After going 27-4 in the first week, I went 27-5 this past week. That runs my record to 54-9 on the season. Not too bad. I'm shooting for an undefeated week though. Let's see if this is it! No Auburn game this coming week as they get Saturday off before traveling to the 'Little Apple' (Manhattan, Kansas) for a Thursday night showdown with the Kansas State Wildcats., That'll shorten this week's blog as well as my research some. As with all weeks, I use the AP Poll to get my top 25 rankings. Here we go with my picks:
Wyoming at #2 Oregon
New Wyoming head coach Craig Bohl proved his worth as a coach in the FCS rankings, winning three straight FCS titles with North Dakota State before taking on the job of attempting to resurrect the Cowboy program. It's gotten off to an okay start for him as he's won his first two at Wyoming in close fashion against Montana and Air Force. Going to Eugene to take on an Oregon team that impressively ran Michigan State off the field in the last 30 minutes of that Spartans/Ducks game is a whole different animal, though. Bohl will very likely bring a lot of success to Laramie, just not here. Too much speed and talent to deal with in this one.
My Call: Oregon 55, Wyoming 10
Southern Miss at #3 Alabama
We got a matchup here that would be more exciting if Southern Miss alum Brett Favre and Alabama alum Joe Namath got together for a game of beer pong. In all seriousness though, it's quite sad because Southern Miss was once a bowl regular; having only missed bowl season once from 1997 through 2012. Keeping the margin of victory for Alabama under 30 would be somewhat of a moral victory for the Golden Eagles here if they could pull it off. They won't. Expect something closer to the 49-0 pounding they took from Mississippi State they took the first game of the season.
My Call: Alabama 48, Southern Miss 0
Tennessee at #4 Oklahoma
After a couple of decent wins in Knoxville to open up 2014, now we get to see how far the Tennessee football program has come to this point under head coach Butch Jones. Having a senior QB under center in Justin Worley will help the Vols, but only so much. They've got a lot of talent, but are not quite ready to win a game of this magnitude on the road. Trevor Knight and that OU defense will prove to be a bit too much for this young team. Given how Coach Jones is recruiting though, it may only be a couple years before we're at the point where Tennessee can win a game like this.
My Call: Oklahoma 38, Tennessee 20
#6 Georgia at #24 South Carolina
Beating a solid East Carolina team doesn't fully make up for the throttling South Carolina took from Texas A&M in the first week, but beating rival Georgia would certainly help do the trick. Will they do it? Probably not. If ECU can average over six yards per carry on the Gamecock defense (and no disrespect to ECU's running game), I can only imagine what Todd Gurley will be able to do. Hutson Mason is not Kenny Hill and I do think South Carolina will score some points here against a not so great UGA defense, so I do believe they won't take the butt kicking they took from Texas A&M, but I just don't think they'll have enough on the defensive side of the football to pull it out.
My Call: Georgia 42, South Carolina 31
Rice at #7 Texas A&M
Speaking of which... the Aggies get basically what amounts to another tuneup game. This may not quite be as bad for Rice as it was for a Lamar team that got punished by a 73-7 final score, but it sure won't be pretty. Another big game for 'Kenny Trill' is in store while more action in garbage time for true freshman QB Kyle Allen is also in store.
My Call: Texas A&M 63, Rice 14
#8 Baylor at Buffalo
Bryce Petty wasn't missed in Baylor's dominating win over hapless Northwestern State as backup redshirt sophomore QB Seth Russell put up 438 yards passing and six total TDs. I can't imagine they'd need him this week either against a Buffalo team that's given up 67 combined points to the likes of Duquesne and Army, games which the Bulls managed split. In a matchup of a Big 12 team against a Mid-American team, make it 3 for 3 for Baylor. They'll score plenty against a Buffalo defense that can't keep up and while the defense may give up some points, it'll give up plenty less than the total number of points that high-powered Bears offense puts on the board.
My Call: Baylor 55, Buffalo 17
#9 USC at Boston College
How do you allow a team to get inside your 30 yard line nine times in a game, only score 13 points and win? Ask USC. They did all of that in Palo Alto and managed a 13-10 victory over Stanford thanks to some stout defense in their own territory as well as another clutch late kick from Andre Heidari (he made a 48 yarder in 2013 to beat Stanford). While I wouldn't be shocked if USC had a bit of a letdown after such an emotional victory when you factor in a long trip to the East Coast, the late heroics shouldn't be necessary in this one. It won't always be pretty, but it'll be plenty effective in what should be a fairly easy win in Chestnut Hill.
My Call: USC 31, Boston College 10
Louisiana-Monroe at #10 LSU
In a matchup of in-state schools, the Warhawks will make the trip from Northern Louisiana down to the Southern part of the state in Baton Rouge to take on Les Miles' Tigers. They're in a situation a bit similar to that of Wyoming; coming off a couple close wins at home by a touchdown apiece over Wake Forest and Idaho. Like Wyoming, this will be a completely different animal to try and take down. And they won't do it. LSU will get up big early and then put it on cruise control in a game where they can win by as many as they please.
