As I mentioned earlier this week I will start doing a post every week on things I see happening throughout Saturday, and hopefully I am right. I successfully called Wisconsin beating Ohio State and also called the Missouri over Oklahoma correctly. So I figured why not put it on a site so people can see if I’m smart or just lucky.
This week we will look at potential upsets I see happening.
#1 Auburn @ Ole Miss (6:00est ESPN2 & ESPN3)
Being #1 has been a horror for the past 3 number ones. I think this week will be no different. Cam Newton and the Auburn Tigers are going on the road to Oxford, MS to play the Ole Miss Rebels. Houston Nutt has always been successful at upsetting a team he shouldn’t during the year. Two years ago it was Tim Tebow and the Florida Gators. I think Ole Miss has the defensive front to slow the Cam show down and the offense to move the ball on Auburns defense. The Rebels will have the crowd support as well playing at home, while Auburn travels after a hard fought win over LSU. This Auburn team is tired, and pretty thin across the board, that plays directly into Ole Miss’ hands. The biggest question will be can Ole Miss get some key defensive stops at the start of this game to get their team and their fans to believe they can do it? Jeremiah Masoli will have a good game for the Rebels as they keep this one close for 2-3 quarters. I still see Auburn pulling away on a long drive near the end of the game, but I do believe this game will be closer than most will believe. Ole Miss will be in this game for a long time, long enough to hang around and who knows…turnovers are key in this game.
PS: Opening kickoff returned for a touchdown by Ole Miss (okay, not really but 3 weeks in a row having the opening kickoff returned for a touchdown against a #1 team would be awesome to see)
#5 Michigan St @ #18 Iowa (3:30est ESPN/ABC/ESPN3)
Sparty goes on the road to what looks to be their biggest Big 10 game left on the schedule. Iowa is coming off a heartbreaking 31-30 loss to Wisconsin. Iowa will get to redeem themselves by knocking off the cardiac kids from Michigan St. Iowa’s defense is built to stop teams like Michigan State. Iowa has an aggressive defensive front that will get pressure on Michigan St’s quarterback Kirk Cousins. They will shut down the running game from the Spartans and force Cousins to beat them through the air. On offense Iowa will pound the ball right into the teeth of Michigan St’s defense and I believe they will be successful doing so. This week Sparty’s luck runs out as they drop their first game of the year to the Hawkeyes. The key will be can Iowa establish it’s run game early in the game which will open up some play action passes and keep Michigan St’s defense off balance. For Michigan St the key will be the same, run game to open the pass. I don’t believe the record shows this, but I believe Iowa is the better team in this matchup. We will know soon enough if Michigan St is a contender or a pretender.
#7 Missouri @ #14 Nebraska (3:30est ESPN/ABC/ESPN3)
Beating the #1 team in the nation is impressive, but winning the week afterwards is even more impressive. The Missouri Tigers played a great game against a great team last week upsetting former #1 Oklahoma. The Tigers are a very good team who is very athletic but Nebraska is not impressed yet. The Cornhuskers come into this game after a shootout with Oklahoma St winning 51-41. Playing at home is a huge factor in this game as it is in most top 15 battles. I think Missouri’s offense is very potent with a very effect Blaine Gabbert at the helm but I just think Nebraska is too physical for this game. Missouri’s defense looked great against Oklahoma, which played directly into their hands running a hurry up offense and rarely pounding the ball at the Tigers, which is where I believe they aren’t nearly as strong defensively. Nebraska will run the ball straight at Missouri until they prove they can stop it, then they will run to the opposite side and repeat. Defensively, Nebraska is a physically imposing team (didn’t show it last week), that will bring pressure on Gabbert and force mistakes. I do not see this as a high scoring game, somewhere in the mid 20s/early 30s. I think Nebraska gets back to it’s old self (Controlling the clock, running the ball, limiting opportunities for the opposing team) T. Martinez will have a good game running the ball as well. Like I said, beating the #1 team in the nation is impressive but the hardest part is staying grounded for a week and coming back and playing a good game against a good team. This week it’s just too much for the Tigers.
**Going Out On A Limb**
#2 Oregon @ USC (8:00est ABC)
The Oregon Ducks take their high powered, fast paced offense on the road to Southern California to face the Trojans of USC. While I do believe Oregon has the most deadly offense in the nation, I do believe it can be schemed, and schemed effectively. Monty Kiffin who is USC’s defensive coordinator and one of the best in the business has had an extra week to prepare for this spread attack. While on the other side of the ball USC’s offense seems to be hitting their stride with quarterback Matt Barkley stepping up and being effective at the position. On paper this game is no contest but “that’s why they play the game”. USC has no chance of a bowl game this year due to probation so they will treat this game like their bowl game. USC will have the fans in this one for a while. Monty Kiffin & the USC defense will slow this attack down (I don’t think you can stop it) and give the USC offense a chance to make plays on a very talented and fast defense from Oregon. USC will control clock and run the ball as to not play into the hands of Oregon and limit Oregon’s number of drives throughout the game. If USC can force some mistakes and turnovers I think they are good enough to capitalize and get points on the board. The real key is going to be, how many times can the Trojans stop Oregon? and how many times can USC score (there can not be any field goals and missed opportunities). I think Oregon can pull away, but don’t be surprised if the Trojans of USC don’t keep this closer than they should. This is the game I am least sure about, which is why it’s my Going Out On A Limb pick of the week.
I hope you enjoy, I will post back after Saturday so you can see how I do in these games. Hoping for 4-0.
**UPDATE**
I went 3-1 in the 4 games.
My only loss wasn’t really a loss. Auburn won like I had picked but it wasn’t as close as I expected. This weeks will be posted Wednesday/Thursday.
