A Look Around The Country

The state of Mississippi has had a great two weeks after both the Bulldogs and Rebels pulled off huge wins. The SEC West is a monster division and the last half of the season will be fun to watch to see who comes out on top. Three top 10 teams (Auburn, TCU, Arizona) lost this week and this season is reminding me more and more like 2007. And we all remember how that turned out.

Big Games Last Week

Oklahoma 31 Texas 26

The Sooners were able to bounce back last week as they took down the Longhorns by 5 in Dallas. This has been a bad first year for Charlie Strong as Texas sits at 2-4. The biggest take away from this game was how Oklahoma’s defense struggled against a bad Texas offense. A date with Baylor on November 8 (a big day for us Buckeye fans) looms.

Mississippi State 38 Auburn 23

I’ll be honest; I completely underestimated Miss State and didn’t give them much of a chance in this one. But they proved me wrong. Dak Prescott is becoming a legitimate Heisman contender and the Bulldogs should be able to coast until mid-November where they’ll play Alabama and Ole Miss in two of their last three games. Auburn’s schedule is even more difficult with games against Ole Miss, Texas A&M, Georgia, and Alabama left. They will lose at least one of those.

Baylor 61 Texas Christian 58

Have either of these two teams ever heard of defense? I think not. Bryce Petty and Baylor have possibly the most explosive offense in the country but with a defense giving up 58 points, it’s hard to believe they won’t slip up eventually especially since they have the meat of their schedule still to come. It was certainly a tough loss to take for TCU as they had a 3 touchdown lead with 9 minutes to go. They may lose another before the season is over.

Oregon 42 UCLA 30

Don’t count out the Ducks. Despite a loss to Arizona, Oregon is still in the thick of things in the playoff race. Marcus Mariota is still the key to their success and I think he takes over as a leader into the last half of the season. They really don’t play too tough of a schedule the rest of the year so I see them ending up at 11-1 before heading into the Pac 12 Championship.

Big Games This Week

Rutgers at Ohio State

The Buckeyes start the last stretch of the season with the other Big Ten newcomer, Scarlet Knights. J.T. Barrett and the rest of the offense has been on a roll and I’m hoping this bye week hasn’t affected their rhythm. They just need to stay healthy, play one game at a time, and things will fall in place for them. I truly believe if we are sitting here in early December at 12-1 and Big Ten Champs, we’ll be in the playoffs.

Saturday, October 18 at 3:30pm on ABC or ESPN 2

Texas A&M at Alabama

This game has been a classic the past two years, but we can all thank Johnny Football for that. Now that he is gone, the Aggies will have to pull something else out of their pocket to get a huge W in Tuscaloosa. Both of these teams have been exposed in recent weeks and that will pose a problem going forward. I have the Tide by 10 in this one.

Saturday, October 18 at 3:30 pm on CBS

Kansas State at Oklahoma

In a game that could end up being a trap for Oklahoma, the Sooners will look to get a win over a ranked team which would help in their playoff chances. K-State came close to beating Auburn back in September and if that same team shows up, this game will be go down to the wire. But since it’s in Norman, I’m going with OU.

Saturday, October 18 at 12:00pm on ESPN

Notre Dame at Florida State

I’ve been waiting all year to see this one. Brian Kelly and the Irish will roll into Tally on Saturday night against a Seminole team once again reeling from negative Jameis Winston news. It’s an embarrassment to the sport that he’s still suiting up but I won’t even get started on that one. Everett Golson will come alive before our eyes and the Irish D will shut down the FSU offense. I’m going with the upset, Notre Dame by 6.

Saturday, October 18 at 8:00pm on ABC

Michigan Update

Hey they one won! Michigan was able to hold off Penn State by 3 on Saturday Night and improve to 3 wins on the season (yippee). They play the Spartans after their bye week and will most likely be absolutely obliterated. November 29 should be fun.

My Playoff if the Season Ended Today

1. Florida State (beat Syracuse 38-20, plays Notre Dame this week) The Seminoles even looked lackluster against the Orangemen. They’re number one right now, but that will be different next week.

2. Mississippi State (beat Auburn 38-23, plays Kentucky next week) I strongly considered putting the Bulldogs at number one this week but decided to stick with FSU. They destroyed Auburn and have themselves set up for an SEC title run.

3. Notre Dame (beat North Carolina 50-43, plays Florida State this week) The Irish keep on moving up in my rankings (even though most people think I’m crazy) and I don’t think they stop at 3. Their game with Florida State will prove that.

4. Baylor (beat TCU 61-58, plays West Virginia this week) Baylor’s defense is horrible and they will pay for that the hard way eventually. Even WVU poses a real threat to them this week. But for now, they remain in my top 4.

Just Missed the Cut

5. Michigan State
6. Ole Miss
7. Oregon
8. Oklahoma
9. Auburn
10. Alabama
11. Ohio State

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