Topics discussed were the Big Ten’s 12-1 weekend, the coaching situation in Michigan, predictions on the biggest games and the Big Ten games, along with previewing Ohio State’s matchup with Cincinnati.
MotSaG Live Episode #6 – The Big Ten’s Big Week & Previewing The Cincinnati Game
September 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment
MotSaG Live Podcast #6: The B1G’s Great Weekend & Previewing Ohio State vs Cincinnati
September 23, 2014 by 1 Comment
Time for episode #6! If you missed last week’s episode of MotSaG Live, you can watch it by clicking here. It airs live every Tuesday at 6 pm ET.
As always I will be hosting the podcast this week and be joined by fellow MotSaG writers. For this show, the following MotSaG writers will join me: Shannon, Andrew and Chip. On this show we’ll talk about the Big Ten’s big weekend, the coaching situation in Michigan and preview the biggest upcoming games around the country along with the slate of Big Ten games this weekend. We’ll also of course preview and predict the outcome of Ohio State’s matchup with Cincinnati this weekend.
Now I’m going to list the following ways to view this podcast. Below is the video player to listen to the podcast. You will be able to listen to it here on the site every week. Don’t fret if you can’t listen live. Once the podcast is over with you will be able to view it as many times as you want, just like any YouTube video. If you’re unable to view it here on the site for some reason we also have you covered if this happens. I’ll link to our YouTube channel right above the player every week and you will be guaranteed to be able to view it there. You can also listen through our Google+ page or follow the main @MotSaG account on Twitter. I will also have the link posted on my Twitter page (@SchottJosh).
You can also subscribe to MotSaG Live on iTunes. You can find our page by typing “MotSaG Live†in the iTunes search box or click here. This episode should be on iTunes later tonight.
It’s going to be fun and informative as always! Hope you tune in!
To view it on YouTube, click here.
To view the Google+ event page, click here.
A-Z 2014 Buckeyes So Far Part 2
September 23, 2014 by 1 Comment
Finally that daggum bye week is over and OSU fans won’t have to deal with a Saturday of watching jerks from other schools play instead of the Bucks until next season.
What’s that, there is another one in two weeks?
Fine, I’m not even going to put any effort into this post, there is no point. Bye’s really suck the fun out of me (phrasing)…
Here is the rest of the A- Z Buckeye thoughts:
Part 1 for you “Forgetful Franks”: A-Z Part 1
Nobody throws to baby on the corner: Has Doran Grant even played a down this year? Honestly, I don’t remember him making a play so far- which is awesome. He is going all Shawn Springs- 0 interceptions yet still first team All-American- and is making himself more cash every week (draft stock not boosters you punks). Opposing quarterbacks haven’t really tested the cornerback at all in his final year so far. The physical specimen will have his money making hands full this weekend against Cincinnati.
On the way Holme: At risk of being one of those ding-bat Ohio State fans that believes every freshmen is Woody’s gift to Earth and every senior plays like Betty White, I believe Jalyn Holmes is poised to take over opposite the gorgeous-Joey Bosa at defensive end pretty soon. Steve Miller and Rashad Frazier have been pretty average if you ask me and the freshmen’s talent maybe too much to keep off the field. Am I judging Holmes based off of one solid game against Kent State? I guess so, sometimes when you know you know.
Picktown Pride: Being a Pickerington child myself, I am very proud to say that the Ohio State starting offensive line is 40% P-town alumni with Pat Elflein and Jacoby Boren. It’s an awesome time for us east siders. Upper white middle class is going to take over NCAA football, you heard it here first.
Quit Scheduling Navy: Especially the first week of the season. Urban seemed none to pleased in post-game interviews and has said that a few early enrolled freshmen were only used as Navy wingbacks for the scout team from April to the start of the season. Why schedule a game that forces you to waste a kid’s first few months of practice for one game that you get no credit for winning? It’s even more maddening when you hear Bud Foster say that VA Tech was planning their surprise “bear” defense against Ohio State since spring ball while Ohio State had no time to plan for the Hokies. Speaking of…
Rye goes down smoothest: Almost the end of the month and many Buckeye fans are still not over the Virginia Tech debacle but that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a learning experience. Being an alcoholic on 12 Saturdays a year, September 6th taught me that the best way to force yourself to go to sleep after a maddening night is to drink Bulleit Rye Bourbon on the rocks until your eyes shut. It worked but my liver hasn’t spoken to me since.
