Kelso
200 Units
North Carolina (-24½) over Maryland
3:00 PM -- Kenan Stadium
College Blowout Game of the Week 200 Units NORTH CAROLINA (7-4) -24 ½ over Maryland (4-7)
Prediction: North Carolina by 45-52
Comments: North Carolina has every single edge against a Maryland team that has been decimated by injuries this season, including all four of its quarterbacks. That means starting at that spot for the Terrapins today will be freshman Shawn Petty, a former linebacker (he played both linebacker and quarterback in high school) on the scout team. The team is 0-3 with Petty in the starting spot and has averaged just 12.3 points in those games while giving up 43.0. It is simply an impossible situation for Maryland and you can take it to the bank North Carolina will show no mercy, as did Florida State last week in calling off the dogs in a 41-14 win in College Park last week. North Carolina has a history of going all-out for 60 minutes and there is no reason to believe that won’t happen today. It also is of note Maryland will be without the services of starting running back Wes Brown and leading tackler Demetrius Hartsfield, both out with injuries. Carolina is 5-1 at home this season and has averaged 49.3 points in those games. I could write a book on why the Tar Heels should win in blowout fashion, but I believe I have said enough.
Sunny. Winds blowing from the Northwest at 10-15 m.p.h. Game-time temperature: Near 50.
50 Units
Texas State (-1½) over
2:00 PM -- Alamodome
College Game of the Week 50 Units Texas State (3-7) -1 ½ over TEXAS-SAN ANTONIO (7-4)
Prediction: Texas State by 9-10
Comments: Texas-San Antonio, playing just its second year of football, has the better record but Texas State is by far the better football team. Texas-San Antonio has compiled its record against a very weak schedule and has been buried by the four legitimate teams it played this season, losing at Rice, 34-14, to San Jose State, 52-24, to Utah State, 48-17, and at Louisiana Tech, 51-27. Its wins have come at the expense of bottom feeders, South Alabama, Texas A&M-Commerce, Georgia State, Northwest Oklahoma….I think you get the idea. With the exception of Stephen F. Austin, Texas State’s schedule has been made up of NCAA I teams. The Bobcats come into this game off a 21-10 loss at Navy and have the talent to win this one in powerful fashion.
25 Units
Alabama (-33½) over Auburn
3:30 PM -- Bryant-Denny Stadium
ALABAMA (10-1) -33 ½ over Auburn (3-8)
Prediction: Alabama by 45-52
Comments: There is no more heated rivalry in college football than this matchup and I can say without fear of contradiction a dramatically superior Alabama will take advantage of all Auburn’s weaknesses—and it has a multitude of them—and beat the Tigers as badly as possible. Keep in mind Alabama never called off the dogs this season in a 52-0 win at Arkansas, a 42-10, in a 42-10 win a Missouri, in a 44-13 win at Tennessee and a 38-7 win over Mississippi State. For the Tide, it’s pedal to the metal for 60 minutes. Alabama has to be salivating over the opportunity to bury an Auburn team that has beaten only Louisiana-Monroe (in overtime), New Mexico State and Alabama A&M. For trivia buffs and historians, this game matches the last three national champions. Oh, I almost forgot, Alabama is incentive-driven today because a win guarantees the Tide a trip to the SEC championship game against Georgia.
Sunny. Winds blowing from the Northwest at 5-15 m.p.h. Game-time temperature: Around 55.
Marquee Grand Slam
25 Units
Michigan (+4) over Ohio State
12:00 PM -- Ohio Stadium
Michigan (8-3) +4 over OHIO STATE (11-0)
Prediction: Michigan by 6-7
Comments: There is no dispute both teams in this Big Ten showdown are outstanding and capable of beating anybody and that includes one another. Ohio State certainly must be respected for its spotless record but teams much less-talented than Michigan have pushed the Buckeyes to the limit this season and two of the wins have come in overtime. Michigan’s three losses have come on a neutral field to 10-1 Alabama, 41-14, and on the road at 11-0 Notre Dame, 13-6, and 10-2 Nebraska, 23-9. This one is dead-even and that makes taking the points an automatic.
Partly cloudy. Winds blowing from the Northwest at 10-15 m.p.h. Game-time temperature: Around 35.
Marquee Grand Slam
25 Units
Florida State (-7) over Florida
3:30 PM -- Bobby Bowden Field at Doak S. Campbell Stadium
FLORIDA STATE (10-1) -7 over Florida (10-1)
Prediction: Florida State by 13-14
Comments: Florida has lost one game this season, to Georgia, 17-9. Florida State has lost one game this season, at N.C. State, 17-16. Florida State has the nation’s best defense, giving up just 236.2 yards per game. Florida has the fourth best defense in the land, surrendering just 281.0 yards per game. Florida State is tops against the rush, Florida tops against the pass. In other words, these teams give you nothing. That shifts one’s focus to offense and Florida State has a big edge in that category. The Seminoles average 493.6 yards and 42.9 points per game, while Florida averages 332.9 yards and 25.8 points per outing. My analysis says Florida State will win for three reasons—its big edge on offense, the fact it is much quicker and faster than is Florida and because of a strong home field bias. The Seminoles are 17-3 the past three seasons in Tallahassee.
Sunny. Winds blowing from the Northwest at 10-15 m.p.h. Game-time temperature: Around 45.
Marquee Grand Slam
25 Units
Notre Dame (-5) over USC
8:00 PM -- Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum
Notre Dame (11-0) -5 over SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA (7-4)
Prediction: Notre Dame by 13-14
Comments: USC had a much better chance to win this game when Matt Barkley was the starting quarterback but he is gone and will be replaced by redshirt freshman Max Wittek who has never started and who has thrown just nine passes during his college career. With Barkley out, the unbeaten Irish have a huge edge and should get the win that will put them in the BCS national championship game. Notre Dame is the complete football team, with an offense that averages 419.7 yards per game—200.7 yards rushing and 219.0 yards passing—and a lockdown defense that gives up just 287.4 yards per outing. USC, with Barkley at quarterback, has relied on the pass to get it done, averaging 307.0 yards through the air. It does not figure Wittek can make up the slack. Last but not least Notre Dame has giant edge in the coaching department and it is this element that wins most big games.
10 Units
Louisville (-11) over Connecticut
12:00 PM -- Papa John`s Cardinal Stadium
LOUISVILLE (9-1) -11 over Connecticut (4-6)
Prediction: Louisville by 17-18
Comments: The once-beaten Cardinals are very much alive for the Big East championship, needed to beat Connecticut today and Rutgers next week and that coveted award is theirs. I do not know about Rutgers but Louisville certainly has the edges to manhandle an up-and-down Connecticut team and that is even without leading rusher Senorise Perry who suffered a game-ending industry in the Cardinals last game, and only loss this season, to Syracuse, 45-26. His back-up, junior Jeremy Wright is the second-leading rusher on the team with 670 yards. Connecticut plays excellent pass defense, giving up a Big East-best 188.6 yards per game, but Louisville quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (21 touchdown passes, with just five interceptions, and with the 5th best efficiency rating in the country at 168.7) has sliced and diced better and he should do the same today. It also is of note Louisville is 6-0 at home and has won those games by an average of 14 points.
