Didn't get to watch too many games this past weekend, I caught the endings of ASU-Wash and USC-Utah, two great finishes. I was pretty shocked to see that LSU pulled off the upset, I didn't feel like they were that strong this year. Here's a look at my new Top 25.
Top 25
1-Mississippi State
2-Florida State
3-Michigan State
4-Auburn
5-Georgia
6-Oregon
7-Alabama
8-Notre Dame
9-Ole Miss
10-Ohio State
11-Baylor
12-TCU
13-Arizona State
14-Kansas State
15-Arizona
16-East Carolina
17-Utah
18-Oklahoma
19-Nebraska
20-Duke
21-Marshall
22-West Virginia
23-Clemson
24-LSU
25-Wisconsin
Predictions
Last week I was 7-3, and now sit at 55-32 for the season. Here are some big games this week.
Florida State at Louisville: I still feel like FSU will stumble at some point, I just don't know if it will be in the regular season.
Florida State 35 Louisville 24
Northwestern at Iowa: I'm really hoping Iowa will come out and smack Northwestern in the mouth after a crazy off week.
Iowa 34 Northwestern 24
Florida vs Georgia: This game might get ugly for the Gators, Georgia is rolling right now.
Georgia 37 Florida 21
TCU at West Virginia: West Virginia's ridiculous schedule continues with one of the hottest teams in the country coming to town. Don't expect much defense, this game might be the hardest to predict this week.
West Virginia 45 TCU 42
New Mexico at UNLV: The Lobos seem to play better on the road, and UNLV isn't that good this year.
New Mexico 31 UNLV 24
Auburn at Ole Miss: Both teams need a win if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive, I think Ole Miss rebounds.
Ole Miss 31 Auburn 28
Arkansas at Mississippi State: Arkansas has come so close to pulling a big upset, can they actually do it this week? I think they will.
Arkansas 28 Mississippi State 24
Stanford at Oregon: Stanford has seemed to fall off the map a bit but they always play well with Oregon.
Oregon 34 Stanford 28
Arizona at UCLA: This game is big for the division, UCLA has been a strange team all season long and Arizona keeps surprising me.
Arizona 45 UCLA 44
Utah at Arizona State: I had a feeling Utah would be decent this year, but I didn't thin they'd crack the top 25.
Arizona State 27 Utah 21
Heisman Watch
Marcus Mariota QB Oregon 218-150-2,283-24-1 62-325-5
Cody Kessler QB USC 265-186-2,148-20-2
Dak Prescott QB Mississippi State 189-114-1,694-15-5 124-664-10
Anu Solomon QB Arizona 316-200-2,430-20-4
Everett Golson QB Notre Dame 268-166-1,996-19-6
Ameer Adbullah RB Nebraska 180-1,249-17 19 total td
Melvin Gordon RB Wisconsin 154-1,168-16 17 total td
Amari Cooper WR Alabama 71-1,132-9
Keep an eye on Trevone Boykin QB of TCU and Brett Hundley of UCLA.
Thursday, October 30, 2014
Thursday, October 23, 2014
Week 9 Preview and Rankings
Another interesting weekend of college football is in the books and the playoff race is starting to take shape a bit. The Florida State-Notre Dame game lived up to the hype, and I actually predicted the exact score! That rarely happens. What a finish! I noticed Texas A&M still received a vote in one of the polls, not sure if that person has caught any of their last three games or not. All of their losses have been to top 10 teams, but still, none were close. You won't see them anywhere near my top 25. At this point of the season we only have four unbeaten teams: Ole Miss, Mississippi State, Florida State and Marshall. I don't think we'll see Marshall in the playoff and one of the Mississippi teams will lose when they play each other, so Florida State has the easiest path to the playoff. They still play Louisville, the ACC title game, and against a struggling Florida team. I think Ohio State is on a roll right now and could knock off Michigan State and play their way in to the playoffs. Georgia is another team that is playing well right now, and they have a schedule that could put them right near the top at the end of the season. Should be interesting how it all plays out.
TOP 25
1-Ole Miss
2-Mississippi State
3-Florida State
4-Michigan State
5-Auburn
6-Georgia
7-Oregon
8-Notre Dame
9-Alabama
10-Ohio State
11-Baylor
12-TCU
13-Arizona State
14-Kansas State
15-Arizona
16-East Carolina
17-Utah
18-Oklahoma
19-Nebraska
20-Duke
21-USC
22-Marshall
23-West Virginia
24-Clemson
25-Minnesota
PREDICTIONS
Well, last week I was only 5-4, but like I said, I nailed the FSU-ND game! I'm now 48-29 on the season. Not really a big marquee matchup this weekend, but there should be some great games. The two teams I follow, Iowa and New Mexico, are off this week.
Maryland at Wisconsin: I came away pretty impressed with Maryland after they beat my Hawkeyes last week, they've got some playmakers. Wisconsin is still struggling with QB play, but Melvin Gordon should be able to rack up a ton of yards on the ground.
Wisconsin 34 Maryland 28
Michigan at Michigan State: Michigan has a chance to save their season with a win, but they're just not really that good. I'm not sure what the problem is, but I like it.
