The Obstructed NCAA Preview for Week 9
The last week of October.
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports
And things are shaping up in the college football world..........or so we think. Anyway, the season is rolling and we are seeing the contenders separate themselves from the pretenders. We are also seeing teams trying to vie for conference championship games as well. And maybe, just maybe stun the Washingtons, Clemsons, and even the Alabamas of the world. So a lot to go on.
Last week I went 8-5, thus going 64-32 so far this season so I got 2/3rds correct on it (though if you count the spread, probably way down). But given how college football is crazy, I wouldn't bank on any spread. My big oopsies were the Auburn & LSU games, probably because I am an Alabama fan (I admit it, but hey, I am the OBSTRUCTED VIEWER, I said I would have differing views and ones that are probably wrong!)
I am typing this as dusk is creeping up on Thursday, so I won't "analyze" the Virginia Tech/Pittsburgh game this week though I think it will be one of the best games of the week actually (yes, you heard me right). I will go with the Hokies as they are the more balanced squad while Pitt has issues on defense. So Hokies 44, Panthers 35 (yes, I'll count it to my record).
CAL @ USC, 10:30 THURSDAY, ESPN: The Trojans are a far different team than the one who got shell-shocked by Alabama to start the year. That partly has to deal with Sam Darnold changing that as he has looked great so far since being in the driver's seat at quarterback. They are playing well on both sides of the ball, which means doom for Califorinia's offensive minded style. There MIGHT be points put up, but I think USC will handle the Bears offense pretty well this week. MY PREDICTION: USC 45, CALIFORNIA 21
NAVY @ USF, 7:30, FRIDAY, ESPN: Navy is rolling. And in a program where you can build those guys to the system it is far easier than say Georgia Tech to do so. But they have a tough one Friday. USF is having a great year and it is in Tampa so it could be a fight. But I think Navy is going to be too much to handle. MY PREDICTION: NAVY 37, USF 30
(10) WEST VIRGINIA @ OKLAHOMA STATE, 12:00, FOX: With the Mountaineers hosting Baylor and Oklahoma, this might be the toughest game they have left. Oklahoma State can be the little shop of horrors for teams. They have in the past. So this could be one of those "trip-up" games, but if the Mountaineers play their defense, they have a great shot escaping Stillwater. And when does Skyler Howard start becoming talked about? If this guy tears it up much longer, he might be getting some recognition as well. He should already. He engineers a game-winning drive to bring down the Cowboys. MY PREDICTION: WEST VIRGINIA 35, OKLAHOMA STATE 31
(14) FLORIDA vs. GEORGIA, 3:30, CBS: The annual "World's Largest Cocktail Party" game. I hate that nickname, but whatever. The Gators look primed for a nice run with Del Rio healthy. And this game will be no different as the Bulldogs are a giant heap of mess. The dream wish of Kirby Smart at Georgia is an epic disaster to this point and fans are already calling for his head after one year. Not good. But other issues reside as in I think this team has tuned out especially after the Vanderbilt loss. This might be an ugly game, even if it is a rivalry. Plus, Florida owns this series, even when they have been bad and Georgia has been good. MY PREDICTION: FLORIDA 38, GEORGIA 17
(4) WASHINGTON @ (17) UTAH, 3:30, FS1: This is one of the three biggest games of the week and they put it on FS1? Wow. The Huskies are rolling. And Utah is that team that I think nobody else ever wants to see on their schedule. And they play defense, which is also a big thing so they could give Jake Browning big time fits. But Washington plays great defense, so it could be a major issue too on that side. This could be a tough game and it is in Salt Lake City so the Utes could have a big homefield advantage here. But how strong and mighty are the Huskies? I think they steal one in Utah, but not by much. MY PREDICTION: WASHINGTON 20, UTAH 17
NORTHWESTERN @ (6) OHIO STATE, 3:30, ESPN: Ohio State lost last week. Not good news for the next team. Northwestern, come on down! MY PREDICTION: OHIO STATE 45, NORTHWESTERN 21
(7) NEBRASKA @ (11) WISCONSIN, 7:00, ESPN: Boy, the games are big from 3:30 onward. The Huskers are winning and Wisconsin is near the end of their buzzsaw schedule. But I think while the Badgers lost against high & mighty Michigan and Ohio State, they garnered a lot of respect within the nation of how they played. Nebraska on the other hand while undefeated, will really have their first true test of the season (Oregon fizzled and the Big Ten West is fairly weak-no offense). I am thinking this will be a game that Nebraska really gets punched in the mouth and they won't know how to react. They struggled with Purdue, but won that game. They can't struggle against a far stronger Badgers squad. MY PREDICTION: WISCONSIN 21, NEBRASKA 7
(13) BOISE STATE @ WYOMING, 7:30, ESPN: The Broncs are rolling and all of a sudden Wyoming is in the picture of a good team. Wow, Wyoming. Didn't see that one. Anyways, the Broncos escaped the blue in BYU and look to be that "other" 5 team making it to a New Year's Six, which would be impressive since Chris Peterson left. But Wyoming seems primed for an upset. It is in Laramie and I think the Cowboys might stun the Broncos here, paving the way for Western Michigan to win that spot (perhaps). MY PREDICTION: WYOMING, 24, BOISE STATE 23
(3) CLEMSON @ (12) FLORIDA STATE, 8:00, ABC: This was supposed to be the game of the year.............until Alabama and LSU play. Anyways, this game is a head-scratcher. The Tigers are undefeated, but save for the Louisville game, have not been the team many penned for the national championship. The Noles have been up & down too much this year for many to figure out. The game is in Tallahassee but I don't think homefield will mean a huge difference here. The Tigers played a mistake-laden game against the Wolfpack 2 weeks ago. If they play like that, all bets are off in the ACC as Florida State will roll. But if the Tigers offense gets rolling, Florida State will be in some major trouble. I think the Tigers will rebound from their near disaster against NC State and stun the Noles down in Doak Campbell. MY PREDICTION: CLEMSON 38, FLORIDA STATE 31
See ya next week!
-Fan in the Obstructed Seat
