Saturday 10/29/16 service plays chatter/comps/requests & other stuff...

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Pac-12 Report - Week 9
By Joe Williams

2016 PAC-12 STANDINGS
Team SU Conference ATS Over/Under
Arizona 2-5 0-4 1-6 4-3
Arizona State 5-3 2-3 5-3 4-4
California 4-3 2-2 4-3 6-1
Colorado 6-2 4-1 8-0 3-5
Oregon 2-5 0-4 0-6-1 5-2
Oregon State 2-5 1-3 5-2 3-4
Southern California 4-3 3-2 3-4 2-5
Stanford 4-3 2-3 4-3 2-5
UCLA 3-5 1-4 2-6 3-4-1
Utah 7-1 4-1 4-4 4-4
Washington 7-0 4-0 4-3 6-1
Washington State 5-2 4-0 4-3 4-3

Washington at Utah (FOX Sports 1, 3:30 p.m.)
Washington puts its unblemished record and playoff hopes on the line at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City against the No. 16 Utes. The Huskies enter as 10-point favorites, but if they hope to win and cover, they'll need to shut down RB Joe Williams (nice name, eh?!?!). Williams rumbled for a school record 332 rushing yards with four touchdowns at UCLA last weekend. The Huskies are 4-1 ATS in their past five against a team with a winning record, and 7-3 ATS in their past 10 games overall. Utah is 4-0 SU at home this season, and 2-0 ATS in their past two in SLC. However, the Utes are 0-4 ATS in their past four home games against a team with a winning road record.

Arizona State at Oregon (Pac-12 Network, 5:00 p.m. ET)
The nightmare season continues for Oregon, as they dropped their fifth consecutive game last weekend at Cal. The Ducks, who are 0-6-1 ATS through seven games, are actually favored by 7 1/2 points in this game over the Sun Devils. Arizona State picked up the backdoor cover against Washington State at home, but lost on their home turf. They look to rebound after a second straight loss, and also avenge a 61-55 triple-overtime loss last season in Tempe. The Sun Devils are an impressive 7-2 ATS in their past nine against teams with a losing overall record, and they're 6-2 ATS in their past eight league games. However, they are just 1-5 ATS in their past six road outings, and 3-9-1 ATS in their past 13 on fieldturf. Still, the Ducks cannot seem to get out of their own way, going 0-8-1 ATS in their past nine dating back to last season, and 0-5 ATS in their past five at Autzen. They're also just 0-3-1 ATS in their past four against winning teams. The Sun Devils are 1-7-1 ATS in their past nine meetings with the Ducks, but they haven't faced an Oregon team this poor in quite some time.

Washington State at Oregon State (ESPN2, 10:45 p.m.)
Oregon State faces a team from the Evergreen State of Washington for the second consecutive weekend. The visiting Cougars of Washington State opened as 15 1/2-point favorite, but that line has quickly moved down to 13. The Beavers haven't had a lot of success on the field this season, but they have been cover kings. The Beavs are 3-0 ATS in their past three, and 5-2 ATS in their past seven games overall. Oregon State is an impressive 3-0 ATS in their three home games against FBS opponents. The Cougars started off with an unimpressive loss to FCS Eastern Washington, but they have come alive to run their record to 4-0 SU in the conference, keeping pace with rival Washington in a two-horse race in the North Division. The Cougars have covered 13 of their past 17 games, and 10 of their past 13 inside the league. The Beavers are 4-1 ATS in their past five, but 8-17 ATS in their past 25 home games and 2-5 ATS in their past seven at home against a team with a winning road record.

Stanford at Arizona (FOX Sports 1, 11:00 p.m.)
In late-night action, Stanford looks to save its season against lowly Arizona. Another setback might put their bowl hopes in jeopardy, something that seems unbelievable considering they were just a Top 10 team a few weeks ago. The Cardinal are 5-1 ATS in their past six road games, and 17-7 ATS in their past 24 games overall while going 12-5 ATS in their past 17 conference games. While those are impressive numbers, a lot of that production has come in much better times. Over the past four games the Cardinal have covered just once in the past four, a road game at Notre Dame two weeks ago. Their offense has struggled mightily, averaging a dismal 11.0 PPG in the past four. If they can get Christian McCaffrey healthy and back performing near his standards, they shouldn't have a problem covering a 5 1/2-point number. Arizona has covered just once in seven games this season, and their defense is allowed 28 or more points in five straight games, including 35 or more in the past four outings. The 'over' has hit in four of the past five for the 'Cats. Stanford is 5-1 ATS in their past six trips to Tucson, while going 8-3 ATS in the past 11 meetings overall. The favorite is also 4-1 ATS in the past five meetings in this series.

Teams on a bye week
Colorado, UCLA

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Opening Line Report - Week 9
By Marcus DiNitto

If revenge plays any kind of role in your college football handicapping, you’ll be giving a hard look at Michigan as they travel to East Lansing this week. Last year’s punting gaffe by the Wolverines that led to a Michigan State win was the most improbable of occurrences, and it was the third time in a row the Spartans beat their in-state rival.

Things are far different this time around, though. Michigan, in year two under Jim Harbaugh, are 7-0 and ranked No. 2 in the country. Michigan State is 2-5 and has fallen by the wayside of irrelevance.

CG Technology in Las Vegas opened Michigan -18 on Sunday morning, but the number was up to -24 two hours later. By Monday afternoon, it settled between 23 and 23.5 at various sports book around town.

"They haven’t stopped anyone all year, which is hard to believe. Michigan State is known for their defense," Nick Bogdanovich, director of trading at William Hill U.S., said of the Spartans. "And their offense is playing terrible. It’s hard to be believe a program of that stature and where they‘ve been the past couple of years has dropped that far, but they have, and the other team is playing lights out every game."

None of this is lost on the betting public, from which John Avello, vice president of race and sports at the Wynn, expects plenty of action.

"I’m at (Michigan minus) 23 on this game, and I’m gonna be going higher," Avello said shortly after noon ET on Monday.

Avello pointed out the scoring discrepancy between these teams – Michigan is averaging 48.7 points per game, Michigan State 23.1 ppg – and said of Sparty, "It’s not like they had a bad game and bounced back. That’s just not what’s been happening to them. Now they play Michigan, who just loves to run up the score. …

"I don’t see how this team has any chance of winning this football game."

Here’s a look at some other key games on the Week 9 college football card:

Washington (-10.5) at Utah

Also sitting at 7-0, Washington opens as a double-digit favorite at Utah, a particularly tough place to play – the Utes have won 10 of their last 11 home games.

"Washington has answered every question. But this will be their first really big test," Bogdanovich said. "Utah will be ready for them."

Utah is 7-1 this season, its only loss coming at Cal, but Avello’s not sold, especially on the defensive side of the ball. They won at UCLA on Saturday but in doing so, they gave up 45 points – and that was against back-up Bruins quarterback Mike Fafaul.

"I don’t think they’re as good as they were last year, and the problem is you don’t want to play catch up against this Washington team," Avello said.

Avello, whose shop bounced between 10.5 and 11 in early wagering on this Pac-12 matchup, said of the line, "Is the number a little high? It seems a little high, just because the perception of Utah at home and Utah being a pretty good team over the last few years. But maybe this Washington team is something special."

Bogdanovich added, "I’d like to see it go higher. I wouldn’t mind being on the dog."

Nebraska at Wisconsin (-8)

In Nebraska, we have another 7-0 team, but one who isn’t as good as their record suggests, at least according to Bogdanovich and the rest of the betting market, The Cornhuskers haven’t beaten much yet.

"They’ve had the nicest schedule you could ever ask for," said Bogdanovich "Overrated probably isn’t the right word, but I don’t think they’re as good as their (No. 7) ranking, let’s put it that way. Obviously, the point spread indicates that. They’re undefeated and they’re getting 8."

The Wynn opened Wisconsin -7.5 and went to -8, while William Hill opened -8 and moved to -9.

Avello has been a believer in the Badgers all season, but he stresses that they have trouble scoring. That’s typically not a good quality for a team being asked to lay over a touchdown against a solid opponent. Also, this also looks like a tough spot for Wisconsin.

"Wisconsin is coming of brutally physical games. Iowa, Ohio State, Michigan – bang, bang, bang – and now you’ve gotta get back up for another top-10 team," Bogdanovich said. "Nebraska is getting them at a good time because they’re coming off those wars, and those take a toll."

He added, "(Mike) Riley’s a very good coach. Now you’re getting more than a touchdown with Riley against a pretty vanilla offense of Wisconsin. So it’s probably a take, but I think Wisconsin wins the game."

Clemson (-4.5) at Florida State

Clemson opened -3.5 at the Wynn and was bet up to -4.5 on Monday, while most Vegas shops were dealing -4.

The Tigers are 7-0 but probably fortunate to be.

"Clemson has not been playing their best football," Avello said. "They seem to be escaping." The bookmaker, of course, is referring to narrow wins over Auburn, Louisville and N.C. State.

They’re still deserving of their road favorite status against the Seminoles, though.

"Florida State hasn’t played well enough to not be the 'dog against Clemson," Bogdanovich said.

Bogdanovich believes Clemson has the coaching edge in this matchup, and both bookmakers alluded to a big experience gap at quarterback.

"Offensively, (FSU is) struggling," Avello said. "I think it’s a quarterback who’s young (freshman Deondre Francois). I think he’s going to be okay overall, but right now he’s having a rough time finding himself."

Added Bogdanovich, "I think Clemson’s a little better coached. And DeShaun Watson has been on the big stage a million times; he won’t make any stupid mistakes on the road. If Florida State plays a clean game , they can win, but they’re going to have to play a clean game."

Georgia vs. Florida (-7), at Jacksonville

The Wynn seesawed between its opening number of Florida -6.5 and -7 through the first 23 hours of wagering, while the Westgate SuperBook opened -7.5 and moved it down to -7.

Georgia has wallowed in mediocrity in Kirby Smart’s first season, its most recent game a 17-16 loss as two-touchdown favorites at home to Vanderbilt. That uninspiring effort "drove this line up a little bit," Avello said.

Florida has won the last two meetings of the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, and Avello thinks recent scheduling quirks could help the Gators. With the postponement of their game against LSU and last week’s bye, they’ve played just once in the last three weeks

"Any injuries or anything they wanted to work on, they’ve had that opportunity to work on," he said.

Early lines moves

Here are games that saw the point spread move 2 points or more in the favorite’s direction in the first 23 hours of wagering at the Wynn.

Akron vs. Buffalo
Opening line: Akron -15
After 23 hours: Akron -17

Western Kentucky vs. Florida Atlantic
Opening line: Western Kentucky -17.5
After 23 hours: Western Kentucky -21

West Virginia vs. Oklahoma State
Opening line: West Virginia -1.5
After 23 hours: West Virginia -4

Northwestern vs. Ohio State
Opening line: Ohio State -22.5
After 23 hours: Ohio State -24.5

Rice vs. Louisiana Tech
Opening line: Louisiana Tech -23.5
After 23 hours: Louisiana Tech -27.5

Here are games that saw the point spread move 2 points or more in the underdog’s direction in the first 23 hours of wagering at the Wynn.