S.S.S.: The Schedule switch stings in hindsight. Ohio State moving the VA Tech game up from week 3 to week 2 may have cost the Buckeyes a loss in my biased mind. With as many youngsters and as much time that was spent preparing for the goofy navy squad, it’s tough to not make the assumption that another week to prepare for the Hokies wouldn’t have made a world of difference. With that said, Frank Beamer’s squad had just as many young guys as the Buckeyes and Ohio State should not be making excuses for why they weren’t prepared for Virginia Tech… ever.
Thank heaven my wife is an English teacher: I’m privileged to get to write about Ohio State for the motsag but the only reason that happens is because a woman much smarter than me edits my gibberish before it is edited by my bosses. Oh what they would think if they saw my first drafts….
Under utilized: I’m sick and tired of saying it- get the ball to the tight ends. Ohio State started doing it against Kent State last week but this needs to be an every week occurrence. Tim Hinton said yesterday that Jeff Heuerman is one of the best in the country at his position and some scouts feel he can be one of the top tight ends taken in next years draft. I’m ready to finally see why.
Virginia Tech- This is why we can’t give you nice wins: Losses to East Carolina and Georgia Tech after winning your biggest road game in school history make me giggle. That’s what you get when you put all your spring and fall camps into one game (yup still not over it). Michael Brewer was credited with having a terrific game against the Bucks, and not to toot my own horn, but I didn’t see it. Despite some nice scrambles and a solid td pass, he didn’t even throw for 200 yards and had three turnovers against Ohio State. He’s been the same in the last two losses.
Von Bell is a peach: The sophmore star from Georgia looks like he is going to be a big time playmaker in the next couple years. For the first time since the beginning of last season, Ohio State has a promising secondary.
When will they commit?: Damien Harris and Torrance Gibson are two crazy athletes who many consider to be Buckeye leans. The longer they wait the more nervous the leader gets, but most recruiting experts believe Ohio State is still in good shape with these two blue chippers.
X: Piss off I tried.
You can catch him: My boy Dontre Wilson had a decent start to the 2014 season yet a lot of Ohio State fans are expecting more. He has been so close to breaking the big one yet keeps getting tripped up. He’s averaging 5 yards a carry and 20 yards a catch, it just seems he hasn’t found the vision to become truly elite. Some really stupid fans will tell you that they are ready to give up on the sophmore h-back from Texas for others behind him; just laugh it off and imagine how bad Michigan would love to have an offensive back that averages 11 yards a touch.
Zeke needs to be the man: I’m ready for Ezekiel Elliot to get 15-20 carries a game. As much as I love Curtis Samuel, Zeke’s 225 pound frame will be more reliable between the tackles once the physical Big Ten season starts. I think the 180 pound Samuel will be an outstanding compliment to the bigger Elliott. It’d just be nice to see the big boy run like he’s got 40 pounds on his backup.
Finally, after what seemed to be a ten year weekend, we get some real football back Saturday. I’m still upset we have to deal with another one of these bye’s so quickly but at least we aren’t UC fans. The Bearcats didn’t play the first two weeks during the season and I don’t know how their fans survived (oh yea I do, all of their fans are big time bandwagon dickweeds). If that was me I would have definitely looked at freezing myself or googled how to induce a two week coma.
Hopefully that the positives on this list will remain as such and the negatives will be forgotten quicker than the ice bucket challenge.
Who knows, maybe come December, we can finally forget about 9/6/14. I don’t know if I want to let it go though. I feel like heading down to the shoe this weekend all dressed in white and smoking cigarettes while following the happy nut fans around to remind them of that horrible night. We need to make sure they never forget- Leftovers style…
B1G Weekly Recap: Conference Shines Bright in Week Four
September 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment
After two consecutive weeks of subpar performances by the Big Ten, the conference came up huge this week, winning all but one of their week four matchups. As a whole, the Big Ten went 12-1, including four victories over Power 5 conference schools. The lone defeat is one I’m sure most Buckeye fans enjoyed quite a bit, as Brady Hoke’s hot seat got turned up a couple degrees with a home loss to Utah.
