Week 8 (2011) Predictions

Last week was a pretty good week in college ball and this week should be just as exciting. At this point most games are must wins for teams that are on the bubble in the race for their conference crowns. Let us take a look

1. FIU vs Arkansas State: Both teams are still in the hunt for the New Orleans Bowl. FIU had a bad stretch with a loss to the Cajuns and Blue Devils but may be righting the ship. ASU could be right there. They are a bit of a dark horse it seems. I will go with FIU to win this one in a close one. I think they may have the edge in talent here.

2. UCF vs UAB: If UCF hopes to stay in the running in CUSA then they need to run the table the rest of the way. What better place to start than UAB? Of course UAB can be a bit surprising and may have a few tricks up their sleeve. They did hang well with an SEC team the other week and they do have a good coach in Calloway. I doubt they have the talent to stay with the Knights though. GO with UCF.

3. Rutgers vs Louisville: Is Rutgers for real? We will see. I do know that these Knights are well coached and am just not so sure about Louisville. The Cardinals did lose to a SBC team earlier this year and have not been real good at all this year. I go with Rutgers.

4. WVU vs Syracuse: They say that the Dome is a hard place to play. I don't really see that. Go with WVU to take this one. The Orange does have a decent record but their wins have been close. So have their losses though. They may be better than I give them credit for, but they will not beat the Mountaineers.

5. Maryland vs FSU: FSU may be a bit better than their record shows. Maryland is hard to figure. They can look pretty good one week and horrible the next. This may be a toss up but I will go with the Noles to win here.

6. Kansas St vs Kansas: KSU is a good ball team. Probably not a top ten squad but good none the less. KU is not a good team at all. They did show up last week for at least one half of play against the Sooners but that is really neither here nor there. KSU will win here. It may be closer than some think. Rivalry games often are.

7. NC vs Clemson: NC is a fair ball club and Clemson may be the real deal. Not quite Bama/LSU good but probably more along the lines of South Carolina/Illinois good. Time will tell. I look for Clemson to get back on track after their near loss to Maryland, and beat the tar out of the Tar Heels. Go with Clemson.

8. Georgia Tech vs Miami(FL): Tech suffered their first loss last week. You didn't expect them to run the table did you? Miami may be able to take the Jackets down. It depends on which Hurricanes show up though. I will toss a coin and go with the good Hurricanes this week and pick Miami to win.

9. Illinois vs Purdue: Illinois needs to win here to rebuild some confidence. Purdue is not a pushover though. Not a good team but capable of some surprises here and there. I think that the Illini will win a very close game here.

10. Cincinnatti vs South Florida: Cincy is playing decent football it seems. I have paid no attention to either of these teams really. Both seem decent but are in reality probably just not that good. I will go with South Florida. Just a guess.

11. Lousiana Tech vs Utah State: Both of these teams have to win this game if they are to have a shot in the WAC. I think that these Aggies are the better team and will go with them to win here. May be close.

12. Boise State vs Air Force: Air Force may hang tough for a while but the Broncos will roll here. I look for Boise to win by three touchdowns.

13.  Auburn vs LSU: The Tigers come to Tigerland to meet the real Cats. Auburn may hang around for the first half but will be blown out the second. Go with LSU. Is the two QB system actually working in Baton Rouge? It seems to be. I am a bit surprised by that frankly.

14. Fresno State vs Nevada: Perhaps this will decide who will be in the driver seat in WAC play. Both teams are certainly capable of beating the other and the game will be a toss up. I will go with Fresno State in a close one.

15. Tulsa vs Rice: Tulsa needs this to stay in the CUSA race. They have the talent to beat Rice but I do not think they will. I look for the Owls to play up and edge the Golden Hurricane. Kinne is a good QB but the Owl defense may get after him on Saturday.

16. ULM vs North Texas: The Warhawks have a losing record but their beat down of Troy last week proves that they may have enough talent to perhaps make a run in the SBC. North Texas is improving but still is just not a good team. I will go with the team from Louisiana.

17. Texas Tech vs Oklahoma: Upset alert? I'm just not quite ready to go there yet, but Oklahoma has proven that they will let a lessor team give them a scare. TTUMizzou and the Red Raiders will make a very good showing. They will come out on the short end after a valiant effort. Go with the Sooners.

18. Jacksonville State vs Kentucky: These kind of games can be pretty interesting. A good IAA squad vs a below average D1 team. I have watched Kentucky a couple times this year and they certainly are beatable by a good IAA squad. Will it happen Saturday? It very well might. I will go with conventional wisdom here though and pick the Wildcats to survive a scare against this lower division opponent.

19. Michigan State vs Wisconsin: This is probably the "big game" of the week. Both are good football teams to be sure. Michigan State has played some good teams while Wisconsin has benefited from a very easy schedule up to this point. That is in the Spartans favor. Maybe. The Badgers can silence the doubters by taking down the Spartans. I think they will do just that and go with UW for the win.

20. Memphis vs Tulane: This game may well prove which team is the worst squad in D1 football. Well there is New Mexico. I don't think either of these teams are quite that bad. Be that as it may, it will be interesting to see which of these squads is the most inept. I have seen Memphis live and in person and am just not sure that a top D2 team would have a lot of problems with them. Tulane looks pretty horrible also but I think they just may be just a little less terrible than the Tigers. I like both teams having an affinity for both fair cities. I consider both of them "home." I guess I will have to go with the Green Wave to pull this one out of the hat.

Have a good week and enjoy the games.