Michigan State 31 Michigan 17
West Virginia at Oklahoma State: West Virginia has one of the toughest schedules in the country, they had already lost to Alabama and Oklahoma before knocking off Baylor. Can they keep the momentum rolling against the Cowboys who were just slaughtered by TCU?
West Virginia 42 Oklahoma State 28
Oregon State at Stanford: Stanford is really down right now, Oregon State just had a tough loss to Utah, both teams really need a win right now.
Stanford 27 Oregon State 21
Georgia Tech at Pittsburgh: Both of these teams still have a shot to win their division. I haven't seen GT play this year, and I've seen Pitt a couple times. If Pitt has better QB play they'd be a solid team.
Pittsburgh 27 Georgia Tech 24
Ole Miss at LSU: I think LSU is a little down this year, and Ole Miss is really playing well. Could be a tough game on the road, but I think they'll pull it off.
Ole Miss 31 LSU 23
South Carolina at Auburn: At the beginning of the season this looked like one of the biggest games of the year. Auburn needs a win, they've got a brutal schedule in November.
Auburn 38 South Carolina 27
Ohio State at Penn State: Penn State has been really struggling lately and Ohio State has been playing as well as anyone in the country. Can the Nittany Lions stop the Buckeyes?
Ohio State 38 Penn State 21
USC at Utah: Utah is right in the thick of things in the race for the division and could really be a threat if they knock off USC. Not sure which USC team will show up for this one.
USC 27 Utah 24
Arizona State at Washington: This should be a good game, I think Arizona State has a pretty dynamic offense. Should be a classic high-scoring Pac 12 game.
Arizona State 42 Washington 34
HEISMAN WATCH
Marcus Mariota QB Oregon
Dak Prescott QB Mississippi State
Melvin Gordon RB Wisconsin
Ameer Adbullah RB Nebraska
Everett Golson QB Notre Dame
Cody Kessler QB USC
Tevin Coleman RB Indiana
Amari Cooper WR Alabama
Shane Carden QB East Carolina
Anu Solomon QB Arizona
Tony Lippett WR Michigan State
The Heisman race is still way up in the air, Kessler is quietly having a great season, but can USC win enough to keep him in contention? I would love to see a running back win it this year.
TOP 25
1-Ole Miss
2-Mississippi State
3-Florida State
4-Michigan State
5-Auburn
6-Georgia
7-Oregon
8-Notre Dame
9-Alabama
10-Ohio State
11-Baylor
12-TCU
13-Arizona State
14-Kansas State
15-Arizona
16-East Carolina
17-Utah
18-Oklahoma
19-Nebraska
20-Duke
21-USC
22-Marshall
23-West Virginia
24-Clemson
25-Minnesota
PREDICTIONS
Well, last week I was only 5-4, but like I said, I nailed the FSU-ND game! I'm now 48-29 on the season. Not really a big marquee matchup this weekend, but there should be some great games. The two teams I follow, Iowa and New Mexico, are off this week.
Maryland at Wisconsin: I came away pretty impressed with Maryland after they beat my Hawkeyes last week, they've got some playmakers. Wisconsin is still struggling with QB play, but Melvin Gordon should be able to rack up a ton of yards on the ground.
Wisconsin 34 Maryland 28
Michigan at Michigan State: Michigan has a chance to save their season with a win, but they're just not really that good. I'm not sure what the problem is, but I like it.
Michigan State 31 Michigan 17
West Virginia at Oklahoma State: West Virginia has one of the toughest schedules in the country, they had already lost to Alabama and Oklahoma before knocking off Baylor. Can they keep the momentum rolling against the Cowboys who were just slaughtered by TCU?
West Virginia 42 Oklahoma State 28
Oregon State at Stanford: Stanford is really down right now, Oregon State just had a tough loss to Utah, both teams really need a win right now.
Stanford 27 Oregon State 21
Georgia Tech at Pittsburgh: Both of these teams still have a shot to win their division. I haven't seen GT play this year, and I've seen Pitt a couple times. If Pitt has better QB play they'd be a solid team.
Pittsburgh 27 Georgia Tech 24
Ole Miss at LSU: I think LSU is a little down this year, and Ole Miss is really playing well. Could be a tough game on the road, but I think they'll pull it off.
Ole Miss 31 LSU 23
South Carolina at Auburn: At the beginning of the season this looked like one of the biggest games of the year. Auburn needs a win, they've got a brutal schedule in November.
Auburn 38 South Carolina 27
Ohio State at Penn State: Penn State has been really struggling lately and Ohio State has been playing as well as anyone in the country. Can the Nittany Lions stop the Buckeyes?
Ohio State 38 Penn State 21
USC at Utah: Utah is right in the thick of things in the race for the division and could really be a threat if they knock off USC. Not sure which USC team will show up for this one.
USC 27 Utah 24
Arizona State at Washington: This should be a good game, I think Arizona State has a pretty dynamic offense. Should be a classic high-scoring Pac 12 game.
