I went a dreadful 4-9 last weekend, I believe my first losing record of the year. I now stand at 63-47 overall. Hopefully I can bounce back this week. NFL picks coming later Saturday night.
Noon
Virginia at Duke
I'm in the same situation here that I was in with Dallas after it beat Houston. Am I to trust Virginia to win another game now? And it would be classic Cavaliers to beat a top 25 team then lose to a bad team. And that's classic Cavaliers even in good years. Virginia is still not that good. Certainly improving, but by no means world beaters. This game could easily be a loss. Duke's quarterback, Sean Renfree, scares me. He's a sophomore and went 28-for-30 last weekend against Navy. At the same time, he's thrown 15 interceptions this season and Virginia picked off five passes last weekend against Miami. So which Renfree will show up? And which Cavalier defense will show up? The one from last weekend, or the one that gave up an 80-yard touchdown pass on the first play from scrimmage against UNC on Oct. 16 when the receiver could have been wearing a sign that read, "TACKLE ME!" and no one would've touched him? I'm hoping this Virginia team is different--that it can now refocus under Mike London and get gritty and win these tough slugfests on the road in the ACC. And I don't mean games against tough teams, I mean these kind of games that end up being traps so often. Duke will be gunning for us. The Devils have a lot of confidence after beating Navy last week. They won 34-31, but at one point, it was 24-0. Like I said, it would be classic Virginia to have a meltdown in this game, but hopefully London has instilled a sort of resiliency in his guys to not let that happen. I will give Virginia the edge because Renfree is certainly capable of throwing interceptions and we know Virginia CAN pick off plenty of passes. Also, Duke's total defense is 103rd in the country, only a few spots ahead of Eastern Michigan. So at the very least, if Renfree has a good game, Virginia should be able to keep up by pounding Perry and the Payne Train, and giving Marc Verica the manageable passes he can handle. It won't be a cakewalk, but I think UVA gets the victory. 27-24
Maryland at Miami
How is it that the Terps seemingly have had no hard games this season? They've beaten Navy, Morgan St., Fla. International, Duke, BC and Wake Forest with losses to Clemson (by 24) and WVU (by 14). Navy looked like a great win to open the year, but the Midshipmen have since gone on to be a disappointment in 2010 after expecting to get nine to 10 wins this season. Maryland only beat Fla. International by two TDs, and just slipped by Duke and BC. The Terps crushed Wake last weekend, but the Deacons have had their worst season during Jim Grobe's tenure this season. Now, the Terps get a banged up Miami team. Jacory Harris is out, thanks to Cavalier DT John Kevin Dolce's crushing sack last weekend, giving the Miami junior QB a concussion. I think Maryland wins another close one, because circumstances have just seemed to fall into place for them this year. 24-21
12:30
No. 21 Baylor at No 17 Oklahoma State
Not hating on Baylor, it is obviously a solid team and the Bears are a great story. But I think they'll struggle at OSU against the high-powered Cowboys. Baylor's defense is not very good and OSU's offense is very good. The Bears will stick around for awhile but OSU will pull away late in the third or early in the fourth quarter. 45-33
3:30
No. 3 TCU at No. 5 Utah
Good to see that this week's marquee matchup is from a non-AQ conference. This contest between the Horned Frogs and Utes is truly epic. The loser is, without a doubt, out of the national title picture. These teams don't get one-loss cushions like teams from the SEC. Lose and you're toast, probably regulated to the Poinsettia Bowl or, at best, a lower BCS bowl. TCU is led by senior QB Andy Dalton who doesn't make mistakes. He's a solid passer and can run it when necessary. The Frog defense has been out of its mind this season, giving up only 8.7 ppg while pitching two shut outs. Out of nine games, TCU's defense has allowed opponents to score double digit points only three times. Utah is led by a sophomore at QB, Jordan Wynn, who has been great this year at avoiding mistakes as well. The Ute defense is almost as good as TCU's this season, giving up only 14.1 ppg. Utah has a marquee win over Pitt by three in OT at home and TCU beat Oregon State by nine in Cowboys Stadium. Utah also beat Iowa State, 68-24, but TCU has the next most impressive win as the Frogs throttled Baylor 45-10. Should be a great game, a real defensive battle. I like TCU just slightly with its defense. Utah doesn't lose much at home I've heard, and the game will come down to the final minute. 19-17 TCU
Hawaii at No. 4 Boise State
Should be a fun game to watch. Two very high-scoring teams. People are starting to doubt the Broncos and look at the Utah/TCU winner to be the more viable non-AQ BCS buster possibility. I think Boise will put those people and Hawaii in their places and put on an offensive show. Broncos win on the blue turf by three scores, 52-31.