Iowa 24, Pittsburgh 20
A halftime quarterback change spurred the Hawkeyes on to victory on the road against the Panthers. Down 17-7 at half, Kirk Ferentz replaced Jake Rudock, who had gone 5-10 for 80 yards and a touchdown and interception in the first half, with C.J. Beathard. Beathard finished the game 7-8 for 98 yards in the air.
Iowa running back Mark Weisman ran for 88 yards on the day and scored a pair of touchdowns in the second half, including the game-winner with 6:56 left in the game. The Hawkeyes open conference play next weekend when they travel to Purdue.
Michigan State 73, Eastern Michigan 14
Michigan State finally got back on the winning track after losing to Oregon two weeks ago and having a bye last week. It did not take long for the Spartans to assert their dominance over their in-state opponents, with Sparty outgaining the Eagles 320-1 in the first half. Yes, one. Eastern Michigan gained one yard in an entire half. Connor Cook threw for two touchdowns and ran for another in the first half.
Delton Williams ran for 103 yards and three scores in the blowout. The 73 points were the most Michigan State had scored since 1989 when they recorded a 76-14 victory over Northwestern. The Spartans close out their nonconference slate with a home game next week against Wyoming.
Northwestern 24, Western Illinois 7
Despite being outgained 376-283, Northwestern finally put a “W†up on the board after starting the season with losses to California and Northern Illinois. Freshmen running backs Solomon Vault, 31 yards and two TDs, and Justin Jackson, 92 yards and one score, led the way for the Wildcats, who only managed 117 yards through the air.
Ohio native and current Wildcat defensive lineman Ifeadi Odenigbo forced three fumbles and recovered another as he helped hold the Leathernecks to no points after their first drive. Northwestern goes to Happy Valley to take on Penn State in their Big Ten opener next week.
Purdue 35, Southern Illinois 13
With their victory over Southern Illinois, Purdue improved to 2-2 on the season and have doubled their win total from 2013. Danny Etling put in another solid performance, throwing for 198 yards and two scores while running for another. The Salukis turned the ball over twice in the first quarter and the Boilermakers took advantage, scored touchdowns after both, and never looked back.
Danny Anthrop caught five passes for 106 yards and a touchdown for Purdue as they go into conference play on a winning note. The Boilermakers host Iowa next weekend in both teams’ Big Ten opener.
Wisconsin 68, Bowling Green 17
Don’t look now, but Melvin Gordon is slowly building his Heisman resume as the Badgers destroyed MAC foe Bowling Green. Gordon spear-headed the Wisconsin rushing attack that set a Big Ten record with 644 rushing yards on the day. Gordon himself ran for 253 yards and five touchdowns…on 13 carries.
In addition to Gordon, the Badgers had two others, Tanner McEvoy and Corey Clement, ran for over 100 yards while Dare Ogunbowlale nearly got there with 94 yards of his own. Wisconsin improved to 2-1 and will host South Florida on Saturday.
Maryland 34, Syracuse 20
Maryland improved to 3-1 on the season with a win on the road over the Orange in the Carrier Dome. The Terrapins were outgained by 220 yards on the day, but took advantage of Syracuse mistakes to earn the victory. William Likely returned an interception 88 yards for a touchdown with less than four minutes left in the first half to put Maryland up 31-13 at the break.
C.J. Brown threw for 280 yards and two scores as Maryland got revenge for their 20-3 loss to the Orange last season in College Park. The Terrapins will start their Big Ten schedule next week with a trip to Bloomington to take on Indiana.
Utah 26, Michigan 10
Is a quarterback controversy brewing in Ann Arbor? Devin Gardner was 14-26 for 148 yards and two interceptions before being replaced in the second half by Shane Morris, who did not do much better. Morris, who came in before the lightning delay and finished the game off after the game resumed, completed just four of his 13 attempts for 42 yards and an interception of his own.
Kaelin Clay scored the first touchdown of the day when he returned a punt 66 yards for a score, but that was not the most notable part of the play. After reaching the end zone, Clay struck the Heisman pose in the same end that Desmond Howard did two decades earlier. Brady Hoke will try to cool off his hot seat when Minnesota comes to the Big House Saturday.
Rutgers 31, Navy 24
Rutgers relied on the run game to beat Navy, and lost their number one running back for the season in the process. Paul James had 96 yards and a touchdown on seven carries before injuring himself in the second quarter. James later learned that he had torn his ACL and will miss the remainder of the season.
