Wednesday, September 29, 2010

2010 Week 5 Picks

Week 1: 70-8 (89.7%)
Week 2: 61-9 (87.1%)
Week 3: 47-11 (81%)
Week 4: 47-11 (81%)
Season: 225-39 (86.4%)


Thursday, September 30
Texas A&M at Oklahoma St


Friday, October 1
BYU at Utah St


Saturday, October 2
Louisiana Monroe at Auburn
Vanderbilt at Connecticut
Northwestern at Minnesota
Kentucky at Mississippi
Miami at Clemson
Kansas at Baylor
Florida St at Virginia
Alcorn St at Mississippi St
Temple at Army
Ohio St at Illinois

Ohio at Eastern Michigan
Kent St at Miami (OH)
TCU at Colorado St
Tulane at Rutgers
Idaho at Western Michigan
Navy at Air Force
Washington St at UCLA
Michigan at Indiana
Tennessee at LSU
Wisconsin at Michigan St

Virginia Tech at NC State
East Carolina at North Carolina
Buffalo at Bowling Green
Texas vs Oklahoma at Dallas
FIU at Pitt
Ball St at Central Michigan
Duke at Maryland
UTEP at New Mexico
Northern Illinois at Akron
Arizona St at Oregon St

Georgia at Colorado
FAU at USF
Texas Tech at Iowa St
Georgia Tech at Wake Forest
Tulsa at Memphis
SMU at Rice
Louisville at Arkansas St
Wyoming at Toledo
Louisiana Lafayette at North Texas
UC Davis at San Jose St

Washington at USC
Notre Dame at Boston College
Boise St at New Mexico St
Florida at Alabama
Stanford at Oregon
Marshall at Southern Miss
Penn St at Iowa
Cal Poly at Fresno St
Nevada at UNLV
Louisiana Tech at Hawaii

Tuesday, September 28, 2010

Week 4 Top 25

1 - Alabama (1)
2 - Ohio St (2)
3 - Boise St (3)
4 - Oregon (4)
5 - TCU (5)
6 - Oklahoma (6)
7 - Nebraska (7)
8 - Florida (9)
9 - Auburn (11)
10 - LSU (13)
11 - Stanford (15)
12 - Arizona (16)
13 - Utah (17)
14 - Michigan (14)
15 - Wisconsin (18)
16 - Michigan St (19)
17 - Missouri (20)
18 - Oklahoma St (21)
19 - USC (22)
20 - Nevada (23)
21 - NC State (UR)
22 - Kansas St (UR)
23 - Arkansas (10)
24 - Texas (8)
25 - Miami (UR)

Rank from previous week in parentheses

Others Receiving Votes: Air Force, Iowa, Northwestern, South Carolina, Texas A&M

Added: NC State, Kansas St, Miami

Dropped: South Carolina, West Virginia, Fresno St

Thursday, September 23, 2010

2010 Week 4 Picks

Week 1: 70-8 (89.7%)
Week 2: 61-9 (87.1%)
Week 3: 47-11 (81%)
Season: 178-28 (86.4%)

Thursday, September 23
Miami at Pitt


Friday, September 24
TCU at SMU


Saturday, September 25
Buffalo at Connecticut
NC State at Georgia Tech
Central Michigan at Northwestern
Virginia Tech at Boston College
FIU at Maryland
Northern Colorado at Michigan St
Bowling Green at Michigan
Austin Peay at Wisconsin
Ball St at Iowa
Toledo at Purdue

UAB at Tennessee
UCF at Kansas St
VMI at Virginia
Miami (OH) at Missouri
Air Force at Wyoming
Army at Duke
USC at Washington St
Alabama at Arkansas
Wake Forest at Florida St
Stanford at Notre Dame

North Carolina at Rutgers
Colgate at Syracuse
Eastern Michigan at Ohio St
Temple at Penn St
Tulane at Houston
UCLA at Texas
Arkansas St at Troy
Idaho at Colorado St
Nevada at BYU
Oklahoma at Cincinnati

Kentucky at Florida
Northern Iowa at Iowa St
Akron at Indiana
South Dakota St at Nebraska
Central Arkansas at Tulsa
Ohio at Marshall
MTSU at Louisiana Lafayette
Georgia at Mississippi St
North Texas at FAU
New Mexico St at Kansas

