Tag Archives: Football rivalries

Pride Trophy Week

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Rivalries. Trophy games. Championship participants. These are what will be on the line when toe meets leather this week.

Ohio St continues to find a way, but this week brings a hot Michigan team to the Horseshoe. West Virginia and Oklahoma will decide the Big 12 championship. The winner is in and will play Texas if the Longhorns take care of Kansas. Vandy meets Tennessee in a loser go home match. One of them is going bowling. Cal/Stanford moved to Dec 1 due to the horrific fires in the region. And the triple option proved too much to contain as The Citadel gave Bama half a game.

I look for Washington St to take the Apple Cup. I’ve been in attendance at the Holy War and like that time I think Utah prevails. Notre Dame will finish the job and send Clay Helton back to coordinator jobs. Texas A&M and LSU should be a great game. The sneaky good game calls for you to stay up late and watch Boise St take on Utah St to decide their division. Another to watch earlier is Troy v Appalachian St. I’m just hoping that my guys can bring home the ODK Foy Trophy back to the Capstone.

Vegas 5 went 3-2 last week. 29-28-3 is now where I sit. I got it handed to me again in Top 25/SEC going 12-15. I’m at 135-132 there.

I’m going with the Over (52.5) again when Auburn visits Bama. But I’ll go Under (64.5) when Purdue plays Indiana. I like Maryland (+13) against Penn St. I’m willing to give a bunch of points in Temple (-29) against U Conn. Lastly, UCLA (+7) stays hot against Stanford.

Who’d you pick?

Status Quo Week

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This week the good matchups are fewer and further between. This is especially true in the two conferences that have yet to expand to nine game schedules. That needs to be fixed soon.

Last week’s Ohio State hero was the punter. Let that sink in. Troy took the lead in the FunBelt, my sneaky good game was just that, and Ok State’s 2-point play call left a lot to be desired. Bama’s D is doing their version of No Score November to support defensive awareness.

This week the marquee matchup is Notre Dame v Syracuse in Yankee Stadium. I don’t know if they’ll win, but the Orange will give them a good game. Cincinnati and UCF should be interesting. UCF can score but can’t stop anyone. Wonder if the Big 12 is giving them a look? USC plays UCLA and both teams have been wearing the home colors lately for the matchup. The Game between Cal and Stanford usually provides quality entertainment. I guess a game between ranked teams isn’t a sneaky good one, but Iowa St at Texas will go a long way to decide the Big 12 CG. And San Diego St and Fresno St try to decide their division.

Last week my mediocrity continued. I have been living at .500. The Vegas 5 went 2-2-1 again and moved to 26-26-3 on the season. Top 25/SEC went 11-9 to go to 123-117.

This week the Vegas 5 starts like last week. I want the Over (62) in The Citadel/Bama game. UAB (+16.5) keeps it close with some solid defense. UMass (+41.5) against Georgia because that’s a lot of points and Kirby will put in backups to the backups late. Texas Tech (-6.5) should cover against Kansas St. And I like the Over (57) in the Missouri/Tennesee game.

Who’s your picks?

The Picture Begins to Reveal

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After last weekend our playoff contenders have come into view. I agree with the CFP Committee on their top 6. Looks like the next few weeks will go a long way to seeing the finished product. But I highly doubt everyone keeps winning.

We found out the Bama defense was tired of hearing about the O and how they weren’t as good as years past. Clemson seems to be on cruise control, but BC should give them a game, especially in that weather. Notre Dame and Michigan look good enough to run the table, but some tricky spots could trip them up.

Three of the Power 5 conference  title games will involve teams that are barely over .500. The SEC and Big 12 seem to have the proper balance, but the others not so much this season.  This Saturday, the Miss St defense looks to prove itself against the juggernaut of the Bama O. While Georgia got their revenge last year against Auburn, I think they still want a little more. Troy meets Georgia Southern in a monster Sun Belt game. I like Troy’s chances. Bedlam happens this weekend, but Oklahoma should be too string for the Pokes.  Friday noght Fresno St @ Boise St in what could be a very good match up. The sneaky good game of the week should be UCLA @ Arizona St. The Pac 12 remains the most entertaining conference.

Last week was good for the Vegas 5. I went 4-1 to move to 24-24-2. Top25/SEC tally slipped again at 10-12 and 112-108 total.

This week I like the Over (52.5) when Miss St visits Bama. I’ll take Boston College (+20) against Clemson. Weather will be a factor in that one. Kentucky (-6) will rebound at Tennessee. It’s hard to imagine Bedlam is low scoring, so I have the Over (80) in Oklahoma St @ Oklahoma. And give me Pitt (-3) when Va Tech comes to town.

Who’s your locks?

Bye Week

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It’s bye week here at The Blog. That means a full day of watching whatever game strikes me at the time.