Justin Goodwin picked up the slack, rushing for 104 yards and a score, while quarterback Gary Nova added two rushing touchdowns of his own as the Scarlet Knights improved to 3-1 in 2014. Rutgers will host the Tulane Green Wave next week.
Penn State 48, Massachusetts 7
Christian Hackenberg only threw for 179 yards, but Penn State had a balanced attack as they finished with 236 passing yards and 228 rushing yards to put the Minutemen away. Bill Belton and Zach Zwinak each scored two rushing touchdowns.
The Nittany Lion defense came to play as well, holding UMass to just three rushing yards as a team. Penn State will look to improve to 2-0 in the Big Ten when Northwestern comes to town Saturday.
Minnesota 24, San Jose State 7
Minnesota was without starting quarterback Mitch Leidner for this one, but backup Chris Streveler filled in admirably as he ran for 161 yards and a touchdown. He needed every last one of those yards as he only completed one pass to a teammate on the day for just seven yards. He was also intercepted once.
David Cobb ran for 207 yards and two scores to lead the Golden Gophers to victory. Minnesota opens Big Ten play next week against the Wolverines.
Illinois 42, Texas State 35
Illinois could very well be 0-4 on the season. Instead, they’ve used fourth quarter comebacks in each of their three home games to stay unbeaten in Memorial Stadium in 2014. The Illini needed 17 points in the final frame this week to come from behind and defeat the Bobcats. Texas State led by as much as 15 points late in the second quarter before the comeback began.
Josh Ferguson ran for 190 yards and two touchdowns while Wes Lunt threw for 266 yards and two more scores as Illinois finished nonconference play at 3-1. The Illini will look to start conference with a win when they travel to Lincoln next week to take on Nebraska.
Indiana 31, Missouri 27
In the stunner of the weekend, Indiana beat defending SEC West champion Missouri in Columbia just a week after being beaten by Bowling Green on the road. D’Angelo Roberts ran for 65 yards and two scores, including the game-winner with 22 seconds left.
Nate Sudfeld threw for 252 yards and a TD as the Hoosiers knocked off previously unbeaten Missouri. Indiana will welcome Maryland to the Big Ten next week when they play host to the Terrapins.
Nebraska 41, Miami (FL) 31
Ameer Abdullah continued his own Heisman campaign in impressive fashion as he led the Cornhuskers to a victory on the night they celebrated the 20th anniversary of their 1994 national championship team. Abdullah carried the ball 35 times for 229 yards and two touchdowns.
Tommy Armstrong Jr. threw for 113 yards and two scores of his own while adding 96 yards on the ground as Nebraska improved to 4-0 on the young season. Nebraska opens conference play next week at home against Illinois.
What was your favorite part of the B1G weekend the conference had? Was Indiana’s victory the most impressive win the conference had, or did Nebraska going to 4-0 take home top honors? Let us know what you thought of the conference’s performance this week and how you think the Big Ten race will turn out as we head into conference play.
MotSaG Power Poll Week 4
September 22, 2014 by 2 Comments
The Big Ten showed up in some key games this weekend and beat some Power 5 conference opponents. Slowly trying to bring back relevancy to the B1G and it was nice to see except one really left a black eye on the weekend not allowing an undefeated weekend but seeing a 12-1 weekend record.
1. Penn State Being undefeated and the only B1G win currently is the reason PSU is at Number 1
2. Nebraska Beat the U by 10 and still undefeated keeps Number 2 spot
3. Michigan State Destroying even weak opponents sometimes is a good thing so you can stay at Number 3
4. Wisconsin Record rushing by the Badgers keeps them at Number 3
5. Ohio State Idle
6. (+1) Rutgers Holding off the Midshipmen helps Rutgers jump up
7. (+1) Maryland The Terps got the monkey off their back by beating the Orangemen
8. (+1) Minnesota rebounding from the TCU loss to beat San Jose State is a good thing
9. (+1) Iowa Always good to beat Mark May’s school. After losing to Iowa State the Hawkeyes came back and beat Pitt.
10. (+2) Indiana Can’t beat Bowling Green but showed up and knocked off an SEC team even one that was in the championship game a year ago. Down goes Mizzo you wouldn’t know by watching the four letter network.
