1. Will LSU finally put Alabama out of their misery?
Somebody better, why not somebody like crazy Les Miles? These two teams are mirror images of each other so the whole things feels a little incestual, or at the very least masturbatory.
Mel Kiper and his hair was on Sportscenter this week talking about the matchup between LSU’s wide receivers and Alabama’s corners, particularly Brandon LaFell vs. Javier Arenas. That’s good fodder for the NFL draft discussion but this game is going to come down to who can establish the run game and obviously I’m leaning toward my boy Mark Ingram.
Alabama is better across both lines and Ingram is a bonafide steamroller with some quicks to go with it. Alabama is favored by 7.5 and though I can’t imagine they’d cover this spread with their offense, I like them to win.
2. Does Oregon get caught looking back?
That’s right; back, not forward. It would be very easy for Oregon to still be savoring their historic destruction of USC last week rather than taking their opponent this week seriously. It would be even more dangerous if Oregon’s opponents’ mascot was a tree (because I said so). Well, what do you know- in comes Stanford.
In case you’re concerned you’ve slipped into some alternate reality, Stanford is a decent football team, with a good coach, a good QB and a stud Running Back (Toby Gerhart, 7th in the nation). I don’t think Stanford has the defense to even slow down Oregon but if the Ducks were to get complacent, like USC for example, and daydream about all the Lady Ducks they conquered last week rather than taking their opponent seriously, they might be in for a long afternoon.
Oregon is favored by 7 and I think they’ll win but I’d like to see Stanford keep things interesting at home. And then John Harbaugh we’ll skip town to coach in the NFL. Hope you enjoyed the ride.
3. Is this Terrelle Pryor’s moment?
Only one quarterback will be left standing come about 7:30 pm Saturday in State College, PA. In his second year as a true Sophomore (hate those fake Sophomores), Pryor has yet to take a game over the way many thought he would be able to when he was recruited. He’s not going to miraculously turn into a pro-style pocket passer from one week to the next, that doesn’t happen. What can happen though is for the light to turn on and for his God-given athletic gifts to go on auto-pilot and for him to just play ball. Throw the bomb if it’s there, dump it off if it’s not. When a seam opens up- run through it- run to the end zone, juke guys- show the Playstation football moves we all know he has in him.
Whichever way the game goes, another chapter in the Terrelle Pryor story will be written. Will it be the turning point in the career of a young gifted athlete on the road in a hostile environment in a game that is a must-win (make no mistake about it) or will it be a solid but ultimately another average performance in a loss to a team that could have been beaten?
There will be a time in the 4th quarter with the lights on, the white out in full force, the lian roaring, the Buckeyes will be down, and the Ohio State offense will be facing a crucial third down and long to go. The Penn State pass rush will have their ears pinned back smelling blood. The Ohio State tackles (especially on the blind side), having been dominated all game long, will be helpless to do anything more than provide a half-hearted road block. At that exact moment the game will entirely be in Terrelle’s hands. It’ll be be jail-break sand lot football. Will he be able to dodge the defensive ends, juke a linebacker and bust a 25 yarder? Will he get sacked in the backfield, slam his fists in frustation and sulk back to the sideline? Will he dance around long enough to find Devier Posey streaking loose down the sideline? I can’t wait to find out. Penn State is favored by 4.
4. Is this Daryll Clark’s moment?
As much as this game is about Terrelle Pryor, it’s also about Penn State Senior QB Daryll Clark. Having to play behind Anthony Morelli for two years has to create the ultimate inferiority complex for Clark. On top of that, a Sophomore who’s done little to garner praise (Pryor) is named pre-season conference offensive player of the year.
All of that has to burn inside Clark, who though far from perfect, has been a winner at Penn State.
Clark is more of a cerebral guy- not the fire and brimstone type that the kid from Jeannette, PA is. Clark is a student of the game. He understands the significance of the Penn State-Ohio State rivalry. You don’t go to Penn State without having an appreciation for the game of college football and the history, and certainly Clark does.
And for all that, he also seems to me to be the kind of guy that internalizes the hardest emotions- getting waxed in the Rose Bowl; not showing up in too many big games; beating Ohio State in Columbus (but leaving the game with an injury) and yet still playing second fiddle to a kid who throws balls up for grabs as routinely as he throws touchdowns; bearing the weight of criticism on his shoulders of a man who’s been coaching since Eisenhower and yet still questioned about whether or not he can still do it.
All of this plays into the psychological lead up for Clark heading into his final game against Ohio State in his penultimate game in State College in his final season at Penn State.
Just like Pryor, Clark’s legacy will have a significant portion written Saturday either good or bad. It’s entirely up to him.
