A sports blog by and for Midwest Sports Fans
In what has seemingly been the year of upsets in college football, it’s been almost a guarantee that a highly ranked team will go down every week.
With three matchups between ranked teams this week, we know for certain that at least three ranked teams will lose. But again, that doesn’t mean the other ranked teams are safe, and more than one should be on upset alert this week.
If you decide to go with my picks I have a few rules, and both are equally important:
This is the time of the year when you make your money. Vegas is not sure how certain teams are going to perform, how new players are going to react to certain situations, and who will be the new stars emerge across the country.
And for the record, I only play the big games, the games you will see on TV (which you can find out at the MSF college football TV schedule). Â Thus, I will not be giving picks on North Texas vs. some other cream puff.
We have a theme this week, so let’s begin.
Game #1 I love; actually, I love all four of the gems I’m going to give you, but I like this game the most.
Follow the link or click the image below to get great deals on college football tickets at StubHub.
Boise St vs. Oregon
The oddsmakers have Boise State favored in this game by 3.5 with the over-under at a whopping 64. I don’t believe either team will have many stops in this game and I expect the over to be in full effect. With that being said, Boise State is at home, it’s the first BIG game of the NCAA year, and oh by the way it’s on a Thursday night.
Folks, for starters, Boise State does not lose many home games, I can probably count on one hand how many losses they have had at home over the past five years. Boise State also has the experience, with 90% of their players having started a game last year. Oregon can’t match that experience, which is HUGE in the beginning of the season.
What does this game mean for Boise State? Well, if they win tomorrow night you might as well pencil them in to BCS Bowl, and maybe even a national championship. For Oregon, this game means a lot, but nowhere near what it means to the Broncos. Oregon did not have this game circled on their schedule as they had Cal, Oregon State, and USC.
Go with the Boise State and give the points.
Georgia at Oklahoma State
Game #2 is Georgia at Oklahoma State. Will Georgia be able to stop the high powered offense of the Cowboys? Oklahoma State has some key players like Zac Robinson and Dez Bryant, who just so happens to be my projected #1 wide receiver in the country.
Georgia, on the other hand, has some players, but when the game is close who are they going to turn to? No Matthew Stafford, and no Knowshon Moreno.
Like the previous game, this game means a lot to Oklahoma State. This will be on Saturday night, on ABC, and the country will be watching. Oklahoma State has added seats for this year, so this will be the largest amount of fans to attend an Oklahoma State football game.
Georgia, well they need to worry about the SEC, so this game again means a lot but nowhere near what it means to the Cowboys. Oh and by the way, when was the last time Georgia traveled outside of their time zone?
Give the 5 and count your cash.
Missouri at Illinois
Game #3 has Illinois giving 7 to Mizzou. I will keep this one quick, short, and to the point.
Mizzou lost everyone, Illinois has not. Gone for the Tigers are Chase Daniels, Jeremy Maclin and Chase Coffman. Mizzou had a great run, but they don’t reload like the top teams in the country do.
Illinois, on the other hand, returns quarterback Juice Williams. He had a great year last year, but still flew under the radar. He will be throwing the rock all day to up-and-coming stud Arrelious Benn. This is a home game for the fighting Illini and they have returning starters.
Give the points as Mizzou can’t stay up with the Illini like Ron Zook can stay up on his skis.
Virginia Tech vs Alabama
Game #4 is Virginia Tech vs. Alabama. The line in this game is 6.5. When I first saw this I almost jumped out of my chair. My first thought was there wasn’t going to be 6.5 points scored the whole game, not that I am advocating the under over in this game, but it just seems like a lot to give Virginia Tech, team with more firepower than the Crimson Tide.
Alabama over it’s past two games has been destroyed, and I wouldn’t be surprised at all if Nick Saban is sweating tonight thinking about the game on Saturday. I like Tyrod Taylor, and I think he is a playmaker, something Alabama doesn’t have many of on the offensive side of the ball.
Take the Hookies and take the points.
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Keep your eye out for Rich’s next column here at MSF, and you can also follow his blog at http://www.nflandcollegefootball.com/.
* – Ron Zook skiing photo credit: Deadspin
