I am still bitter about last week’s lock of the week. For those of you that didn’t watch the high profile, showcased game up in Syracuse last Saturday (yes that is sarcasm), the Orangemen beat Toledo in overtime, but not without the help of the bungling referees calling a late extra point of Syracuse’s good without it ever going through the up rights. To make matters worse, the play was reviewed, and they still got it wrong! The Big East went as far as issuing a statement saying as such.
Regardless, I am over now (somewhat), however it still forces me to put an asterisk next to my 4-2* record last week. So for those of you counting, I am now 6-4 on the season and here’s what the slate looks like coming up this weekend:
14Texas A&M -2 ½ at 18Arkansas
Both squads are coming off of disappointing showings last week. The Aggies, however, had their game in hand with a 20-3 lead at the half with the 12th man at their back until Oklahoma St. exploded in the third quarter scoring 27 unanswered points and never looking back. Turnovers killed A&M in that game as four times they handed the ball over to the Cowboys. Arkansas was never really close with Bama and managed just 17 yards on the ground as they got trounced in Tuscaloosa.
So the future conference mates are both trying to avoid losing 2 in a row and they’ll be doing it at the 90,000 plus capacity Cowboy stadium in Arlington. If the Razorbacks hope to win, they need to get Ronnie Wingo going again, which means not getting down early and having to depend on first year starter Tyler Wilson to throw it all over the field. Big play guys like Cobi Hamiliton should also be more involved as he only managed 1 catch for 19 yards last week; they won’t beat A&M if their leading receiver is Wingo coming out of the backfield again.
As for the Aggies, stop turning the ball over! It looked like a circus in the third quarter last week and Ryan Tannehill seemed panicked as he threw the ball into coverage……over and over and over. He’s not poised in the pocket and already is two-thirds of the way to his interception total from last season. Additionally, A&M’s secondary was exposed for the sieve that it is and the safe bet hear is to take Arkansas with the points. They just simply have more talent.
Scott – Arkansas
Sef Sam Holy – Texas A&M
13Clemson +7 at 11VaTech
Wow! Where did Clemson come from? Seemingly out of nowhere, they have started 4-0, coming back to beat Auburn two weeks ago and dominating Florida State last week. They had more yards on FSU in the first half than Oklahoma had all game the previous week. Tajh Boyd lit up the sky for 344 yards and 3 touchdowns and no one was a more coveted target than Sammy Watkins who hauled in 7 catches for 141 and 2 scores. When we sprinkle in a little bit of Andre Ellington, it is easy to see why head coach Dabo Swinney can’t think of a better place to be than Death Valley, SC.
The Hokies, on the other hand, come into this game at an undefeated 4-0, but they aren’t battle tested. They have taken care of the likes of Appalachian St. and Arkansas St. and couple other who care’s as their current record is more a reflection of well…. Nothing. The Va Tech quarterback Logan Thomas is another one of those intimidating figures standing at 6 feet 6 inches tall and tipping the scales at 254, but he’s also an inexperienced first year starter who has as many touchdown passes as interceptions this year. He looked down right atrocious in his first two games against App St. and East Carolina throwing for a combined 240 yards and completing just 43.7% of his passes. Yes, he can get out and run on you a little bit, but he will be nursing a sprained shoulder this week and if he goes down, the Hokies will have to depend on red shirt freshman Mark Leal to get the job done. At just 6 feet tall, he’s built a little bit more like a Rex Grossman.
I like the dynamic athletes of Clemson in this one, and I think it’s a really safe bet to take the underdog here as well getting the 7 points in Blacksburg. Clemson is legit.
Scott – Clemson
Sef Sam Holy – Clemson
3Alabama -3 ½ at 12Florida
The Crimson Tide, once again, dominated a formidable opponent last week. The win was led by Trent Richardson having a monster game. The Bama junior had 126 yards on just 17 carries while adding 3 catches for 85 yards, one of which went for 61 and a touchdown. The long score came on the drive immediately following Marquis Maze’s 83 yard punt return as this game was about big plays and was no contest for the tide early in the third quarter.
Florida took care of business against Kentucky last week. The Charlie Weiss offense is doing everything that was expected of it as John Brantley continues to spread the ball around magnificently. But the storyline of this game is on the sideline. Nick Saban of Alabama will be facing off for the first time against his friend and former colleague, Will Muschamp. Muschamp was on Saban’s staff at LSU when he hired him away from Valdosta St. in 2000 and followed him briefly into the NFL during his short stint with the Miami Dolphins 2005. The two are quick to dismiss any familiarity advantage on either side, but the similarities in the styles of defenses between Florida and Alabama is hard to deny.