Arizona State 42 Washington 34
HEISMAN WATCH
Marcus Mariota QB Oregon
Dak Prescott QB Mississippi State
Melvin Gordon RB Wisconsin
Ameer Adbullah RB Nebraska
Everett Golson QB Notre Dame
Cody Kessler QB USC
Tevin Coleman RB Indiana
Amari Cooper WR Alabama
Shane Carden QB East Carolina
Anu Solomon QB Arizona
Tony Lippett WR Michigan State
The Heisman race is still way up in the air, Kessler is quietly having a great season, but can USC win enough to keep him in contention? I would love to see a running back win it this year.
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Iowa 45 Indiana 29 and Iowa-Maryland preview
What a crazy game this weekend, I knew Indiana had a pretty bad defense coming in, but Iowa scored 28 in the first quarter, one of the touchdowns came on a Desmond King pick six. 28 is not a point total Iowa is used to this season in an entire game. They also had over 200 yards in the quarter. The offense slowed down a bit the rest of the game, but they held on for a nice 45-29 homecoming victory. Hoosier running back Tevin Coleman had a huge day with three long touchdown runs, he leads the NCAA in rushing. Other than those three runs and a big pass pass play the defense played well and they knocked QB Nate Sudfeld out of the game. Who knows if the defense could have shut down Indiana with Sudfeld in, but his backup Covington looked awful. Iowa improved to 2-0 in the conference and 5-1 overall.
1st Quarter
The game started like most Iowa games do, with the Hawkeyes on offense and a quick three and out. Indiana followed quickly with a three and out of their own, that's when the game got interesting. On the next drive Jake Rudock was really clicking and they had some nice runs by Jordan Canzeri sprinkled in as well. The drive was capped off by a touchdown pass to Jake Duzey for a 7-0 lead. Iowa again went for it on fourth down deep in the red zone and picked up the first down. On Indiana's next possession, King got his first interception and ran in back 35 yards to put Iowa up 14-0. The defense again came up big again with Indiana going three and out. On the first play of Iowa's next drive, Rudock hit the speedy Damond Powell for a 72 yard touchdown, 21-0! It was looking like a blowout at this point, but two plays later Coleman rushed for an 83 yard score cutting the lead to 21-7 and giving Indiana some life. The Hoosiers kicked a quick onside kick and recovered it, but there was an offside call so they had to re-kick, which gave Iowa great field position. The field position didn't matter, on the first play they called a jet sweep to speedy freshmen, Jonathan Parker, who took it 60 yards for a score, 28-7! Before the quarter ended, Sudfeld hit Shane Wynn for a big 62 yard gain to put the Hoosiers in great scoring position.
2nd Quarter
Indiana scored another touchdown cutting the lead down to 28-14, they once again tried an onside kick and recovered again, no penalty. With decent field position it looked like they were gaining some momentum until Sudfeld was sacked by Drew Ott and Carl Davis. Sudfeld was injured on the play and I've learned that he will be out for the year, which is a huge blow for Indiana. They brought in a freshmen QB who wasn't recruited as a QB. That play pretty much sealed the win for Iowa. Indiana punted away to Iowa and their next drive was a three and out. Indiana had great field position and on the first play Coleman took one 45 yards for another score, now 28-21. Iowa was going to experiment a bit more with the two QB system and C.J. Beathard got his first series of the game, but couldn't muster much of anything as Iowa went three and out once again. The Hawkeye defense held Indiana to a three and out and they came back with Rudock on the next possession. A big 31 yard pass to Tevaun Smith and a heavy dose of Mark Weisman runs led to a Marshall Koehn field goal, 31-21 now, giving Iowa a little more breathing room. On Indiana's next possession Convington's third down pass was deflected and intercepted by freshmen, Bo Bower, his second of the season. Iowa had 3:36 on the clock and were 37 yards away from another touchdown. With one second left on the clock at the one yard line, Ferentz decided to go for it and Weisman plowed through for another touchdown putting the score at halftime 38-21, a pretty nice cushion for the Hawkeyes.
3rd Quarter
The third quarter was nothing like the first half, the first seven possessions led to seven punts and only a total of three first downs. Iowa started a drive with 1:15 left in the quarter with Beathard at the helm. On the final play of the quarter Beathard, on third and nine, ran for 20 yards picking up a big first down.
4th Quarter
A few plays into the quarter, Weisman was again running into the end zone from a yard out, putting the score at 45-21. It felt like a comfortable lead until a few plays later when Coleman scampered 69 yards for another score. The point conversion made it 45-29. They traded a couple of possessions and Iowa had the ball with 7:23 left starting at their six yard line. They were able to pick up a couple of first downs and run some clock with some Weisman runs, a Dillon Kidd punt left Indiana at the 24 with 3:14 left needing two scores and two two point conversions. Covington was putting together a nice drive and had the Hoosiers down to the Iowa 11, but Jordan Lomax intercepted the next pass in the end zone, sealing the win for the Hawkeyes. Three more Weisman runs ended the game 45-29. It was nice to see Iowa's offense explode like that and get some big plays, which they've been really lacking all year. Parker is a speedster and I hope to see him more involved in the offense. Rudock clearly won the QB battle as Beathard only finished 2 for 5 with 9 yards. Iowa's defense held Indiana passers to 7 for 21 and had 3 interceptions on the day. If it weren't for Coleman, this game would have been a blowout.