My Call: LSU 52, Louisiana-Monroe 13
Purdue v #11 Notre Dame (at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, Indiana)
Am I convinced the Irish are the eleventh best team in the country? Not really. A win over a Michigan program that isn't anywhere near what it once was , in my opinion, doesn't prove quite as much as the AP Poll voters want to believe it does, even if it was in impressive 31-0 shutout fashion. Now they get to take on a Purdue team that's given up an average of 36 points per game to the likes of Central and Western Michigan; games that they split, losing the most recent one to Central Michigan by a 38-17 score. Expect another easy victory for Notre Dame here. Only question in my mind is how many points do they wish to make it by?
My Call: Notre Dame 41, Purdue 7
#12 UCLA vs. Texas (at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas)
After the Bruins have looked less than stellar in two closer than expected wins over Virginia and Memphis while the Longhorns took it on the chin in a 41-7 stomping via BYU, I really haven't the faintest idea of what to expect in this one. The Longhorns should come out ready and motivated to play in this one after taking such a beating, but I'm going to take UCLA based on the fact that I do believe they have the better talent and team. I am far from sure it will play out this way though given the state of their beat up offensive line which has struggled mightily to protect QB Brett Hundley, which is why I am calling a close, low scoring game which could very easily go Texas' way.
My Call: UCLA 21, Texas 17
Louisiana-Lafayette at #14 Ole Miss
The Rajin' Cajuns have been the class of the New Orleans Bowl of late, winning that bowl game the last three years. However, they head to Oxford coming off a 48-20 loss to Louisiana Tech at home. Tech running back Kenneth Dixon ran wild in that one, so this could be a chance for a struggling Rebel ground game to get things going. Even if they don't, QB Bo Wallace should be able to handle things just fine here and so will a strong defense. Easy win for the Rebs as they get to 3-0.
My Call: Ole Miss 38, Louisiana-Lafayette 7
Army at #15 Stanford
Some of our future troops actually put together a pretty solid effort against Stanford a year ago at West Point in a 34-20 loss. This year they'll try their luck on the road against a Cardinal team that's undoubtedly licking their wounds from a game they feel like they should have won against Pac-12 rival USC. Army runs that interesting triple option offense which isn't always easy to prepare for in just one week, but I don't see Stanford losing two in a row on The Farm. They'll bounce back with a strong effort; putting Army away fairly early in the second half.
My Call: Stanford 42, Army 14
#16 Arizona State at Colorado
Pac 12 opener for both in Boulder. The Sun Devils will look to move to 3-0 while the Buffaloes will look to move to 2-1 after an exciting 41-38 victory over UMass. I just don't see how Colorado can keep up with ASU for a full 60 minutes. They couldn't do it against Colorado State and gave up 38 to UMass, so I'm thinking Taylor Kelly, D.J. Foster and Jaelen should have their ways even on the road. I expect this game will go somewhat similarly to the New Mexico game for ASU which they won 58-23; just maybe with a smaller margin of victory.
My Call: Arizona State 45, Colorado 27
East Carolina at #17 Virginia Tech
What do you do for an encore if you're Virginia Tech after going up to Columbus and beating Ohio State in impressive fashion? Try following it up at home with what would be a solid win over a Pirates team that has come close to winning this matchup the last two times they met. Virginia Tech won in 2011 by a score of 17-10 and a year ago by a score of 15-10; both games were played in Greenville. This one will be in Lane Stadium. Quite honestly, I'm expecting a very similar type of game. ECU will make this interesting but come up a little short as the Hokie defense will hold the fort down long enough to come away with the victory.
My Call: Virginia Tech 24, East Carolina 17
Central Florida at #20 Missouri
Another interesting matchup as the Knights will try going into Columbia to take down a ranked SEC team. If only they still had Blake Bortles, I think they'd have a really solid chance of pulling it off. But alas, he's now a Jacksonville Jaguar and true sophomore Justin Holman is now the guy under center. Good news for UCF is they have had an extra week of preparation and to rest up after a tough loss to Penn State in Ireland. Bad news is I see them heading for another tough loss in this one...
My Call: Missouri 30, Central Florida 23
#21 Louisville at Virginia
Does a near upset of UCLA do something for Virginia's confidence as another ranked opponent comes into Charlotesville? Yeah, I'm not so sure. While I can't imagine Louisville will score three defensive touchdowns in part to UVA mistakes, at the same time, I can't imagine the Cardinals offense will stumble the way UCLA's did. Virginia looks better overall, but need wins in order to save Mike London's job. They'll come up a little short here.
My Call: Louisville 34, Virginia 24
Kent State at #22 Ohio State
Back to the drawing board for the Buckeyes as they looked very lethargic in a 35-21 loss to Virginia Tech this past Saturday night. I'd have been right about them winning if QB J.T. Barrett would have been able to avoid making mistakes, but he threw three interceptions and we know what happened. Ohio State won't be able to cure all of what ails them in a week (or maybe even this season), but it shouldn't have much of an issue gaining some confidence back against fellow Ohio school Kent State. Only way it would be an issue is if in their primes Jack Lambert and James Harrison were suiting up, but they're not. Buckeyes roll.
My Call: Ohio State 38, Kent State 7
Houston at #25 BYU
Fantastic start to the season for BYU beating both UConn and Texas on the road. They finally get to open up at home against a Houston team that struggled against UT-San Antonio in a 27-7 loss before bouncing back with a 47-0 win over Grambling State. That Cougar defense and Taysom Hill should be able to control things in this one on a Thursday night.
My Call: BYU 31, Houston 10
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