Larry Ness' 10* PERFECT STORM-CFB (Watch & Win-ESPN)
My 10* PERFECT STORM is on LSU at 9;00 ET.
LSU and Wisconsin are major contenders for their respective conference titles and both schools likely believe they can be part of the first-ever College Football Playoff (my opinion: NO Big Ten team will be among CFB's 1st-ever, "Final Four"). Reliant Stadium in Houston is the site for this high-stakes season opener at 9:00 ET on ESPN.
The 14th-ranked Badgers have settled on a true No. 1 QB in former safety Tanner McEvoy, who is expected to make his first start at quarterback for Wisconsin on Saturday night. As for No. 13 LSU, Les Miles seems intent on going with two signal callers. The Tigers capped a 10-3 season in 2013 with a 21-14 Outback Bowl win over Iowa, despite going with the inexperienced Anthony Jennings, who was forced to play QB after Zach Mettenberger tore his ACL in the regular-season finale.
However, it appears the now-sophomore will be splitting time with a freshman. Brandon Harris enrolled at LSU in January, allowing him to challenge Jennings in both spring practice and fall camp. "Our team understands that we have talented quarterbacks," Miles said. "But right now they have not separated themselves, and we are not certain. If we were certain, then I promise you, we would play the one guy that would give us all the advantage. But if two guys can give us greater advantage than one guy, then let's certainly play two," Miles added.
Wisconsin head coach Gary Andersen will replace Joel Stave, who took nearly all the snaps last season, with Tanner McEvoy, McEvoy gives Andersen the more mobile QB he prefers.Stave threw four interceptions in Wisconsin's final two losses last season, a shocking 31-24 loss at home to Penn St (as a 24 1/2-point favorite) and a 34-24 loss to South Carolina in the Capital One Bowl.
The Badgers have won 16 consecutive openers but is opening its season against a ranked opponent for the first time since 1997. Wisconsin has lost its biggest non-conference game in each of the last two regular seasons to Pac-12 opponents Oregon State in 2012 and Arizona State in 2013. Wisconsin now faces an even bigger test against LSU, which owns a nation-best non-conference winning streak of 45 games!
LSU hasn’t lost out of conference since its season opener against Virginia Tech in 2002, winning 11 straight openers since. Wisconsin returns only eight starters overall while LSU has a talent-rich squad which has placed 11 players on preseason All-SEC teams. This will mark the FOURTH time in the last five years that LSU will open with a neutral site game and the Tigers have won the previous three, all against top-20 opponents.
Nothing new here, as an SEC team topples a Big Ten team with "room to spare!"
My 10* PERFECT STORM is on LSU at 9;00 ET.
LSU and Wisconsin are major contenders for their respective conference titles and both schools likely believe they can be part of the first-ever College Football Playoff (my opinion: NO Big Ten team will be among CFB's 1st-ever, "Final Four"). Reliant Stadium in Houston is the site for this high-stakes season opener at 9:00 ET on ESPN.
The 14th-ranked Badgers have settled on a true No. 1 QB in former safety Tanner McEvoy, who is expected to make his first start at quarterback for Wisconsin on Saturday night. As for No. 13 LSU, Les Miles seems intent on going with two signal callers. The Tigers capped a 10-3 season in 2013 with a 21-14 Outback Bowl win over Iowa, despite going with the inexperienced Anthony Jennings, who was forced to play QB after Zach Mettenberger tore his ACL in the regular-season finale.
However, it appears the now-sophomore will be splitting time with a freshman. Brandon Harris enrolled at LSU in January, allowing him to challenge Jennings in both spring practice and fall camp. "Our team understands that we have talented quarterbacks," Miles said. "But right now they have not separated themselves, and we are not certain. If we were certain, then I promise you, we would play the one guy that would give us all the advantage. But if two guys can give us greater advantage than one guy, then let's certainly play two," Miles added.
Wisconsin head coach Gary Andersen will replace Joel Stave, who took nearly all the snaps last season, with Tanner McEvoy, McEvoy gives Andersen the more mobile QB he prefers.Stave threw four interceptions in Wisconsin's final two losses last season, a shocking 31-24 loss at home to Penn St (as a 24 1/2-point favorite) and a 34-24 loss to South Carolina in the Capital One Bowl.
The Badgers have won 16 consecutive openers but is opening its season against a ranked opponent for the first time since 1997. Wisconsin has lost its biggest non-conference game in each of the last two regular seasons to Pac-12 opponents Oregon State in 2012 and Arizona State in 2013. Wisconsin now faces an even bigger test against LSU, which owns a nation-best non-conference winning streak of 45 games!
LSU hasn’t lost out of conference since its season opener against Virginia Tech in 2002, winning 11 straight openers since. Wisconsin returns only eight starters overall while LSU has a talent-rich squad which has placed 11 players on preseason All-SEC teams. This will mark the FOURTH time in the last five years that LSU will open with a neutral site game and the Tigers have won the previous three, all against top-20 opponents.
Nothing new here, as an SEC team topples a Big Ten team with "room to spare!"