QB: Rudock clearly played much better than Beathard completing 19 of 27 for 210 yards, great game for Jake.
RB: Weisman carried the ball 25 times, mostly in the fourth quarter running the clock. Canzeri had some nice runs early, Damon Bullock had a nice run that was called back on a penalty. And, of course, Parker had a huge touchdown run. Solid game for the backs.
WR: The WRs had a nice day, I think Smith is the best one on the team and Powell had a nice game, too. The group looked much better than the Purdue game.
TE: Duzey had a touchdown and caught four passes, Ray Hamilton had a catch as well.
OL: Jordan Walsh got injured on the first drive and Tommy Gaul came in at center, Austin Blythe moved to RG. I thought the line played great, possibly the best game they've had all year.
DL: Ott, LTP and Nate Meier combined for 21 tackles and I thought the DL looked pretty good. They were able to get some pressure on the QB and stuffed the run pretty well besides the three big ones.
LB: They're going to keep getting better, there's not much experience at all at LB. They're a big reason for giving up some of these big plays. In a couple of years this should be a strong unit, I really like Bower.
DB: King had his first career interception, he did have one miscue, but had a solid game as always and he's a great tackler. John Lowdermilk probably had his worst game, he was out of place on several plays and that cost the defense some points.
ST: Koehn has been real solid since the first two games, Kidd had an ok day punting.
IOWA AT MARYLAND
I watched Maryland play against West Virginia earlier this year and they can score points quickly, they can also give up points quickly, so this game could be similar to the Indiana game. Iowa would love to carry the offensive momentum into this road game, their first meeting ever with Maryland. The Terps offensive coordinator, Mike Locksley, was head coach down here at New Mexico briefly and did an awful job, he's better suited as an O.C. The Terps feature the best WR duo in the Big Ten, Stefon Diggs and Deon Long, I saw Long play at New Mexico as a freshmen and you knew he was going to be a good one. Iowa's LBs and secondary are going to have to come up huge in this game to shut these guys down, the DL will have to step up, too and get more pressure. I think Iowa will be able to shut down their run game, which could make Maryland one dimensional. Iowa should be able to have some balance on offense as Maryland's defense has struggled, I like Iowa to have the edge in this one, but it should be close. IOWA 28 MARYLAND 24
1st Quarter
The game started like most Iowa games do, with the Hawkeyes on offense and a quick three and out. Indiana followed quickly with a three and out of their own, that's when the game got interesting. On the next drive Jake Rudock was really clicking and they had some nice runs by Jordan Canzeri sprinkled in as well. The drive was capped off by a touchdown pass to Jake Duzey for a 7-0 lead. Iowa again went for it on fourth down deep in the red zone and picked up the first down. On Indiana's next possession, King got his first interception and ran in back 35 yards to put Iowa up 14-0. The defense again came up big again with Indiana going three and out. On the first play of Iowa's next drive, Rudock hit the speedy Damond Powell for a 72 yard touchdown, 21-0! It was looking like a blowout at this point, but two plays later Coleman rushed for an 83 yard score cutting the lead to 21-7 and giving Indiana some life. The Hoosiers kicked a quick onside kick and recovered it, but there was an offside call so they had to re-kick, which gave Iowa great field position. The field position didn't matter, on the first play they called a jet sweep to speedy freshmen, Jonathan Parker, who took it 60 yards for a score, 28-7! Before the quarter ended, Sudfeld hit Shane Wynn for a big 62 yard gain to put the Hoosiers in great scoring position.
2nd Quarter
Indiana scored another touchdown cutting the lead down to 28-14, they once again tried an onside kick and recovered again, no penalty. With decent field position it looked like they were gaining some momentum until Sudfeld was sacked by Drew Ott and Carl Davis. Sudfeld was injured on the play and I've learned that he will be out for the year, which is a huge blow for Indiana. They brought in a freshmen QB who wasn't recruited as a QB. That play pretty much sealed the win for Iowa. Indiana punted away to Iowa and their next drive was a three and out. Indiana had great field position and on the first play Coleman took one 45 yards for another score, now 28-21. Iowa was going to experiment a bit more with the two QB system and C.J. Beathard got his first series of the game, but couldn't muster much of anything as Iowa went three and out once again. The Hawkeye defense held Indiana to a three and out and they came back with Rudock on the next possession. A big 31 yard pass to Tevaun Smith and a heavy dose of Mark Weisman runs led to a Marshall Koehn field goal, 31-21 now, giving Iowa a little more breathing room. On Indiana's next possession Convington's third down pass was deflected and intercepted by freshmen, Bo Bower, his second of the season. Iowa had 3:36 on the clock and were 37 yards away from another touchdown. With one second left on the clock at the one yard line, Ferentz decided to go for it and Weisman plowed through for another touchdown putting the score at halftime 38-21, a pretty nice cushion for the Hawkeyes.
3rd Quarter
The third quarter was nothing like the first half, the first seven possessions led to seven punts and only a total of three first downs. Iowa started a drive with 1:15 left in the quarter with Beathard at the helm. On the final play of the quarter Beathard, on third and nine, ran for 20 yards picking up a big first down.
