Ohio State's offense trumps Michigan State's defense plus the Buckeyes' defense is underrated. The Buckeyes have played with big leads in many of their games so their defensive numbers are somewhat skewed. Michigan State hasn't faced an offense nearly this good, nor a quarterback anywhere near the caliber of Braxton Miller, nor a running back as good as Carlos Hyde. The Buckeyes are No. 3 in the nation in scoring at 48.2 points a game and rank sixth in total yards at 531. Ohio State's win streak nearly ended at 23 this past week against Michigan but they'll play much better today. I like Urban Meyer off a big scare as he'll have his boys prepared and motivated. I see the Buckeyes coming in with their A game. 10* College Game of the Week

I'm taking MIzzu in the SEC Championship.. I believe left it all in the tank last week and are off a huge emotional high. Missouri has to feel like they are getting no respect for the lack of media attention and that just fuels them and fits in with their season long mantra. Nobody thought this Missouri team belonged last year, but very quietly Gary Pinkel has his team in contention to get to Pasadena. Their offense is balanced and as explosive as any offense is with Henry Josey at RB averaging well over 6 ypc, James Franklin an accurate mistake free QB, and the big receivers in a spread offense that's going to be a nightmare for Auburn's over rated defense. Auburn struggled vs. Georgia and A&M both who have balanced offenses with tall receivers. Mizzu has 3 receivers over 6'4. I feel this is just a bad match up for Auburn. Mizzou Tigers offense has been clicking and QB for Mizzou is getting healthy everyday so look for QB James Franklin to out-perform the QB of Auburn. Mizzou is 8-1-1 ATS following a SU win and Mizzou is 13-3-1 ATS in their last 17 games. Auburn will get their yards, but Missouri will force the turnovers and be more explosive on offense on the turf with their speed Mizzu pulls away for a double digit win.

4*

5*The Bearcats have been on a major roll since a loss at USF as they now have won 6 games in a row including a big win at Houston 2 weeks ago. They had a week to prepare for their cross state rival the Louisville Cardinals and they come into this game with revenge on their minds from last years heartbreaking loss in Louisville 34-31. I think Cincinnati has more to play for here, the better defense and the strong offensive line. Lets take the home dog here on Thursday night college football.

Air Force has beaten Colorado St 6 straight times by 20 or more points. Colorado St is very good this year and their defense is excellent. They are off a 13-0 shutout and you can bet they are licking their chops for this matchup on Saturday.

Colorado State has the Kapri Bibbs kid at running back, able to run crazy with 25 rushing TD's. The Air Force defense is begging to be dented as they are terrible. UNLV RB Tim Cornett looked like Bo Jackson running against it. It

I like Big Red in their final home game against Iowa here on Friday afternoon in the early kickoff. The Hawkeyes quarterback is a disaster waiting to happen. Jake Ruddock has been picked off 12 times this season, three of those interceptions came at home against Michigan last week. Nebraska will stack the line and force Iowa to pass the ball. Neb will likely go with backup quarterback Ron Kellogg III a duel threat QB. The senior completed 20-of-34 attempts for 221 yards and a touchdown in last week's and he's done a good job protecting the football with smart decisions, with five touchdowns and just a single interception this season. Ameer Abdullah is very good and will need a big performence today. He's run for at least 100 yards in 10 of his 11 games this season. The Nebraska seniors will be pumped up for their final home game and I look for Nebraska to get a big win.
10* HOME COOKING PLAY

The Ole Miss secondary is more physical than what Missouri is accustomed to facing. Earlier this season, the Rebels upset LSU here. They needed a last-second FG to Get over the hump, but it was a clean win. Ole Miss out-yarded LSU 525-388 and Did it without their top RB, Jeff Scott, who returned last week. Prior to missing Three games with a bone spur, Scott was averaging 8.2 YPR. Scott was limited to 13 touches last week as Ole Miss set a school record for total offense; his role will Inevitably expand today. Missouri is allowing 111.9 yards per game on the ground but has been vulnerable through the air, ranking last with 274.9 yards allowed. That would appear to be good news for Rebels quarterback Bo Wallace, fourth in the league with 266.4 passing yards per game, but the Tigers also lead the SEC with 34 sacks and 17 interceptions. Ole Miss HC Hugh Freeze is 25-8 ATS over the last two- Plus seasons.

We really like what Utah State has done with their team since having to replace QB Chuckie Keeton. They struggled last week a bit with UNLV, but have been scoring over 31 ppg. They are very talented on both sides of the ball. The story, however, has been their defense, as they are holding opponents to just over 19 ppg. Interesting stat here....in games against common opponents, Colorado St has given up an average of 36.5 ppg while Utah State has only allowed 16.5 ppg. The Aggies defense and home cooking spells a HUGE VICTORY for Utah State. 10* Home Cooking BURIAL!