5. Is this the week Iowa finally puts it all together, and by putting it all together I mean lose?
It would be forgivable for Iowa to look ahead to Ohio State next week, but that could be trouble with the cardiac cats coming into town. Northwestern has been solid on offense this season and disappointing on defense. With a fiery defensive-minded coach in Pat Fitzgerald, you have to believe Northwestern has a stellar defensive performance in them somewhere.
Iowa looks to be the perfect team for Northwestern to put it all together. Without much running game to speak of and a QB in Ricky Stanzi that just makes plays, but also makes mistakes when given the chance, Iowa sets up for the classic upset candidate.
Unfortunately for Northwestern, Iowa is too well-coached, they’re too physical on both lines, and the game is in Iowa City. Those three factors spell victory for Iowa, but they won’t cover the 15.5 point spread. Here’s a fun fact though if you happen to find yourself at either an Iowa or Northwestern party- Iowa has covered the point spread 8 weeks in a row. Here’s another fun fact- if you are going to an Iowa party, don’t show up until the 4th quarter since that’s when the Iowa offense shows up (hey oh!!!).
6. Can Pete Carroll stop the bleeding?
We’re going to find out what USC is made of this week. After an ass-kicking of epic proportions at the hands of Oregon last week, the Trojans have to go on the road to face a pesky 4-4 Arizona State team at night (at night I said). That means those delightful Sun Devil co-eds will be especially perky and hot come the 8pm eastern kick-off.
Is USC a real football team or are they just a collection of talented, pretty people with very little fire in the belly and are used to people telling them how great they are and laughing at all their jokes like most of the Hollywood types? We’re going to find out Saturday. USC is far more talented than Arizona State but ASU isn’t going to just roll over, not with a bowl bid on the line.
My gut says pick USC here and they’re favored by 10.5, but I see a gross lack of leadership on this Trojan team which is why I’m picking ASU by a field goal (there goes what little credibility I have left).
7. Will Navy put a stop to this Notre Dame nonsense?
Notre Dame is 6-2 and within striking distance of a BCS at-large berth which I’m totally stoked about. I can’t tell you how excited I am at the prospects of Notre Dame getting a huge payout all to themselves, based almost entirely on the media’s love affair with the jersey.
Just for fun, let’s take a look at who Notre Dame has beat this year:
5-3 Nevada
4-5 Michigan State
3-5 Washington
6-3 Boston College
1-7 Washington StateI
That’s a 19-20 combined record. Am I unfairly picking on Notre Dame? Sure am. Consider it balancing the scales of media bias. Notre Dame is favored by 12; they win by 15.
8. (In best used car salesman voice) What’s it going to take to get Boise State in the top 5 (aka how many points do they need to beat 3-5 Louisiana Tech by on the road)?
They’re not going in my top 5 even if they win by 100. Unfortunately for the Broncos, with Idaho, Utah State, Nevada, and New Mexico State left on the schedule, no love shall flow forth from thy computers. BSU favored by 21; they win by 28.
9. Can Greg Paulus make good on turning Syracuse football into the Duke basketball equivalent?
What have we learned about Syracuse this year? We’ve learned that at 3-5 and 0-3 in the Big East, they’re more than a Duke Guard away from the Big East promiseland. The ‘Cuse faces Pitt at Pitt and is a 21-point underdog to the Wannstache. I’d love to see team Orange pull off the upset here but they just don’t have the horses to stop Pitt.
10. When you’re watching 6-3 South Carolina at 4-4 Arkansas, please tell me you’ll be reminding yourself of how awesome the SEC is.
At the beginning of the season, it was expected that the strength of the SEC would come, not from the usual suspects at the top, but from the teams in the middle- South Carolina, Mississippi, Arkansas, Tennessee, etc. If you’ve watched the games like I have, you know that the middle of the SEC is a disaster. South Carolina and Tennessee have solid defenses but couldn’t score with David Duchovny if they were the last girl in the bar. Arkansas and Mississippi (and Mississippi State for that matter) are nothing more than middle of the road teams that you would find in any BCS conference. And Florida, Alabama and LSU have all proven that offense, while entertaining for fans and analysts, isn’t a necessity to win SEC games.
The truth is, this conference is grossly overrated this year. They are a handful of very good defenses and a collection of a few good offenses, none of which occur simultaneously on the same team. The real travesty will be if when either Florida, Alabama or LSU makes it to the BCS NC, they win. I just hope whomever ends up playing the SEC in the championship (Texas or Texas), wins. Otherwise, the pimping of a Tebow-less conference next year could be insufferable.
You’re welcome.