4th Quarter
A few plays into the quarter, Weisman was again running into the end zone from a yard out, putting the score at 45-21. It felt like a comfortable lead until a few plays later when Coleman scampered 69 yards for another score. The point conversion made it 45-29. They traded a couple of possessions and Iowa had the ball with 7:23 left starting at their six yard line. They were able to pick up a couple of first downs and run some clock with some Weisman runs, a Dillon Kidd punt left Indiana at the 24 with 3:14 left needing two scores and two two point conversions. Covington was putting together a nice drive and had the Hoosiers down to the Iowa 11, but Jordan Lomax intercepted the next pass in the end zone, sealing the win for the Hawkeyes. Three more Weisman runs ended the game 45-29. It was nice to see Iowa's offense explode like that and get some big plays, which they've been really lacking all year. Parker is a speedster and I hope to see him more involved in the offense. Rudock clearly won the QB battle as Beathard only finished 2 for 5 with 9 yards. Iowa's defense held Indiana passers to 7 for 21 and had 3 interceptions on the day. If it weren't for Coleman, this game would have been a blowout.
QB: Rudock clearly played much better than Beathard completing 19 of 27 for 210 yards, great game for Jake.
RB: Weisman carried the ball 25 times, mostly in the fourth quarter running the clock. Canzeri had some nice runs early, Damon Bullock had a nice run that was called back on a penalty. And, of course, Parker had a huge touchdown run. Solid game for the backs.
WR: The WRs had a nice day, I think Smith is the best one on the team and Powell had a nice game, too. The group looked much better than the Purdue game.
TE: Duzey had a touchdown and caught four passes, Ray Hamilton had a catch as well.
OL: Jordan Walsh got injured on the first drive and Tommy Gaul came in at center, Austin Blythe moved to RG. I thought the line played great, possibly the best game they've had all year.
DL: Ott, LTP and Nate Meier combined for 21 tackles and I thought the DL looked pretty good. They were able to get some pressure on the QB and stuffed the run pretty well besides the three big ones.
LB: They're going to keep getting better, there's not much experience at all at LB. They're a big reason for giving up some of these big plays. In a couple of years this should be a strong unit, I really like Bower.
DB: King had his first career interception, he did have one miscue, but had a solid game as always and he's a great tackler. John Lowdermilk probably had his worst game, he was out of place on several plays and that cost the defense some points.
ST: Koehn has been real solid since the first two games, Kidd had an ok day punting.
IOWA AT MARYLAND
I watched Maryland play against West Virginia earlier this year and they can score points quickly, they can also give up points quickly, so this game could be similar to the Indiana game. Iowa would love to carry the offensive momentum into this road game, their first meeting ever with Maryland. The Terps offensive coordinator, Mike Locksley, was head coach down here at New Mexico briefly and did an awful job, he's better suited as an O.C. The Terps feature the best WR duo in the Big Ten, Stefon Diggs and Deon Long, I saw Long play at New Mexico as a freshmen and you knew he was going to be a good one. Iowa's LBs and secondary are going to have to come up huge in this game to shut these guys down, the DL will have to step up, too and get more pressure. I think Iowa will be able to shut down their run game, which could make Maryland one dimensional. Iowa should be able to have some balance on offense as Maryland's defense has struggled, I like Iowa to have the edge in this one, but it should be close. IOWA 28 MARYLAND 24
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
New Top 25 and Predictions 10/13
Another week of college football in the books and it featured some excited games. I caught the end of the Baylor-TCU game, Baylor was down 21 and stormed back for an amazing win!
Top 25
1-Baylor sitting on top of the Big 12 with the win over TCU
2-Ole Miss knocked off A&M with ease
3-Mississippi State handled Auburn
4-Notre Dame survived a scare with North Carolina
5-Florida State had no problem with Syracuse
6-Michigan State needed a late pick six to knock off Purdue
7-Auburn suffered their first loss of the year
8-Georgia looked sharp against Mizzou without Gurley
9-Oklahoma struggled with Texas but won
10-Oregon crushed UCLA
11-Ohio State drilled Maryland
12-Alabama barely beat Arkansas
13-TCU defense fell apart late against Baylor
14-Arizona State had the week off
15-Oklahoma State struggled with Kansas
16-Arizona missed a potential game-winning field goal losing to USC
17-Stanford had no trouble with Wash St
18-East Carolina pretty easy win
19-Utah enjoyed a week off
20-Kansas State had a week off to gear up for this week
21-Nebraska was off
22-Duke knocked off Ga Tech to gain the top spot in their division
23-USC pulled off a win against Arizona
24-Marshall still undefeated
25-Texas A&M suffered their second straight loss
PREDICTIONS
Last week I went 7-3, which puts me at 43-25 for the year. Here are some big games for this week.
UTAH AT OREGON STATE: With a win, Oregon State could be considered for a top 25 spot and still has a shot to claim the division title. Utah has been a nice surprise this year.
Oregon State 42 Utah 38
KANSAS STATE AT OKLAHOMA: Well, Oklahoma lost to TCU and then struggled against Texas, can they bounce back this week?
Oklahoma 38 Kansas State 31
IOWA AT MARYLAND: Iowa's offense finally looked sharp against a pretty awful Indiana defense. Maryland has the best WR duo in the conference.