Washington State vs. Oregon State
Opening line: Washington State -17
After 23 hours: Washington State -14

Old Dominion vs. UTEP
Opening line: Old Dominion -6
After 23 hours: Old Dominion -4

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

ACC Report - Week 9
By Joe Williams

2016 ACC STANDINGS
Team SU Conference ATS Over/Under
Boston College 3-4 0-4 2-4-1 2-5
Clemson 7-0 4-0 4-3 2-5
Duke 3-4 0-3 4-3 1-6
Florida State 5-2 2-2 3-3 3-3
Georgia Tech 4-3 1-3 3-2-1 3-2-1
Louisville 6-1 4-1 4-2-1 6-1
Miami (Fla.) 4-3 1-3 4-3 4-3
North Carolina 6-2 4-1 5-3 3-5
North Carolina State 4-3 1-2 5-2 4-2-1
Pittsburgh 5-2 2-1 2-5 6-1
Syracuse 4-4 2-2 4-4 2-6
Virginia 2-5 1-2 3-3-1 2-4-1
Virginia Tech 5-2 3-1 4-3 4-3
Wake Forest 5-2 2-2 4-3 3-4

Duke at Georgia Tech (ACC Network, 12:00 p.m. ET)
Another noon time kick for the Ramblin' Wreck. Man, do their fans just love that! If the fans were playing, they'd be awfully angry and ready for this one. Will the Jackets be as fired up as their fanbase? Ga. Tech is just 1-5-1 ATS in their past seven ACC games, and 4-11-1 ATS in their past 16 games overall. They're installed as a touchdown favorite against the Jekyll and Hyde Blue Devils, who either show up and play tremendous football, or show up and repeatedly shoot themselves in the foot (see the Virginia game, for instance). The Blue Devils have been better on the road than at home this season, winning outright as a 19 1/2-point 'dog at Notre Dame, and giving Louisville a huge scare last time out Oct. 14, losing 24-14 as 35-point underdogs. Duke is 9-3 ATS in their past 12 road outings, but just 2-6 ATS in their past eight conference tilts. Duke is also 3-7 ATS in their past 10 trips down to Bobby Dodd in the shadow of The Varsity (Whadda ya have?!?!? #slawdogs). The 'under' has hit in four straight in this series, and four in a row in Atlanta. The 'under' is 6-1 overall for the Blue Devils, who are averaging just 15.7 PPG over their past three on offense.

Louisville at Virginia (ABC or ESPN2, 12:00 p.m. ET)
The Cards shuffle off to Charlottesville for a date with the Cavaliers. This line opened at 27 1/2 and has quickly climbed to 31 1/2 as of Wednesday AM, as bettors are giving no respect to UVA in their home barn. The Cardinals are 6-2-1 ATS in their past nine games, and 28-12-1 ATS in their past 41 on the road. But the Cavaliers have been no slouch against the spread, going 7-2 ATS in their past nine league games, while posting a respectable 6-2 ATS mark in their past eight against teams with a winning overall record. UVA is also 9-3-1 ATS in their past 13 games overall. They were a double-digit 'dog at Louisville last season, and Virginia covered in a 38-31 loss Nov. 14. In their past nine games as a double-digit underdog, Virginia is an impressive 8-1 ATS, although their eight-game cover streak as a double-digit 'dog was snapped last week against North Carolina.

Boston College at North Carolina State (ACC Network, 12:30 p.m.)
Boston College remains winless in the conference, as their conference losing skid reached 12 games last week at home against Syracuse, the last team the Eagles beat in ACC play. The streak isn't expected to end Saturday, as the Wolfpack enter as 15-point favorites. The good news is that the Eagles are 5-2 ATS in their past seven road games, but they're 0-6-1 ATS in their past seven in conference and 1-4 ATS in their past five overall. N.C. State was whipped on the road at Louisville last week, but they return home where they're 4-0 ATS in the past four and 4-1 ATS in their past five overall. The Eagles haven't had a lot of success at Carter-Finley, going 1-4 ATS in their past five meetings, with the favorite 5-2 ATS in the past seven and the home team 9-2 ATS in the past 11 in this series.

Army at Wake Forest (ACC Network. 3:30 p.m.)
Army heads to the state of North Carolina for the second time this season, and they'll encounter much fairer weather than their last visit. The Black Knights dropped a 13-6 decision at Duke Oct. 8 in the heavy rain and wind of Hurricane Matthew, and they enter this one with three losses in the past four, while also going 1-3 ATS during the span. Wake has cooled after their sizzling 4-0 SU start, going 1-2 SU/2-1 ATS over the past three outings. That lone win was their only home game, a 28-9 pounding of Syracuse Oct. 8. Army enters 8-23-1 ATS in their past 32 road games, while the Deacs are 6-2 ATS in their past eight against independents. All signs point to a low-scoring battle, as the under is 4-0 in Army's past four vs. ACC foes, and 4-1 in their past five road games. The under is also 21-7 in Army's past 28 against winning teams. The under is 5-0 in Wake's past five against Indy's, 14-3 in their past 17 in October, 14-6-1 in their past 21 at BB&T and 39-19-1 in their past 59 overall. The total opened at 41 1/2 and is holding steady at that number as of Wednesday morning.

Miami-Florida at Notre Dame (NBC, 3:30 p.m.)
It's the Disappointment Bowl in South Bend, as Catholics vs. Convicts doesn't have the same ring to it anymore. And this might be the only bowl Notre Dame plays in if they do not start ticking off some wins in a hurry. The Irish opened as a one-point favorite, but find themselves as 2 1/2-point underdogs as of Wednesday AM. The Canes look good to someone sinking plenty of bread on them, but Miami is just 2-6 ATS in their past eight against teams with a losing record and they're 0-5 ATS in their past five against independents. Notre Dame is still 8-2 ATS in their past 10 at home against a team with a winning road record, and 10-4 ATS in their past 14 in the month of October. Of course, the Irish are also 1-4 ATS in their past five, 1-4 ATS in their past five against the ACC and 1-4 ATS in their past five against teams with a winning overall mark.

Clemson at Florida State (ABC, 8:00 p.m.)
The Tigers hit the road for Tallahassee looking to put a spear through the hearts of the Seminoles in the marquee game of the entire college football weekend. Like the weekend the Seminoles headed into Miami on a two-game conference losing streak, they can resurrect their season with a huge win, and this one is at home. Of course, lately that hasn't meant a lot, as the Seminoles are 2-6 ATS in their past eight at The Doak against teams with a winning road record. Clemson has covered four of their past five league games, and they're 6-2 ATS in their past eight against teams with a winning record. The road team has been impressive in this series, too, going 4-0 ATS in the past four meetings. Clemson is 4-1 ATS in their past five visits to Tally, while going 8-3 ATS in the past 11 in this series. The 'over' is 5-2 in Clemson's past seven on the road, but the 'under' is 5-2 in their past seven overall, while the 'under' is 13-6 in the past 19 for FSU at home and 5-1 in their past six league games. In the past eight meetings in Tallahassee, the 'over is 6-2 in this series.

Bye Weeks
North Carolina, Syracuse

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Handicapping CFP Odds
By Brian Edwards

Sportsbooks have released lines for potential matchups in the finals of the College Football Playoffs. As you would undoubtedly expect, top-ranked and unbeaten Alabama is a favorite over all of its possible opponents.

The oddsmakers agree with my placement of Michigan at No. 2 in this week’s rankings. The Wolverines, who are also undefeated and dealing out beatdowns on the regular just like the Crimson Tide, are listed as 9.5-point underdogs to Alabama.

Nick Saban’s team is a double-digit favorite over everyone else, including a 10-point ‘chalk’ over once-beaten Ohio State. Since the Buckeyes still have Michigan on their schedule, they still have a great chance of going to the CFP despite last week’s loss at Penn State.

I’ll say the same about Clemson. Even if the Tigers lose at Florida State this week, they’ll still control their destiny to get to the ACC Championship Game and will be in great shape to go back to the CFP if they win out. Dabo Swinney’s team is an 11.5-point underdog vs. Alabama.

When these schools met in the finals this past January, Alabama won a 45-40 decision. However, Clemson took the cash as a 6.5-point underdog when Deshaun Watson threw a TD pass with 12 seconds left to secure the backdoor spread cover.

Alabama would be a 14.5-point favorite versus both Washington and Louisville. This is a line I’ll take issue with. Our Rankings have Louisville at fourth ahead of the unbeaten Huskies, who will face their toughest test of the year Saturday at Utah. I would take Louisville as a double-digit underdog against any team in the country at an venue.

Let’s also note that Sportsbooks have Alabama as a 10-point favorite for its Week 10 showdown at LSU. For the Iron Bowl in Tuscaloosa, the offshore book has the Tide favored by 17 over Auburn. Gus Malzahn’s team was a 19.5-point underdog for this game last week, but its 56-3 mauling of Arkansas clearly caught the eyes of oddsmakers.

Although Sportsbooks have Ohio State as a 4.5-point home favorite vs. Michigan in the regular-season finale at The ‘Shoe, it has the Wolverines as a 2.5-point ‘chalk’ over the Buckeyes at a neutral field. Ohio St.’s stock clearly took a hit with the loss at PSU because it was favored by seven over Jim Harbaugh’s bunch at this time last week.

Michigan is favored by 2.5 over Clemson and 3.5 in potential matchups against both Washington and Louisville. I would love to be able to lay such a small number on Harbaugh’s squad against the Huskies.

Ohio State is a pick ‘em vs. Clemson and would be favored by 3.5 points over both UW and U of L. In that scenario, I would love Lamar Jackson and Co. catching the 3.5 points and to beat the Buckeyes outright with a money-line play. I would also be bullish on Clemson at pick ‘em against Ohio St.

Clemson would be a 2.5-point favorite over both UW and U of L, while the Huskies and Cardinals would be a pick ‘em against each other. And that would be my favorite play of all – Louisville at pick ‘em vs. Washington!

Other notable Games of the Year include a slew of rivalry games on Nov. 26.
FSU -7 vs. Florida
Ole Miss -13.5 vs. Mississippi State
USC -11.5 vs. Notre Dame
Oklahoma -13.5 vs. Oklahoma State

Who are the other candidates left out?

Well, let’s be clear that I’m not implying these teams will make the CFP, but there are definitely a number teams in play if they win out.

Five of those schools are from the SEC. They include Florida, LSU, Texas A&M, Auburn and Tennessee.

Florida and LSU will face each other in Baton Rouge on Nov. 19. The Gators have only one loss, a 38-28 setback at Tennessee when UF was without starting QB Luke Del Rio and allowed a 21-0 lead to get away.

LSU has two losses but a win over Alabama and then winning the SEC Championship Game would bolster its resume enough to get past narrow losses at Wisconsin (at Lambeau Field, actually) and at Auburn.

Auburn’s two defeats came at home vs. Clemson and Texas A&M, who have one loss (at Alabama) combined between them. Most important, Auburn winning out would include a victory at Alabama.

Texas A&M has quality win at Auburn and vs. Tennessee and its lone defeat came at Bryant-Denny Stadium, where it actually held the lead briefly in the second half. The Aggies would love for UCLA and Arkansas, teams they have already beaten, to finish strong. They can still add quality victories at home vs. Ole Miss and LSU.

Tennessee’s losses have come vs. Alabama and at Texas A&M (in double overtime). The Vols have quality wins vs. Va. Tech, vs. Florida and at Georgia. Their hopes hinge on UF losing and then winning in Atlanta against the SEC West champ.

Let’s not forget Wisconsin, either. There’s no shame in its two defeats, 14-7 at Michigan and an overtime loss to Ohio St. The Badgers have quality wins vs. LSU and at Iowa, and they can add scalps vs. undefeated Nebraska, at Northwestern and Michigan or Ohio St. at the Big Ten Championship Game.

I clearly think Nebraska is a pretender and will go down for the first time at Camp Randall this weekend. Also, unbeaten Baylor and West Virginia are likely to lose at least once in the coming weeks. With that said, that trio of teams is clearly alive and we can’t quite eliminate Oklahoma from the equation, either.