11. Illinois Tim Beckman saves his job by beating Texas Tech
12. (+1) Purdue Purdue beats Southern Illinois and looks like maybe they are imroving
13. (-7) Michigan What can I say here Purdue scored more versus Notre Dame than Michigan and the Wolverines have zero thats right zero offensive touchdowns in their two losses against ND and Utah. That stellar defense that the Maize and Blue is supposedly touting allowed two different QB’s to score on them Saturday.
14. Northwestern Hey Northwestern finally won a game could they be turning things around?
Like always cant wait to hear your feedback.
MOTSAG TV Guide
September 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
My apologies for accidentally including Western Illinois @ Northwestern in last week’s guide. I hope I didn’t screw up anyone’s big party. The Buckeyes are off this week, so we’ll just be enjoying watching everyone else (hopefully) crash and burn.
UPCOMING OPPONENTS
(9/20)
Eastern Michigan @ Michigan State. Noon, Big Ten Network.
Maryland @ Syracuse. 12:30p, ESPN3 (online)/ACC Network (is that a thing?)
Utah @ Michigan. 3:30p, ABC/ESPN2.
The Big Ten is in a tailspin right now, so we might actually be forced to do the unthinkable this week: cheer for Utah, but be okay with it if they lose. (Sorry, SOS apologists, that’s as far as I’m willing to go.) Utah may not be a big name Pac-12 team like Oregon or Stanford, but they are 2-0 and the Big Ten really just needs any win over a decent major-conference opponent.
Rutgers @ Navy. 3:30p, CBS Sports Network.
UMass @ Penn State. 4:00p, Big Ten Network.
Texas State @ Illinois. 4:00p, ESPN News.
San Jose State @ Minnesota. 4:00p, Big Ten Network.
Indiana @ Missouri. 4:00p, SEC Network.
I mean, who knows, right?
Right?
Guys?
Miami (OH) @ Cincinnati. 7:00p, CBS Sports Network.
OTHER BIG TEN TEAMS
FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT
IS DECENT AND GOOD PLEASE
SOMEBODY WIN A GAME
(9/20)
Bowling Green @ Wisconsin. Noon, ESPN2.
Southern Illinois @ Purdue. Noon, Big Ten Network.
Western Illinois @ Northwestern. Noon, ESPN News.
Iowa @ Pittsburgh. Noon, ESPNU.
Miami (FL) @ Nebraska. 8:00p, ESPN2.
The Hurricanes are 2-1, so a win here is okay, but a loss is pretty much disastrous for the Big Ten. Guess which one’s going to happen!
OTHER OHIO TEAMS
(9/20)
Marshall @ Akron. 2:00p, ESPN3 (online)
Ball State @ Toledo. 7:00p, ESPN3 (online)
Idaho @ Ohio. 7:00p, ESPN3 (online)
OTHER BIG NATIONAL GAMES
(9/18)
Auburn @ Kansas State. 7:30p, ESPN.
(9/20)
Florida @ Alabama. 3:30p, CBS.
Oklahoma @ West Virginia. 7:30p, Fox.
Clemson @ Florida State. 8:00p, ABC.
The Spread, Week Four: What Did You Expect?
September 18, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Big Ten took a beating this past weekend–again. As the favorites in six of the nine non-conference games on the slate, the conference was looking for a little bit of redemption. Instead, it was another massive letdown.
Only Ohio State, Michigan and Nebraska managed wins, and each of those was against a significantly weaker opponent. Penn State also squeaked past Rutgers, but that’s a wash for the conference.
Personally, I don’t really like the conference unity mindset spawned by the BCS and only exacerbated by the assumption that strength of schedule will be the major factor in making the new playoff. (I’m trying to really hard to not launch into yet another anti-SOS rant here.)
But since we live in a perception-is-reality college football world, I thought we’d take a look at how the conference is faring so far in that department with my Performance Against Expectation ratings.
Quickly, PAE is a calculation I came up with last year which compares the final score of a game to the “public prediction” of the score, as indicated by the associated betting numbers (point spread and over/under.) Teams who win do not always do so as convincingly as we thought they would and teams who lose do not always do so as badly as we thought. PAE reflects that. (Keep in mind that games without published lines–usually the ones against FCS teams–can not be included in this rating.)