4*

Pittsburgh comes in losers of 3 of their last 4 games. They play a slow paced offensive style, no rush to move the ball quickly. They are very reliant on their passing game, and they struggle to step up and get 1st downs when needed. Pittsburgh doesn

Michigan averages 34.3 PPG and has the #19th ranked defense allowing only 347.6 yards per game. QB Devin Gardner with 25 total TD's has 2 top receivers's in Jeremy Gallon and Devin Funchess who both average 16.3 yards per catch. Michigan struggled last week but that game was in the rain and mud. These defenses matchup with each other but Michigan has way too many playmakers on offense and as long as they protect the football they will win this game SU. Michigan routed Iowa 42-17 last year and much hasn't changed for these 2 squads. Take the Wolverines. 5*

4*

This afternoon I like Northwestern over Michigan, giving the points. NW is just 4-5 and need to win 2 of their final 3 games to become Bowl eligible. This is their most important game as NW is home and coming off their BYE week and playing with revenge from last years loss. Michigan has struggled with unsteady QB play behind Devin Gardner, who has thrown 14 TDs and 11 picks. And Gardner has really only had 2 really good games this year, odds are telling me he will struggle against a very good pass coverage with the Wildcats. They lack a solid offensive line, giving up 7 sacks vs. MSU, and have been struggling on 3rd downs in their last 2 games, coming in losers of 3 of the last 4 games. The Wolverines seem to be crashing back to reality after their red hot start on the season. Northwestern is a much better team than their subpar 4-5 record would suggest, they play the pass good, and can stop teams from getting key 1st downs on the field. I think Northwestern will put up some points and pull away in the second half for a double digit win. Michigan is also 2-5 ATS in its last 7 games.

The Texas Longhorns have won six straight, but their game at West Virginia last week proved to be costly, as they lost two of their top players due to injury. - Texas had already lost starting quarterback David Ash, and linebacker Jordan Hicks prior to last week. Now losing star running back Jon Gray and DT Chris Whaley leaves even bigger holes in the lineup.
While Brown is just as talented as Gray, one can't do it without the other. They both average around 18-19 carries per game and when one of them is out, it's going to be really tough for the other one to pick up that slack. The Longhorns are going to be forced to pass the ball more than they want, and that plays right into Oklahoma State's hands. The OSU run game will keep the Texas offense on the sidelines longer and I look for OKL ST to win this one going away big! The Cowboys have won their last two visits to Texas, both by double-digits. They have won their last two road games by a combined 49 points, and one of those was at #15 ranked Texas Tech.
10*

4*

We have another good game on Friday night college football here with Washington U and UCLA. Stats wise, Washington is a very good team. The Huskies rank in the top 25 with their passing offense, rushing offense, and points scored per game. These guys are good and can compete with the best of them. A record of 6-3 is not too impressive, but lets not forget that two of their losses (Oregon and Stanford) are also the same two teams that took down UCLA. I look for Washington will win this game on the road pulling the upset behind their tough defense. Washington comes into this battle unranked with a record of 6-3 but their specialty is their defense and stopping the pass and UCLA is a pass happy team. 10* HOT SIDE

The 24th-ranked Fighting Irish have won the past three meetings against the Panthers by a total of 12 points, and could be headed for another tight finish Saturday at Heinz Field against a desperate Pitt team.Pittsburgh has had a history of keeping things quite close against Notre Dame as the last 3 meets were very close, The last five meetings between the Irish and the Panthers have been decided by six points or fewer, perhaps none more dramatic than Notre Dame's 29-26 triple-overtime win last November when Pitt blew a 14 pt forth Q lead. PITT is led by QB Tom Savage who has 14 TD'a and 7 INT's. on the season. Pitts plays relatively decent pass coverage, only giving up 59% completion to opponents, behind defensive experts like K'Waun Williams and Anthony Gonzalez who can both cover the pass They will give Rees problems and I'll back Pitt here to get the win and propel them close to a bowl game with a Saturday night upset. 10*

BYU is a very good team and play well as underdogs. They are led by a hurry-up offense that has given opposing defenses fits with their pace. They have managed to open 6-2 with impressive wins over the likes of Texas (40-21), Utah State (31-14), Georgia Tech (38-20), Houston (47-46) and Boise State (37-20). Their two losses came by a combined 10 points early in the season, and they have reeled off 5 straight wins. BYU is putting up 32.4 points and 511.2 yards per game to rank 13th in the country in total offense. That 511-yard output becomes so much more impressive when you consider that the eight teams BYU have faced only allow an average of 398 yards per game defensively. They are outgaining that average by roughly 113 total yards. Its BYU's speed versus Wiskys Power with similiar styles here and I like the underdog. 5*

Kansas St is building a lot of momentum at the right time in covering their last 4 games in a row and playing great ball. And you better believe that at 4-4 this team is on a mission to become bowl eligible. With only 4 games left they are not going to leave anything on the table. On the other side TTech is reeling from getting pushed around and run over in the running game for the last two weeks. After their easy early season schedule over a bunch of cupcakes that made them bowl eligible and lifted Kliff Kingsbury to stardom as the new cool coach on the block, they are now getting hit in the face by the big boys. And now they have the best running team of all coming to town for a morning game. I love taking teams as dogs who have had back to back easy cover wins like KSU has. The Cats are playing well on both sides of the ball. And their defense has only given up an average of 10 ppg the last 2 games, and gave Baylor and OSU all they could handle in their two previous games. Lets back the old veteran coach Snyder coming to town. Good luck outcoaching that old buck. Lets back KANSAS ST here plus the points.. 10* GAME OF THE WEEK!