NCAA Football Possible 2017 Championship Matchup

Ohio State +10
Alabama -10

Michigan +9.5
Alabama -9.5

Clemson +11.5
Alabama -11.5

Washington +14.5
Alabama -14.5

Louisville +14.5
Alabama -14.5

Michigan -2.5
Ohio State +2.5

Clemson PK
Ohio State PK

Washington +3.5
Ohio State -3.5

Louisville +3.5
Ohio State -3.5

Michigan -2.5
Clemson +2.5

Washington +2.5
Clemson -2.5

Louisville +2.5
Clemson -2.5

Michigan -3.5
Louisville +3.5

Washington PK
Louisville PK

Washington +3.5
Michigan -3.5

Odds Subject to Change

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

College football four-point stance: Week 9 pointspread picks and predictions
By JOE FORTENBAUGH

Last Saturday we saw second-ranked Ohio State fall at Penn State despite closing as a 17.5-point favorite.

So with No. 2 Michigan (-24.5) set to travel to Michigan State, No. 3 Clemson (-4.5) headed to Tallahassee to face No. 12 Florida State, and No. 4 Washington (-10) on the road against No. 17 Utah, the big question entering this Saturday’s slate of action is whether or not another Top-5 program is headed for a costly defeat.

‘Tis the season for college football upsets.

Which brings us to this week’s marquee showdown featuring an undefeated Washington program that has decimated Stanford, Oregon and Oregon State by a combined score of 155-44 over its last three outings, and a very dangerous 7-1 Utah program that is 54-18 in Salt Lake City under head coach Kyle Whittingham.

Since falling 28-23 against California in Berkeley back on October 1, Utah has ripped off three straight victories against Arizona, Oregon State and UCLA. And that UCLA victory is especially worth noting because it saw Utah running back Joe Williams, who “retired” after the second game of the season, rush for an astounding 332 yards and four touchdowns on just 29 carries.

Williams is a chain-mover more than capable of aiding in the Utes’ quest to grind down the clock while keeping Heisman Trophy candidate Jake Browning and the Washington offense off the field.

Speaking of that Washington offense, it may be Browning that gets all the credit (and deservedly so), but the Huskies prefer a brutal brand of football that includes a heavy dose of the ground-and-pound. Between Washington’s rushing attack and the return of Joe Williams for Utah, having 10 points in our pockets with the Utes looks awfully appetizing when it comes to a home date that will be played at an elevation of 4,226 feet.

Pick: Utah +10

Penn State Nittany Lions at Purdue Boilermakers

When: Saturday, October 29 at 12:00 p.m. ET
Spread: Penn State -13.5

This is a classic letdown situation thanks to the fact that Penn State shocked the college football world last Saturday night with a thrilling 24-21 upset win over the Ohio State Buckeyes.

That was head coach James Franklin’s first victory over an Associated Press Top-25 program since landing in Happy Valley back in 2014. But be advised that Franklin is 0-5-1 ATS as a road favorite as the Nittany Lions’ head coach. In addition, Penn State is an abysmal 3-14-2 ATS over its last 19 road dates.

The Boilermakers are just 3-4 both SU and ATS in 2016, but showed signs of life in last week’s 27-14 defeat at undefeated Nebraska (as 24-point underdogs), which is important due to the fact that it was Purdue’s first game out since the school parted ways with head coach Darrell Hazell. Purdue’s 7-1 ATS mark over its last eight games following a loss.

We fully expect Penn State to come out flat here after earning a spot in the Top 25 for the first time since 2011.

Pick: Purdue +13.5 (but holding out for Purdue +14)

Duke Blue Devils at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

When: Saturday, October 29 at 12:00 p.m. ET
Spread: Georgia Tech -7

The biggest challenge that accompanies a matchup with Georgia Tech is defending the option offense, which presents a variety of unique and intricate obstacles that require both discipline and sound coaching.

Fortunately for the Blue Devils, head coach David Cutcliffe is a master tactician who limited Army’s option offense to just 165 rushing yards and only six points in a 13-6 victory back on October 8.

Cutcliffe’s Blue Devils will have 15 days to get ready for Georgia Tech, which they’ve beaten in each of the last two years by a combined score of 65-45, thanks to a well-timed bye week that comes on the heels of a competitive 24-14 loss at Louisville.

It’s been a shaky run for the Yellow Jackets, who are just 4-11-1 ATS over their last 16 games overall and 1-5-1 ATS over their last seven showdowns with ACC opposition.

Head coach Paul Johnson is lacking the depth that, in the past, has made his offense run at a highly-efficient level, as evidenced by the anemic 20.6 points per game that Georgia Tech averaged during a three-game stretch this season against Clemson, Miami and Pittsburgh.

Don’t be surprised if the Blue Devils win this one outright.

Pick: Duke +7

Auburn Tigers at Mississippi Rebels

When: Saturday, October 29 at 7:15 p.m. ET
Spread: Auburn -4.5

Don’t look now, but after a sluggish start to the 2016 campaign that featured losses against Clemson and Texas A&M during the first three weeks of the season, Auburn has been cooking with gas over the last month thanks to four straight victories and pointspread covers over LSU, UL-Monroe, Mississippi State and Arkansas by an average of 33.3 points per game.

And with a defense that is permitting an average of just 9.3 points per contest over its last four outings, it’s safe to say that head coach Gus Malzahn is no longer on the hot seat.

While the Tigers have improved their position dramatically over the last month of the season, the same cannot be said about Hugh Freeze’s Rebels, who have been soundly beaten in each of their last two outings by Arkansas (34-30) and LSU (38-21), despite closing as 10-point favorites over the Razorbacks on October 15.

Auburn is 6-1 ATS over its last seven games against Ole Miss, 7-3 ATS over its last 10 trips to Ole Miss, and 7-1 ATS over its last eight SEC matchups.

Like we said earlier, don’t look now, but Auburn has become one of the trendiest plays in college football among the sharp and sophisticated gamblers.

Pick: Auburn -4.5

Last week: 3-1 ATS
Season: 18-14 ATS

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NCAA football bettors should be drooling over these situational gems in Week 9
By JOE FORTENBAUGH

Over the last two years, this column has dedicated a sliver of its existence to what is commonly referred to in Las Vegas as “situational analysis.”

For the uninitiated, situational analysis may sound like a fancy term, but it’s essentially a relatively simplistic approach to sports wagering that focuses on identifying teams that find themselves in extremely advantageous or disadvantageous positions.

For example, a team coming off a bye week that happens to face an opponent off back-to-back road trips would qualify as a situation worth examining.

As it pertains to Week 9 of the college football season, there are two games worth monitoring that happen to fall within the parameters of a favorable situation.

The “letdown situation” occurs when an underdog that happens to properly execute a big-time upset comes out flat the following week due to the “hangover effect.”

For example, the California Golden Bears defeated the Texas Longhorns 50-43 as 7.5-point underdogs back on September 17, only to fall the following week at Arizona State by the score of 51-41.

This week, we strongly suggest that you take a good long look at both the Purdue Boilermakers and Tulane Green Wave.

In regards to Purdue, the Boilermakers play host to a Penn State team that will be just seven days removed from the program’s biggest win in at least five years, as the Nittany Lions upset Ohio State by the final score of 24-21 last Saturday.

Don’t express the least bit of amazement if James Franklin’s team fails to cover the 13.5-point line at Purdue.

Additionally, the Tulane Green Wave are worth at least a cursory look prior to Saturday’s matchup with SMU, who stunned Greg Ward, Jr. and the Houston Cougars 38-16 despite closing as 23.5-point underdogs last Saturday.

Based on the above information, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the pointspread has been moving toward both Purdue and Tulane so far this week.

SHARP MONEY VS. PUBLIC MONEY: BEHIND THE COUNTER

Each and every week during the 2016 college football season, this column will speak with a Las Vegas bookmaker in an effort to bring you the most important betting information possible regarding the upcoming weekend’s schedule.

This week we speak with our good friend Chris Andrews, who currently has the pleasure of serving as the Sportsbook Director for the South Point Casino in Las Vegas. You can follow all of his dynamite insight on Twitter @andrewssports.

Biggest adjustments made to your power rankings after Week 8: “I was early when it came to moving up West Virginia, Auburn, Wyoming and LSU, but last week confirmed those instincts. Additionally, Colorado has moved up quite a bit as of late. Stanford, Arkansas, UCLA and Marshall have dropped considerably.”

Any significant action on your championship futures: “We took a big play on the following National Championship prop we put up before the season: Alabama, Michigan, Oklahoma, Washington and Clemson vs. The Field. We opened that prop as a pick’em (-110 both ways) but have gradually moved up in favor of the five teams. I was up as high as -220 and we still took action, so I’m now up to -240. We’ve also taken action on Alabama, which is no surprise, but I had a low number on the Tide at 8/5, which is now down to 6/5. We also took some money on Auburn at 150/1.”

Week 9 sharp action: “Quite a bit of sharp action this week, including Navy, TCU, Kansas, Penn State, Maryland, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, SMU, Arizona, Auburn, South Carolina, Missouri and New Mexico.”

Week 9 public action: “The public is on Navy, San Diego State, Louisville, Clemson, West Virginia, Baylor, Washington State, Ohio State, Auburn and Washington.”

Which teams do you currently feel are overvalued in the betting market: “Auburn, West Virginia, San Diego State, Louisville, Baylor, Boise State and Cincinnati.”

Which teams do you currently feel are undervalued in the betting market: “Miami (Ohio), Texas Tech, Oklahoma State, Tulsa and New Mexico.”

Have you taken any substantial wagers on this weekend’s slate of games: “We’ve taken some large bets from a big player, who isn’t a wiseguy, on Navy, Michigan, Penn State and Wisconsin.”

TREND OF THE WEEK

A tip of the cap to the Nittany Lions of Penn State, who turned the college football world upside down last Saturday night by stunning Urban Meyer’s Ohio State Buckeyes 24-21 despite closing as 17.5-point underdogs.

I hope the celebration in Happy Valley was an exciting one, because Penn State is walking smack dab into the center of an almost perfect letdown spot.

The Nittany Lions may be just 3-7-1 ATS over their last 11 games overall, but this week’s key trend focuses on Penn State’s recent road woes, where James Franklin’s crew is a shocking 3-14-2 ATS over its last 19 games away from Beaver Stadium.

Penn State is currently a 13.5-point road favorite over a Purdue program (Saturday, 12 p.m. ET) that played inspired football in a 27-14 loss (closed as 24-point underdogs) at undefeated Nebraska last week in the wake of former head coach Darrell Hazell’s firing.

BIGGEST LINE MOVES OF THE WEEK

Ohio State Buckeyes (-21.5 to -27.5) vs. Northwestern Wildcats: This is a monster bounce-back spot for a Buckeyes team that is in desperate need of style points after falling 24-21 at Penn State. Northwestern may be 5-1 ATS over its last six road games, but the Wildcats are 0-5 ATS over their last five encounters against Ohio State.

Louisville Cardinals (-27 to -32.5) at Virginia Cavaliers: In each of the last two weeks there were significant trends pointing toward a Virginia cover. And in each of the last two weeks, the Cavaliers lost and failed to cash in, so I’m not sure why this Saturday would be any different against a Lamar Jackson-led Louisville program that is 28-12-1 ATS over its last 41 road games.

Tulane Green Wave (+2.5 to -2.5) vs. SMU Mustangs: This is a big-time letdown spot for a Mustangs team that upset Houston last week despite closing as a 23.5-point underdog. Take note that SMU is 5-16 ATS after permitting fewer than 20 points in the previous game, while Tulane is 9-3 ATS over its last 12 contests against teams with a losing record.

Miami Hurricanes (+2 to -1) at Notre Dame Fighting Irish: Two teams headed in the wrong direction here as Notre Dame has dropped four of its last five outings while Miami has lost three straight after commencing the Mark Richt era with a 4-0 record. Notre Dame is coming off its bye week, but is just 2-5 ATS over its last seven home games. The Hurricanes are 4-1 ATS over their last five games after permitting more than 200 rushing yards in the previous outing.