Southern Miss at Louisiana Tech
SE Louisiana at Louisiana Monroe
Western Kentucky at USF
Fresno St at Mississippi
South Carolina at Auburn
Utah St at San Diego St
Oregon St at Boise St
Baylor at Rice
San Jose St at Utah
Northern Illinois at Minnesota

West Virginia at LSU
Memphis at UTEP
Cal at Arizona
New Mexico at UNLV
Oregon at Arizona St
Charleston Southern at Hawaii

Wednesday, September 22, 2010

Week 4 Preview

Let's take a look around the conferences:
ACC - Boston College and NC State are the lone remaining undefeated teams. BC has only beaten Weber State and Kent State, but NC State has two of the conference's best non-conference wins against UCF and Cincinnati. The win over Cincinnati is the ACC's only win over an AQ team.
Big 12 - There are still seven remaining unbeaten teams, and only four teams have lost an non-conference game. The conference did have a lot of close calls last week. Oklahoma and Missouri beat Air Force and San Diego St respectively by field goals. FIU was leading Texas A&M 20-6 at the start of the fourth quarter before the Aggies rallied. On the other hand, Nebraska and Oklahoma State handled potentially dangerous opponents with ease.
Big East - After three weeks, the Big East has only beaten four FBS teams. West Virginia has two of them, and the other two were against Akron (0-3) and FIU (0-2). With four big games this week, the conference has a chance to make some noise or to keep piling up losses.
Big Ten - Who has allowed the fewest points in the Big Ten? Surprisingly, it's Northwestern. Michigan State could be a surprising contender in the Big Ten, especially since they miss Ohio State. Wisconsin had struggled at home, Michigan has defensive issues, and Penn State has offensive issues.
C-USA - Any chance that C-USA had to have a team make a BCS bowl is already gone as everyone has a loss. Everyone except Marshall has a win too. Houston lost both their starting and backup quarterback in a loss to UCLA last week. They shouldn't have any problems with Tulane at home Saturday, but the West is wide open unless they can recover quickly.
MAC - Temple scored a big win over Connecticut last week and is still unbeaten. Toledo has already won two conference road games against decent comparable competition.
Mountain West - The top of the MWC is really strong, but the bottom needs a lot of work. New Mexico is giving up exactly one point for every minute they've played. Colorado State has only scored 19 points in three games. UNLV only has slightly better numbers, but still no wins.
PAC-10 - Oregon leads the country in scoring offense (63 points per game) and scoring defense (4.33 points allowed per game.) Stanford's stats are similarly strong (51.67 for / 13.67 against), so their matchup in two weeks looms large.
SEC - Strange fact: Every team in the conference is either 3-0 or 1-2. The conference has only lost three non-conference games all season, although one of them was to Jacksonville State.
Sun Belt - No team in the conference has a winning record, and four haven't won a game yet. The conference as a whole has only beaten two FBS teams.
WAC - Nevada and Fresno State are receiving votes in both polls, raising the profile of the entire conference. If they keep winning, it will help Boise's quest to play for a national title.



Onto the upcoming week's games:
Miami at Pitt (Thursday) - Both teams are coming off a bye week looking for their first big win of the season.
South Carolina at Auburn - South Carolina goes on the road for the first time this season. They need to be able to win on the road if they are going to win the East.
Alabama at Arkansas - Alabama's first road game, Arkansas's best chance to pull a major upset, and Ryan Mallet's Heisman profile converge in this game.
Kentucky at Florida - Kentucky hasn't turned the ball over all season and Florida is forcing four per game. If Kentucky can hold onto the ball, an upset isn't out of the question.
Oregon St at Boise St - Hey, Gameday is leaving the southeast. Boise State tends to turn nationally televised games into statements.
FIU at Maryland - FIU has pushed Rutgers and Texas A&M already, so Maryland is definitely on upset alert.
Fresno St at Mississippi - Can the Rebels find a way to turn their season around? Another home loss will have people calling for Houston Nutt's head?
Temple at Penn St - Temple is coming off a big win over Connecticut, and this Penn State team has had trouble on offense. Another potential upset is brewing here.
Oklahoma at Cincinnati - This is one of those games that looks better on paper, like Oregon-Tennessee. Sooners win big.
Stanford at Notre Dame - This game should give Stanford the national recognition they deserve.
West Virginia at LSU - Despite beating Vanderbilt and Mississippi State by 20+ points, LSU still looks like a flawed team. Unless the offense picks up, they are liable to get upset.

