Trey's Picks
College football games of the week: Watch for Wolverines, Wildcats and Tigers
It wasn’t as colossal as before, but there was plenty of unexpected action last weekend in college football. Utah won the Holy War (Wait, no they didn’t. Yes, they did. No, actually they didn’t. OK, yes they did...). The ACC is awful. Garrett Gilbert is, well, Garrett Gilbert. Not all his fault, but it is.
On with it. There are some very good games this weekend, and hopefully I’m better at my picks this week than the last.
This Week
No. 17 Michigan Wolverines at No. 15 Notre Dame Fighting Irish: 6:30 p.m. on NBC
I guess it’s time to start buying the Irish. I was wrong about them losing to Sparty last week, so common sense says I should take them this week. But common sense and I rarely interact. I think Michigan ends the Irish’s time in the spotlight and Brian Kelly attacks his team with a tire iron after the home loss. Michigan 31, Notre Dame 23.
No. 13 Kansas State Wildcats at No. 5 oklahoma sooners: 6:50 p.m. on FOX
If you read anything I write, you know I never, ever, ever talk about the oklahoma sooners (yes, the lower case is intentional). And the reason for all this is simple: I hate them. All of them. If you think I’m going to pick them you are dead wrong; but it isn’t because I don’t like them. I think their offensive line is a mess, their chemistry is a mess and Collin Klein is going to have a big game running the ball. And I don’t like them.
K-State pulls the upset, but I don’t know if is really an upset. Wildcats 31, sooners 20.
No. 9 Clemson Tigers at No. 4 Florida State Seminoles: 7 p.m. on ABC
As I stated earlier, the ACC is awful. The exceptions are Clemson and Florida State, at least in the media. Everyone has FSU penciled into the BCS Championship game after three weeks because of how dominant they’ve been, except those wins came against two I-AA teams (one being our own Savannah State) and potential ACC doormat Wake Forest. I am a contrarian, so I think the ‘Noles are overvalued and Clemson has played some tougher games. Tater wins, 29-24.
Worst Game of the Week
Memphis Tigers at Duke Blue Devils: 5 p.m.
Do us all a favor and just play basketball on Saturday. I’d watch that. Probably. I would have the chance to watch it because it would be televised, which is more coverage than this football game will get. It’s 0-3 and 2-1, and that 2-1 team is not very good.
Last Week
So, if I would have bet money on my picks last week, right now I’d be pinned up against a dumpster in the alley behind the bar by the bookie’s muscle... I watch too many movies. It was a bad week. Let’s review.
No. 18 Florida Gators vs. No. 23 Tennessee Volunteers
Why it was included: They hate each other, both back on the national stage.
Prediction: Huge home crowd hungry for a win helps Rocky Top win for the first time since 2004.
Reality: Huge home crowd hungry for a win watched Florida’s play-makers run all over Tennessee in the second half and watched their team lose to Florida for the eighth time since 2004.
Does this mean A&M is for real? No. I can’t... No.
No. 2 USC Trojans vs. No. 25 Stanford Cardinal
Why it was included: Rap lyrics about a big mouth coach, revenge game for USC, Heisman game for Matt Barkley.
Prediction: Matty Trojan goes off, USC runs away, The Tree wears black uniform but it doesn’t help.
Reality: None of that happened. Not a single thing.
I was impressed with Stanford, who out-physicaled USC in the second half and had Barkley running for his life and forced him into some really bad decisions according to his coach. The BCS Title dream is likely dead for USC, but who knows?
No. 20 Notre Dame Fighting Irish vs. No. 10 Michigan State Spartans
Why it was included: Top 25 matchup, Sparty and Irish on the rise.
Prediction: Le’Veon Bell runs over Irish defense, Notre Dame not talented enough, Michigan State wins 34-24.
Reality: Le’Veon Bell did no such thing, Notre Dame was plenty talented enough, Michigan State lost 20-3.
When I pick a game sometimes I hope and sometimes I go by the facts; this one was by the facts. Or so I thought. The Irish defense was terrific and shut Bell down, holding him to 77 yards on 19 carries and the entire offense to just 237 yards with only 50 yards rushing.
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles vs. No. 4 Oregon Ducks
Why it was included: An I-AA team at Oregon.
Prediction: Worst game of the week, should never have been played, Oregon’s uniforms will be interesting.
Reality: Worst game of the week, should never have been played, Oregon’s uniforms were kinda lame.
Do I really need to explain this? FIND A DIVISION I-A TEAM TO PLAY. Have you seen Kansas? It would end the same.