No. 6 Alabama at No. 10 LSU
LSU has been living on the edge all season and Bama has been the superior team but the Tigers will be sure to give Nick Saban's squad a run for its money. When you're coached by the Mad Hatter, can you expect anything less? The Crimson Tide is on a mission, though, to get back into the title game despite having one loss. Bama wins 23-16.
North Carolina at No. 24 Florida State
FSU has had over a week to prepare for this game--plenty of time to correct mistakes it made in its road loss at N.C. State on Thursday night. UNC almost lost to William & Mary last weekend at home and needed a late rally to pull it out. So I have to go with the Seminoles here at home, who still are trying to reach the ACC title game. But who knows in the topsy-turvy ACC? FSU 33-17.
7:00
No. 18 Arkansas at No. 19 South Carolina
At home, the Gamecocks have more to play for. Win out and they can get to the SEC Championship. Arkansas would need major help to get to the conference title game. I like South Carolina 28-24.
8:00
No. 15 Arizona at No. 13 Stanford
The latest I've seen is that Arizona QB Nick Foles will play vs. the Cardinal after spraining his knee against Washington State Oct. 16. Will he be the same? Tough to tell. This might not be the epic QB matchup it should've been if Foles is slightly hobbled. Because of it, and because Andrew Luck is at home, I'll give Stanford the slight edge, 33-30.
Noon
Virginia at Duke
I'm in the same situation here that I was in with Dallas after it beat Houston. Am I to trust Virginia to win another game now? And it would be classic Cavaliers to beat a top 25 team then lose to a bad team. And that's classic Cavaliers even in good years. Virginia is still not that good. Certainly improving, but by no means world beaters. This game could easily be a loss. Duke's quarterback, Sean Renfree, scares me. He's a sophomore and went 28-for-30 last weekend against Navy. At the same time, he's thrown 15 interceptions this season and Virginia picked off five passes last weekend against Miami. So which Renfree will show up? And which Cavalier defense will show up? The one from last weekend, or the one that gave up an 80-yard touchdown pass on the first play from scrimmage against UNC on Oct. 16 when the receiver could have been wearing a sign that read, "TACKLE ME!" and no one would've touched him? I'm hoping this Virginia team is different--that it can now refocus under Mike London and get gritty and win these tough slugfests on the road in the ACC. And I don't mean games against tough teams, I mean these kind of games that end up being traps so often. Duke will be gunning for us. The Devils have a lot of confidence after beating Navy last week. They won 34-31, but at one point, it was 24-0. Like I said, it would be classic Virginia to have a meltdown in this game, but hopefully London has instilled a sort of resiliency in his guys to not let that happen. I will give Virginia the edge because Renfree is certainly capable of throwing interceptions and we know Virginia CAN pick off plenty of passes. Also, Duke's total defense is 103rd in the country, only a few spots ahead of Eastern Michigan. So at the very least, if Renfree has a good game, Virginia should be able to keep up by pounding Perry and the Payne Train, and giving Marc Verica the manageable passes he can handle. It won't be a cakewalk, but I think UVA gets the victory. 27-24
Maryland at Miami
How is it that the Terps seemingly have had no hard games this season? They've beaten Navy, Morgan St., Fla. International, Duke, BC and Wake Forest with losses to Clemson (by 24) and WVU (by 14). Navy looked like a great win to open the year, but the Midshipmen have since gone on to be a disappointment in 2010 after expecting to get nine to 10 wins this season. Maryland only beat Fla. International by two TDs, and just slipped by Duke and BC. The Terps crushed Wake last weekend, but the Deacons have had their worst season during Jim Grobe's tenure this season. Now, the Terps get a banged up Miami team. Jacory Harris is out, thanks to Cavalier DT John Kevin Dolce's crushing sack last weekend, giving the Miami junior QB a concussion. I think Maryland wins another close one, because circumstances have just seemed to fall into place for them this year. 24-21