The coaching staff in Gainesville is the reason Florida will be hosting the Tide with an undefeated record. But the Gators lack the big play guys and just don’t have the talent at the skill positions that Alabama has. Although “The Swamp” is a difficult place to go into and win, I like the Tide to roll once again and cover the 3 ½ points this Saturday night.
Scott – Alabama
Sef Sam Holy - Florida
GAME OF THE WEEK
8Nebraska +9 at 7Wisconsin
This is the inaugural conference game for the Big Ten newcomers from Lincoln and what a way to start conference play. The Cornhuskers and Badgers both come into this game undefeated (which seems to be the theme this week) but it is Nebraska who has something to prove as they are nearly a 9 point underdog headed into Madison. Led by true sophomore Taylor Martinez, Bo Pelini’s team will have their work cut out for them against a Badger squad averaging over 48 points a game. But if we have learned anything by watching Nebraska this year, it is that Martinez has proven that he can both keep the ball on the ground as a dynamic runner as well as chuck the tater proficiently around the field. So despite the Husker QB being the leading rusher on the team, it is only by one yard as Martinez and tailback, Rex Burkhead, have virtually the same stat line. (Martinez has 63 carries for 421 yards and 7 td’s to Burkhead’s 63/421/7.) When you add Martinez’s 647 yards through the air, he has already amassed nearly 1000 yards of total offense through just 4 games.
The Husker issues come on the defensive side of the ball where the black shirts have given up lots of points to mediocre opponents. Fresno St and Washington put up 29 and 38 points respectively and that type of defense play simply won’t get the job done against Wisconsin. Russell Wilson, on the other hand, has already eclipsed the 1000 yard mark, albeit exclusively through the air with 1,136 yards passing and 11 touchdowns. Wilson’s success since transferring from NC State has been largely due to his poise inside the pocket along with his elusiveness when things break down. It doesn’t hurt to have the massive 6 foot 3 inch 220 lbs Nick Toon (son of legendary Badger Al Toon) on the other end of 21 of those passes and 5 of those touchdowns. But Wisconsin can run the ball too. Montee Ball and James White have amassed 663 yards on the ground combined which is very representative of a serviceable ground game.
This is a tough game to call, and not necessarily who is going to win, because it is obvious that Wisconsin is the better team. Russell Wilson is creeping up on Heisman lists, but Taylor Martinez, with which the entire Husker offense runs through, seems to get better every week. I believe Nebraska makes it a game in a losing effort and covers the spread. Badgers take it by one score.
Scott – Nebraska
Sef Sam Holy - Wisconsin
ITRIGUE OF THE WEEK
15Baylor -3 ½ at Kansas St.
Baylor quarterback Robert Griffin III had that fantastic coming out party on the opening night of the college season against TCU, and since then, we really haven’t heard that much about him. This is mainly because Baylor has played the likes of Stephen F. Austin and Rice in the last two weeks and up until Kansas St. took it to Miami last week, this game looked to be much of the same. But the Wildcats looked good against Miami and no one looked better than low to the ground sophomore running back John Hubert who carried the ball 18 times for 166 yards and a score. If Kansas St. hopes to have a shot in this game, they will have to keep the ball on the ground and mix in some of that lead option they used against Miami with Quarterback Collin Klein.
The Bears will go through Griffin early and often, and expect them to try and do so through the air first. If they get a big lead it will be difficult for Kansas St. to come back. Klein is not that great of a passer and forcing him into passing situations is how Miami was able to get back in the game last week. Neither defense is anything to be excited about and I fully expect Baylor to cover the 3 ½ points at Bill Snyder Stadium in Manhattan, but this game will be a lot more interesting than pundits thought just one week ago.
Scott – Baylor
Sef Sam Holy - Baylor
LOCK OF THE WEEK
West Virginia -19 ½ at Bowling Green
The Mountaineers look to bounce back from laying an egg in front of their home crowd and I fully expect them to score first, and score often. Take W. Virgina as the lock of the week to cover the 19 ½ point spread.
Scott – West Virginia
Sef Sam Holy – West Virginia
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