College Football - Week 5

 

Another week, more great football.

I told you these games would be close, and the winning margins for all 5 games I picked was a combined 23 points. That's a little over 4 points a game. Close games...could've went either way. I wanted to pick challenging games, though, and not just easy ones to have an easy record. So going 3-2 last week doesn't feel as bad as other weeks could.

What We Learned

Big 12 defenses have been catching slack for the past few years now, and maybe this is a good example why. While high-profile QB's, WR's, and RB's have always lit the conference up, aside from a couple good Texas defenses, they haven't done much. See the famous Texas-USC....there was a lot of scoring. A 70-63 route of Baylor by West Virginia, first year into their new conference, doesn't help much for the Big 12's defense of their defense. What a fun game to watch though!

Ohio State just may be the class of the Big Ten this year, which is sad since this is year 2 of their rebuilding from the Jim Tressel fallout. They're better than they were last year, but they lost some key personnel which is being filled by younger talent. Etienne Sabino looks really good, and big Hank up front controlled much of MSU's line. It also contributed to the fact that the Columbus native Le'Veon Bell, MSU's running back, was held to 45 yards after putting up 463 yards in only 2 of his previous games. I still think MSU is a little better than OSU at this point, but Meyer outcoached and OSU out-executed the Spartans on Saturday. Next year, however, the Buckeyes will be the best team in the Big Ten.

If you turned off the Wisconsin - Nebraska game like I did, then you missed a great comeback. After Wisconsin dominated in the first quarter and into the second, Nebraska decided it didn't like what was going on. Seeing the shocked fans in that stadium at the beginning of the game was weird...the Cornhuskers were supposed to win this game, and they eventually did. The best player on that field, though, was Chris Borland, the LB for Wisconsin. I am a little nervous when they meet Ohio State in November because he might be the best LB in football. The worst part? He's from Ohio.

Washington beats Stanford, Stanford beat USC...so Washington should beat USC in 2 weeks, right? Yea, I don't think that's gonna happen and it still astounds me how Stanford can beat a USC and lose to a Washington. No matter...this speaks well of the Pac-12.

Hans Olsen...please tell me again how having Hawaii on BYU's schedule strengthens it? BYU 47 Hawaii 0.

The over-under on Arkansas becoming a legit team again is 2 years. Anyone wanna take the under?

The more I watch Florida State, the more I really love them. They fly to the ball and hit hard on defense, and offensively they're not constrained to the talents of EJ Manuel, which are many. Plus, he's a throwing QB in a RB's body. Well, maybe not a RB, but a really tough WR, almost TE. He's quick, makes good decisions, and turns nothing into something. They played South Florida solid, and the Bulls are a very good team. Athletically they can hang with anyone, I just hope it's with Alabama in the championship game. That is now my pick for the BCS championship....Go Seminoles!!

Texas may not be back, but they're not that far off. Overcoming Okie State on the road for their first 4- 0 start in I don't know how long is an accomplishment. With Oklahoma slowly diminishing and Okie State slowing down after losing Weeden and Blackmon, Texas rise to glory will be that much easier.

Games to Look Forward To:

Utah State vs. BYU... I would love to say I know the winner to this game, but I don't. Even though it's in Provo, Utah State looks like a team to beat now. If I had to guess, I'd say BYU by a hair but if Utah State can make anything happen on special teams like they did against the U of U, they might just squeek one out.

Nebraska - Ohio State. I'm a little bit nervous about this game, even moreso than the MSU game. I think Nebraska gets out of Columbus with a win and Meyer gets his first loss as OSU's coach. Nebraska is coming off a high note with the comeback win against Wisconsin, and while OSU pretty much dominated them until Miller got hurt last year, I think they solve their turnover problem and throw up some points against my Buckeyes.

Washington - Oregon. I can't believe I'm putting this one up here...I just wanna see what Washington can do.

Mississippi State - Kentucky. Kentucky put up a good showing last week against South Carolina, despite what the scoreboard says. Miss State is off to a great start this year, but don't be shocked if they lose this one in the bluegrass state.

LSU - Florida. I'm gonna go with the upset here. I think LSU has struggled more than they thought this year, and they haven't played anyone yet. They'll get their first test against UF whose already been tested by Tennessee.

Oklahoma - Texas Tech. Oklahoma was ranked pretty high and Texas Tech wasn't. Now OU is 2-1 and Tech is 4-0. It's at Tech so it should be a fun game to watch.

West Virginia - Texas. Should be a really good game, and I think West Virginia starts to blow it out in the 4th quarter. It'll be a humbling game for UT but will ultimately help them in the long run.

My Big 5 Picks

Alright, I went 3-2 last year...let's see if I can get another 5-0 week. They seem to happen every other week now:

1. Nebraska over Ohio State...I hate picking OSU to lose, but even if my pick is wrong, my team wins so I can still be happy.
2. Oklahoma over Texas Tech on the road.
3. Florida upsets LSU at home.
4. A not-so-good Auburn team beats a bad Arkansas team.
5. West Virginia beats Texas on the road.

There you have em! Go watch some great games this week!