Monday, September 20, 2010

Week 3 Top 25

1 - Alabama (1)
2 - Ohio St (2)
3 - Boise St (3)
4 - Oregon (4)
5 - TCU (5)
6 - Oklahoma (6)
7 - Nebraska (7)
8 - Texas (8)
9 - Florida (9)
10 - Arkansas (13)
11 - Auburn (15)
12 - South Carolina (16)
13 - LSU (12)
14 - Michigan (17)
15 - Stanford (18)
16 - Arizona (25)
17 - Utah (11)
18 - Wisconsin (14)
19 - Michigan St (UR)
20 - Missouri (UR)
21 - Oklahoma St (UR)
22 - USC (UR)
23 - Nevada (UR)
24 - West Virginia (21)
25 - Fresno St (22)

Rank from previous week in parentheses

Others Receiving Votes: Kansas St, Kentucky, NC State, Northwestern, Temple

Added: Michigan St, Missouri, Oklahoma St, USC, Nevada

Dropped: Iowa, Texas Tech, Air Force, UCLA, Clemson

Thursday, September 16, 2010

2010 Week 3 Picks

Week 1: 70-8 (89.7%)
Week 2: 61-9 (87.1%)
Season: 131-17 (88.5%)

Thursday, September 16
Cincinnati at NC State


Friday, September 17
Kansas at Southern Miss
Cal at Nevada


Saturday, September 18
Arkansas at Georgia
Akron at Kentucky
Indiana at Western Kentucky
UMass at Michigan
San Diego St at Missouri
Vanderbilt at Mississippi
Georgia Tech at North Carolina
Ohio at Ohio St
Tulsa at Oklahoma St
Kent St at Penn St

Connecticut at Temple
Northwestern at Rice
Maryland at West Virginia
Northern Illinois at Illinois
Louisiana Monroe at Arkansas St
Iowa St vs Kansas St at Kansas City
Portland St at Oregon
Ball St at Purdue
Furman at South Carolina
North Texas at Army

East Carolina at Virginia Tech
Hawaii at Colorado
BYU at Florida St
USC at Minnesota
Alabama at Duke
Colorado St at Miami (OH)
Air Force at Oklahoma
Nebraska at Washington
Arizona St at Wisconsin
Florida at Tennessee

Washington St at SMU
Troy at UAB
Central Michigan at Eastern Michigan
Baylor at TCU
Louisville at Oregon St
Clemson at Auburn
Marshall at Bowling Green
MTSU at Memphis
FIU at Texas A&M
UCF at Buffalo

Toledo at Western Michigan
Navy at Louisiana Tech
Maine at Syracuse
Southern Utah at San Jose St
Mississippi St at LSU
Notre Dame at Michigan St
Fresno St at Utah St
Texas at Texas Tech
Utah at New Mexico
Boise St at Wyoming

New Mexico St at UTEP
Iowa at Arizona
Houston at UCLA
UNLV at Idaho
Wake Forest at Stanford

Wednesday, September 15, 2010

Week 3 Preview

After two weeks, an obvious delta between the conferences can be seen. Every team in the Big XII has beaten an FBS team, and the entire Big XII South division is undefeated. On the other hand, less than half of the ACC and only one third of the Big East have beaten an FBS team. Not surprisingly, every team in the Sun Belt has lost already, and the MAC has just one unbeaten team left in Temple.

Wake Forest has scored 107 points in two games. The Demon Deacons only scored 104 in the first four games last season.

I was right about Florida and Alabama making statement games last week, but I completely missed on Oklahoma doing the same. The Sooners are looking more like the team I predicted to make the BCS National Championship Game.

After two weeks, there are 46 teams without a loss. Only 21 teams are winless. There are only five teams from AQ conferences without a win: North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Oregon St, UCLA and Vanderbilt.


A look at this week's upcoming games:
Iowa at Arizona - Two teams with Rose Bowl dreams looking for a big non-conference win. Iowa won this game 27-17 last year at Kinnick Stadium.
Nebraska at Washington - Nebraska gets their first test of the season. We'll know a lot more about the Huskers after this one.
Clemson at Auburn - ESPN College Gameday is going to be at this game. I think they should be in Tucson, but they don't appear to be leaving SEC country.
Georgia Tech at North Carolina - The first of many big Coastal division matchups.
Cal at Nevada - An underrated game between two unbeatens. These two have combined to score 204 points in the past two weeks.
Arkansas at Georgia - Arkansas get the first test and it's on the road.
Tulsa at Oklahoma State - Do you like offense? There should be a ton of scoring in this one.
BYU at Florida St - I'm surprised that both of these teams were dominated last week.
Air Force at Oklahoma - This could be a good game that most aren't paying attention to. Or it could be a Sooner blowout.
Notre Dame at Michigan State - The Spartans could use five straight home games to get off to huge start. Well, technically they played one of those games in Detroit.
Texas at Texas Tech - I think the last time these two teams met in Lubbock, it was a pretty important game.