Iowa 28 Maryland 24
TEXAS A&M AT ALABAMA: A&M with two straight losses and Alabama with two straight tough games, this should be one of the better games of the week.
Alabama 24 Texas A&M 21
NEW MEXICO AT AIR FORCE: New Mexico has struggled in conference play and really need to come out with a win. Air Force has looked better than I expected.
Air Force 38 New Mexico 30
OKLAHOMA STATE AT TCU: TCU had a 21 point cushion against Baylor but blew it. Ok State didn't look too good against Kansas.
TCU 42 Ok State 31
NOTRE DAME AT FLORIDA STATE: Two of the few undefeated teams left, I'm not sold on either one as national championship contenders just yet.
Florida State 31 Notre Dame 27
IOWA STATE AT TEXAS: ISU had a nice passing game against Toledo while Texas hung with Oklahoma last week.
Texas 28 Iowa State 27
STANFORD AT ARIZONA STATE: This should be a great contest, the Pac 12 has some really good teams this year.
Stanford 31 Arizona State 27
HEISMAN WATCH
Here's my top 10 in no particular order
QB Kenny Hill - Texas A&M
QB Anu Solomon - Arizona
QB Shane Carden - East Carolina
QB Everett Golson - Notre Dame
QB Marcus Mariota - Oregon
QB Dak Prescott - Mississippi State
RB Tevin Coleman - Indiana
RB Melvin Gordon - Wisconsin
RB Ameer Adbullah - Nebraska
RB Todd Gurley - Georgia
No clear cut favorite at this point, but Prescott and Mariota definitely have to be the front runners, with Gordon up there as well.
Top 25
1-Baylor sitting on top of the Big 12 with the win over TCU
2-Ole Miss knocked off A&M with ease
3-Mississippi State handled Auburn
4-Notre Dame survived a scare with North Carolina
5-Florida State had no problem with Syracuse
6-Michigan State needed a late pick six to knock off Purdue
7-Auburn suffered their first loss of the year
8-Georgia looked sharp against Mizzou without Gurley
9-Oklahoma struggled with Texas but won
10-Oregon crushed UCLA
11-Ohio State drilled Maryland
12-Alabama barely beat Arkansas
13-TCU defense fell apart late against Baylor
14-Arizona State had the week off
15-Oklahoma State struggled with Kansas
16-Arizona missed a potential game-winning field goal losing to USC
17-Stanford had no trouble with Wash St
18-East Carolina pretty easy win
19-Utah enjoyed a week off
20-Kansas State had a week off to gear up for this week
21-Nebraska was off
22-Duke knocked off Ga Tech to gain the top spot in their division
23-USC pulled off a win against Arizona
24-Marshall still undefeated
25-Texas A&M suffered their second straight loss
PREDICTIONS
Last week I went 7-3, which puts me at 43-25 for the year. Here are some big games for this week.
UTAH AT OREGON STATE: With a win, Oregon State could be considered for a top 25 spot and still has a shot to claim the division title. Utah has been a nice surprise this year.
Oregon State 42 Utah 38
KANSAS STATE AT OKLAHOMA: Well, Oklahoma lost to TCU and then struggled against Texas, can they bounce back this week?
Oklahoma 38 Kansas State 31
IOWA AT MARYLAND: Iowa's offense finally looked sharp against a pretty awful Indiana defense. Maryland has the best WR duo in the conference.
Iowa 28 Maryland 24
TEXAS A&M AT ALABAMA: A&M with two straight losses and Alabama with two straight tough games, this should be one of the better games of the week.
Alabama 24 Texas A&M 21
NEW MEXICO AT AIR FORCE: New Mexico has struggled in conference play and really need to come out with a win. Air Force has looked better than I expected.
Air Force 38 New Mexico 30
OKLAHOMA STATE AT TCU: TCU had a 21 point cushion against Baylor but blew it. Ok State didn't look too good against Kansas.
TCU 42 Ok State 31
NOTRE DAME AT FLORIDA STATE: Two of the few undefeated teams left, I'm not sold on either one as national championship contenders just yet.
Florida State 31 Notre Dame 27
IOWA STATE AT TEXAS: ISU had a nice passing game against Toledo while Texas hung with Oklahoma last week.
Texas 28 Iowa State 27
STANFORD AT ARIZONA STATE: This should be a great contest, the Pac 12 has some really good teams this year.
Stanford 31 Arizona State 27
HEISMAN WATCH
Here's my top 10 in no particular order
QB Kenny Hill - Texas A&M
QB Anu Solomon - Arizona
QB Shane Carden - East Carolina
QB Everett Golson - Notre Dame
QB Marcus Mariota - Oregon
QB Dak Prescott - Mississippi State
RB Tevin Coleman - Indiana
RB Melvin Gordon - Wisconsin
RB Ameer Adbullah - Nebraska
RB Todd Gurley - Georgia
No clear cut favorite at this point, but Prescott and Mariota definitely have to be the front runners, with Gordon up there as well.