UCF Knights (+12 to +9) at Houston Cougars: There’s blood in the Houston water as the Cougars, who were once considered a viable candidate for the college football playoff, have dropped two of their last three outings (46-40 loss at Navy, 38-16 loss at SMU). Meanwhile, Central Florida has won three of its last four efforts and is now 4-1 ATS over its last five road dates. The road team is 4-0 ATS over the last four meetings between these two programs.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Georgia vs. Florida
By Brian Edwards

It used to be called the World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party, regardless as to what CBS and the respective schools want to term it these days.

The eye candy is always spectacular and the weather usually coincides with the co-eds on the last Saturday afternoon of October by the St. John’s River in Jacksonville. While the ladies decked out in red and black will be looking stellar, the same can’t be said for Kirby Smart’s first Georgia team.

Smart, Nick Saban’s long-time defensive coordinator on four national-championship teams, took over for Mark Richt at his alma mater. This is his first head-coaching gig at UGA, where he was an All-SEC defensive back and played from 1995-98.

His counterpart, Jim McElwain, also tutored under Saban and was a part of two of those national-title winners. McElwain replaced Will Muschamp, another UGA alum who played in the same secondary with Smart at Georgia, in 2015 and immediately led Florida to an SEC East title and basically handed Richt his pink slip when the Gators beat the Bulldogs down by a 27-3 count as three-point favorites last year.

McElwain is 15-5 at UF, while Smart is just 4-3 with two of his wins coming by three combined points. Georgia (4-3 straight up, 3-4 against the spread) is 1-3 in SEC play after dropping a 17-16 decision to Vanderbilt in Athens as 14.5-point favorite two weeks ago. Hence, the Bulldogs are unranked and out of the picture in the SEC East race.

Florida (5-1 SU, 2-4 ATS) leads the SEC East with a 3-1 record in league play. McElwain’s bunch will repeat as SEC East champs if it can run the bale in league play.

UF has had a pair of open dates over the last three weeks due to the postponement of the LSU game. In between those, UF captured a 40-14 win over Missouri as a 13-point home favorite. The 54 combined points went ‘over’ the 51-point total thanks to a pair of pick-sixes by cornerbacks Quincy Wilson and Teez Tabor.

Gamblers backing the ‘under’ had to be furious. Not only were there two defensive TDs, but there were two more TDs scored in the last 1:23 of the game. Missouri’s Ish Witter’s one-yard TD run cut the deficit to 33-14, setting up an onside kick opportunity for the Tigers. UF’s Antonio Callaway took the onside kick and dashed 44 yards for a TD to give ‘over’ supporters a miracle victory.

Sophomore quarterback Luke Del Rio returned to the lineup after missing back-to-back games with a sprained MCL. Del Rio wasn’t nearly as sharp as he looked before the injury in September. He completed just 18-of-38 passes for 236 yards with one TD and three interceptions.

Lamical Perine rushed 11 times for 106 yards, while Jordan Scarlett had 101 rushing yards and one TD on 12 carries. Juco transfer Mark Thompson added 65 rushing yards on 10 totes, while true freshman WR Tyrie Cleveland had three catches for 79 yards, including a 20-yard TD grab.

UF has played a soft schedule to date, posting wins vs. UMass (24-7), vs. Kentucky (45-7), vs. North Texas (32-0) and at Vanderbilt (13-6). The Gators’ lone defeat came at Tennessee when the Volunteers snapped an 11-game losing streak to UF by rallying from a 21-0 deficit to win 38-28.

Florida ranks second in the nation in total defense, pass defense and scoring defense, holding opponents to an average score of 12.0 points per game. The Gators have 19 sacks led by redshirt freshman Jabari Zuniga’s five tackles on opposing QBs.

UF got great news Wednesday when five key players were able to practice. The Gators’ leading tackler, senior LB Jarrad Davis, sprained his ankle in the win over Missouri, but McElwain sounded optimistic about Davis’s chances of playing. He will be a game-time decision. Davis has recorded 48 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, three QB hurries and four passes broken up.

Starting DE Jordan Sherit missed the Missouri game with a knee injury, but he was upgraded to ‘probable’ after practicing all week. Sherit has 20 tackles, 3.5 TFL’s, three sacks and a pair of QB hurries. Another d-line starter, senior DT Joey Ivie, is also listed as ‘probable’ after missing consecutive games with a thumb injury. Before getting injured at UT, Ivie had nine tackles, 0.5 sacks, 0.5 TFL’s and two QB hurries.

Senior DE Bryan Cox Jr. injured his thumb vs. Missouri, but UF is hopeful that he’ll be able to go vs. UGA. Cox has 14 tackles, two TFL’s, one forced fumble and four QB hurries. Finally, TE DeAndre Goolsby is nursing a finger injury but will be in uniform against the Bulldogs.

Georgia opened the season by rallying from a nine-point deficit late in the third quarter to beat North Carolina 33-24 as a 3.5-point favorite at the Ga. Dome in Atlanta. After suffering a bad knee injury at UT last year, RB Nick Chubb made a triumphant return to the field by rushing for 222 yards and two TDs on 32 carries.

Since then, Smart’s squad has won vs. Nicholls (26-24), at Missouri (28-27) and at South Carolina (28-14). However, UGA has lost at Ole Miss (45-14), vs. Tennessee (34-31 on a walk-off Hail Mary) and vs. Vandy (17-16).

In the loss to the Commodores in Athens two weeks ago, the ground game struggled again. Chubb was held to 40 rushing yards on 16 carries, while Sony Michel managed just 28 yards on 13 attempts. True freshman QB Jacob Eason played well, connecting on 27-of-40 throws for 346 yards with one TD and no interceptions.

For the season, Eason has completed 113-of-208 (54.3%) passes for 1,366 with a 9/5 TD-INT ratio. His favorite target is Isaiah McKenzie, who has 30 receptions for 415 yards and five TDs. Chubb has rushed for 586 yards and five TDs while averaging 5.1 yards per carry. Michel has 358 rushing yards and one TD on 73 carries for a 4.9 YPC average.

Del Rio should be 100-percent healthy coming off the open date. He has connected on 80-of-139 throws (57.6%) for 998 yards with a 7/5 TD-INT ratio. Callaway has 23 catches for 399 yards and two TDs, while Goolsby has 25 receptions for 215 yards and one TD. Brandon Powell has 23 grabs for 206 yards and a pair of scores.

Jordan Scarlett has rushed for a team-high 375 yards and five TDs while averaging 5.6 YPC. Perine (6.3 YPC) has 300 rushing yards and one score, while juco transfer Mark Thompson has 262 rushing yards, two TDs and a 4.6 YPC average. However, Thompson has been suspended for the UGA game.

As of Friday afternoon, most books had Florida listed as a 7.5-point ‘chalk’ with a total of 43.5 points. Gamblers can take UGA on the money line for a +245 return (risk $100 to win $245).

When these schools met in Jacksonville last season, Florida cruised to a 27-3 win behind a dominant defensive performance. Callaway caught a 66-yard TD pass from Treon Harris, while safety Nick Washington recovered a fumble for a TD on special teams. Marcus Maye and Davis both has interceptions, while Michel was held to 45 rushing yards on 13 attempts.

The ‘under’ is 4-1 in the last five head-to-head meetings between these bitter border rivals.

Totals have been a wash (3-3 overall) for UF so far this year. Meanwhile, UGA has seen the ‘under’ go 4-3.

Kickoff is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. Eastern on CBS.

**B.E.’s Bonus Nuggets**

Updated Odds to win the SEC:
Alabama -400
Florida +550
Tennessee 8/1
Auburn 10/1
Texas A&M 10/1
LSU 12/1
Kentucky 1,000/1

Updated Games of the Year:
Alabama -10 at LSU
LSU -14 at Arkansas
Florida +7 at FSU
Alabama -17 vs. Auburn
Ole Miss -13.5 vs. Mississippi State

-- Auburn is absolutely on fire after producing one of the top performances of the season in a 56-3 beatdown of Arkansas as a 10-point home ‘chalk’ in Week 8. Now Gus Malzahn’s squad will take its act to Oxford to take on an Ole Miss team that’s somehow lost four games despite leading in all four of the defeats and leading by double digits in three of those setbacks. Most spots have Auburn as a 4.5-point favorite. The Rebels are 6-2 ATS with three outright wins in eight games as a home underdog during Hugh Freeze’s tenure.

-- Kentucky’s 40-38 comeback win over Mississippi State represented the first win over the SEC West by an SEC East school in eight games this year. The Wildcats, who are 4-3 both SU and ATS, have covered the spread in four straight outings. They’ll be looking to improve to 4-2 in SEC play with a win at Missouri. As of Thursday, most spots had the Tigers listed as five-point home favorites. The Wildcats have compiled a 6-9 spread record as road underdogs on Mark Stoops’s watch.

-- Missouri’s tough season took another turn south this week when it announced the season-ending losses of leading tackler Michael Scherer and DL Terry Beckner Jr. to torn ACL’s. Scherer, a senior LB, had 53 tackles, 3.5 TFL’s, 0.5 sacks, one interception, two PBU and two QB hurries. Beckner had recorded 24 tackles, two TFL’s and three QB hurries.

-- Vanderbilt is 4-4 with an open date ahead of next week’s trip to The Plains to take on red-hot Auburn.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Penn State Nittany Lions (5-2) at Purdue Boilermakers (3-4)

Date: October 29, 2016 12:00 PM EDT

Penn State coach James Franklin encouraged his team to take in the moment following its dramatic fourth-quarter comeback and 24-21 upset of No. 2 ranked Ohio State last Saturday night in Happy Valley.
"Obviously these types of wins are important," Franklin said. "To be honest with you, I don't want to spend a lot of time thinking about the big picture right now, I just want to soak this all in. Nights like this don't happen very often."

Now the No. 24 Nittany Lions (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten), who visit Purdue (3-4, 1-3) on Saturday, need to find a way to regroup and move on from their first home win over a Top 2 rated team since a 27-24 victory over Nebraska in 1982.

"If we turn around and lay an egg against Purdue, then what good is (the Ohio State) victory?" Nittany Lions assistant head coach Terry Smith, filling in for Franklin, who was out of town attending a family funeral, asked on Tuesday's Big Ten head coaches conference call.

Toss in the fact Penn State has lost its last seven true road contests dating back to a Nov. 18, 2014 victory at Indiana, including two this season at Pitt (42-39) and Michigan (49-10), and the early noon start in West Lafayette, Ind., becomes even more intriguing.

"We're going to approach it as business as usual," Smith said. "We worked under the belief that the next game is the most important game, no matter who your opponent is.

"Our kids have bought into the process for the entire year, and after a game last weekend, the buy in is even greater. For us personally, we haven't won on the road, so this is going to be a good test for us to get our first road victory."

Purdue also has a lot riding on the contest. It will be the first home game since interim head coach Gerad Parker took over for Darrell Hazell a few weeks ago and an upset of the Nittany Lions, who have won seven in a row in the series, would put the Boilermakers back on track for a potential bowl bid.

Parker is emphasizing a more positive, upbeat approach to his head coaching duties. It seemed to work for much of his debut last week at No. 8 Nebraska. The Boilermakers performed far better than they had all season against top teams, building a 14-10 halftime lead before eventually falling to the Huskers 27-14.

"It was a fun run. We have to take that and build off of that so we become that same team the second half," Parker said. "It was a fun ride. You could see the belief in those kids' eyes. I think they know they let one fall through here. That's how they feel. It's going to be fun to coach them the rest of the weeks to try to get them to this point where they keep believing."

Penn State's running game looked pretty good against Ohio State as sophomore running back Saquon Barkley and sophomore quarterback Trace McSorley continue to team up to make defenders miss. They combined for 162 yards as their chemistry in the team's zone read rushing attack has grown. The Boilermakers, meanwhile, have allowed 1,237 rushing yards and 13 touchdowns since conference play started.

