Weekend TV Preview

- In the spirit of the famous Leprechaun video, another gem from the Dirty South.....


On to picks.....a terrible week last week.

Last weekend - 3-10-1
YTD - 25-24-1


Thursday

West Virginia (-3) at Colorado - ESPN - 7:30 pm
West Virginia has officially burned me. They have proven to be woefully 1-dimensional, getting embarassed against East Carolina, scoring 3 points, throwing for 75 yards, and only rushing for 179 yards. 1 dimensional teams do not do well on the road, against a rowdy crowd, and an inspired team. Colorado, when inspired and playing what they perceive as a good team, can be dangerous as hell. Give me points, and give me another bad performance passing by Pat White.
Pick - Colorado +3


Friday

Baylor at UCONN (-12) - ESPN2 - 7:00 pm
Baylor has posted back to back blowout wins at home, with Robert Griffin running and throwing with efficiency and electricity. I really don't know much about UCONN, except that they have a decent team and have really risen from the ranks of the cellar in the past few years. Baylor is still bad, and they're on the road, and I'll take a home favorite of less than 14 points against Baylor any day of the week.
Pick - UCONN -12


Saturday

East Carolina (-7.5) at NC State - ESPN - 11:00 am
East Carolina is this year's South Florida or Rutgers. An out of nowhere team that has caught the media's attention, and now they're all you hear about. They are no doubt a good team, and they will get exposed at some point this year, but NC State is the worst major conference team in America. 2 blowout losses by below average teams (Clemson and South Carolina), and 1 ten point win against William & Mary. They get hammered at home.
Pick - East Carolina -7.5

Iowa at Pittsburgh (-1) - ESPN2 - 11:00 am
If it involves Pitt, I hate it. I hate their offense, their style of play, their city, their stadium. I get depressed when Pitt is on TV and at home. I hate their Athletic Director, Steve Pederson for single handedly setting Nebraska back 10 years. I hate Dave Wannstedt for being an absolutely terrible in-game head coach. I hate their stadium, a stale, boring professional stadium that is never even 50% full and turns into a dirt field come October. And I hate Pittsburgh the city, it's a nasty, industrialized, depressing piece of crap hole in the earth.
Pick - Iowa +1

Troy at Ohio State (-21) - Big 10 Network - 11:00 am
Another team I despise, Ohio State. All the hype in the world due to the East Coast Media Hype Machine. And consistently failing when it comes to hanging with top teams in the nation. For a small school, Troy has talent and speed. They have the goods to hang with the big boys. Have to take Troy with 3 TD's out of principle. After watching Ohio U hang with Ohio State, give me Troy.
Pick - Troy +21

Central Florida at Boston College (-10.5) - ESPNU - 12:00 pm
Central Florida gave South Florida a really tough game last week. This is a good team with tons of speed and good weapons. Boston College is not a bad team, but they're not a good team either. Someone with speed at the skill positions can hang with them. And since it's not November and in the 30's, I give UCF a fighting chance.
Pick - UCF +10.5

Arizona (-2.5) at UCLA - FSNSW - 2:00 pm
This game baffles me. UCLA has played 1 good half (2nd half vs. Tennessee), and has played like the worst team in the nation the rest of the time. 59-0 at BYU? Arizona killed 2 bad teams at home, and then went and lost at New Mexico, a very weak team who got beat at home by an even weaker team, Texas A&M. I guess give me the home team with points, and who at least has Norm Chow and Rick Neuheisel on their sidelines.
Pick - UCLA +2.5

Miami (-4) at Texas A&M - ABC - 2:30 pm
Texas A&M is pretty bad. All around, just a bad team. It's crazy to think that they may not even be better than Baylor this year. Miami has a great defense (as shown in their game at Florida), and has tons of speed as always. But the offense and the QB is not very good, no matter what Musburger and Herbstreit said last week as they were trying to induct him into the Hall of Fame during the game. Look for an ugly, defensive game and Miami winning by a score of about 17-6.
Pick - Miami -4

Florida (-7.5) at Tennessee - CBS - 2:30 pm
Florida didn't look overly impressive against Miami at home. The offensive line and running game didn't look good at all. Not good when you can't run the ball on the road in the SEC. Tennessee has just enough talent to either pull this one out, or keep it within 7 points. They will be able to contain the Florida offense for the most part. The question is whether they'll be able to generate any points against Florida. Either way, expect a close game.
Pick - Tennessee +7.5