I thought the Ohio St/Purdue game would be good. I was kinda wrong as it was a blowout. I felt Purdue had a shot and took them in my picks section and they sure delivered. Michigan has established themselves as a true contender while LSU exposed Miss St as overly one-dimensional. Washington St just may take the PAC 12. Clemson absolutely destroyed NC St. The question there is whether that means the Tigers have awoken or if the Wolfpack were overrated.

This week brings fewer marquee match ups, yet no shortage of great action. The Cocktail Party sees two Top 10 teams for the first time in a decade. I’m a Georgia lean on that one, but I think Florida could sneak out with the win if the Dawgs let them hang around. Iowa travels to Penn St. I think the Hawkeyes are legit contenders for the Big 10 West. Washington St will take the next step if they can handle Stanford.

Last week’s Vegas 5 could’ve gone better. I hit 2-3 to move to 18-21-1. Top 25/SEC went 11-7 moving me to 94-87 for the year. I’m gonna need to start hitting quick if I want to make a move.

This week’s Vegas 5 starts for me with Syracuse (+2.5) hosting NC St. I like the Over (64.5) in the Kansas St/Oklahoma game. I’ll go with the Under (70.5) in the Bama opponent Sun Belt game between Arkansas St and Louisiana. UNLV (+3) is my pick against San Jose St. Lastly, I’ll take Iowa (+6) against Penn St.

Who’s your pick?

You’re a Daisy If You Do

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Much like the classic line from Doc Holiday, perhaps we should have a spelling contest.

What we learned about the top team in the nation last week was the third team defense needs to work on tackling drills and it was hot in Bryant-Denny Stadium. The biggest matchup of the day witnessed a peculiar play call as Ohio State took the driver’s seat in the Big 10. Clemson got a scare from Syracuse while watching their QB room shrink. Miss State has inexplicably forgotten how to play offense. And the PAC 12 continues to entertain. Oh, the reports of Washington’s demise may have been erroneous, let’s see how they handle LA this Saturday.

The Red River Shootout finds itself once again amid the deep-fried Texas State Fair. They even have fried Coke. I got nothing. It’s the 10th anniversary of the classic 3-2 Auburn/Miss St game. Exciting! The once must watch TV FSU/Miami game should be a yawner. The sneaky good game of the week may be San Diego St on the blue field @ Boise St. My prime-time viewing will begin with UK @ aTm before flipping over to the PAC 12 after dark and MWC games.

My pics continue to live in Bizzaro World. I went 2-3 in the Vegas 5 again. MTSU going for 2 and the win cost me the Over. In top 25/SEC action, I had another tough week of 8-12 and sit at 70-54for the season.

This week’s Vegas 5 starts with the Over (56.5) when Alabama visits Arkansas. I like South Florida (-15) against UMass. Surely Illinois (-5) will cover @ Rutgers. I’m leaning LSU (-2.5) @ Florida. And I feel an Over (60) in the Oklahoma/Texas game.

Where’s your picks?

Mess in the West

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Bad week for the Big 10, especially the West. Ohio St needed every defensive play they could get to slip past TCU on a “neutral” field and 7 teams lost to unranked non-conference opponents. To be the best conference depth is required.

What I learned from Week 3 is that little guys can still play, Kansas has its first win streak in a long time, and Ole Miss wishes they could’ve stopped after the first play. Streaks were snapped in Wisconsin and Lee County as The Badgers dropped to a BYU team that lost to Cal and LSU made another stellar comeback against Auburn in what has to be one of the better rival games recently. Oklahoma St won an important game for them over Boise St. Pump the breaks if your team dropped their first game this week, though. There’s a lot of football yet to play and we rarely have seen undefeated teams in the playoffs.

Week 4 finds aTm ranked and travelling to Tuscaloosa. I’ll be there in Section N-1 Row 38 Seat 2. We’ll learn much in that game. Friday night has an entertaining slate of games. FAU @ UCF, Penn St @ Illinois, and Washington St @ USC. I’m pulling for the road teams. The game I have the most interest in is UGA @ Mizzou. I think the Tigers can surprise and shake up the East. And Purdue might be the best 0-3 team in history. One wonders if they can upset Boston College. TCU @ Texas and Texas Tech @ Oklahoma St rate as exciting matchups that will go a long way to determine the Big 12. Stanford goes to Oregon with the winner providing Washington the best challenger in the Pac 12 North.

I found out why Texas was favored over USC. Steve Williams, as you may remember from the Pac 12 podcast, said USC would be bad. He might be correct. My Vegas 5 went 2-3 last week. I can’t seem to get over the hump yet and the season total sits at 5-9-1. Against the Spread in Top 25 and SEC, Florence played havoc with games and forced cancellations. I went 14-10 taking me to a season total of 51-28.

