Tag Archives: Mountain West

Week 8 – Third Saturday in October

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

My favorite week is here again.

Sadly, I will not be in attendance at the Alabama/Tennessee game when Bama hosts. It’s the first Bama home game in this series I have missed since 1991. No team east of the Mississippi River should kickoff at 8pm CT. Like I predicted, now that the weather has cooled, the TV geniuses are handing out SEC night games.

This week, I’m interested to see how Penn St v Michigan turns out. I think that’s one that could go a lot of ways but will likely not be worth watching late if Michigan doesn’t play up to its potential. Oregon @ Washington may go a long way in deciding the PAC12 North. Meanwhile Arizona St @ Utah could do the same in the South. Any slip by Clemson at this point could be devastating. They play in a conference where Duke v Virginia is now a big game on grass and not hardwood. Oklahoma continues to roll, and LSU has the offense they’ve longed for. And as always, I’ll be monitoring the Mountain West.

My slide continues. The Vegas 5 went 2-3 last week dropping me to 19-16. Top 25/SEC has me suffering at 8-14 for the week and 86-75 for the year.

This week give me the Over (61) when Tennessee visits Alabama. I’ll take Wake Forest (-1.5) when they host FSU. (did I just type that?) I’m going with Arizona (+10) against USC. The Over (63) for West Virginia v Oklahoma. And lastly, Oregon (-2.5) against Washington.

Who do you take?

Advertisement

Week 6 – Take a Breathe

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Another scorching hot afternoon in Tuscaloosa, but don’t worry, Bama should finally get a night game once the temperature drops. Ah, commercial television.

Things we learned over the last weekend included Maryland not being the same offense as the first two games, Miss St seems to always get smashed in Lee County, and Nebraska is more than a year away.

Finally, we get a full slate of big games this weekend. Auburn at Florida will be the most telling game in my opinion. The Tiger D Line is the best in college football. Can Michigan come through in a big game against Iowa? If their O doesn’t show, then no. The PAC 12 is loaded with great match ups that we brave few plan to fall asleep on the couch watching. TCU v Iowa St is the sneaky good game this go around. Air Force plays Navy as the Commander in Chief Trophy cranks up. Va Tech at Miami used to be a game. But the atmosphere I’d like to be at is Friday night when UCF travels to Cincinnati.

Another 4-1 effort in my Vegas 5 makes me feel better than my miserable 7-12 whiff in Top 25 and SEC games. For the season I sit at 16-9 and 70-53 respectively.

The Vegas 5 for this week starts with the Over (73) when Utah St travels to LSU. Kansas St (-1.5) covers against Baylor, but the Bears are playing well. Maryland (-12.5) gets healthy against Rutgers. Oklahoma at Kansas goes Over (67.5). Lastly, Oregon (-17.5) covers against Cal.

Who do you pick?

Week 5 – Rebounding

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

What a brutal week for many.

Michigan faced a cold reality, Washington St blew an epic lead against a bad team, and UCF found out that playing Power 5 teams back to back is not as easy as they thought. Oh, and the poor Rutgers QB that was slapped upside the head by his own lineman got attention he didn’t want. Officiating continues to be dreadful throughout the nation. Auburn @ Texas A&M has both teams wondering what pass interference really is. The PAC 12 continues to amaze with their ineptitude and inability to get replay right. And the Oklahoma St @ Texas game witnessed Big12 officiating at is most mediocre.

Friday may have the sneaky good game of the week. Is the Maryland O the team from the first two weeks or the third? Penn St will find out soon. Arizona St @ Cal provides a nice dessert before the Saturday slate kicks off. There will be interesting match ups, but the marquee rank v rank finds two games. Virginia travels to Notre Dame and Washington hosts USC. Both games are important nationally and I see both as pick ems. For the nightcap, stay up to watch the Underachiever Bowl when UCLA goes to Arizona.

I lost me shirt last week with a 1-4 finish. That drops me to 12-8 on the year for the Vegas 5. Top 25 and SEC action was bad as well with a 9-13 week. That drops me for the season to 63-41.