BAYLOR is very good! Pretty much this team has a very slim shot at a BCS Title game, but if they want to keep that slim hope alive they will need to win this game big and impress the voters and BCS. Oklahoma is not as good as in the past as did allow 30 points to Texas tech and 36 to Texas, so they can struggle vs good offenses. The Baylor Bears are good on defense and offense where they averaged 768.6 ypg and 70.6 ppg this year. The Oklahoma Offense has been inconsistent this year as they have averaged 31 ppg overall, but have also scored 20 points or less in 3 of their games and this Baylor defense is no slouch, especially at home where they have allowed just 292 ypg and 14.4 ppg on the year. Baylor has a ton to play for and are seeking revenge for last years loss. Waco will be rocking like never before on Thursday night, and the key will be whether the Bears can handle the atmosphere in a positive way, or if they come out too emotional and make mistakes. I expect Baylor to score over 50 pts here tonight and win by 20+ as our 10* Thursday Night College GAME OF THE YEAR!

Tenn is a very under-rated team. Dont be fooled by their 4-4 record as they are tough and just had some turnover issues in a few games. The Volunteers have done something that Missouri has not and that is beat South Carolina at home. I do not see Tennessee being this bad on the road and it is an over reaction by the linesmakers because they know people will still bet on Missouri in this spot. Tennessee can take away Missouris defensive strength which is its pass rush. Tenn has the best offensive line in the country by manys opinion and they come into this game only allowing 8 sacks on the year and making room for a running game by 5 yards per carry led by RB Rajon Neal. I think Mizzu got beat up pretty good last week with SC and this should be a tight game throughout on Saturday evening. 10* Underdog Shocker

Pittsburgh has not really played anyone this season, playing what I would describe as a soft schedule. Georgia Tech is a good team, and one dimensional, although their style works, and they are very athletic this season. Going up against this option offense is going to be very hard for Pittsburgh D to handle. The Yellow Jackets average 315 ypg 4th in the country. Im betting they run wild at home here on Saturday. The Pitt Panthers have also failed to cover 9 straight ACC road games. Look for GT to win by 15 or more. 5*

MSU will have revenge on their mind this afternoon as its four-game winning streak in the series was snapped with a 12-10 loss in Ann Arbor last season. The Spartans are also looking to beat the Wolverines for the third consecutive time at Spartan Stadium for the first time in school history. I got the Spartans here as their defense is legit ranked top 5 in every major statistical category. Michigan State leads the FBS in total defense, surrendering an average of 215.5 yards. Michigan's offense is one dimensional and will rely on the run where Michigan should dominate. Michigan at some point will have to try to force the pass and that's where the Spartan defense has been a rock. Michigan turns the ball over too much with 3+ turnovers in 4 of 7 games this year. Devon Gardner's 108 QB rating on the road is not impressive compared to Michigan State's QB who is gaining confidence and has taken care of the football 12 TD to only 2 interceptions. The difference in this game is going to be the defense. Michigan State can force turnovers and have a short field Michigan can not. Michigan State had issues moving the ball early on due to WR drops and inconsistent play at RB and now it seems like they have corrected that issue and have found consistency with Langford. Michigan TE A.J. Williams (violation of team rules) will serve a one-game suspension and not play and I think Michigan State wins this one by double digits.
10* COLLEGE GAME OF THE WEEK

V-Tech has played exactly two road games, barely beating ECU and beating G-Tech by 7, only managing to score 17 points. This game should be low scoring, BC is a tough place to play (small stadium, terrible facilities) and the Hokies have Miami next week and probably looking ahead to that big game. The BC Eagles have played FSU, Clemson, and SoCal in California, they should be pumped for this game and already battle tested this season. BC only had 57 passing yards last week and they had some intense practices this week. They still need three more wins to get to six, and it starts here. BC is tough at home behind their defense holding opponents to 20 ppg and the Virginia Tech offense is awful. Duke just beat VTech and played awful in that game as they were 0-11 on their 3rd down conversions. 5*