Wednesday, October 8, 2014
Indiana at Iowa preview
This week the Iowa Hawkeyes (1-0 4-1) host the Indiana Hoosiers (0-1 3-2) for homecoming at Kinnick Stadium. The Hawkeyes are coming off of a bye week, and the Hoosiers are coming off of a victory over North Texas 49-24.
Indiana had a huge road win at Missouri earlier this year, but they've lost at Bowling Green and at home against Maryland. They will present Iowa's defense with a huge challenge with a nice balance of running and passing, the offense will be led by running back Tevin Coleman who is one of the nation's top running backs. The passing game isn't quite as good as they were last year and they're trying to find a rhythm, hopefully not this week. If Iowa can find a way to shut down Coleman they should have no problem winning. I think Coleman will end up getting over 100 yards, but I think the Iowa defense will hold Indiana under 30 points.
Indiana's defense is much improved from last year, but they're still giving up 28 points per game and over 400 yards. Teams have been able to pass pretty well against Iowa, which should bode well for Jake Rudock, as long as the receivers actually catch the ball Saturday. Look for the Hawkeyes to throw the ball a bit more and open up the offense. They'll need to keep the defense off the field to keep them fresh against Indiana's up-tempo offense. Iowa should use a heavy rotation on defense.
Iowa has stated that Rudock will start at QB, but C.J. Beathard could also see some time. Beathard brings a nice spark and some much needed confidence. It will be interesting to see if Ferentz actually uses both of them. I think Iowa will control this game early and fend off an Indiana rally for a 31-21 victory sending them to a 5-1 record heading into another bye week before heading to Maryland.
Indiana had a huge road win at Missouri earlier this year, but they've lost at Bowling Green and at home against Maryland. They will present Iowa's defense with a huge challenge with a nice balance of running and passing, the offense will be led by running back Tevin Coleman who is one of the nation's top running backs. The passing game isn't quite as good as they were last year and they're trying to find a rhythm, hopefully not this week. If Iowa can find a way to shut down Coleman they should have no problem winning. I think Coleman will end up getting over 100 yards, but I think the Iowa defense will hold Indiana under 30 points.
Indiana's defense is much improved from last year, but they're still giving up 28 points per game and over 400 yards. Teams have been able to pass pretty well against Iowa, which should bode well for Jake Rudock, as long as the receivers actually catch the ball Saturday. Look for the Hawkeyes to throw the ball a bit more and open up the offense. They'll need to keep the defense off the field to keep them fresh against Indiana's up-tempo offense. Iowa should use a heavy rotation on defense.
Iowa has stated that Rudock will start at QB, but C.J. Beathard could also see some time. Beathard brings a nice spark and some much needed confidence. It will be interesting to see if Ferentz actually uses both of them. I think Iowa will control this game early and fend off an Indiana rally for a 31-21 victory sending them to a 5-1 record heading into another bye week before heading to Maryland.
Monday, October 6, 2014
Top 25 and Predictions Week 7
That was one of the craziest weekends of college football that I have ever seen. Iowa was off, so I was able to catch a lot of action. I saw New Mexico win, which was great! So many games came down to the wire, with a lot of top teams losing, which is going to shake up the top 25 and the playoff picture! It'll be fun to see how it all shakes out.
Top 25
1-Auburn had no problem with LSU
2-Baylor didn't put up as many points as they usually do, but their defense is solid
3-Notre Dame great finish against Stanford
4-Ole Miss a great win against Alabama
5-Florida State smoked Wake Forest
6-Michigan State held of Nebraska
7-Georgia easy win over Vandy
8-TCU upset Oklahoma
9-Mississippi State beat up on Texas A&M
10-Arizona huge win over Oregon on the road
11-Oklahoma tough loss against TCU
12-Oregon lost at home to Zona
13-Ohio State crushed Maryland
14-Alabama lost to Ole Miss
15-Texas A&M got whooped by Mississippi State
16-Arizona State beat USC with a hail mary
17-Georgia Tech undefeated after win against Miami
18-Oklahoma State beat Iowa State no problem after a huge second half
19-UCLA lost to Utah
20-Stanford lost a tough one to ND
21-East Carolina rolled SMU
22-Utah upset UCLA
23-Louisville forgot who they played off the top of my head
24-Marshall still undefeated
25-Nebraska stormed back against the Spartans but lost
HEISMAN WATCH
QBs
Shane Carden - E. Carolina
Anu Solomon - Arizona
Marcus Mariota - Oregon
Connor Halliday - Washington State
Kenny Hill - Texas A&M
Dak Prescott - Mississippi State
Nick Marshall - Auburn
Everett Golson - Notre Dame
RBs
Ameer Abdullah - Nebraska
Tevin Coleman - Indiana
Melvin Gordon - Wisconsin
Alex Collins - Arkansas
Todd Gurley - Georgia
WRs
Kevin White - West Virginia
Sterling Shepard - Oklahoma
Nelson Spruce - Colorado
Amari Cooper - Alabama
PREDICTIONS
Last week was a tough one, I was 5-5 36-22 now on the season. I did predict the Ole Miss victory over Alabama though.
San Diego State at New Mexico: New Mexico is coming off a great road win against UTSA, probably the best defensive performance I've seen out of New Mexico all year. The offense has had some tough injuries, but they're tough to stop. San Diego State is coming off a tough loss against Fresno. Rocky Long brings the Aztecs to Albuquerque where Long played and coached.