It may surprise you that the Big Ten as a whole has actually outperformed expectations in two of three weeks of the season so far, including this week. To be fair, those numbers are boosted by a few great performances like Nebraska’s big win over Florida Atlantic and Ohio State’s shutout against Kent State.
So let’s look at the teams individually. It’s important to remember here that most teams’ ratings right now are based on just one or two games. Still, it’s a good measure of just how disappointing most Big Ten teams have been so far this year.
Big Ten PAE Rating through Week 3 (as a percentage)
1. Nebraska, 193%
2. Penn State, 123%
3. Ohio State, 120%
4. Rutgers, 118%
5. Wisconsin, 97%
6. Michigan State, 96%
7. Illinois, 86%
8. Maryland, 86%
9. Purdue, 76%
10. Minnesota, 67%
11. Indiana, 65%
12. Michigan, 60%
13. Iowa, 60%
14. Northwestern, 56%
Note that a high number doesn’t necessarily mean a better team. For example, no one really expects Purdue to do much, and they don’t. But people expect more of, say, Michigan than they’ve been able to deliver so far.
We’ll get a better sense of who these teams are as they all play some more meaningful games, but for now, it’s tough to argue that the public perception of the Big Ten as a “weak” and disappointing league is inaccurate.
Predicting Every Single FBS College Football Game: Week Four
September 17, 2014 by 3 Comments
Week three was just plain weird in college football. Lots of bizarre and close games throughout the weekend, which resulted in me having my worst week yet. My record for week three predictions: 43-15 (74.13% of games picked correctly). My picks for week three can be found by clicking here. My record for the season: 176-40. So I’m happy with my overall record. I think half of my losses have come from games involving Sun Belt teams. Thanks Sun Belt! And the Big Ten hasn’t helped me with my picks either, so this week I didn’t pick as many Big Ten teams to win. I’m dreading picking the conference games, especially the Big Ten West. There’s still a lot of college football season left, but teams are starting to give a picture of what kind of team they have. For example, I’m not picking Vanderbilt for the rest of the year. They’re just horrible. Ditto for Kansas. And Michigan doesn’t look too good either. I better stop before I get on a roll. Let’s take a look at week four…
Thursday Sept. 18
#5 Auburn @ #20 Kansas State – Pick: Auburn
Friday Sept. 19
Connecticut @ South Florida – Pick: South Florida
Saturday Sept. 20
Iowa @ Pittsburgh – Pick: Pittsburgh
Georgia Tech @ Virginia Tech – Pick: Georgia Tech
Eastern Michigan @ #11 Michigan State – Pick: Michigan State
Western Illinois @ Northwestern – Pick: Northwestern
Southern Illinois @ Purdue – Pick: Purdue
Bowling Green @ #19 Wisconsin – Pick: Wisconsin
Troy @ #13 Georgia – Pick: Georgia
Old Dominion @ Rice – Pick: Old Dominion
Tulane @ Duke – Pick: Duke
Maryland @ Syracuse – Pick: Syracuse
Maine @ Boston College – Pick: Boston College
Delaware State @ Temple – Pick: Temple
Hawaii @ Colorado – Pick: Colorado
Marshall @ Akron – Pick: Marshall
Army @ Wake Forest – Pick: Wake Forest
Central Michigan @ Kansas – Pick: Central Michigan
Utah @ Michigan – Pick: Utah (by three touchdowns)
Florida @ #3 Alabama – Pick: Alabama
#6 Texas A&M @ SMU – Pick: Texas A&M
Virginia @ #21 BYU – Pick: Virginia (Upset)
North Carolina @ East Carolina – Pick: East Carolina
Rutgers @ Navy – Pick: Navy
Nicholls State @ North Texas – Pick: North Texas
Norfolk State @ Buffalo – Pick: Buffalo
Louisville @ FIU – Pick: Louisville
Indiana @ #18 Missouri – Pick: Missouri
Texas State @ Illinois – Pick: Texas State
San Jose State @ Minnesota – Pick: Minnesota
UMass @ Penn State – Pick: Penn State
Florida Atlantic @ Wyoming – Pick: Wyoming
Presbyterian @ NC State – Pick: NC State
Georgia State @ Washington – Pick: Washington
Bethune-Cookman @ UCF – Pick: UCF
Utah State @ Arkansas State – Pick: Arkansas State
Northwestern State @ Louisiana Tech – Pick: Louisiana Tech
Idaho @ Ohio – Pick: Ohio
Ball State @ Toledo – Pick: Toledo