Penn State's defense, which kept Ohio State quarterback J.T. Barrett in check with a variety of blitzes, now must find a way to slow down Purdue's wide open passing attack. Boilermaker quarterback David Blough leads the Big Ten in completions (173) and yards (2,065) and has thrown 14 touchdown passes. Senior wide receiver DeAngelo Yancey is coming off a big game against Nebraska with four catches for 100 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

"(Blough) can throw the ball," Smith said. "He's got some really good receivers on the perimeter, some guys that create challenges for us on the perimeter. He's very accurate, he throws a good ball, he throws a catchable ball, and you can see him directing the offense.

"We have our work cut out for us, and we're going to try to figure out how to slow him down and keep the pass game to a minimum."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Michigan Wolverines (7-0) at Michigan State Spartans (2-5)

Date: October 29, 2016 12:00 PM EDT

The memory of how Michigan lost to Michigan State last season is one of those indelible moments that never goes away.

Only 10 seconds away from winning, the Wolverines watched punter Blake O'Neill bobble a snap and inexplicably fumble the ball into the arms of Michigan State's Jalen Watts-Jackson, who returned the ball 38 yards for the winning score as time expired.

The Spartans' insane 27-23 victory marked their seventh victory in the last eight meetings with the Wolverines. The teams meet again Saturday in East Lansing (Noon ET, ESPN) and the Michigan players are certainly anticipating the opportunity to exact revenge.

Senior safety Dymonte Thomas was on the punt team and has replayed last season's final play in his mind countless times.

"I was on the field when that play happened," Thomas said after last week's 41-8 trouncing of Illinois. "I just couldn't believe what took place, and we had that bye week after, and during that whole bye week that's the only thing I thought about. I couldn't think about anything else and couldn't wait to get revenge.

"Next Saturday, we've got our chance and our opportunity, and so I'm just excited and ready to go out and play with these guys. I love my teammates, and I love the way that we are playing together, and it's going to be fun playing next Saturday, especially since it's a rivalry game."

Michigan State (2-5, 0-4 Big Ten) has endured a down season to reduce the luster of this season's matchup. The Spartans have lost five consecutive games, including four by double digits.

The college football power in the state has seemingly switched hands with the Wolverines (7-0, 4-0) ranked second in the nation in only their second season under coach Jim Harbaugh.

But Harbaugh isn't about to view the Spartans as anything but a super dangerous opponent.

"It doesn't matter what's happened before this week. For us or for our opponent, it never does," Harbaugh said at a press conference. "(What matters) is what happens on the game day. We know the task in front of us. We know the challenge.

"It's up to us to go out there and prepare for that game so we can go out there and be confident, execute and have a chance to be successful."

The Michigan State players know they are viewed as disappointments but also are aware that ending the current slide against their main rivals would be particularly sweet.

And a good number of them, such as senior linebacker Riley Bullough, have never walked off the field a loser against the Wolverines.

Bullough's lineage of family members as Spartans includes older and younger brothers, uncles, his father and a grandfather.

"I've been watching this game ever since I can remember, obviously been a Spartan fan my entire life, and growing up, it seems like it was Michigan's game," Bullough said at a press conference. "They were in control of the series when I was young, but that's kind of turned in the last few years, so to kind of be a part of that has meant a tremendous amount to me.

"So this game is huge for us this week and our entire season, I think, so we're going to go out and play hard and do everything we can to get a win."

Bullough was ejected for targeting in last week's 28-17 loss to Maryland as Michigan State's woes continued.

"We need to stay together, and we need to understand that we lost the football game, not one specific person, we lost the football game," Spartans coach Mark Dantonio said. "If we can at least all accept responsibility in that, then I think we all move forward."

Redshirt freshman Brian Lewerke will be the starting quarterback, making his third career start against perhaps the toughest defense in the nation.

Michigan allowed only 172 yards against Illinois, marking the fourth straight game that the unit gave up fewer than 200 yards.

The Wolverines rank first in the nation in scoring defense (10.0 points per game), total defense (207.0 yards per game), passing defense (111) and third-down conversion defense (13 percent). Michigan also ranks fourth in rushing defense at 96.0.

"It's a tribute to all of our hard work in the spring and the summer," cornerback Jourdan Lewis said. "It's paying off right now, the fruits of our labor."

Sophomore outside linebacker Jabrill Peppers, who has 10 tackles for losses, continues to dabble on offense while flashing his gamebreaking return skills.

Sophomore quarterback Wilton Speight has thrown 13 touchdowns and been intercepted only twice for an offense averaging 48.7 points per game.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Baylor Bears (6-0) at Texas Longhorns (3-4)

Date: October 29, 2016 3:30 PM EDT

There will be plenty at stake when No. 8 Baylor travels to Texas for a Big 12 showdown on Saturday afternoon at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium, but the roles predicted for the two rivals in the preseason have changed a lot.

Baylor (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) had been expected to take a step back from the top of the conference in the wake of the firing of coach Art Briles and the sexual assault allegations against the school that rocked the college football world in the offseason.

Instead the Bears have kept their swagger, closed ranks under interim coach Jim Grobe, reeled off nothing but wins over the first half of their season and moved steadily up the rankings.

Conversely, great things were expected of Texas (3-4, 1-3 Big 12), especially after the Longhorns won their first two games, one of which was a season-opening victory against then-No. 10 Notre Dame.

Since then, Texas has lost four of five contests, including a 24-21 defeat at Kansas State last Saturday. Coach Charlie Strong, who was crowd-surfed by his players after the win over the Fighting Irish, is just trying find a way to uncork the Longhorns' potential while fighting to keep his job.

Texas and Baylor have met 105 times through the years, with the Longhorns holding a 75-26-4 edge. Lately, the Bears have controlled the series, winning four of the past six editions.

Baylor has started 6-0 in each of the last four years, a program first and the only FBS program to do so.

The rivalry has become testy in the past few years, with plenty of animosity on display between the two teams -- and even a fistfight -- in Texas' 23-17 win in Waco last year.

"We expect it to be a little more intense than the other games," Baylor quarterback Seth Russell said. "So we are expecting that going into it and just trying to focus on winning the game. We can't control the outside distractions, so there's no reason to really worry about them."

Baylor linebacker Aiavion Edwards said the Bears will approach this game like they would any other opponent despite the recent fireworks between the two teams.

"We just have to focus on the next win, the next game, so it's huge anyway you look at it," Edwards said. "We're trying to focus on taking care of business and going down there and getting a win. After playing here, and playing in the Big 12, you respect all the teams. (Texas is) the next team up."

The Bears are the most complete team in the Big 12, averaging 549.2 yards of offense (third most in the conference and fourth nationally) while allowing just 320.3 yards per game (best in the Big 12 and 16th nationally in total defense).

Things have to change, and in a hurry, if Texas is going to salvage this year from the scrap heap.

"We just haven't played well and we have to be better," Strong said Monday in his weekly media availability. "We'd like to see more (improvement), would like to be better and we are so close, maybe just a few plays away each game. Everyone's tired of hearing me say that, including the players, but that's where we are."

The Longhorns had every opportunity to snatch a victory last week at Kansas State but couldn't take advantage of the Wildcats' rare show of generosity that included eight penalties and three turnovers as well as forgetting to cover Texas wide receiver Devin Duvernay on a deep pass that went for the Longhorns' first touchdown.

"You just get sick because you see all the points you left out there on the field," Texas wide receiver Dorian Leonard said. "We're still just trying to put our finger on that one thing that's just holding us back. I'm so ready for this game. Going into practice this week, I'm going to try to be the 'hype man' all week, try to keep everybody up."

Texas junior running back D'Onta Foreman has been a key cog in the Longhorns' offense and ranks third in the country with an average of 142.5 rushing yards per game. Foreman has carried the ball 141 times for 855 yards (11th nationally) and eight touchdowns, despite missing a game earlier in the year.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

NCAA Football Predictions: Week 9 Opening Line Report and Picks
by Alan Matthews

With former No. 2 Ohio State's surprising loss at Penn State on Saturday night, the Buckeyes' first-ever true road loss under Coach Urban Meyer (that's amazing), and No. 6 Texas A&M's defeat at Alabama, there are now seven unbeaten Power 5 teams left in the country.

What's really interesting in Week 9 is that six of those schools play on the road (Alabama is off), and five lost to their Saturday opponent in their last meeting. New No. 2 Michigan and No. 7 Nebraska are on three-game losing streaks to Michigan State and Wisconsin, respectively.

I think you can rule out Texas A&M from the College Football Playoff because the Aggies now aren't even going to win the SEC West Division as there's no chance that the Crimson Tide will lose twice. The Aggies, who dropped to No. 9 in the AP Top 25, are the biggest favorites on the board for Week 9 at -42.5 against New Mexico State. Ohio State only slipped to No. 6, and as long as the Buckeyes win out, including the Big Ten title game, they should get into the playoff because that would include a victory over Nebraska (next week) and unbeaten (presumably) Michigan to close the regular season. OSU is -24.5 this week at home vs. Northwestern. Urban Meyer's teams have proven resilient, losing consecutive games just four times during his 15-year career. The Buckeyes have done that once since he arrived, losing to Michigan State and Clemson at the end of the 2013 season.

There are still two unbeaten Group of 5 schools as they battle for the highest ranking and that automatic berth in the New Year's Six bowl game, this year the Cotton. They are No. 13 Boise State and No. 20 Western Michigan. The blue Broncos are at Wyoming on and the brown Broncos are off this week.

We also had another coach fired over the weekend, the fourth in the FBS since the season began: Fresno State's Tim DeRuyter with a 1-7 record. Offensive coordinator Eric Kiesau has been named the interim head coach. The Bulldogs host Air Force on Friday. Former California head coach Jeff Tedford is the top candidate to eventually land the Fresno State job. But if I'm FSU I aim higher: Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin. FSU is his alma mater. But I think Kiffin will be offered a very good Power 5 head coaching job this offseason.

Here are a few Week 9 opening lines that caught my eye. Rankings from AP poll and games Saturday unless noted.

No. 25 Virginia Tech at Pittsburgh (+3.5), Thursday: Big game in the ACC Coastal Division as both teams are tied with North Carolina with one conference loss; the Hokies already hold the tiebreaker with UNC so a win here has them in great shape to play in the conference championship game. It's the second Thursday game in a row for Virginia Tech as it took care of visiting Miami 37-16 last week. Pitt's only two losses came by a combined eight points, at Oklahoma State out of conference and at North Carolina. The Panthers still have to visit Clemson, however. Last week in a 45-31 win at Virginia, Pittsburgh played James Conner and Jordan Whitehead on both offense and defense. Conner, one of the ACC's best running backs and the 2014 ACC Offensive Player of the Year, took some snaps at defensive end. Whitehead, a safety, had three carries for 28 yards at running back. The pick: Virginia Tech.

No. 22 Navy at South Florida (-8), Friday: This could be a preview of the AAC Championship Game, especially if South Florida wins Friday. The Bulls are tied for first in the East Division with Temple and lost at the Owls 46-30 last weekend in a result I didn't see coming. USF's excellent dual-threat QB, Quinton Flowers, threw two touchdown passes and ran for a score, but he was shaken up late in the fourth quarter trying to dive for a first down. Flowers has a hamstring injury, but Coach Willie Taggart thinks he will play here. Navy has a two-game lead in the loss column over Houston in the AAC West Division. QB Will Worth accounted for five touchdowns (two passing, three rushing) and 286 yards in Saturday's 42-28 win over Memphis. The Midshipmen gained a season-high 447 yards on the ground. Worth is from Tampa. These schools have met just once, a 29-17 Navy home win last year. The pick: Navy.

