#1 Oklahoma at #5 Florida St. (8:00 EST, ABC)- This game looms as a huge measuring stick for the Seminoles as they can mark their progress in the re-birth of the program, depending on the result. Many thought that FSU had a chance to pull the upset last year but instead, got rocked by the Sooners 47-17 in Norman. The top concern for the 'Noles defense this time around is to slow down the Oklahoma offense, led by Heisman Candidate Landry Jones and to better protect their own QB, E.J. Manuel. The Sooners aim solely to win this game and remain at the top of the polls, while FSU has other plans and if they pull out a win, can place themselves in the thick of the National title chase. The upset will happen as the Seminoles find a way to shut down Landry Jones and Manuel will lead the offense down the field for a late, game-winning field goal.
# 6 Stanford at Arizona (10:45 EST, ESPN)- For the Wildcats, it's all about finding a way to slow down Andrew Luck and the rest of the Stanford attack. This game serves as the first real test for the Cardinal, as they have easily dispatched of San Jose St. and Duke thus far. Arizona may not be ranked and may not be the most name-brand team, but playing an in-conference road game is always tough, no matter the opponent. For 'Zona to pull this upset, they must somehow shut down Luck and the passing game, while also finding a way to make their own offense more effective. Their offense could be hurt by the injury to WR Juron Criner, who remains questionable for the game and the lack of a running threat for the Wildcats to rely on. Look for a tight game, but I believe Stanford will hold on and remain near the top of the polls.
# 15 Michigan St. at Notre Dame (3:30 EST, NBC)- The Irish are painfully close to being 2-0, but their record lies at the other end of the spectrum, thanks to costly turnovers and an inability to close out games. Meanwhile, Michigan St. had little trouble with Youngstown St. and Florida Atlantic, outscoring them 72-6. The level of competition is about to get a whole lot better as they head to South Bend to take on the battle-tested Irish squad. A possibility for an upset is present without a doubt, but Notre Dame must find a way to cut the turnovers if they want to win this game and potentially go on a nice little run. Granted, it may be nearly impossible to top last year's "Little Giants" classic, but expect a tight, high-scoring game. Finally, Tommy Rees will lead a drive in the final minutes to win the game and put the Irish in the win column.
#17 Ohio St. at Miami (7:30 EST, ESPN)- Rewind 8 years and these 2 teams were the premier programs in College Football. They met in a National Championship game for the ages and looked as if they would remain as a couple of the top programs in the country. However, recent scandals have engulfed each program and taken some of the luster out of this matchup. The Buckeyes are now without Terrelle Pryor and have Joe Bauserman taking snaps under center. The senior struggled against Toledo last week and must now adapt to face a much faster defense in Miami. On the other sideline, inconsistent QB Jacory Harris hopes to avoid his trademark interceptions and lead the Hurricanes to their first win of the season in front of a National TV primetime audience. This is the night, that at least for 3 hours, the Miami team can forget about the scandal and focus solely on football as I think they will beat Ohio St. on Saturday night, in a close, low-scoring affair.
#18 West Virginia at Maryland (12:00 EST, ESPNU)- A rivalry that usually only draws interest in the 2 states involved, now garners attention on a national level as both teams enter the game undefeated. Maryland, led by new coach, Randy Edsall aims to show everyone that the Labor Day win over Miami wasn't a fluke. QB Danny O'Brien continues to emerge as a star and is complemented by veteran RB, Davin Meggett. The duo together is good enough to keep pace with a West Virginia attack that features dual-threat QB, Geno Smith and WR Devon Brown. The only concern for the Mountaineers is a slow start that could prove deadly against a talented team, such as Maryland. A halftime deficit may not have cost them vs. Norfolk St., but the level of competition has increased greatly. Look for a Terps win in impressive fashion as they establish themselves as a legitimate contender in the ACC.
#21 Auburn at Clemson (12:00 EST, ABC)- Clemson better figure out soon how to get off to a fast start or else they could be in a world of trouble. Coming back to win against Troy and Wofford, but doing so against Auburn is a whole different animal. Luckily for Clemson, the Auburn defense has been pretty kind to opposing offenses thus far, allowing 72 points, but they also managed to come up with a goal-line stand in the final seconds against Mississippi St. As bad as the defense has been at some points, the Auburn offense has more than made up for it by lighting up the scoreboard at a rate of 41.5 points per game. Barrett Trotter has played the part of Cam Newton quite well so far and looks to continue that trend in Death Valley. This has great potential to be a fun shootout with a whole lot of points being scored, but Auburn will come out on top as they go to 3-0 on the year.
#22 Arizona St. at Illinois (7:00 EST, Big 10 Network)- This game has potential to be a trap game for the Sun Devils as they could be looking ahead to the Pac-12 opener with USC next week. The team had better be fully focused or they could be caught in the middle of a landmine. The Fighting Illini certainly have the talent to pull the upset, led by QB Nathan Scheelhaase and WR A.J. Jenkins. However, it is also possible that we may be overestimating Illinois, given their wins over Arkansas St. and South Dakota St. We will know much more after the game Saturday night, but I'm predicting that Illinois will catch the Sun Devils looking ahead and will pull off this upset on a drive late in the game for the win.
#23 Texas at UCLA (3:30 EST, ABC/ESPN)- I think most of us know how Texas is treating this game. The Longhorns haven't forgotten about last year's debacle in Austin and will be looking to exact revenge on the Bruins in this game. After last week's come-from-behind win against BYU, it appears as if Texas has finally found their replacement for Colt McCoy, in the form of Colt's brother, Case and David Ash. On the other sideline, Rick Neuheisel has endured his share of criticism during his tenure as he continues to search for answers on the offensive side of the ball. He may get even more criticism after this game as Texas will pull away in the 2nd half and leave Pasadena with a win, heading into the conference opener at Iowa St. next week.
No comments:
Post a Comment