Murray State @ Western Michigan – Pick: Western Michigan
Northern Illinois @ Arkansas – Pick: Arkansas
Mississippi State @ #8 LSU – Pick: LSU
Miami (OH) @ Cincinnati – Pick: Cincinnati
Middle Tennessee State @ Memphis – Pick: Memphis
Appalachian State @ Southern Miss – Pick: Appalachian State
#4 Oklahoma @ West Virginia – Pick: West Virginia (Upset)
#14 South Carolina @ Vanderbilt – Pick: South Carolina
Georgia Southern @ South Alabama – Pick: South Alabama
#22 Clemson @ #1 Florida State – Pick: Florida State
Miami (FL) @ #24 Nebraska – Pick: Nebraska
New Mexico @ New Mexico State – Pick: New Mexico
UNLV @ Houston – Pick: Houston
California @ Arizona – Pick: Arizona
Southern Utah @ Fresno State – Pick: Fresno State
San Diego State @ Oregon State – Pick: Oregon State
#2 Oregon @ Washington State – Pick: Oregon
Louisiana-Lafayette @ Boise State – Pick: Boise State
That’s all the games for week four. I’ll let you know how I did with my predictions on next week’s post. Let me know in the comments what you think of my picks and feel free to ask me why I picked the way I did.
A Look Around the Country
September 17, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Notable Games Last Week
South Carolina 38 Georgia 35
It was a wild one at Williams-Brice Stadium as the Gamecocks took down the Bulldogs. Moving forward, this sets up a very interesting SEC East race early in the season. Mark Richt had this team rolling but in typical fashion, he couldn’t keep it going. I still maintain that the SEC East is highly overrated and doesn’t pose much of a threat to the eventual SEC West Champion. But we’ll see.
Oklahoma 34 Tennessee 10
The Sooners are a very good football team. Granted, the Volunteers aren’t exactly blazing the trail with W’s but OU has great potential. Bob Stoops has built them into a championship caliber team yet again (he’s been doing this since 2000 and earlier). And with a weak Big 12, it sets up a HUGE matchup between Oklahoma and Baylor on November 7th in Norman. Gotta tune in for that one.
UCLA 20 Texas 17
Charlie Strong’s career in Austin hasn’t exactly gotten off to a great start. The Longhorns are 1-2 and don’t have an optimistic outlook into the 2014 season. Spoiling Oklahoma’s season on October 10 is something to look for. The Bruins on the other hand are grossly overrated and I wouldn’t be surprised if they end up having 3 losses by the end of the season. Brett Hundley has not been the least bit impressive thus far. I don’t think they stand much of a chance in the Pac 12 race.
Ohio State 66 Kent State 0
All of the frustration from last week’s loss to Virginia Tech was taken out on the poor, little, in state foe, Golden Flashes. I don’t know about you, but it felt good to win this week. Barrett tied Kenny G’s TD record for a game with 6 (5 in the first half) while freshman Curtis Samuel ran for 100 yards. The Buckeyes head into a bye week with Cincinnati on the schedule in 2 weeks. It’s time for them to stay focused on the ultimate goal which is the Big Ten Title. That is still a possibility, believe it or not.
Penn State 13 Rutgers 10
Rutgers first game in the Big Ten ended in disappointment as James Franklin’s Nittany Lions held on for the win. With the new NCAA ruling this past week making Penn State eligible for postseason play; it makes for an interesting wrinkle in the Eastern Division race. It has been a joy making fun of Rutgers being in this conference the past few months but I want to give them all credit in the world after watching their crowd and fans cheer on their beloved Scarlet Knights. They were loud and passionate and have a better home atmosphere than Indiana, Illinois, Northwestern, Purdue, and Minnesota combined. Welcome to the B1G!
Boston College 37 USC 31
Yep, had no clue this was coming. The Eagles pulled off the upset of the week with the win over the heavily favored Trojans. I still think USC is a force to be reckoned with in the Pac 12 (they’re better than UCLA) and could sneak back up into the playoff discussion with a few more wins down the stretch. Keep an eye on the Men of Troy.
