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Season 41/45= 91% With another great weekend of football under our belt, we were treated to a showdown between #1 and #2, a couple upsets, several blow outs, and a slew of games decided in overtime. So what does week 3 have in store? Read on… #1 Ohio State VS Cincinnati No one can doubt OSU’s #1 ranking after the work they did against Texas last week. Troy Smith continues to look like the best QB in the country, and Ginn as the top WR. The Buckeyes defense will continue to grow stronger, and will have a great outing against the Bearcats. OSU 33 CINCINNATI 7 #2 USC VS #19 Nebraska The Trojans had an extra week off to prepare for this game, and I’m sure it will come in handy. Both of these teams have put up huge numbers so far, and the defenses have been very solid. But don’t let Nebraska’s inflated stats fool you, as they have yet to play worthy competition. Look for USC’s defense to be more than capable of stopping Nebraska, while the Trojans use ball control to keep their offense on the field. USC 27 NEBRASKA 17 #3 Notre Dame VS #13 Michigan The Irish played to their potential against Penn State. The Nittany Lions looked terrible, as the Irish defense just sucked any life that Penn State tried to create. Look for Notre Dame to build off their strong performance last week and keep Michigan off balance. Henne had his best game at QB in awhile, and the Wolverines won't be a pushover, but I just cant see them getting past Notre Dame, in South Bend. NOTRE DAME 23 MICHIGAN 14 #4 Auburn VS #7 LSU This is my game of the week for week 3. Both of these teams play incredible defense, which will put opposing offenses to the test. Auburn has only given up 14 points in two games, while their balanced offense is capable of putting up huge points. LSU on the other hand has only allowed 2 field goals in their two games, and the offense has put up 45 points both weeks. The only thing that separates these teams is Auburn's home field advantage, and that is why they will win. AUBURN 17 LSU 9 #5 West Virginia VS Maryland When you have a team that is averaging 353 yards rushing, you know you have a dominant rushing attack. Maryland will probably be the most difficult opponent the Mountaineers have faced so far, but not enough to defeat them. WEST VIRGINIA 21 MARYLAND 14 #6 Florida AT #17 Tennessee The way Florida has been moving the ball and scoring at will, I don’t see how a Tennessee defense that struggled against Air Force has any capability to stop the Gator offense. In addition, the Florida defense is only giving up 3.5 points per game. Gator QB Chris Leak has been deadly accurate, and has been given time to pick defenses apart. While Tennessee’s offense can be every bit as powerful, I don’t think their defense is as strong, and ultimately this will be the Vols undoing. FLORIDA 27 TENNESSEE 13 #8 Texas AT Rice The Longhorns get a break from last week’s home letdown with a trip to Rice. Expect Texas to return to the form they showed in week one. As long as Texas plays inferior competition, they will keep winning. Having a freshman QB will make this season frustrating for Texas fans, but don’t despair, the experience he picks up will translate into Conference Championships in the coming years. TEXAS 42 RICE 10 #9 Georgia VS UAB With starting QB Tereshinski out because of an ankle sprain, 18 yr old Freshman Matthew Stafford will have to step up for the next several weeks. If UAB played better defense I might be inclined to pick an upset here, but that is not the case. Add that to the fact that Georgia itself has a defense that can win games on their own; it just isn’t likely that UAB gets out of Athens with a win. GEORGIA 20 UAB 6 #10 Florida State VS Clemson FSU is lucky to be 2-0 at this point in the season. They could just as easily be 0-2, with poor offensive play in both of their games. Another week of this and FSU could be in trouble, especially with Clemson looking to bounce back after an overtime loss to Boston College. The Seminoles have absolutely no run game, and this is going to come back to haunt them. Clemson does have several injuries on defense, but I think they will keep their offense on the field with James Davis getting 25-30 touches. Clemson pulls the upset this week. CLEMSON 14 FLORIDA STATE 10 #11 Oklahoma AT #18 Oregon Oregon continued to look good, but last week it was the special teams that won them the game. While the offensive production was down from week one, the defense hung in and gave their offense a chance to win. Oklahoma is just the first of 3 ranked opponents in a row, so I expect Oregon to elevate their game. Adrian Peterson is the only reason this team is 2-0, and if he gets stopped, Oregon will win this game. OREGON 31 OKLAHOMA 17 #12 Louisville VS #16 Miami Miami will not stop Louisville’s offense. That is all you need to know about this game. The Cardinals showed that they can run the ball very effectively without Bush. Miami is about to find out what happens when a good offense lines up against them, and trust me, it’s not going to be pretty. LOUISVILLE 43 MIAMI 23 #14 Virginia Tech AT Duke The Hokies are continuing to play strong defense, backed up by stellar special team’s performances. Only allowing 5 points per game will beat anybody, especially a Duke offense that is only averaging 6.5 points per game. VIRGINIA TECH 30 Duke 0 #16 Iowa VS Iowa State The last time these rivals met on the gridiron it was a 23-3 embarrassing loss for the Hawkeye’s. Things could get worse for Iowa if QB Drew Tate is still out with injury. Iowa was lucky to escape Syracuse with a win in 2OT last week. With Tate out Iowa was exposed as a team with a glaring weakness under center. I suspect that with this being a rivalry game that Tate will get in the game and lead his team to victory, but if he re-aggravates his injury, watch out for ISU. IOWA 27 IOWA STATE 14 #20 TCU VS #22 Texas Tech The Horned Frogs had a rough start against UC-Davis but showed what their offense is capable of doing. The Red Raiders on the other hand squeaked out an overtime victory against UTEP. TCU by far has the better defense in this game, and that very well might be what this game comes down to. I expect TCU to slow down Texas Tech’s offense, and match what ever scores they can put up. TCU 21 TEXAS TECH 20 #21 Cal VS Portland State After a terrible week one, Cal really came back last week and took it to a good Minnesota team. Portland State is a good 1-AA school that has already knocked off New Mexico. Cal won’t lose the game, but Portland State will show up to play. CALIFORNIA 31 PORTLAND STATE 14 #23 Arizona State AT Colorado The Buffaloes might be the worst team in the country right now. They certainly aren’t playing to their potential. Arizona State isn’t about to let Colorado off easy, as this is the last easy game on their schedule. Colorado is really in for a long season. ARIZONA STATE 27 COLORADO 9 # 24 Alabama VS Louisiana-Monroe Alabama’s offense hasn’t been putting points on the board, but their defense has been playing well enough to win their games. Monroe won’t be much of a threat to Alabama this week. This will probably be one of the more boring games of the week. Avoid it if possible. ALABAMA 20 LA-MONROE 10 #25 Boston College VS BYU The Eagles found a way to upset Clemson last week in overtime, and in doing so have earned themselves a Top25 ranking. What worries me about Boston College is their inability to run the ball so far this season. BYU’s defense has been tough against the run shutting down Arizona and Tulsa thus far this season. BYU does have a pair of running backs that will flat out run people over. Add that to Sr. QB John Beck, who was 5th in the country last season in passing, and you have an offense that can hurt you in so many ways. Two games into the season Boston College’s best threat has been through the air with receivers Kevin Challenger and Tony Gonzalez, if BC can get them the ball early it will take pressure off of QB Matt Ryan. BC also has the home field advantage, which is why I think they will edge the Cougars out. But keep a close eye on this one, it will be interesting. BOSTON COLLEGE 30 BYU 28 ----- |
 
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