USC has failed to cover 10 straight on the road while OREGON ST has covered 5 in a row at home versus USC. I will look to the Beavers in this one as they couldnt convert in the redzone last week and their passing attack should dominate in this game. They lost a big shot at showing that they are for real last week with their home game vs Stanford, but the Cardinal won in the end. I expect the Beavers to bounce back here at home over USC. Their offense is too good to be held down two weeks in a row and the Trojans have shown that they can be scored on, as they allowed 61 points to ASU, and 31 points to Arizona earlier in the year. They did hold the Irish to just 14 points, but ND was using backup Hendrick for most of that one. On offense, the Trojans have been hit hard by injuries and will be missing Lee for this one. They just will not be able to put up enough points to keep this one close. OSU should win by at least 10 here on Friday night. 5*

ULM is well known for its shocking wins, hence the Arkansas game last season and the Wake Forest this season, shows they are capable of winning against the bigger schools. UL Monroe can put up points with Browning at QB. The Troy defense is not good at stopping the rush or the pass. I beleive it will be close throughout, but I see a ULM victory tonight on the road and I'll gladly take the 3.5 points. 5*

The Tigers look to take advantage of a Cincinnati team that is coming off a 41-16 win over Connecticut their last time out and is 0-6 ATS in its last 6 games following a SU win of more than 20 points. I have a feeling about the improved Tigers, especially home. They played well against UCF and Houston while Cincy has played a weak schedule thus far. Cincy is 1-4 ATS following a bye week, and Memphis going 6-2 ATS in their last 8 at home. Look for the Memphis Tigers to outscore the Bearcats and be fired up tonight for this ESPN mid-week TV home appearance. 5*

Texas is getting better each week and now off a BYE week. TCU will have their hands full yet again with a Texas team that's gaining confidence and have their eyes on a Big 12 title which they are certainly in the mix for. TCU gets Casey Pachall back after he broke his arm to start the season, but it's unknown how much he'll play but even if he does I don't see him being effective. This is the worst offense that Texas has faced all year as TCU is ranked 110th in total yards, they have a zero dimensional offense averaging less than 4 yards per carry, with a 112 QB rating, 29% third down conversions and 56% TD % in the red zone. Texas has a ton of talent and with an extra week to prepare against an offense going nowhere, I believe they should dominate. Offensively Texas also has revenge on their minds after losing 20-13 on Thanksgiving last year and would love to get the win to move to 4-0 in the Big 12 and a win over state rival TCU means a lot here. Texas is +6 in turnover margin and McCoy is taking care of the ball as Texas has just 7 turnovers on the year overall. Lets play TEXAS as a small dog on Saturday evening. 10* GAME OF THE WEEK

The South Carolina Gamecocks were stunned in a 23-21 upset on the road in Tennessee last week. Despite being a favorite in the SEC East at the beginning of the season, the loss crippled the Gamecocks chances of capturing the division crown. Now the road to the SEC Championship goes through Columbia, Missouri and not Columbia, South Carolina. That's right the Missouri Tigers are the lone unbeaten team in the SEC East. Thanks to last week's impressive 36-17 victory over no. 22 Florida, Missouri now holds a 2 game advantage over all SEC East competitors. The SC Gamecocks have their backs against the wall and rest assured they understand the importance of this game. A South Carolina win would open the door once again to the SEC Championship and coach Spurrier claims the Gamecocks have yet to play their best football. Even with starting quarterback Connor Shaw out this week, backup Dylan Thompson has plenty of experience behind center. Thompson led the Gamecocks over a big win against Clemson last year starting for an injured Shaw and also stepped in to lead the Gamecocks to a come from behind win against UCF earlier this year.
Running back Mike Davis is one of the best tailbacks in the SEC and he has had a huge year rushing for 879 yards with 10 touchdowns. Therefore it will be interesting to see if Davis can remain effective and if Missouri's defense has an answer for a Carolina run game averaging 224 yards (19th in FBS) per game. I expect the Gamecocks offense to actually benefit from Thompson behind center as they will spread the ball around in the passing game as SC has a ton of weapons at the WR position. Mizzu is off a HUGE emotional win on a national stage last week and I expect a letdown this week. Look for SC to bounce back here and upset Mizzu.
10* Oddsmaker Mistake PLay

4*

Northwestern would have been favorites in this game a few weeks ago, but after the emotional loss against Ohio State, a game they could have easily had they had to go face Wisconsin who in my opinion is better than Ohio State. Last week was a clunker against Minnesota without their star offensive player Kain Colter who will return this week to make a huge impact against Iowa a team he's own in the past. Pat Fitzgerald is a good coach and this is a desperate Northwestern team that is better than it looked the last two weeks. I think we get tremendous value here and Iowa never runs any team out of the building. Iowa has struggled to stop the run against good running teams and Northwestern still fits that bill. Northwestern should have success running on the edge where Iowa has issues containing. Iowa will be without their defensive leader in DE 5th year senior Dominic Alvis. Lets take NW plus the points in this early kickoff. 5*

