College games I like this week
Every week has it’s shares of thrills and intrigue. Heading into this weekend there are seven games that I like, and a couple more that are intriguing but which I am too chicken to pull the trigger on.
The ones that I think will cover, but am not certain enough to put my money on:
Colorado (+24) vs. Oklahoma - Coach Dan Hawkins is going to make a breakthrough for Colorado eventually, and I think that Oklahoma’s freshman quarterback Sam Bradford, who has been truly phenomenal so far, is due for a step back. This, his first road trip to a BCS team, could be the spot. I would be on Colorado is I had more faith in their freshman QB Cody Hawkins.
Kansas State (+15) at Texas - K-State upset Texas last year, the Longhorns will be looking past them to Oklahoma next week, and the Wildcats will be up for this game in a very gig way. I think Texas will win, but this is likely too many points. I’d be all over it if it were at Kansas State, or if the Wildcats had shown just a little bit more against Auburn last week.
And the seven that I will have a piece of this weekend:
Illinois (+4.5) at Penn State - Michigan showed how to beat Penn state last week, and Illinois has the potential to do pretty much exactly the same thing. Illinois is on the rise, and this game will be looked at by their program as a chance to prove that. At worst, I think Penn State wins by a field goal. That makes this spread very attractive.
Purdue (-21) vs. Notre Dame - Notre Dame is going to improve eventually, but I don’t think it will be here. Purdue has an explosive offense, and they will be too much for the Irish. My fear is that Purdue will take an early lead and then coast to the finish line. Three touchdowns seems like a reasonable gap, though, so that makes the Boilermakers a play.
Iowa State (+21.5) at Nebraska - Iowa State showed that they have some fight when they played Iowa. Nebraska has showed their flaws the last two weeks. The Huskers will almost certainly win this game, but more than three touchdowns is just an unreasonable amount to expect them to over come. I expect a win by more of the 10-18 point range. That means I will be on Nebraska.
Clemson (-3) at Georgia Tech - I’m not sure I believe in Clemson, but I really don’t like what Georgia Tech has shown us the last two weeks. This line seems a bit soft in my mind, so I will be on Clemson.
Louisville (-8) at NC State - I believe in the Louisville offense, and I believe that coach Steve Kragthorpe is good enough to get this program turned around before the season is entirely lost. NC State is not a good team, and this line would have been much bigger before the mess of the last couple of weeks for Louisville. I’ll be on Louisville in the hopes that the defense shows at least a hint of competence. That’s all it should take to cover here.
Cal (+6.5) at Oregon - Two Pac-10 powers with potent offenses and questionable defenses meet up. With little to choose between the two, I was a bit surprised to see the spread this big - I would have expected Oregon to be favored by something more like three because they are at home. I like a lot about both teams, but I will be on Cal because of the slightly inflated line, and because Nate Longshore has been in more pressure situations in his career than Dennis Dixon has.
Alabama (+3) at Florida State - Nick Saban is going to be looking at this game as a chance to gain credibility for his program over a well known but vulnerable team. Florida State will struggle to score a lot, so I love Alabama given that I get my money back if they lose by a field goal.
UPDATE: Cal, Louisville, Iowa State and Illinois were all winners for me. Though it’s not very exciting, I would take a 4-3 record every week. Also, I guess I should have had the courage to play those other two games, huh?
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POSTED IN: College Football, Selections
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