This week for the Vegas 5 I’ll start with the Over (51) for Louisville and Virginia. I’m going to give a ton of point and take Syracuse (-27.5) over UConn. I want the Over (48) for Michigan St v Indiana. Iowa (+3) over Wisconsin. Lastly, I’ll keep taking USF (-22) until they cover as they take on East Carolina.

Who ya got?

Week 13 – Bragging Rights

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We’ve reached the end. This is the last week of the regular season and when the bulk of the instate rivalries are played. The helmets lined up across from one another this week exemplify everything there is about family gatherings and fellowship. Or maybe not.

The bitterness of the Egg Bowl kicks off the excitement. While Miss St should win, Ole Miss has been getting solid play at the QB position. Only the die hard fans will watch FSU play Florida. The Noles should have the edge, but who knows this year? A sneaky good match up will be Virginia and Virginia Tech. Louisville and Kentucky go at it again and I wonder if the Cats can slow down Lamar Jackson. The reigning Heisman winner is having an amazing season that very few seem to be paying attention to since the rest of the team is down. Indiana at Purdue could provide some sneaky fireworks as well with the game picked with just a FG difference. Battles in Tennessee, North Carolina and Nevada will be for pure bragging rights while Fresno St and Boise St will meet in back to back weeks. It’s next week that counts.

Now onto those crazy instate games that mean everything (and one border war). The Apple Cup decides the PAC12 North. Washington can play the spoiler and send Stanford to the game against USC. I’m putting Clemson on upset alert at South Carolina. Ohio State travels north to take on Michigan. While the B1G title game is set, this is a must win for the Buckeyes if they want to sneak into the playoffs in case of chaos. Same for Georgia going to Tech. They don’t need chaos, but they have to win. USF and UCF battle for the middle of Florida and the winner takes on Memphis for the chance to go to a New Years Six bowl. UCF just looks too strong. Alabama travels to the Plains to meet Auburn to decide the SEC West. It will be a classic.

I took a bath last week and went 1-4 in the Vegas 5. Thank you LSU for saving me. I go into the last week of the regular season at 34-24-2. Against The Spread in Top 25/SEC I sit at 157-112.

The Vegas 5 this week is very tricky. Rivalries and finales are tough to predict as this is the week that some guys play for the last time ever. I’ll take Pitt (+13.5) as they host Miami. The Canes play dangerously at times. South Carolina (+14) will keep close when Clemson visits. I want the Over (47.5) in the Apple Cup when Washington and Washington St tangle. I’m going Under (74.5) when Arizona meets Arizona St. That’s a lot of points in a rivalry game. And Oregon (-25) covers when they host Oregon St in the Civil War.

Who are you taking?

Week 8 – The Third Saturday in October

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Welcome to my favorite week of the year. This is the week when Alabama squares off against Tennessee. In college football an elevated level of excitement hits when you see certain helmets lined up across from one another. Tradition is what this great sport is all about. That crispness in the air and the changing of the leaves means we’ve reached the height of the season.

Upsets abound last week. Winning each week has proven extraordinarily difficult throughout the history of football. Declaring teams out of contention after a single loss is an overreaction. It’s too early to sort out the playoff picture. Every team has tough tests ahead and each has the opportunity to prove themselves. Those with two losses need considerable help. Those with a single loss have likely lost their safety net. And, it’s always good to be undefeated.

In addition to my favorite game many other great match ups litter the week. USC at Notre Dame is another of those classic match ups that help define all that is great with this sport. Lots of folks are high on the Irish, but I think USC might sneak out of South Bend with this one. Michigan goes to Happy Valley to face Penn State and their White Out. I give the Wolverines little chance. The recently good LSU team travels to their traditional hate week against Ole Miss. If you don’t know how intense this one is, then tune in.

There I was feeling sorry for myself and my Vegas 5 record and then, boom. Last week I went 4-1 and only lost by half a point. That brings my year to 19-15-1. I moved to 100-61 Against The Spread for Top 25 and SEC match ups. That’s 62% for those keeping score.

This week the Vegas 5 starts with Syracuse (+16.5) at Miami. The Orange would be expected to have a letdown after that huge win, but I see them at least keeping it close if not taking it outright. I’ll take the Oregon Ducks (+6.5) at UCLA. Much like their uniforms, you never know which Oregon team will show, but you have a pretty good idea which Bruin D will be there. I want the Over (62) in the Arizona at Cal game. If you haven’t watched Arizona’s QB, you’re missing out. I’ll take Kansas St (+14) against Oklahoma. Something about Bill Snyder Family Field makes me think the Wildcats will show up to play. And lastly, Virginia Tech (-21) to cover against UNC. The Tar Heels just aren’t that good this year.

You picking any this week?