12:30
No. 21 Baylor at No 17 Oklahoma State
Not hating on Baylor, it is obviously a solid team and the Bears are a great story. But I think they'll struggle at OSU against the high-powered Cowboys. Baylor's defense is not very good and OSU's offense is very good. The Bears will stick around for awhile but OSU will pull away late in the third or early in the fourth quarter. 45-33
3:30
No. 3 TCU at No. 5 Utah
Good to see that this week's marquee matchup is from a non-AQ conference. This contest between the Horned Frogs and Utes is truly epic. The loser is, without a doubt, out of the national title picture. These teams don't get one-loss cushions like teams from the SEC. Lose and you're toast, probably regulated to the Poinsettia Bowl or, at best, a lower BCS bowl. TCU is led by senior QB Andy Dalton who doesn't make mistakes. He's a solid passer and can run it when necessary. The Frog defense has been out of its mind this season, giving up only 8.7 ppg while pitching two shut outs. Out of nine games, TCU's defense has allowed opponents to score double digit points only three times. Utah is led by a sophomore at QB, Jordan Wynn, who has been great this year at avoiding mistakes as well. The Ute defense is almost as good as TCU's this season, giving up only 14.1 ppg. Utah has a marquee win over Pitt by three in OT at home and TCU beat Oregon State by nine in Cowboys Stadium. Utah also beat Iowa State, 68-24, but TCU has the next most impressive win as the Frogs throttled Baylor 45-10. Should be a great game, a real defensive battle. I like TCU just slightly with its defense. Utah doesn't lose much at home I've heard, and the game will come down to the final minute. 19-17 TCU
Hawaii at No. 4 Boise State
Should be a fun game to watch. Two very high-scoring teams. People are starting to doubt the Broncos and look at the Utah/TCU winner to be the more viable non-AQ BCS buster possibility. I think Boise will put those people and Hawaii in their places and put on an offensive show. Broncos win on the blue turf by three scores, 52-31.
No. 6 Alabama at No. 10 LSU
LSU has been living on the edge all season and Bama has been the superior team but the Tigers will be sure to give Nick Saban's squad a run for its money. When you're coached by the Mad Hatter, can you expect anything less? The Crimson Tide is on a mission, though, to get back into the title game despite having one loss. Bama wins 23-16.
North Carolina at No. 24 Florida State
FSU has had over a week to prepare for this game--plenty of time to correct mistakes it made in its road loss at N.C. State on Thursday night. UNC almost lost to William & Mary last weekend at home and needed a late rally to pull it out. So I have to go with the Seminoles here at home, who still are trying to reach the ACC title game. But who knows in the topsy-turvy ACC? FSU 33-17.
7:00
No. 18 Arkansas at No. 19 South Carolina
At home, the Gamecocks have more to play for. Win out and they can get to the SEC Championship. Arkansas would need major help to get to the conference title game. I like South Carolina 28-24.
8:00
No. 15 Arizona at No. 13 Stanford
The latest I've seen is that Arizona QB Nick Foles will play vs. the Cardinal after spraining his knee against Washington State Oct. 16. Will he be the same? Tough to tell. This might not be the epic QB matchup it should've been if Foles is slightly hobbled. Because of it, and because Andrew Luck is at home, I'll give Stanford the slight edge, 33-30.
wow you could not have been more wrong about uva duke. hahaha talk about crazy....
ReplyDeletewell i almost got the margin of victory right. but wrong team and then yeah, a little low on the score. our defense was truly pathetic
ReplyDelete