4*

4*

This is your typical sucker line. Temple is 0-6 and playing a team with 3 wins in Army. The public says, how can the winless team be favored? A closer look shows that Temple has played a very tough schedule including Notre Dame, Cincy and Louisville.
Army has been dismal on the road the last three years, covering just one of its last 12 games away from home. Temple has also owned Army beating them by an average of 21 ppg the last 5 meetings.
Temple limps into its homecoming weekend game winless at 0-6, but those losses came against the likes of Louisville, Cincinnati, Notre Dame and Houston. First-year head coach Matt Rhule knows this is one of the few winnable games on the schedule, so he

Vanderbilt is hungry for its first win in SEC play. They lost to Georgia last year 48-3 so they are playing this game with an extra week to prepare after their BYE and also with some major revenge. The Commodores go up against a Georgia team that is without almost all of its top skill players, which is the biggest reason why the Bulldogs have failed to cover the spread in each of their last three games. The Bulldogs are really banged up for this one. This isn't the same Georgia team that nearly played in the BCS Championship last year, losing to Alabama by the narrowest of margins in the SEC Title game. Vandy is averaging 33.7 points and 425.0 yards per game.
10* Underdog Diamond in the Rough.

5*

I believe that Ole Miss could pull the upset in this one. A&M's defense is atrocious. So it is difficult for them to lay points on the road and still cover spread. Mississippi almost beat A&M last year in Oxford, losing by just three points. This is a better Ole Miss team and a worse A&M squad, and the Aggies aren't sneaking up on anyone any more. Mississippi has played three straight brutal road games, at Texas (win), at Alabama (loss) and at Auburn (loss). Miss is now at home with a 3-2 record and hungry for a National TV Win on Saturday night. Texas A&M has played a really weak schedule, and they haven't been all that impressive while going through it except for the points they put up on Alabama. They are ranked No. 9 in the country, but yet they are not even laying a touchdown on the road against a supposed middling team in the SEC? Everyone is going to throw their money behind Johnny Football. But I think that Ole Miss can win this game outright so I'll take the points and back Miss here. 10* Underdog Shocker Play

4*

This game will be a match-up of strength versus strength with Florida

The #1 ranked passing offense, The #2 ranked in rushing yards, The 1st in points scored per game and the 14th ranked in the nation defense to top it. We all have learned to love the Baylor Bears this year as they have taken Vegas every week this season going a perfect 4-0 against the spread. This weekends matchup will be the Bears first road game of the season as they head to Bill Snyder Stadium to go up against the Kansas State Wildcats. The Bears are beating their opponents this season by an average of 54 points per game and their offense is so powerful with a stingy defense to back it how could we expect any different of an outcome. Take the Bears as they win and win big on Saturday! 5*

I am really high on UW this year and I believe that they had the talent to possibly knock off either Stanford, Oregon or UCLA this season. The game is in Palo Alto and the Cardinal will surely be focused and looking to avenge last year

4*

Connor Cook has to bounce back for Michigan State at QB following his first road test at Notre Dame. I believe Cook will bounce back after a BYE with plenty of confidence and the arm to make any play on the field. In the bye week he worked a lot on his foot work and I think we will see it early against Iowa. Cook also has taken care of the ball without throwing an INT. Michigan State sports the better defense in this one and they are a bit more balanced where as Iowa is 9th in the country with a 66% run play call percentage. Michigan State is #2 allowing just 1.9 ypc. Iowa's success running the ball has set up 3rd and short, but against Michigan State they will have to throw the ball which is not going to be easy.
Jake Rudock is going to have a hard time completing anything the way Michigan State plays defense with press coverage and he already has 4 interceptions. Both defenses have played one quality offensive opponent this year, MSU played Notre Dame while Iowa played Northern Illinois. Michigan State completely dominated the line of scrimmage on the road against Michigan State while Iowa hosted Northern Illinois and allowed 438. What was also hidden in the Notre Dame game was how well this Michigan State offensive line played. Special teams is also an advantage for the Spartans as they feature an All-Big10 punter in Sadler who is great at pinning teams inside the 20. Michigan State has a dubious offense and a magnificent defense. Bet you did-n

The undefeated Maryland Terrapins travel to Tallahassee to face the undefeated, and #8th ranked Florida State Seminoles. Maryland has played a soft schedule playing UConn, a down WVU team and Flor INT. Maryland is 2-8 ATS last 10 at Florida State and just 2-21 SU vs the Seminoles. Florida State has a huge advantage in talent on both sides of the ball and on Special Teams. Maryland had the benefit of an easy schedule and being on ESPN, I look for FSU to run up the score here at home and they have to to move up in the rankings. 5*

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers are quickly turning thing s a round under the guidanced of Bobby Petrino. The Hilltoppers started out their season by outplaying and outright dominating the University of Kentucky. It probably didn

Iowa is a team that that I am keeping my eye on in the Big Ten. Playing down in class against San Jose State

