up lots of points but have done so against inferior competition all season. I think they'll have more trouble again this week in Manhattan. Wildcats win 42-38.
No. 22 Miami at Virginia
Unless a black cat crosses the Hurricanes' path, I can't see UVA pulling the upset here. Virginia lost its last ACC game 44-10 to UNC. Last week, Miami destroyed UNC 33-10. Those results don't go in our favor. Football isn't a logical game though--is any sport?--just because team A beats team B and team C beats team A does not mean team C will beat team B. That's what makes sports so exciting. The possiblity of experiencing the unexpected. In reality though, I think the Cavaliers will play better again Miami than they have against other ACC teams but will still lose, 34-17.
3:30
No. 5 Michigan State at No. 18 Iowa
The Spartans barely escaped my upset pick last week by beating Northwestern 35-27 after being down for much of the game. I don't like the idea of Iowa losing a second-straight home game after the Haweyes fell to Wisconsin 31-30 last week. And Michigan State will have to beat its second-straight tough conference opponet on thw road. Never easy. Another undefeated falls and the Hawkeyes win, 37-33.
No. 6 Missouri at No. 14 Nebraska
The Tigers, fresh off a win over then-No. 1 Oklahoma receive a trip to Nebraska as a prize (good pick by me last weekend, eh?). No fun for them. Led by quarterback Blaine Gabbert, Missouri is 16th in the country in passing but it hasn't faced a team of the Cornhuskers' caliber on the road this season--and Nebraska ranks 3rd in the nation in pass defense, led by cornerback Prince Amukamara. I heard some ridiculous stat on ESPN about Prince--I think it was that quarterbacks have only completed eight passes in his direction all season. As a result, he doesn't top the inteception rankings, but Nebraska does have three defenders who do: P.J. Smith, Alfonzo Dennard, and Eric Hagg have three picks each. Last week, I picked Missouri's game correctly so they better hope I don't this week. Cornhuskers win 41-30.
Florida vs. Georgia in Jacksonville
I'm picking this game more out of respect for tradition. Normally, the "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" carries huge stakes, but this year it is a matchup of struggling teams. The Gators are struggling more, though. They have lost three straight games to Alabama, LSU, and Mississippi State. The Bulldogs started the year 1-4, and it looked like head coach Mark Richt's seat was getting sizzling hot. But since then, UGA has ran off three-straight victories over Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky. Even though Florida's three losses have been to better-quality opponents than the three teams Georgia has beaten, I like the Bulldogs in this one, 30-27.
7:00
No. 13 Stanford at Washington
Stanford rebounded from its loss to Oregon Oct. 2 by defeating USC in a tight one 37-35 and then by beating lowly Washington State by only ten points 38-28. It hasn't been the same Cardinal since losing to the Ducks. Washington, meanwhile, has alternated wins and losses all year. Last week, though, the Huskies suffered their worst PAC-10 loss of the season, getting blown out by Arizona 44-14. I like Washington to perform better this week and deal Stanford its second loss 41-40.
No. 25 Baylor at Texas
I kind of hope I'm wrong but I don't think Texas will lose two-straight home games. How can you not pull for the Bears? Or should I say the Bad News Bears? Has there been a more hapless team in the nation since I started keeping up with college football in the late 90s? Not many. They've certainly been the worst Big 12 team. Now they're sitting at 3-1 in the Big 12 with a legitimate shot to reach the conference title game. I like the Longhorns to win, however, 33-27.
8:00
No. 2 Oregon at USC
Oregon is No. 1 in the AP but No. 2 in the BCS so could this be the reason why they escape the curse that has befallen the No. 1 team the past three weeks? First it was Alabama, then Wisconsin, and finally Olahoma last week. Auburn is No. 1 in the BCS and it travels to Ole Miss but I don't expect the Tigers to have a problem in Oxford, Miss. I don't thnk the Ducks will lose either, so I like both No. 1 teams to keep it going. The Ducks get tested though by the Trojans in a 45-37 win.
NFL
1:00
Jacksonville at Dallas
I'm going to pick the Cowboys to win this one but I wouldn't be surprised if they lose with the way the year has gone. Jacksonville hasn't been the same since it defeated Indianapolis. Somehow, I think Jon Kitna steps up and produces just enough offense for Dallas to get by and the defense finally steps up for a big game against either backup QB Todd Bouman or a beat up David Garrard. Dallas wins 17-13.
Washington at Detroit
The Redskins have a knack for winning close games, and they'll win their second-straight NFC North road over the Lions, 27-24.
Green Bay at N.Y. Jets
Following a bye week, the Jets get it done against a still-shaky Packers team. 31-24.
8:20
Pittsburgh at New Orleans
The Saints go into a tough situation after dropping a game to the Browns they didn't expect to lose. The Steelers will be too tough for New Orleans to defeat. The defending Super Bowl champs will fall to .500 while a Super Bowl contender for this season will improve to 6-1. Steelers 30-24.
Monday night
Houston at Indianapolis
This should be a great game. The Colts are looking for some revenge after a Week 1 loss in Houston when they gave up over 200 yards to running back Arian Foster. Both teams are coming off a bye week. I give the Colts a slight edge, 38-31.
COLLEGE
Noon
No. 17 Oklahoma State at Kansas State
K-State is coming off a road loss at Baylor (Congrats to Baylor, by the way, for cracking the top 25 for the first time in who knows how long). Oklahoma State is coming off its first loss of the season, a home loss to Nebraska. The Cowboys put up lots of points but have done so against inferior competition all season. I think they'll have more trouble again this week in Manhattan. Wildcats win 42-38.