New Mexico 28 San Diego State 27
Georgia at Missouri: This should be a good game, could be one of those back and forth games where whoever has the ball last wins.
Georgia 34 Missouri 28
Indiana at Iowa: Indiana's passing offense hasn't been as effective this year, but the ground game with Tevin Coleman has been stout. Iowa's got a great run defense and if they stifle Coleman they could win big.
Iowa 31 Indiana 21
Duke at Georgia Tech: GT has cracked my top 25 and take on a tough Duke team, should be a key game for the division.
Duke 34 Georgia Tech 24
Auburn at Mississippi State: Both had huge wins last week against tough opponents, this could be one of the best games of the season, Marshall vs Prescott. Whoever makes less mistakes should win.
Auburn 31 Missisippi State 28
TCU at Baylor: This suddenly becomes a huge game in the playoff picture, can TCU carry over their momentum at Baylor?
Baylor 45 TCU 35
Oregon at UCLA: Both teams suffered tough losses at home and need to win this game.
Oregon 42 UCLA 31
Ole Miss at Texas A&M: This should be another epic SEC matchup.
Texas A&M 34 Ole Miss 27
USC at Arizona: Arizona moved up the rankings quickly while USC keeps slipping.
USC 38 Arizona 34
Toledo at Iowa State: Iowa State has looked decent at times this year, but have a brutal schedule. Can they put away a MAC team?
Iowa State 31 Toledo 24
Top 25
1-Auburn had no problem with LSU
2-Baylor didn't put up as many points as they usually do, but their defense is solid
3-Notre Dame great finish against Stanford
4-Ole Miss a great win against Alabama
5-Florida State smoked Wake Forest
6-Michigan State held of Nebraska
7-Georgia easy win over Vandy
8-TCU upset Oklahoma
9-Mississippi State beat up on Texas A&M
10-Arizona huge win over Oregon on the road
11-Oklahoma tough loss against TCU
12-Oregon lost at home to Zona
13-Ohio State crushed Maryland
14-Alabama lost to Ole Miss
15-Texas A&M got whooped by Mississippi State
16-Arizona State beat USC with a hail mary
17-Georgia Tech undefeated after win against Miami
18-Oklahoma State beat Iowa State no problem after a huge second half
19-UCLA lost to Utah
20-Stanford lost a tough one to ND
21-East Carolina rolled SMU
22-Utah upset UCLA
23-Louisville forgot who they played off the top of my head
24-Marshall still undefeated
25-Nebraska stormed back against the Spartans but lost
HEISMAN WATCH
QBs
Shane Carden - E. Carolina
Anu Solomon - Arizona
Marcus Mariota - Oregon
Connor Halliday - Washington State
Kenny Hill - Texas A&M
Dak Prescott - Mississippi State
Nick Marshall - Auburn
Everett Golson - Notre Dame
RBs
Ameer Abdullah - Nebraska
Tevin Coleman - Indiana
Melvin Gordon - Wisconsin
Alex Collins - Arkansas
Todd Gurley - Georgia
WRs
Kevin White - West Virginia
Sterling Shepard - Oklahoma
Nelson Spruce - Colorado
Amari Cooper - Alabama
PREDICTIONS
Last week was a tough one, I was 5-5 36-22 now on the season. I did predict the Ole Miss victory over Alabama though.
San Diego State at New Mexico: New Mexico is coming off a great road win against UTSA, probably the best defensive performance I've seen out of New Mexico all year. The offense has had some tough injuries, but they're tough to stop. San Diego State is coming off a tough loss against Fresno. Rocky Long brings the Aztecs to Albuquerque where Long played and coached.
New Mexico 28 San Diego State 27
Georgia at Missouri: This should be a good game, could be one of those back and forth games where whoever has the ball last wins.
Georgia 34 Missouri 28
Indiana at Iowa: Indiana's passing offense hasn't been as effective this year, but the ground game with Tevin Coleman has been stout. Iowa's got a great run defense and if they stifle Coleman they could win big.
Iowa 31 Indiana 21
Duke at Georgia Tech: GT has cracked my top 25 and take on a tough Duke team, should be a key game for the division.
Duke 34 Georgia Tech 24
Auburn at Mississippi State: Both had huge wins last week against tough opponents, this could be one of the best games of the season, Marshall vs Prescott. Whoever makes less mistakes should win.
Auburn 31 Missisippi State 28
TCU at Baylor: This suddenly becomes a huge game in the playoff picture, can TCU carry over their momentum at Baylor?
Baylor 45 TCU 35
Oregon at UCLA: Both teams suffered tough losses at home and need to win this game.
Oregon 42 UCLA 31
Ole Miss at Texas A&M: This should be another epic SEC matchup.
Texas A&M 34 Ole Miss 27
USC at Arizona: Arizona moved up the rankings quickly while USC keeps slipping.
USC 38 Arizona 34
Toledo at Iowa State: Iowa State has looked decent at times this year, but have a brutal schedule. Can they put away a MAC team?
Iowa State 31 Toledo 24
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