Georgia comes in with a heavy offense that can light up the scoreboards and they have one of the top 3 QBs in the NCAA in my opinion in Andy Murray and his 1040 YDs already. And if Georgia can win this gamet hey make noise to be genuine candidates to have their names in the hat as a National champion. Georgia has played much better opponents so far than LSU with wins over South Carolina and a narrowly fought loss to Clemson. Every game is a playoff game for 1-loss Georgia who is playing here with 42-10 revenge from 2 years ago.
LSU has been teeing it up an
Hitting some home runs on offense, but the 27, 17, 13 and 21 points allowed so far
By the Tigers is noticeably more than the 14, 3, 14 and 10 they allowed in the ?rst
Four games of last season.
LSU lost their SEC opener last season, 14-6, to a Florida
And that team couldn

I love Oklahoma State over West Virginia, giving the points as Okie St plays Oregon style offense and puts up points in a hurry. The Oklahoma State Cowboys have been great hitting other teams

San Jose State is very solid while Utah St is coming off 3 tough games and could be looking ahead to rival BYU whom they play next week. MWC conference opener for these 2 teams, who both also employ new coaches this season. San Jose returns home off a road loss against a pretty good Minnesota team on the road playing an early 12 noon EST start.
The QB play is solid and they can generate pressure on the opposing QB. Even though it is a conference opener for the Aggies, there has to be a letdown coming off that tough road loss at USC where several players got banged up. San Jose has a ton of speed especially on offense and they are very deep at the WR position, Utah St's secondary isn't very good, nor is the kicking game. Take the generous points with the home underdog and San Jose St.
5*

4*

This is a perfect letdown spot for Akron as they let it all on the field last week and may have nothing left for this one. The ULL Ragin Cajuns started the year at 0-2, but those were games at an improved SEC squad in Arkansas and at a Kansas State squad that was embarrassed at home the week before by an FCS squad. Both teams have played an FCS foe this year and Louisiana had a far better time of it as the Ragin Cajuns beat Nicholls state 70-7 and outgained them by 315 yards, while the Zips beat James Madison by just 2 points and were outgained by 142 yards in the game. Last week was just a case of Michigan looking past this team after their huge win over Notre Dame. Last weeks game vs Michigan should also give Louisiana some motivation and they would lover to get a nice easy win over a team that nearly upset Michigan on the road. Louisiana is coming off a BYE week and will be full ready for this one and take care of business by double digits. 5*

Utah State is ranked 8th in the nation in scoring, 15th in passing, and also sits in the top 40 in rushing yards and has one of the top QB's in the nation no one has heard of. USC is young and their QB situation is not good. Yes, USC won last week, I don't like their coaching, their offense, and honestly, their overall demeanor. This team is bad and will probably struggle a lot this season. Utah State has enough fire power to trade punches with USC and keep this one within the number. Road underdogs with an incredible offense averaging 450 yards or more per game, provided they averaged 7.25 yards or more in their previous game, are 19-2 ATS the last 3 seasons. Utah State's high-powered offense has made them a covering machine. The Aggies are on a 13-2 ATS run dating back to the start of last season. USC is just 4-12 ATS during the same span. It is also worth mentioning that Utah State is on an 8-0 ATS run following a win by 21 or more points while USC is on a 0-7 ATS slide after a game where it outgained an opponent by 125 or more total yards. This is a PERFECT 15-0 situation in our favor and I like the underdog UTAH ST here +7. 10*

Notre Dame was in the BCS title game last season and they have only lost two games since opening kickoff last season. They have a very solid QB and are still pretty talented in key areas. Michigan State has played no one this season. They stand at 3-0, but they have beaten Western Michigan, Youngstown State, and South Florida. This will be their first test of the season when they head to South Bend. Without question the Notre Dame passing attack is dangerous, as we have seen throughout the early quarter of the season. Led by 4 year QB, Tommy Rees, who is lighting it up with 969 YDs passing in 3 games and 7 TDS, hitting 61% of his passes. With gold weapons like big target Davaris Daniels and his fiery 17.6 YPC, counting 2 games with 2+ TDs. Look for the Irish to win this one my double digits for our 10* COLLEGE GAME OF THE WEEK.

4*

4*

MSU QB Tyler Russell, who was knocked out of last week

UCF has outscored their opponents 76-7 and had 2 weeks to prepare for this game. Theywould be coming off back-to-back shutouts if not for allowing a garbage-time TD to Akron. Perhaps that presages a long evening for Christian Hackenberg as the UCF defense will be bringing it hard. UCF has a duel threat on offense with Johnson rushing the ball and Blake Bortles passing the ball. UCF head coach George O

4*

The Bruins are off a bye, so they have two weeks of preparation to help stop Nebraska

There's been a lot of early steam on the Longhorns and the move is right here on Saturday in college football. BYU can't stay with Texas' athletes and should have no problems covering the TD spread. The Cougars don't have enough offense to trade points with Texas either and are undersized.
Texas has outstanding athletes on offense and now has its best quarterback, David Ash, in the past four years. The Cougars aren't used to seeing an offense this good and Texas is 5X better than Virginia. The Longhorns win big here on Saturday evening!
10* GAME OF THE WEEK!

