Another week of football, another week full of surprises, as the Saints lost to the Bucs, who proved that they are in it for the long haul. There was a great game, as expected in Detroit, and then the now infamous post game handshake between Jim Schwartz and Jim Harbaugh. In college, two unbeatens went down in Michigan and Illinois. While an unbeaten emerged in Houston, as nobody knew about them until their first emergence into the BCS standings this week.
The college slate of games is rather weak this week, with only one big game between ranked teams, a potentially interesting one between another two, and a more than likely blowout between ranked teams. Then, the rest of the slate is rather slim pickings, and I'm not going to go outside of the BCS conferences to pick a game until the Boise State/TCU game later in the season and not going to pick games outside those conferences until bowl season. Sorry to all those fans of Conference USA, the Sun Belt, and the WAC, but outside of the surrounding area where those colleges are, nobody cares.
Then, in the NFL, there is only one game which really stands out as a truly premier game, and that one could even turn out to be a clunker, as the San Diego Chargers travel cross country to play the New York Jets, who are standing at 3-3 and trying to get back into the thick of the playoff race in the AFC. That game is also an early start, which is why I say, it could be tricky. The rest of the games are just kinda interesting. So, there won't be too much as far as analysis, just kinda a lot of picking. Now, without further ado, here are the games and picks!
College (all rankings are now BCS rankings)
#6 Wisconsin at #16 Michigan State, 8 p.m., ESPN
This is great intraconference matchup, and could help Penn State if Michigan State loses and Penn State somehow continues to win against Northwestern. Michigan State has a big advantage, as Wisconsin is facing its first true test on the road this season, and first road game period. So, it will definitely be an adjustment, and it'll be interesting to see how Wisconsin handles it. Wisconsin on paper, looks like it has everything going for them, but Michigan State does have a pretty good defense, as they've only allowed more than 14 points once, and that was in their lone loss to Notre Dame, where they gave up 31.Michigan State is lacking a starting linebacker in William Gholston for his stupidity against Michigan last week where he punched a Michigan player in the face. I think Wisconsin narrowly pulls this one out.
Pick: Wisconsin 34, Michigan State 32
#20 Auburn at #1 LSU, 3:30, CBS
This game is interesting, as LSU has suspended two starting defensive backs in Tyrann Mathieu and Tharold Simon, as well as their leading rusher in Spencer Ware for testing positive for synthetic marijuana. Now, they made a really stupid mistake, and they're lucky for only being suspended one game and not kicked off the team. But, thankfully for LSU, they've got plenty of other defensive weapons around and Auburn is starting a true freshman quarterback in his first SEC start. This spells trouble for Clint Moseley and the Auburn offensive line who will be trying to protect him. Moseley will be handing the ball off to stud running back Michael Dyer. Granted, it still won't be enough, as LSU has way too much other talent.
Pick: LSU 27, Auburn 17
#25 Washington at #8 Stanford, 8, ABC
This is the blowout game which I was referring to that features two ranked teams. Granted Steve Sarkisian has done a wonderful job in the pacific northwest bringing in talent and helping the Huskies regain their footing as a solid team in major college football. He even helped recruit their new starting quarterback in Keith Price, who has been excellent thus far this season, going for over 1400 yards and more than a 5-1 touchdown to interception ratio. Unfortunately for Washington, they're running into the buzzsaw which is Andrew Luck and the Stanford Cardinal, who are just destroying every single opponent which comes in their wake.
Pick: Stanford 45, Washington 21
USC at Notre Dame, 7:30, NBC
Notre Dame is rolling right now, as they've cut down on their turnovers significantly since their first two games against South Florida and Michigan, and are now learning how to protect the football. As in their four victories, the Irish have only turned the ball over a combined five times, compared to their 11 turnovers in their two losses. So, Notre Dame should win in their first night game at home since 1990 if they don't turn the ball over. Granted, USC is very good, and will be really good once they come off probation, but as of right now, they'll be above average and not great.
Pick: Notre Dame 27, USC 20
Penn State at Northwestern, 7, Big Ten Network
Northwestern really hasn't been that good of a team thus far this season, even when Dan Persa returned from his achillies' injury. Penn State hasn't been all that good of an offensive team, but could actually score some points in this game, as Northwestern allows 30 points per game. Penn State has however been a fantastic defensive team, only giving up a little bit more than 11 a game. And, as long as Penn State doesn't shoot themselves in the foot on offense and continue to play this great defense, they could conceivably make it to the inaugural Big Ten championship game.
Pick: Penn State 31, Northwestern 23
NFL
San Diego at New York Jets, 1, CBS
Norv Turner and Rex Ryan, the head coaches of the Chargers and Jets respectively had a war of words with each other, so the end game handshake should be something to keep an eye on again in this game. But, as far as the players are concerned, the Jets are just coming off a great win over the lowly Dolphins, and the defense looked very good in the win. The offense continued to scuffle however. San Diego, meanwhile has had two weeks to prepare for this game, and they've been off to a fast start, which is incredibly uncharacteristic of them, as they normally start out slow and then turn it on in the end. But, they seem to be firing on all cylinders at the moment.
Pick: San Diego 23, New York 17
Chicago at Tampa Bay (in London), 1, FOX
This game should be played in Tampa, as the fans in Tampa should be seeing this game, not London. Granted, the game has been highly successful over there, so if the NFL wants to put a team over there, they should be able to by now. But, as far as the teams are concerned, Chicago is coming off an easy win versus Minnesota, where they completely manhandled them. But, Chicago still gives up way too many sacks and are not all that good of an all around offensive team outside of Matt Forte. Tampa meanwhile, is coming off a big win against New Orleans, and both teams should be playing well. It's going to be a close game, and could come into overtime, so it's really a toss up.
Pick: Tampa 28, Chicago 27
Atlanta at Detroit, 1, FOX
This is a very good game, as Detroit is going to be out to prove itself after its first loss of the season against San Francisco. Detroit is still a very good team, don't let that loss fool you, as San Francisco is also very good. Atlanta is going on the road, where they are not very good, however it is still a dome which they are going to, and the Falcons love domes. But, I think Detroit will prove themselves this game to be a potent force.
Pick: Detroit 31, Atlanta 20
Houston at Tennessee, 1, CBS
Andre Johnson and Mario Williams are still out for the Texans, which spells bad news, as the Texans do not play very well at all without those two players, as those two players are the best playmakers for that team. Tennessee meanwhile has been a pleasant surprise in the AFC South, and should be playing well again. The team isn't flashy, but they get the job done.
Pick: Tennessee 34, Houston 14
Kansas City at Oakland, 4:05, CBS
This game could be Carson Palmer's first game back on an NFL field since last season. For those uninformed, Palmer refused to report to the Cincinnati Bengals if he wasn't traded. Well, thanks to Jason Campbell getting injured for the Raiders, Oakland worked out a huge trade for Palmer. But, no firm decision has been made yet, and Palmer should be re-energized being in a better environment than was in Cincy. The Raiders have been much improved this season, so it will help them win now, but they may have mortgaged their future, giving away a first round pick next year and a conditional second rounder in 2013. Kanas City has bene playing better since they lost Jamaal Charles and Eric Berry due to season ending injuries. But, this team is still nowhere near the team they were last season.
Pick: Oakland 29, Kansas City 21
Enjoy this weekend of football and baseball!
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