No. 2 Michigan at Michigan State (+21.5): These two had one of the most memorable endings in college football history a year ago. All the Wolverines had to do was get a punt off in the final seconds and they win. But the snap was flubbed by the punter and MSU ran back the fumble as time expired for a 27-23 absolute stunner. It truly was a miracle. If the punter had simply fallen on the ball, UM still wins. MSU has won seven of the past eight in the series, but these programs are on different levels this year. Sparty is on a shocking five-game losing streak and probably won't reach a bowl game after winning last season's Big Ten title and playing in the national semifinals. Michigan has looked as dominant as Alabama thus far. Will the Wolverines have freshman running back Chris Evans here? He suffered a concussion in Saturday's easy win over Illinois. He has rushed for 416 yards and three touchdowns. The pick: No way I'm not taking that many points in East Lansing. MSU can't win this game but will keep it reasonable.

No. 3 Clemson at No. 12 Florida State (+4): It's only the fourth time this century (last in 2011 vs. Oklahoma) that FSU has been at least a 4-point home dog; it lost all of the previous four. Clemson has looked really shaky at times this year, with close wins over Troy and NC State (should have lost that one), but the Tigers are going to finish the regular season unbeaten and return to the ACC title game if they win this game. Their only road game left is at Wake Forest. Because the Tigers have a win over Louisville, which is one game back in the Atlantic Division, they are probably going to the title game even with a loss here. How interesting would it be, however, if Clemson is in the ACC title game with one loss and Louisville is not with one loss but the Cards perhaps go to the College Football Playoff over Clemson? We shall have to wait and see. FSU is two games back of Clemson so it can only play spoiler and perhaps earn a major bowl bid. Clemson hasn't won at FSU in 10 years. Tigers leading rusher Wayne Gallman said he expects to play after going through a concussion protocol during last week's bye. The pick: Clemson.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Washington Huskies (7-0) at Utah Utes (7-1)

Date: October 29, 2016 3:30 PM EDT

The unbeaten and fourth-ranked Washington Huskies are enjoying their best ranking since the end of the 2000 season, but they are heading into what their coach calls their toughest test of the season.

Washington (7-0, 4-0 Pac-12) plays at 17th-ranked Utah (7-1, 4-1) on Saturday afternoon, and Rice-Eccles Stadium will be rocking, further fueled by the energy of having ESPN's "College GameDay" program on campus.

"Rice-Eccles has been a great venue this year," said Utah coach Kyle Whittingham, whose team is tied atop the Pac-12 South with Colorado. "We have had great support from our fans that makes it a tough place to play for opponents. We need that to be the case this weekend, and we know they will be loud."

Washington is coming off its 10th consecutive victory, a 41-17 win over Oregon State at Husky Stadium last week. The Huskies have defeated every opponent this season by at least 24 points, except for an overtime victory at Arizona.

Washington has the top-rated defense in the Pac-12 (14.6 points allowed per game), leads the country with in turnover margin (plus-2.0 per game), has the nation's No. 2-rated passer (Jake Browning, 199.6 efficiency rating) and the top rusher in the conference (Myles Gaskin, 103.9 yards per game).

The Huskies have outscored their opponents 200-24 in the first half.

"This will by far be our toughest test so far," Washington coach Chris Petersen said of Utah.

"I know their fans will be really excited. That's usually what happens. I think there was going to be really good energy in that stadium whether 'GameDay' came or not. This probably just pours a little more energy into the stadium."

A prime storyline is first-year starting Utah quarterback Troy Williams. He began his career at Washington, but transferred after the 2014 season, which was Petersen's first in Seattle.

"I told them I'd be back. I kept my promise," Williams said of when he left the Huskies.

"But I built everlasting friendships ... those are my brothers up there. I have the utmost respect for all of them. I just want to show people what I can do and continue to showcase my talents. It just gives it a little extra fire. It was hard going through everything I went through up there.

"I'm just real, real excited to get out there this weekend."

Williams has passed for only 221 yards in the past two games -- in a wet-and-windy day at Oregon State and last Saturday at UCLA -- but he hasn't had to do much, other than keep the defense honest with some deep passes.

Utah senior running back Joe Williams has become one of the best stories in college football, coming out of a five-week retirement due to injuries, rushing for 179 yards against the Beavers and a school-record 332 vs. the Bruins. The coaching staff convinced him to come back after other injuries ravaged the position.

"We were down to our last running back and all of a sudden he's back in the lineup and a huge plus for us," Whittingham said. "He pulled away from those UCLA defenders, and they have fast guys. They hand-pick who they want for that secondary and he outran them all."

Browning, a sophomore, has completed 118 of 172 passes for 1,709 yards, with 26 touchdowns and only two interceptions. Wide receivers John Ross (115 yards receiving against Oregon State) and Dante Pettis (112) last week became the first pair of Husky wideouts to go over 100 yards receiving in the same game since 2002.

Gaskin, a sophomore, already has more than 2,000 career rushing yards.

Utah's offense hasn't been dynamic for much of the season, but the Utes are coming off a 52-point effort against a talented UCLA defense. Washington's is even better. The Huskies have future NFL guys all over their defense -- including free safety Budda Baker, cornerback Sidney Jones and defensive tackle Vita Vea.

UW defensive end/outside linebacker Joe Mathis (team-high five sacks) missed last week's game because of a foot injury and doesn't seem likely to play this week. Utah free safety Marcus Williams, a 2015 first-team all-conference pick, did not play last week at UCLA because of an undisclosed injury and is not listed on this week's depth chart.

If the Huskies still have skeptics, it is because they have not played a team that is currently ranked (Stanford was No. 7 at the time of the meeting but has since fallen way off).

"I think this has been a pretty focused crew all along," Petersen said.

"They go to work and practice hard. I will tell you, we expect a lot out of these guys when they come in this building. We do not go through the motions."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Georgia Bulldogs (4-3) at Florida Gators (5-1)

Date: October 29, 2016 3:30 PM EDT

For just the fifth time in the long-time series, both teams will be coming out of a bye week when Florida and Georgia meet at 3:30 p.m. ET Saturday at EverBank Field in Jacksonville, Fla. (CBS).

The 14th-ranked Gators (5-1, 3-1 SEC) spent the time to prepare for a stretch run they hope ends in an East Division title and berth in the SEC Championship Game. The Gators gained 530 yards of offense in their last outing, a 40-14 win over Missouri, but also turned the ball over four times.

"We're nowhere where we need to be, and yet, we're getting guys to realize how good they can be," Florida coach Jim McElwain said. "You can really be good if you allow yourself to be good."

Georgia coach Kirby Smart is taking a wait-and-see attitude before giving his assessment of what progress his Bulldogs (4-3, 2-3 SEC) might have made during the break.

"I'll answer that question Saturday, because I certainly think we worked towards it," Smart said. "I thought that we got to attack some areas that we needed, and I really thought the kids had good energy and attitude to go out and practice the way they did, physical, hitting each other, with toughness."

There will be plenty of storylines entering the game, including the relationship between the two coaches. McElwain and Smart worked together at Alabama under Nick Saban from 2008 to 2011. McElwain served as offensive coordinator while Smart worked the other side of the ball as defensive coordinator.

"His ability to see the game and put a plan together is really, really good," McElwain said.

McElwain is concerned about Georgia's offensive potential, led by junior running back Nick Chubb and freshman phenom quarterback Jacob Eason. Chubb was held to 40 yards on 16 carries in the 17-16 loss to Vanderbilt in Georgia's last game, but despite that and despite missing most of one game to injury, the junior still has rushed for 586 yards.

Eason took over as starter in the second game of the season and drove the Bulldogs to the late decisive touchdown the next week in a one-point win at Missouri.

He completed 27 of 40 passes with a touchdown against Vanderbilt and on the season has completed 54.3 percent of his passes with nine touchdowns and five interceptions. A five-star recruit out of Lake Stevens, Wash., Eason was recruited by both Florida and Georgia.

"This guy in my opinion is the future of the SEC," McElwain said. "He's that good. His ability to push the ball downfield is something that's impressive."

The Bulldogs did get some good news this week on the defensive front as their two leading tacklers, linebackers Natrez Patrick and Roquan Smith, have been cleared of possession of marijuana charges and are eligible to play Saturday.

Florida's offense has not been particularly overwhelming this season, but the Gators do have quarterback Luke Del Rio back. He missed three weeks to a knee injury and was a bit rusty in his first game back -- "I played terrible. I didn't take care of the ball," he said of his play against Missouri -- but has completed 80 of 139 passes for 998 yards and seven touchdowns for the season.

Wide receiver Tyrie Cleveland also is starting to emerge as a threat downfield. The true freshman caught his first career touchdown pass against Missouri and finished with three catches for 79 yards.

"He's a talented guy," McElwain said.

For the season, Cleveland is averaging 20.7 yards per reception.

With 84 of the meetings between the two teams in Jacksonville, the game has a special air about it, which is not lost on the coaches.

"When you walk in that stadium and see it half and half, half Florida fans, half Georgia fans," McElwain said, "I get goosebumps just thinking about it."

Smart called it the best "neutral site" game in college football.

"I think when you get recruited to go to Georgia and Florida, that's a game that you always point to you want to play in," Smart said. "I know historically I was that way as a player.

"But I know our players are that way. It's considered to them one of the biggest games we have each year, especially because of where it's played."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Louisville Cardinals (6-1) at Virginia Cavaliers (2-5)

Date: October 29, 2016 12:00 PM EDT

After a loss to Clemson and a close call against Duke, Louisville may have got what it needed to enhance its postseason hopes in a 54-13 rout of North Carolina State last week.

Now the No. 5 Cardinals hope to keep their momentum going when they visit Virginia on Saturday (noon ET, ABC/ESPN2) at Scott Field in Charlottesville, Va.

"Back on the road, we have to do a good job in practice this week, got to do a good job traveling, and get up and play another noon game," Louisville coach Bobby Petrino said. "I think our players will be excited about it."

The Cardinals (6-1, 4-1 ACC) could wake up Sunday morning in a first-place tie in the ACC's Atlantic Division depending on how undefeated Clemson fares against Florida State that night, though the Cardinals still are at a disadvantage in the tiebreaker because of their loss to the Tigers.

But more than getting a spot in the conference championship game, the Cardinals also are hoping impressive wins will get them consideration for one of the four spots in the College Football Playoffs.

That's not necessarily a hot topic with Petrino, however.

"I think it takes care of itself," he said. "I don't think anyone's going to care what I have to say whether we're going to get in the playoffs or not. Let's go out on the field and let's try to perform very well and show the world that we're a good football team and hopefully that will all take care of itself the right way.

"Like said before, last week I think, there's a lot of football to be played out there. There's still a lot of things come up, there's going to upsets, and we'll see where we're at."

Nevertheless, the big win over the Wolfpack was a much-needed tonic.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson continued his Heisman Trophy quest with another big game, with 355 passing yards and three touchdowns and rushing for 76 yards and another score against N.C. State.

Senior tight end Cole Hikutini had a nice game as well with six catches for a career-high 118 yards and a touchdown. Defensively, junior linebacker Stacy Thomas emerged as a playmaker with two tackles for loss and his first career interception.

With all the attention given to Jackson and the Cardinals' scoring punch, it's easy to overlook that they are the only team in the country ranked in the top 10 in total offense and total defense.

"I like the way our front guys are playing -- besides defeating blocks, we're able to make tackles and get production," Petrino said. "A lot of times as a defensive lineman it's hard to get that kind of production."

Defensive end Drew Bailey has 30 tackles with 5.5 for losses and tackle DeAngelo Brown has 20 with 4.5 for losses in leading Louisville's three-man defensive front.

Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall credited Louisville defensive coordinator Todd Grantham for building that success.

"When you have a combination of good coaches and good talent, that ends up having a lot of success and that's over the years, Louisville has done that," Mendenhall said. "They have added good football coaches, and they have recruited very good talent to fit their schemes and vice versa."