4*

The Florida offense returns 6 starters from a team that scored 26.5 ppg a year ago. QB Driskel plays pretty well in this system and he is only getting better. The defense for the Gators is the reason for this play. Florida allowed 14.5 ppg a year ago and despite just 4 returning starters we look for another big season from this stop unit. Florida held down a very good offense vs Toledo last week which is hard to do regardless of who the Rockets play. Toledo had gone 36 straight games without being held to single digits and they managed just 6 against the Gators last week.Look for the Gators to pull away in the 2nd half and get us the cash here. 10* College Game of the Week

WF has a pair of very good receivers and has a couple of extra days to prep off a Thur Night gm while BC is on a short week off a Sat game. The winner here takes a major step towards getting back to a bowl gm after missing one LY. In his career, BC QB Rettig has thrown for 6,538 yards and 37 touchdowns, and at 6-foot-3, he is able to stand in the pocket and make throws over the defensive line to his receivers. Rettig is 1-2 in his career against the Demon Deacons, and has struggled against their defense, throwing six interceptions. The Eagles are going to have their hands full with the pass-catching duo of Campanaro and Williams of Wake Forest. With his size, Boston College is going to have to have a safety over the top at all times. Not only is Williams big, but he also has a burst of speed that allows him to create separation from the cornerback. I like Wake catching 3 points here on Friday night on ESPN2. 5*

Playing this time at Husky Stadium following its $250 million redecorating job, Petersen expects to encounter a raucous, signal-extinguishing crowd of around 70,000 on Seattle's waterfront with 20 returning starters Big things were expected of UW triggerman Keith Price after he out-performed Robert Griffin III in the wild 2011 Alamo Bowl, but Price wasn

4*

Not many teams fielded a defense capable of dominating games the way the Cougar's did in 2012. Perhaps the most impressive display came in an epic battle with Boise State on September 20, that resulted in the Broncos winning 7-6 when BYU missed a 2-point conversion. The Cougars open the season on the road versus Virginia, and this isn't an easy matchup by any means. The Cavs though are coming off a disappointing 4-8 campaign last year, and that has resulted in bringing in new coordinators on both sides of the ball. The defense should be solid with all four starters returning in the secondary, led by all-star candidate Demetrious Nicholson at cornerback. The passing game was the Achilles heel last season, and there is no reason to expect it to get any better this year. This is a nightmare matchup for Virginia, and it's unlikely they will get anything going offensively against this Cougar's defense. I love this BYU team and I see them winning here on Saturday. 10* Diamond in the ROugh

Both of these teams know how to put up points, with the Tar Heels finishing 8th in the FBS in scoring last season with 40.6 PPG, while the Gamecocks compiled 31.5 PPG despite playing in the toughest conference in the nation. Although UNC has big shoes to fill with RB Giovani Bernard gone, QB Bryn Renner returns along with his top two receivers from 2012. Now healthy, South Carolina QB Connor Shaw should be able to march his team down the field against a NC defense that struggled last season in a weak conference. On the other hand, the Gamecocks defense is one of the nation

Alabama's Nick Saban knows how to win, which includes wins and ATS Covers in three previous BCS title games. We expect Notre Dame grimly hangs Around for a while but overall Alabama is loaded with athletes on both sides of the ball. The Tide (also ranked 13th in TO margin) unlikely to Hurt itself, its eventual manpower edges likely wear down the Irish. Alabama didn't have the toughest schedule But they pounded most of the teams they did play on their schedule, while ND struggled with teams like Pitt, BYU, and Purdue. 'Bama's QB McCarron, who ranks #1 in passing efficiency & has a TD/INT Ratio of 26/3 tossed a pair of picks in that lone setback. RBs Lacy & Yeldon are A lethal duo (6.4 & 6.5 ypr). Look for #2 Alabama to defeat #1 ND handily On Monday night in the Championship Game. 10*

You can expect some points scored on Thursday night. As late as mid-November these two schools were being predicted to meet in the BCS Championship Game, but then both lost in the same weekend (Nov. 17th) to dash their hopes of a national title.
All of this translates into which team is better equipped at stopping the other one from imposing their own pace and will with better defense. Statistically the edge would appear to go to Kansas State (allow 375 ypg - 42nd; Ore. 382 ypg - 48th). I think Kansas St. has a shot of winning this game straight up so I'm excited to be getting 8.5 points here with the Underdog and Kansas State. Oregon coach Chip Kelly has been eying up some NFL coaching jobs, so I'm not sure he'll be 100% focused here and Kansas St is a very big and physical team similar to Stanford who beat the Ducks. PLAY KANSAS ST tonight.
5*

Louisville brings the 100th-ranked rushing offense to the field against the Florida Gators

4*

Wisconsin must be respected for beating Nebraska, 70-31, in the Big Ten championship game to get to the Rose Bowl while at the same time acknowledging the Badgers were the third best team in their division of the Big Ten and played for the title only because Ohio State (12-0) and Penn State (8-4) were ineligible for the post season. But, with that said, Wisconsin could easily be undefeated this season. Four of the five games it lost were by 3 points and the fifth by a touchdown. A break here or there and it

Let

4*

10* College Bowl Burial
Iowa St played a very tough Big 12 schedule while Tulsa played cupcakes in Conf USA one of the weakest conferences in the country. Iowa St held 11 of their 12 opponents under their scoring average and with the extra time to prepare should take care of business this afternoon. Iowa st gets few players back and should be at full strength on both sides of the ball. Iowa St is well coached, plays solid defense and forces turnovers.