Big Games This Week
Auburn at Kansas State
I think most people expect the Tigers to come out of this with a big win, and quite frankly, so do I. But it would be stupid to count out Coach Snyder’s Wildcats at any time during the season. They always seem like a pesky team who revel in ruining opponent’s title hopes. Right now I see Auburn as the SEC champ and playoff team because of Gus Malzahn’s coaching ability and Nick Marshall’s leadership. Tigers win.
Thursday, September 18 at 7:30pm on ESPN
Oklahoma at West Virginia
The Sooners are coming off a big win against Tennessee and are now set to travel to Morgantown to face the Mountaineers. West Virginia kept it close with Alabama up to the end of the game back in week one so they are no slouch. I expect OU to win but don’t be surprised if this one is in West Virginia’s favor headed into halftime.
Saturday, September 20 at 7:30pm on FOX
Clemson at Florida State
This was the ACC showdown of the year last season and it didn’t disappoint. But Clemson is a much different team this season and don’t have the friendly confines of Memorial Stadium to help them out (of course that didn’t seem to help last year either). Florida State had an extra week to prepare for this one so I don’t anticipate any surprises in Tallahassee. Seminoles romp.
Saturday, September 20 at 8pm on ABC
Miami (FL) at Nebraska
This game should give the Big Ten and the Huskers at least a little bit of credibility if they were to come away with a win in this one. Bo Pelini is inching closer and closer to the hot seat so every game is a must win for him here on out. Nebraska RB Ameer Abdullah has had a great season so far both running and catching the football while entering himself into the Heisman discussion. It’ll be another sellout crowd in Lincoln and the Huskers should win by a touchdown or two.
Saturday, September 20 at 8pm on ESPN2
Ohio State (Bye)
We all hate bye weeks. Watch a replay of a past big win like the ’97 Rose Bowl or ’02 National Championship Game. Or go watch your local small college team play; they always need the extra support.
Michigan Update
The Wolverines struggled most of the first half against the team with the longest losing streak in the country, the Miami (OH) Redhawks. Even with a less than stellar schedule, Brady Hoke seems to be struggling against everyone so far. He’s going to need a miracle to keep his job. They take on Utah this week at 3:30 on ABC or ESPN 2.
Heisman Watch
Marcus Mariota, Oregon
19/23 passing for 221 yards and 2 touchdowns along with 5 carries for 71 yards and an additional 2 touchdowns in win against Wyoming. His Ducks are rolling and as long as they are he’ll be a favorite to hoist the trophy.
Jameis Winston, Florida State
Bye Week
Todd Gurley, Georgia
20 carries for 131 yards and 2 touchdowns in loss to South Carolina. In this day and age, it’s tough to be a Heisman candidate when your team loses. Gurley played well but this certainly hurts his chances.
Rising Star
Kenny Hill, Texas A&M
Kenny Trill™ has thrown for 1,094 yards, and 11 touchdowns while completing nearly 70 percent of his passes. He’s having a freakish year so far. Kevin Sumlin’s Aggies remind me of the great Hawaii offensive systems where guys like Colt Brennan put up 800 yards of offense every game. But if A&M starts beating good SEC teams, Kenny has to be in the discussion.
Dropping Fast
Brett Hundley, UCLA
The Bruins have limped through every game they’ve played so far. If Hundley was a Heisman caliber quarterback, that wouldn’t have happened.
My Playoff if the Season Ended Today
1. Oregon (beat Wyoming 48-14, play at Washington State this week) The Ducks destroy who they’re supposed to destroy and even teams they shouldn’t (looking at you, Sparty). This is an all-around great football team.
2. Florida State (had bye week, plays Clemson this week) The Noles have to show me something this week against Clemson. OU is right on their tails. They just don’t seem as hungry thus far in 2014.
3. Oklahoma (beat Tennessee 34-10, plays at West Virginia this week) I’m all over the Sooners right now. This is a team to be reckoned with and a big win over WVU this week in primetime will show the rest of the country why.
4. Auburn (had bye week, plays at Kansas State this week) I still think Auburn is the team to beat in the SEC regardless of how bad ESPN wants it to be Alabama. This is another opportunity for them to prove that.
Just Missed the Cut
5. Alabama
6. Baylor
7. Notre Dame
8. Texas A&M
9. LSU
10. Michigan State
18. Ohio State