Monday, September 13, 2010

Week 2 Top 25

1 - Alabama (1)
2 - Ohio St (2)
3 - Boise St (3)
4 - Oregon (4)
5 - TCU (5)
6 - Oklahoma (7)
7 - Nebraska (6)
8 - Texas (8)
9 - Florida (9)
10 - Iowa (10)
11 - Utah (12)
12 - LSU (13)
13 - Arkansas (15)
14 - Wisconsin (16)
15 - Auburn (23)
16 - South Carolina (25)
17 - Michigan (UR)
18 - Stanford (UR)
19 - Texas Tech (UR)
20 - Air Force (UR)
21 - West Virginia (21)
22 - Fresno St (UR)
23 - Houston (22)
24 - Clemson (24)
25 - Arizona (UR)

Rank from previous week in parentheses

Others Receiving Votes: Cal, Michigan St, Missouri, Oklahoma St, USC

Added: Michigan, Stanford, Texas Tech, Air Force, Fresno St, Arizona

Dropped: Miami, Penn St, Virginia Tech, BYU, Florida St, Georgia Tech

Thursday, September 9, 2010

2010 Week 2 Picks

Week 1: 70-8 (89.7%)
Season: 70-8 (89.7%)

Thursday, September 9
Auburn at Mississippi St
Central Michigan at Temple


Friday, September 10
West Virginia at Marshall
UTEP at Houston


Saturday, September 11
Texas Southern at Connecticut
Illinois St at Northwestern
South Dakota at Minnesota
Memphis at East Carolina
Duke at Wake Forest
San Jose St at Wisconsin
Hawaii at Army
Gardner-Webb at Akron
Indiana St at Cincinnati
Michigan St vs FAU at Detroit

Georgia Tech at Kansas
Western Illinois at Purdue
Georgia at South Carolina
USF at Florida
Idaho at Nebraska
New Hampshire at Pitt
James Madison at Virginia Tech
Eastern Michigan at Miami (OH)
Colorado at Cal
Michigan at Notre Dame

Eastern Kentucky at Louisville
Kent St at Boston College
Florida St at Oklahoma
Presbyterian at Clemson
Arkansas St at Louisiana-Lafayette
Iowa St at Iowa
Georgia Southern at Navy
Miami at Ohio St
UNLV at Utah
BYU at Air Force

Morgan St at Maryland
McNeese St at Missouri
Toledo at Ohio
Troy at Oklahoma St
Bowling Green at Tulsa
LSU at Vanderbilt
Buffalo at Baylor
Louisiana Tech at Texas A&M
Rice at North Texas
Wyoming at Texas

Syracuse at Washington
Montana St at Washington St
Penn St at Alabama
Liberty at Ball St
Austin Peay at MTSU
Louisiana Monroe at Arkansas at Little Rock
North Dakota at Northern Illinois
Prairie View A&M at Southern Miss
Tennessee Tech at TCU
Oregon at Tennessee

Nicholls St at Western Michigan
Missouri St at Kansas St
Western Kentucky at Kentucky
Southern Illinois at Illinois
NC State at UCF
San Diego St at New Mexico St
Texas Tech at New Mexico
Idaho St at Utah St
Rutgers at FIU
UAB at SMU

Mississippi at Tulane
Northern Arizona at Arizona St
Citadel at Arizona
Stanford at UCLA
Virginia at USC
Colorado St at Nevada

Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Week 2 Preview

First a look back at the first weekend of college football. Several great endings and other good games made it easy to forget all of the blowouts in week one. The winners won their games by an average of over 24 points. Several of the top non-AQ teams started off the season strong as Boise State, Fresno St, Utah, TCU and BYU all scored impressive wins. On the other hand, USC, Texas, Oklahoma and Florida all started off the season with less than impressive wins. Michigan started off with an notable win over Connecticut, but they started off strong before fading hard down the stretch last year. We'll see if RichRod can keep it up for the entire season.