Notre Dame at Michigan State (-8.5) - NBC - 2:30 pm
Meet yet another program that draws my ire. Notre Dame, another queen of the East Coast Media Hype Machine, goes to Michigan State this week. MSU is not a bad team, barely losing on the road at Cal, and winning comfortably in the 2 other games. Notre Dame beat a bad Michigan team, and needed supreme luck against San Diego State at home just to sneak away with a win. Michigan State will roll them. Charlie Weis's schematic advantage that he claims he owns over every program in college football will blow up in his face yet again.
DOUBLE PLAY
Pick - Michigan State -8.5

Utah (-7.5) at Air Force - Versus - 3:00 pm
Utah has dreams of the BCS, and has a really good team. A versatile, experienced QB and great coaching. Air Force always plays tough, no matter how out-manned they may be. I expect a tough game for Utah, with them barely sneaking out with a win. Air Force can grind out clock, and should have a good home crowd making things tough. But expect a Utah win.
Pick - Air Force +7.5

Wake Forest at Florida State (-4) - ESPN2 - 6:00 pm
Florida State could be on the way back to respectability, but I need more evidence than beating two 1-AA teams at home. Wake Forest is good team, very disclipined, well coached, and has already beaten 2 major conference teams. I'm a Jim Grobe fan and a believer. Give me the 4 points.
Pick - Wake Forest +4

Rice at Texas (-30.5) - FSNSW - 6:00 pm
Texas is quietly putting on dominating performances. While Oklahoma, Texas Tech, and Missouri get all the headlines, Texas is demolishing teams. Their offensive line is back to top form after a down year, Colt McCoy is a year older and is noticeably better built to withstand a pounding. He's also putting up stats that rival Sam Bradford and Chase Daniel. The defense is playing with an edge now with Muschamp doing his best Joe Avezzano fake intensity bit on the sidelines. The only question, the running back situation, doesn't seem to be a problem as long as McCoy keeps picking people apart while barely being touched. Their lack of run game may haunt them at some point, but not against Rice. The roll continues....
Pick - Texas -30.5

Ball State at Indiana (-3) - Big 10 Network - 6:00 pm
Ball State is an exciting team that can put up points on a lot of teams. Indiana also has a really good offense. Both have dual threat QB's that are the main cogs in their team's engines. Expect an unusually exciting offensive game that involves a Big 10 team. This could really be a game where both teams score in the 40's. Give me the home team.
Pick - Indiana -3

LSU (-2.5) at Auburn - ESPN - 6:45 pm
The game of the week. A classic must watch SEC game. Tons of speed. At night with 85,000 screaming, drunk idiots. Great uniforms. SEC pageantry. Ron Franklin on the call. I can't wait. I would like to think LSU all the way on this one, especially after Auburn's 3-2 barnburner last week at Mississippi State. LSU has a new QB, but has talent everywhere else. Auburn's offense is still adjusting to a new spread style, and will not have any leeway against a bad ass LSU defense.
Pick - LSU -2.5

TCU (-24) at SMU - CBSCS - 7:00 pm
A potentially exciting game. June Jones has a chance to end TCU's BCS hopes very early in the season. Something tells me this will be a close game. TCU loves to make games ugly, and SMU will score some points. TCU has a history of playing down to SMU's level.....
Pick - SMU +24

Georgia (-7) at Arizona State - ABC - 7:00 pm
Sun Devil Stadium will be loud. Georgia hasn't traveled west of the Mississippi since the 60's. Arizona State is a team that will play terrible against terrible teams, and will rise up against good teams. Dennis Erickson has enough athletes, Rudy Carpenter is a good enough QB to lead them to some points, and Arizona State will win this game. Georgia has a weak offensive line, and that is never a good thing when you're on the road, and fighting against speed and a loud home crowd.
Pick - Arizona State +7 and an outright win

Fresno State (-7) at Toledo - ESPNU - 7:15 pm
Fresno State will make up for a loss last weekend at home to Wisconsin. I have nothing else on this game except I'm a believer in Pat Hill on the road against a lesser team.
Pick - Fresno State -7

NO CROWN GAME