This week Buffalo @ Miami (OH) goes Over (47). In a closer than it should be game, Miss St (+10.5) covers at Auburn. I’m going with Wyoming (-9.5) when they host UNLV. Ohio St (-17) should handle Nebraska. Lastly, Jalen Hurts carries Texas Tech @ Oklahoma game to the Over (70.5).

What’re your picks?

Week 4 – Let the Games Begin

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

With the coming of mid-September, we finally begin to see the real slate of games shape up.

Conference play is more the norm than paycheck games, but of course there are still a few of those left. The top of the polls remained static in contrast to the fluidity of the bottom of the 25. It seems that teams like USC and Maryland don’t prefer to be ranked. Utah seems destined to rise to the top and UCF has one its annual big game against a marginal Power 5 school. And the Iowa v Iowa St game had almost as much delay as play as the state was pummeled by storms.

This week we find three rank v rank games. We will know the real Michigan Saturday night, Auburn must travel to Texas A&M, and Notre Dame goes to Georgia for the first time. That will guarantee more movement within the polls. I think the Wolverines, Aggies, and Bulldogs all prevail. BYU has looked pretty good so far with OT wins against big name programs. The season is shaping up to entertain. And what will the nation think if Auburn wins and we find 4 of the top 5 from the SEC on Sunday afternoon?

Last week was another decent wee in the Top 25 and SEC action for me. I went 19-9 bringing my season to 54-28.

In the Vegas 5, I went 4-1 to bring the season to 11-4.

This week I take Washington St (-18.5) over UCLA. I like Oregon (-10.5) at Stanford. Give me The Over (61.5) for Southern Miss @ Alabama and Utah (-4) at USC. Lastly, I take Miami-Ohio (+39.5) at Ohio State, cause that’s a lot of points.

Who’d you have?

Week 3 – Blah

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hopefully this is the last of the blah weeks. Not many marquee matchups and blowouts should be plentiful.

It was hot in Tuscaloosa. I mean, hot. The Alabama O Line needs to gel if the Tide hope to achieve their goals. Clemson took care of aTm in what now looks like their toughest challenge of the regular season. Outside of that, the races are still too early to call due to lack of quality opponents. Ohio St and Oklahoma are yet to be challenged. Michigan did what the Sooners did last year and went to OT against Army. Let’s see if their season ends with a playoff run, too. Oregon found their offense and LSU found a QB. But the LSU D did not look like the LSU D we are accustomed to seeing.

UCLA, Tennessee, and Miami are 0-2. Florida St probably should be as well. Throw in the recent dip in performance at USC (until last week) and it’s easy to find why the attendance numbers are down in college football. When five of the top programs with massive stadiums can’t fill seats, it skews the numbers.

This week sees Alabama attempting to own an active win streak against every SEC opponent if they beat South Carolina. The teams have not met since Stephen Garcia had his best day ever in 2010. Clemson going to Syracuse no longer looks like a prime-time game after the Orange were routed by a surprisingly good Maryland team. Nebraska looks to rebound after falling to another surprising team in Colorado. The CyHawk will be decided when Iowa travels to Iowa St. Should be one of the better matchups on the day. And stay up late to track Hawaii at Washington. Do the Huskies bounce back or do the Rainbow Warriors shock the West?

Last week I went 3-2 in the Vegas 5 taking the season total to 7-3. In Top 25 and SEC action I went 19-9 (there was a push in the Auburn game) which takes me to 35-19 on the year.

This week the Vegas 5 give me the Over (59.5) for Ohio St @ Indiana. I like Oklahoma (-23.5) against UCLA. I’ll grab the Under (64) for Colorado St @ Arkansas. Give me Georgia Southern (+16.5) at Minnesota. And lastly, I want BYU (+4.5) against USC.

Who are you taking?

Bye Week

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

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?

Week 13 – Bragging Rights

College Football, , , , , , , , , , , ,

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?