College Football - Week 8 Games to Watch
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by Kwinger 00
A few quick hitters before my weekly picks:
- This season has been full of overreactions and upsets. Everyone knows about the upsets, but about the overreactions:
- Remember when Washington was on top of the world. Four weeks ago in my blog I had said, "Too much was made of Washington's victory over Boise St. It was Boise's first trip to Washington, and Washington isn't bad at home. (Before the season,) I had called for the Washington 'upset,' but didn't have them winning again until Arizona on October 27. Let's see if I'm right. " Well, so far I'm right. Willingham went from being a genius and way better off than being at Notre Dame, to being mentioned in the same breath.
- How about when Michigan was thrown under the bus and dismissed by everyone after their two opening losses. Five weeks later, they've won five straight, are 2-0 in the Big Ten, and are ranked #24 in the nation - ahead of everyone in the Big Ten except Ohio St. (#1).
- Remember when TCU was supposed to be this year's Boise St. They are now at 4-3 and 1-2 in the Mountain West. There might not be a "this year's Boise St." There might not be a "this year's Boise St." in awhile. Hawaii doesn't play anyone this year to be in the BCS, and USF doesn't count because they play in a major conference.
- How about when Michigan lost to Appalachian St. in the "greatest upset of all-time." I didn't hear anyone disputing the Stanford-USC or Syracuse-Louisville upsets among the greatest ever. USC was 41-point favorites, and Louisville was 37-point favorites. I'd say those are pretty big. Any way you put it, I just don't think any of them should be considered among the greatest ever.
- Don't even talk about the National Championship Game yet. USF still has a few tough games left, and have you seen Boston College's remaining schedule? This season is far from over.
- Being a Nebraska fan, I have to comment on the recent happenings in Lincoln. Nebraska AD Steve Pederson was fired Monday, and the man he hired that changed Nebraska football forever is on the hot seat. The good news is that the man who was responsible for some of the greatest teams to ever play is the new interim AD in Tom Osborne. Although you'll never hear him say very many things that are negative, I can only imagine his thoughts on Bill Callahan. Callahan should not get all the blame, but sometimes I think he tries to do too much, the Achilles heal of many coaches who run the West Coast. This week's game is big for the Huskers, but bigger for Coach Callahan. If you're going to drastically change a program that expects excellence, including doing a 180-degree turn in the offensive scheme, recruit heavily from junior colleges, and greatly diminish the walk-on program, which thrived under Osborne, to the point where it is nearly non-existent, then you better win some games by your fourth year in the system. Those are his recruits that are playing, so there are no more excuses.
- This week marks one of the biggest games in North Dakota State history. According to 5Dimes.com, the Bison, ranked #1 in the FCS, are favored - favored - by six points against the Minnesota Gophers. The Metrodome is sold out, and I'm guessing about 20,000-25,000 will be Bison fans. Last year's game was crazy, ending with a blocked field goal by Minnesota to steal the win - 10-9. It was a game in which the Gophers were outmatched in every category - the play on the field, the coaching, and the fans. I think NDSU will get them this year, but they're defense has been inconsistent, which is trouble since Minnesota has one of the best offenses statistically in the nation. NDSU's is equally as explosive offensively, and to say that the Gopher defense has struggled is like saying Barry Bonds is a little bigger than he was ten years ago. Unfortunately for fans who can't attend the game, such as myself, the game is only on the Big Ten Network, which a lot of people don't have (for good reason). I expect a high scoring game, but I'm going with NDSU.
- As many of you know, I jumped on the USF bandwagon in the summer and have enjoyed the ride. Before the season, I predicted that they'd go 10-2 in the regular season, with close losses to Auburn and Rutgers. They pulled off the upset against Auburn, but Rutgers is at home and was in a similar situation last year around this time of year when they hosted #3 Louisville. We all know what happened in that game. I still love USF, but I think they're a little overrated, wouldn't you say? I mean I knew they were going to be good, but not #2-in-the-nation good. They're still going to win the Big East.
Week 8 Games to Watch:
*My pick in bold
Conference Games
- ACC
- Miami at Florida St. (-6)
Virginia at Maryland (-4)
- Miami at Florida St. (-6)
- Big 12
- Texas A&M (+1.5) at Nebraska
Kansas St. at Oklahoma St. (-3)
No. 22 Texas Tech at No. 15 Missouri (-3.5)
- Texas A&M (+1.5) at Nebraska
- Big East
- Louisville (-3.5) at UConn
- Big Ten
- No. 24 Michigan (-2.5) at Illinois
Iowa at Purdue (-7)
- No. 24 Michigan (-2.5) at Illinois
- SEC
- No. 18 Auburn at No. 5 LSU (-10.5)
Tennessee at No. 20 Alabama (+1)
No. 14 Florida (-7) at No. 8 Kentucky
- No. 18 Auburn at No. 5 LSU (-10.5)
UPSET SPECIALS
- No. 2 USF at Rutgers (+3)
No. 15 Kansas at Colorado (+4)
No. 23 Cincinnati at Pitt (+10)
No. 10 Cal at UCLA (NL)
Week 1: 6-2
Upset Specials: None
Week 2: 9-4
Upset Specials: 1-1
Week 3: 9-6
Upset Specials: 1-1
Week 4: 9-3
Upset Specials: 3-1
Week 5: 8-5
Upset Specials: 3-1
Week 6: 11-6
Upset Specials: 0-1
Week 7: 9-5
Upset Specials: 2-0
Year: 61-31