Mendenhall's Cavaliers (2-5, 1-2) seemed to be getting their act together after losing two of their first three games, but after posting victories over Central Michigan and Duke, they have lost to Pittsburgh and North Carolina their last two outings.

Quarterback Kurt Benkert, a transfer from East Carolina, struggled in those two outings, passing for 126 yards against the Tar Heels and completing 20 of 44 passes against Pitt for 278 yards after throwing for 757 yards in the two wins.

"I think his development and his production has been on track to this point," Mendenhall said. "And now that we're playing better, better and better teams, his execution, his performance is having to climb at a more immediate pace, and that's only realistic if he's prepared for that.

"And so we've seen a few teams, we've seen some looks, he's beat up a little bit and that's impacted his kind of poise and patience in the pocket just a hair."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: West Virginia Mountaineers (6-0) at Oklahoma State Cowboys (5-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 12:00 PM EDT

West Virginia, one of the seven unbeaten teams among the Power 5 Conference schools, finally cracked the national top 10 this week

The Mountaineers (6-0, 3-0 Big 12) are coming off impressive wins, especially defensively, against Texas Tech and TCU, surprisingly putting themselves into position to crash the College Football Playoff.

No. 10 West Virginia, which began the season unranked, will get another chance to impress the playoff selection committee Saturday at Oklahoma State (5-2, 3-1) in a noon kickoff from Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater, Okla.

"You're only as good as your next game," WVU coach Dana Holgorsen said. "Our team understands that. They're not worried about rankings or preseason; they're only worried about where they're going to be at the end."

West Virginia's single-minded focus has been evident during whippings of Texas Tech and TCU the last two weeks, when it held those two-high powered foes to a total of 27 points. The Red Raiders and Horned Frogs combine to average 48 points per game when they play teams not named West Virginia.

Consider that Texas Tech roared up and down the field last Saturday, scoring 59 points in a loss to Oklahoma a week after falling 48-17 to the Mountaineers.

"They're playing as good as anyone in the conference and maybe comparable to top 10 teams in the country," Oklahoma State coach Mike Gundy said of WVU's defense. "They're multiple with the style of play they use. They tackle well and they play aggressive."

This will be another big test. Oklahoma State has a potent offense, averaging 41.1 points per game, 14th-best in the country. The Cowboys are coming off a 44-20 victory at Kansas, but there were some problems with their usually potent attack.

For starters, the Jayhawks used bracket coverage to hold leading receiver James Washington to one reception for 9 yards. In addition, Kansas often pressured quarterback Mason Rudolph and sacked him five times.

"You're not going to be able to win games getting sacked five times," Gundy said.

Yet the Cowboys did, largely because they found offensive weapons other than Washington, such as slot receiver Jalen McCleskey (seven catches, 129 yards) and freshman running back Justice Hill, who carried 22 times for a career-high 162 yards. That was his third 100-game of the season.

West Virginia is 10th nationally in total offense at 510.0 yards per game, feeding off its defense and its own low-mistake play. Quarterback Skyler Howard was at his most efficient in the win against TCU, completing 16 of 23 passes for 231 yards, with four touchdowns with no interceptions. He is 14th nationally in passing efficiency with a rating of 157.4.

Howard is averaging 9.0 yards per pass attempt, which is 11th in the country, and he'll take his cracks at a Cowboys' defense permitting 267.1 yards a game. Wide receivers Daikeil Shorts Jr. (team-high 31 catches this season) and Jovon Durante each made highlight-reel catches last week.

"We didn't make those catches last year," Holgorsen said.

Mountaineers' running back Rushel Shell has recorded two consecutive 100-yard games. West Virginia continues to average more than 200 yards per game on the ground and should have success against an Oklahoma State defense that has yielded 181.6 rushing yards per game.

West Virginia has committed only eight turnovers in six games, but the Cowboys forced three vs. Kansas last week, creating confusion by dropping linemen into coverage and showing pressure from the back end.

The Cowboys have won three consecutive games to climb near the AP Top 25 after starting the season ranked No. 21. They fell out of the poll after a Week 2 loss to Central Michigan.

Gundy is bidding for his 100th career win while facing two of his former assistants -- Holgorsen and West Virginia offensive coordinator Joe Wickline. The Cowboys won this matchup last season in Morgantown, 33-26 in overtime.

A West Virginia win Saturday would nicely position the Mountaineers for a couple of less-demanding games against Kansas and Texas before a showdown in Morgantown against Oklahoma on Nov. 19.

"It's hard to win in college football," Holgorsen said. "There are a lot of good teams out there that have lost some games. We're fortunate not to be one of those. You've got to celebrate the victories very, very short term and then you've got to get right back to work and worry about the next one."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Kansas Jayhawks (1-6) at Oklahoma Sooners (5-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops found himself playing defense earlier this week, something his team has failed to do miserably at times this season.

The 16th-ranked Sooners (5-2, 4-0 Big 12), who host Kansas (1-6, 0-4) in Big 12 play on Saturday night, come in off a video-game like 66-59 victory over Texas Tech that saw OU allow 854 total yards, including an astonishing 734 through the air. That's more than a lot Sooner defenses would yield in a month not too far back.

Oklahoma ranks 127th out of 128 FBS team in pass defense allowing an average of 342.6 yards per game. Only Arizona State (386.1) is worse. The Sooners are also allowing 36.7 points per game, just slightly better than the last place Jayhawks (36.9).

Not surprisingly, Stoops defended his defensive coordinator. That would be his brother, Mike.

"It's the same coordinator that also we led the league in every defensive category a year ago and made it to the final four," he said. "We're not running a new defense. He didn't bring in something different. It's the same defense. If it's worked before, it'll work again, and I've got confidence in it. And I'm also part of what we're doing."

Stoops spread the blame around even more, mentioning each of his defensive assistants by name.

"It's all of us, too. It isn't just my brother and I," he said. "Didn't complete a sack, ball caught between the two linebackers, ball caught on a secondary guy. It's all of us together."

Luckily for Stoops and the Sooners, the next two games are against the Big 12's worst teams -- at home against Kansas on Saturday and at Iowa State on Nov. 3.

So this stretch could be a chance to work on things to get better or could give Oklahoma's defense a false sense of improvement.

Monday morning on the Big 12 coaches' media teleconference, a reporter asked Kansas coach David Beaty if seeing the OU defense give up so many yards and points gave him examples of areas where the Sooners might be vulnerable. He didn't bite, saying Texas Tech quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who finished with 819 yards of total offense (734 passing and 85 rushing) obliterating the old NCAA record of 751 set by Washington State's Connor Halliday in 2014, and the Red Raiders deserved more credit for their showing.

"That would've been a challenge for the Dallas Cowboys, I believe it," Beaty said. "(Mahomes) played his rear end off, he really did. He made some throws I've never seen before."

Beaty has his own problems to worry about. Kansas has dropped 16 consecutive Big 12 games and has lost 11 in a row to Oklahoma. The Sooners have outscored the Jayhawks by a combined 106-14 in the last two meetings.

After a 44-20 loss to Oklahoma State last week, Beaty announced that quarterback Montell Cozart would continue on as the starter, a role the junior earned at the start of the season before his erratic play led to the promotion of sophomore Ryan Willis.

Cozart completed 24 of 40 passes for 250 yards, all season-bests, with two interceptions and one touchdown as the Jayhawks trailed the Cowboys by just four points at halftime before Oklahoma State used a 27-7 second-half barrage to pull away.

"Montell, I thought, did a workman's job," Beaty said. "Neither one of those picks were actually his fault."

The Jayhawks have committed 25 turnovers this season, tops in the FBS, and are minus-13 in turnover margin. No matter how shaky Oklahoma's defense may be, that is the recipe for a serious butt-kicking against an explosive Sooners offense led by Heisman Trophy candidate Baker Mayfield at quarterback, running back Joe Mixon and wide receiver Dede Westbrook.

Mayfield, who finished fourth in Heisman balloting a year ago, ranks sixth in the country with 23 passing touchdowns and 335.4 passing yards per game and leads the pass-happy Big 12 in pass efficiency (194.9), completion percentage (.714) and yards per completion (15.45). He threw a school-record seven touchdowns and finished with 545 passing yards last week in the wild win over Texas Tech.

Westbrook had nine catches for 202 yards and two touchdowns against the Red Raiders while Mixon finished with 377 all-purpose yards, the most by an FBS player this season and second most in OU history. He also registered a career-high 263 yards rushing and scored five touchdowns.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Northwestern Wildcats (4-3) at Ohio State Buckeyes (6-1)

Date: October 29, 2016 3:30 PM EDT

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- For the first time in five seasons under Urban Meyer, Ohio State lost a Big Ten regular-season road game. And its 20-game road winning streak also ended last Saturday night in State College, Pa., when Penn State pulled off a 24-21 upset.

After a rare conference loss and a narrow overtime win on the road the previous week, the Buckeyes dropped from No. 2 to No. 6 in the latest Associated Press poll. They now trail Michigan by a game in the Big Ten East Division standings.

It was the first defeat for Ohio State in October under Meyer, whose record dipped to a still-spectacular 56-5 with the Buckeyes.

The good news for Ohio State (6-1, 3-1 Big Ten) is the loss doesn't damage its title aspirations. Win out the rest of the way, including a victory over Michigan in the traditional regular-season finale, and the Buckeyes will go to the Big Ten championship game in December in Indianapolis.

"Every goal is still alive," Meyer said after the loss. "We're not a great team right now."

Ohio State returns home this weekend to face Northwestern (4-3, 3-1) on Saturday (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) in the first of two straight games in Ohio Stadium that could define the season. The following Saturday, the Buckeyes play host to No. 7 Nebraska.

Neither game figures to be easy. Northwestern brings a three-game winning streak to Columbus. Nebraska, which plays at Wisconsin this weekend in his first reason test of the season, is unbeaten.

"Wow, that is as improved a team as I've ever seen from beginning to now," Meyer said of Northwestern. "They've had three big wins with two on the road. Their defense is outstanding."

While the Wildcats are on a roll, the Buckeyes are licking their wounds after falling at Penn State. Though the Buckeyes have lost only five times since Meyer's first season in 2012, they do have some experience bouncing back from tough losses.

Last year, they fell at home to Michigan State late in the season but responded the following week with a win over Michigan. In 2014, after the stunning early-season loss to Virginia Tech at home, Ohio State ran the table and won the College Football Playoff national championship.

Meyer's Ohio State teams have lost two straight only once -- in 2013 when the Buckeyes were beaten by Michigan State in the Big Ten championship game and Clemson in the Orange Bowl.

"We have to move forward," Meyer said. "You have to let it hurt for a while. If you lose a game, you're not a loser. If you lose a game, you accept it. That was the message to our players. ... It happened, so move on and get ready for a very good team coming in here."

Northwestern has rebounded after losing three of its first four games to start the season, winning three straight Big Ten games against Iowa, Michigan State and Indiana.

Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald realizes the Buckeyes are a little different animal than their previous opponents.

"Now the heavy lifting starts," Fitzgerald said. "Nobody has a stiffer challenge than us. We have to take on the Buckeyes."

Northwestern has some weapons on offense to throw at Ohio State. Justin Jackson leads the Big Ten in rushing with 792 yards, Austin Carr is the conference's leading receiver with 50 catches for 720 yards and nine touchdowns, and Clayton Thorson is the third-leading passer, averaging 240.9 yards per game with 14 touchdowns.

On defense, Columbus-area native Godwin Igwebuike is sixth in the Big Ten in tackles and Ohio native Ifeadi Odenigbo leads the conference in sacks with eight.

Odenigbo definitely will catch Ohio State's attention after the offensive line struggled against Penn State's pass rush, giving up six sacks.