No. 22 Miami at Virginia
Unless a black cat crosses the Hurricanes' path, I can't see UVA pulling the upset here. Virginia lost its last ACC game 44-10 to UNC. Last week, Miami destroyed UNC 33-10. Those results don't go in our favor. Football isn't a logical game though--is any sport?--just because team A beats team B and team C beats team A does not mean team C will beat team B. That's what makes sports so exciting. The possiblity of experiencing the unexpected. In reality though, I think the Cavaliers will play better again Miami than they have against other ACC teams but will still lose, 34-17.
3:30
No. 5 Michigan State at No. 18 Iowa
The Spartans barely escaped my upset pick last week by beating Northwestern 35-27 after being down for much of the game. I don't like the idea of Iowa losing a second-straight home game after the Haweyes fell to Wisconsin 31-30 last week. And Michigan State will have to beat its second-straight tough conference opponet on thw road. Never easy. Another undefeated falls and the Hawkeyes win, 37-33.
No. 6 Missouri at No. 14 Nebraska
The Tigers, fresh off a win over then-No. 1 Oklahoma receive a trip to Nebraska as a prize (good pick by me last weekend, eh?). No fun for them. Led by quarterback Blaine Gabbert, Missouri is 16th in the country in passing but it hasn't faced a team of the Cornhuskers' caliber on the road this season--and Nebraska ranks 3rd in the nation in pass defense, led by cornerback Prince Amukamara. I heard some ridiculous stat on ESPN about Prince--I think it was that quarterbacks have only completed eight passes in his direction all season. As a result, he doesn't top the inteception rankings, but Nebraska does have three defenders who do: P.J. Smith, Alfonzo Dennard, and Eric Hagg have three picks each. Last week, I picked Missouri's game correctly so they better hope I don't this week. Cornhuskers win 41-30.
Florida vs. Georgia in Jacksonville
I'm picking this game more out of respect for tradition. Normally, the "World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party" carries huge stakes, but this year it is a matchup of struggling teams. The Gators are struggling more, though. They have lost three straight games to Alabama, LSU, and Mississippi State. The Bulldogs started the year 1-4, and it looked like head coach Mark Richt's seat was getting sizzling hot. But since then, UGA has ran off three-straight victories over Tennessee, Vanderbilt, and Kentucky. Even though Florida's three losses have been to better-quality opponents than the three teams Georgia has beaten, I like the Bulldogs in this one, 30-27.
7:00
No. 13 Stanford at Washington
Stanford rebounded from its loss to Oregon Oct. 2 by defeating USC in a tight one 37-35 and then by beating lowly Washington State by only ten points 38-28. It hasn't been the same Cardinal since losing to the Ducks. Washington, meanwhile, has alternated wins and losses all year. Last week, though, the Huskies suffered their worst PAC-10 loss of the season, getting blown out by Arizona 44-14. I like Washington to perform better this week and deal Stanford its second loss 41-40.
No. 25 Baylor at Texas
I kind of hope I'm wrong but I don't think Texas will lose two-straight home games. How can you not pull for the Bears? Or should I say the Bad News Bears? Has there been a more hapless team in the nation since I started keeping up with college football in the late 90s? Not many. They've certainly been the worst Big 12 team. Now they're sitting at 3-1 in the Big 12 with a legitimate shot to reach the conference title game. I like the Longhorns to win, however, 33-27.
8:00
No. 2 Oregon at USC
Oregon is No. 1 in the AP but No. 2 in the BCS so could this be the reason why they escape the curse that has befallen the No. 1 team the past three weeks? First it was Alabama, then Wisconsin, and finally Olahoma last week. Auburn is No. 1 in the BCS and it travels to Ole Miss but I don't expect the Tigers to have a problem in Oxford, Miss. I don't thnk the Ducks will lose either, so I like both No. 1 teams to keep it going. The Ducks get tested though by the Trojans in a 45-37 win.
NFL
1:00
Jacksonville at Dallas
I'm going to pick the Cowboys to win this one but I wouldn't be surprised if they lose with the way the year has gone. Jacksonville hasn't been the same since it defeated Indianapolis. Somehow, I think Jon Kitna steps up and produces just enough offense for Dallas to get by and the defense finally steps up for a big game against either backup QB Todd Bouman or a beat up David Garrard. Dallas wins 17-13.
Washington at Detroit
The Redskins have a knack for winning close games, and they'll win their second-straight NFC North road over the Lions, 27-24.
Green Bay at N.Y. Jets
Following a bye week, the Jets get it done against a still-shaky Packers team. 31-24.
8:20
Pittsburgh at New Orleans
The Saints go into a tough situation after dropping a game to the Browns they didn't expect to lose. The Steelers will be too tough for New Orleans to defeat. The defending Super Bowl champs will fall to .500 while a Super Bowl contender for this season will improve to 6-1. Steelers 30-24.
Monday night
Houston at Indianapolis
This should be a great game. The Colts are looking for some revenge after a Week 1 loss in Houston when they gave up over 200 yards to running back Arian Foster. Both teams are coming off a bye week. I give the Colts a slight edge, 38-31.
i think after a week of practice, kitna will do ok. he was just not in tune with his receivers on monday night. and they still managed to almost comeback at the end.
ReplyDeleteand given our track record of losing to bad teams (last year to lions/this year to the rams). i will be praying this sunday.
i dont think the rams are "bad" and you guys have maybe the best coach in the division. i think ur a different team with shanahan.
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