A quick preview of the top games of the upcoming week:
Miami at Ohio State - Both teams plays overmatched competition in the first week, so this is a tough game to pick. The winning quarterback will make a big jump in the Heisman race.
Florida St at Oklahoma - OU's struggles against Utah State make this game even more interesting for a team that hasn't lost at home since the first game of the 2005 season.
Georgia at South Carolina - I thought this game was for second place in the SEC East. It's early, but it could be even more important.
Michigan at Notre Dame - This game is getting overhyped, but still worth watching.
USF at Florida - I'm guessing the Gators make a statement here.
Penn State at Alabama - I feel certain Alabama makes a statement here.
Oregon at Tennessee - These two teams outscored their opponents 122-0 last week.
Georgia Tech at Kansas - Can the Jayhawks bounce back after an embarrassing loss to North Dakota State? I say no.

Tuesday, September 7, 2010

Week 1 Top 25

1 - Alabama (1)
2 - Ohio St (2)
3 - Boise St (3)
4 - Oregon (4)
5 - TCU (5)
6 - Nebraska (10)
7 - Oklahoma (7)
8 - Texas (8)
9 - Florida (9)
10 - Iowa (11)
11 - Miami (12)
12 - Utah (13)
13 - LSU (17)
14 - Penn St (15)
15 - Arkansas (16)
16 - Wisconsin (18)
17 - Virginia Tech (6)
18 - BYU (UR)
19 - Florida St (20)
20 - Georgia Tech (21)
21 - West Virginia (22)
22 - Houston (23)
23 - Auburn (24)
24 - Clemson (25)
25 - South Carolina (UR)

Rank from previous week in parentheses

Others Receiving Votes: Arizona, Fresno St, Georgia, Michigan, Stanford

Added: BYU, South Carolina

Dropped: Pitt, North Carolina

Wednesday, September 1, 2010

2010 Week 1 Picks

Thursday, September 2
Presbyterian at Wake Forest
SE Missouri St at Ball St
Rhode Island at Buffalo
Hampton at Central Michigan
Murray St at Kent St
Towson at Indiana
Norfolk St at Rutgers
Marshall at Ohio St
Florida A&M at Miami
Minnesota at MTSU

Southern Miss at South Carolina
FAU at UAB
Northern Illinois at Iowa St
SE Louisiana at Tulane
Pitt at Utah
North Dakota at Idaho
Eastern Washington at Nevada
USC at Hawaii


Friday, September 3
Villanova at Temple
Arizona at Toledo


Saturday, September 4
Samford at Florida St
Miami (OH) at Florida
Western Michigan at Michigan St
Youngstown St at Penn St
Eastern Illinois at Iowa
Louisiana-Lafayette at Georgia
Illinois vs Missouri at St. Louis
South Carolina St at Georgia Tech
Weber St at Boston College
Colorado St vs Colorado at Denver

Northwestern St at Air Force
Purdue vs Notre Dame
Kentucky at Louisville
Connecticut at Michigan
Jacksonville St at Mississippi
North Texas at Clemson
Texas at Rice at Reliant Stadium
Coastal Carolina vs West Virginia
UCLA at Kansas St
New Mexico at Oregon

UC Davis at Cal
Western Carolina at NC State
Richmond at Virginia
Syracuse at Akron
South Dakota at UCF
Tennessee-Martin at Tennessee
Sacramento St at Stanford
Arkansas St at Auburn
Tennessee Tech at Arkansas
Elon at Duke

Western Kentucky at Nebraska
Wofford at Ohio
Washington St at Oklahoma St
Utah St at Oklahoma
Sam Houston St at Baylor
Stephen F Austin at Texas A&M
Washington at BYU
San Jose St at Alabama
Memphis at Mississippi St
Army at Eastern Michigan

North Dakota St at Kansas
Bowling Green at Troy
Grambling St vs Louisiana Tech at Shreveport
Stony Brook at USF
Northwestern at Vanderbilt
Oregon St vs TCU at Arlington
Nicholls St at San Diego St
LSU vs North Carolina at Atlanta
Texas St at Houston
Southern Utah at Wyoming

Arkansas-Pine Bluff at UTEP
Portland St at Arizona St
Cincinnati at Fresno St
Wisconsin at UNLV


Sunday, September 5
Tulsa at East Carolina
SMU at Texas Tech

Monday, September 6
Navy vs Maryland at Baltimore
Boise St vs Virginia Tech at Landover