The Buckeyes uncharacteristically let a 21-7 lead slip away against the Nittany Lions, when they were outscored 17-0 in the fourth quarter.

Ohio State outgunned Penn State 413-276 in total yards and had a 17-minute advantage in time of possession, yet still couldn't come away with a win.

The loss raised questions about Ohio State's passing games -- in particular its offensive line play -- that had been bubbling toward the surface the past two games. Quarterback J.T. Barrett doesn't believe it's a catastrophic issue.

"Overall, the passing game, I think we put our O-line in bad spots early on in drives, so we were second-and-long," said Barrett, who is closing in on a Big Ten career record with 90 combined touchdowns rushing and passing. "I think that harmed us."

Meyer doesn't expect any personnel changes this week on the offensive line, which gave up two sacks at the end of the game that stopped Ohio State's final drive.

"There are a multitude of things (that went wrong)," Meyer said. "We did not play very well in a couple of areas on offense. What do you do? You identify it and work on it.

"(The offense) has regressed a little bit. Certainly there were plays to be made. If we hook up on those plays, we go on and win the game."

Ohio State is a three-touchdown favorite to get back on track against Northwestern, which hasn't visited Columbus since 2007 and has lost 29 of the last 30 games between the teams.

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Nebraska Cornhuskers (7-0) at Wisconsin Badgers (5-2)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:00 PM EDT

Most college football teams circle the calendar when they face a team ranked in the Top 10. But for No. 11 Wisconsin, it's become the norm.

For the fifth time in eight games this season, the Badgers (5-2, 2-2 Big Ten) will face a team ranked in the Top 10, this time unbeaten and seventh-ranked Nebraska (7-0, 4-0) on Saturday night (7 p.m. ET, ESPN) at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wis.

Wisconsin opened the season with a 16-14 win over then-No. 5 LSU at famed Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. Three weeks later, it took down then-No. 8 Michigan State 30-6 in East Lansing, Mich.

The Badgers have lost their last two games against Top 10 foes, a 14-7 defeat at then-No. 4 Michigan and a 30-23 overtime setback to then-No. 2 Ohio State on Oct. 15.

The brutal schedule has taken its toll physically on Wisconsin, which announced Monday that standout inside linebacker Jack Cichy will miss the rest of the season with a torn pectoral muscle suffered in last week's 17-9 victory at Iowa. Cichy, who leads the team in tackles with 60, suffered the injury late in the second quarter but still finished the game.

"There were times where Jack actually threw himself into the quarterback with one arm," outside linebacker Vince Biegel said. "As a competitor, it really speaks upon the character he is to not let an injury like this drag him down and bring him down."

Biegel made his return to the lineup Saturday after missing Wisconsin's losses to Michigan and Ohio State with a fractured foot. Inside linebacker Chris Orr also is out for the season after tearing the ACL in his right knee on the Badgers' first defensive play of the year against LSU. Inside linebacker T.J. Edwards missed the beginning of the season because of a fractured foot suffered in the summer, meaning four of Wisconsin's top five linebackers have missed time due to injury.

Nebraska, meanwhile, is off to its best start in 15 seasons, will get star receiver Jordan Westerkamp back from a back injury suffered late in an Oct. 3 win at Illinois. Westerkamp led the Cornhuskers with 65 catches for 918 yards and seven touchdowns a year ago.

Quarterback Tommy Armstrong is excited to get his roommate and number one target back.

"It's going to help a lot," Armstrong said. "I think the whole team is excited about just having another threat out there on offense. Just getting back to having a full unit even though we have guys that rotate in and out, here and there. But having Jordan back is going to be an important key for us."

The trip to Camp Randall brings back some bad memories for the Nebraska. Nineteen players were on the field at some point during the last trip there in 2014, a 59-24 loss that played a big part in coach Bo Pelini getting fired two weeks later. The Cornhuskers actually held a 17-3 lead in the second quarter before the Badgers and Melvin Gordon got rolling. Gordon finished with 408 yards rushing, breaking the NCAA single-game record.

"I'm not really focused on that now," said Armstrong, who finished 6 of 18 for 62 yards with an interception and was sacked four times in that loss. "This is a totally different team than it was in 2014. There's nothing to compare about that. We've got different coaches, different players. You really can't compare that offense to this offense."

Armstrong has started to thrive in his second year of Mike Riley's offense. He has completed 103 of 186 passes for 1,611 yards, 11 touchdowns and five interceptions while rushing for another 380 yards and six TDs. He'll be tested by a Wisconsin defense that has surrendered just eight total touchdowns -- four rushing and four passing -- this season, fewest in the FBS. The Badgers have given up just nine plays of 20-plus yards in seven games.

"All of our goals are still in sight," Biegel said. "Obviously, we have two losses, but winning the Big Ten West is still a reality. We have Nebraska. The Big Ten Championship's still in sight, and who knows, the College Football Playoff potentially."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: Auburn Tigers (5-2) at Mississippi Rebels (3-4)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:15 PM EDT

Two teams seemingly headed in opposite directions will clash when the Ole Miss Rebels host the No. 15 Auburn Tigers at 7:15 p.m. ET Saturday at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium in Oxford (SEC Network).

The Tigers (5-2, 3-1 SEC) will take a four-game winning streak into the game after beginning the year with losses in two of their first three games, albeit to highly regarded Clemson and Texas A&M.

The Rebels (3-4, 1-2) lost their last two games and have fallen under the .500 mark for the first time since they were sitting at 5-6 late in the 2012 season before winning their last two games.

And while the Tigers look to establishing themselves as a challenger to SEC West Division leader unbeaten Alabama, the Rebels find themselves needing to win three of their last five games to reach the six-win level for automatic bowl eligibility.

And one more thing: The Tigers are coming off an impressive 56-3 dismantling of an Arkansas team that dealt the Rebels a 34-30 setback the week before. The Rebels lost 38-21 to LSU last week while the Tigers were churning out 543 yards rushing against the Razorbacks. That's the most ground yardage ever for an SEC team against an SEC opponent.

"When we get the tempo going, especially being able to tempo and downhill run, we are at our best," Auburn coach Gus Malzahn said of the offensive explosion that saw the Tigers average 9.5 yards a carry.

That creates a worrisome scenario for the Rebels, who are having problems stopping people. After surrendering an SEC single-game school record of 284 rushing yards to LSU star running back Leonard Fournette last week, the Rebels are 113th out of 128 FBS teams against the run and don't rank any better than 70th nationally in pass defense, total defense or scoring defense.

The unit now will be tasked with trying to halt, or at least slow, an Auburn offense that seems to be hitting its stride.

Quarterback Sean White is playing with confidence and has become a team leader since getting off to a slow start. The sophomore, who started five games last year, threw a touchdown pass and rushed for another in the rout of Arkansas.

The Tigers also displayed their depth in the backfield. With starter Kerryon Johnson held out to protect an ankle injury, backup Kamryn Pettway rushed for a career-high 192 yards and two touchdowns. Johnson likely will return against the Rebels.

"I'm sure they're going to come out and see it as a weakness to run the ball," Ole Miss defensive end Victor Evans said. "We've just got to handle it."

Ole Miss' offense, meanwhile, seems to be running into a wall in the second half of recent outings. The SEC's second-ranked scoring offense has scored 10 total points in the second half of losses to Arkansas and LSU -- all of them coming in the fourth quarter against the Razorbacks -- and mustered just 104 yards in the final two quarters against LSU.

"I wish I knew," quarterback Chad Kelly said when asked what was behind the recent second-half struggles. "We've just to play harder and have the mental makeup that we're going out to the second half to a team that's going to make adjustments. We've got to execute better."

Going against Auburn's defense is not exactly an easy way to remedy the situation.

A healthy Carl Lawson is leading the surge up front. The Auburn junior has been a terror off the edge with 6.5 sacks and eight tackles for loss. Senior tackle Montravius Adams has three sacks and six tackles for loss as the Tigers have recorded 18 sacks and 46 tackles behind the line of scrimmage.

"Maybe the best defense as far as points per game that we've seen," Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze said. "Only giving up 14 points a game is unheard of almost these days.

"You watch them on tape and you see why, and now their rushing game is back to what they've been known for. So they are an outstanding football team that will provide us another great challenge."

 

[Can'tPickaWinner2]

Preview: New Mexico State Aggies (2-5) at Texas A&M Aggies (6-1)

Date: October 29, 2016 7:30 PM EDT

Damage control the seemed to be the theme this week following the 33-14 loss to No. 1 Alabama as ninth-ranked Texas A&M steps out of conference play to host New Mexico State.

Kickoff is 7:30 p.m. ET Saturday (ESPNU) at Kyle Field in College Station, Texas

The loss to the Crimson Tide doesn't completely eliminate the Aggies (6-1, 4-1 SEC) from the West Division race, but it does leave the in position of needing help in the form of at least one loss for Alabama to get to the SEC title game.

A&M quarterback Trevor Knight commented that he has seen one-loss teams still getting to where they want to go in a season, but coach Kevin Sumlin is taking a more focused approach.

"We're not talking about that," he said. "Got to worry about this week. Don't have any control over what happens after that. Our guys understand that.

"Right after that game everyone still wants to talk about where we are in national picture and what can happen here and there. Guess what? Six weeks ago that wasn't a conversation. Now all of sudden it is? We don't forget that.

"We have to beat New Mexico State this week. That's what this week is about. Then we'll figure out next week," Sumlin said.

Beating New Mexico State (2-5, 1-3 Sun Belt) is almost an afterthought.

These Aggies -- they share the nickname with Texas A&M -- have lost their last two games, 22-19 to Georgia Southern and 55-23 to Idaho, with the latter marking the third time this season they have surrendered more than 50 points. Earlier, they lost 52-6 to Troy and 62-42 to Kentucky.

But New Mexico State does have a senior quarterback, Tyler Rogers, who has thrown for nearly 287 yards a game and a solid all-around back in senior Larry Rose III. Rose missed the first three games of the season while recovering from a sports hernia but has rushed for 281 yards in four games since his return. He also has 12 receptions for another 86 yards.

New Mexico State may have put together its best effort of the season in the three-point loss to Georgia Southern, one of the Sun Belt's top teams.

"I'm proud of our offense and defense for how hard they played," New Mexico State coach Doug Martin said. "Our football team has to play smarter. I'm proud of the fight the team showed and I guarantee they'll continue to fight."

Sumlin expects an aerial show.

"They're gonna throw it around a bunch," Sumlin said. "Doug Martin has been around, been a head coach for a while.

"Going to sling it around all over place. Got a guy that can do that. Gonna spread us out. Zone read and really more of the same. RPO stuff. Take shots down field. Will test us deep. They've got nothing to lose."

Rogers also has rushed for 220 yards, third on the team, mostly on run-pass option plays.

"They were putting points up and moving it down the field," Sumlin said, referring to New Mexico State's loss to Kentucky. "Heck of a game. This is another SEC opponent. No stranger to that.

"Definitely a team that is going to try and expose you and get big plays off deep throws and all kind of things down field."

Getting in an up-and-down the field kind of game could work in A&M's favor, helping to snap out of whatever funk may be lingering from the loss at Tuscaloosa. The Aggies rushed for only 114 yards against the Crimson Tide after putting up 353 the previous week against Tennessee.

"Up until that game our line was leading the league in rushing," Sumlin said. "That front against us, no doubt they were better."

Running back Trayveon Williams rushed for 217 yards against Tennessee but scratched his way for only 23 yards on nine carries against the Tide. Quarterback Trevor Knight rushed for 24 after getting 351 in the previous three games.

"Do we want to be better? Yes," Sumlin said, referring to an offensive line that has a redshirt freshman, true freshman and a sophomore starting with two seniors. "Can we be better? We will be better, because these guys will be playing for us for next three or four years."