5*
USC hasn't been in a bowl the last 2 years and this will be there chance to shine in the SUN BOWL. I have seen enough of USC this year to know they have the defense and linebacks to stop the GT rushing attack. QB Barkely is out and the freshman Wittek takes the helm with plenty of extra time and practices to get ready for this game. Look for a double digit win for USC on Monday afternoon.

Coach Patterson has definitely had his hands full this season dealing with a rather young team and a freshman quarterback. However, TCU has been outstanding under Patterson in the postseason winning 6 of their last 7 games. It starts with the TCU defense. Michigan State has struggled tremendously on offense this year averaging just 370 total yards (83rd in FBS) per game. The Horned Frogs defense has been solid for the most part giving up just 332 yards (18th in FBS) per game. For TCU, they are young, but this extra month to prepare for this game helps them tremendously.
Michigan St had much higher bowl hopes at the beginning of the season but finished with a record of 6-6. Anybody that could play a lick of defense this season held Michigan State

Typically the Virginia Tech Hokies' goal each season is to play in South Florida at the Orange Bowl. Afterall Coach Frank Beamer has consistently kept Virginia Tech at the top tier of the ACC and the Hokies are usually in the midst of the ACC Championship hunt where the winner plays in the prestigious Orange Bowl.
The Hokies had to rally this season to win their final two games to finish at 6-6 at earn a postseason bowl bid.


Virginia Tech definitely wants to avoid ending the year with a losing record when they meet the Scarlet Knights this Friday night. Luckily the Hokies have a little history on their side considering ACC teams have won the last 8 of 9 pairings in the Russell Athletic Bowl.

VTech has the edge of the offensive line, defensive line, and coaching. VT has a big dual threat QB with Logan Thomas which Rutgers hasn't faced all season.
In sunny Orlando Florida on Friday I like the athletes on VTECH to get the win and cover for us. 10* Oddsmaker Mistake Friday BURIAL

I like Art Briles and his Baylor Bears to take care of business here against UCLA. Too bad the Bears could not put together more efforts like the one they exhibited against Kansas State back on November 17th when they took to the field as an 11.5 point dog and manhandled the Wildcats destroying any hopes K-State had of appearing in the national title game. I thought Nick Florence did a helluva job this fall stepping into the QB role following Griffin.
UCLA is still depressed about losing their conference championship and had higher hopes than this bowl game. In my opinion for the Bruins to have their best chance in this shootout is to put pressure on Florence and that could be much easier said than done. The Baylor offensive line did a more than reasonable job this season keeping Florence upright considering he tossed a total 451 times and was sacked a mere 16 times over the duration of the season. I see Baylor pulling away in the 2nd half unless the Bears have a horrific night with turnovers. Play on BAYLOR plus the points.
5*

The Duke defense is awful allowing over 500 yards/game their last 4 games. But we

Western Kentucky makes its bowl debut against a Central Michigan team playing in its fourth Little Caesars Bowl in seven years, losing each of the past two by a field goal. The Chippewas are riding a three-game win streak (SU and ATS) thanks mostly to RB Zurlon Tipton who has six straight 100-yard games with 13 TD during this streak. Central Michigan is very excited to be here and has the fans and momentum on their side.
My insiders are reporting that the Chippewas are well-focused forthis trip east from Mount Pleasant to Detroit. The underdog Chippewas, after a couple of years of rebuilding, are maturing into a veteran, balanced force, led by sr. QB Ryan Radcliff and Jr. RB Zurlon Tipton, a Detroit native so he'll want to impress the home fans here.

Meanwhile, Western Kentucky struggled down the stretch (1-3 SU last 4), and saw their Head Coach leave for South Florida. The Hilltoppers covered only 1 of their last 5 as a favorite. This is Western

Fresno State comes into this game at 9-3 and 7-1 in conference play. At 12 point favorites, the public is leaning heavy on Fresno State getting the easy win here, but they have a 1st year coach in DeRuyter and this is his 1st bowl game while SMU's Jones coaches his 10th. SMU has a veteran coach who knows how to prepare his team for the bowls especially in Hawaii. SMU is a young team, but with a month to prepare for this game, I like them getting 12 points. 5*

Boise St. returns for it's 3rd straight year to Sin City and not really thrilled to be here. This will be the Husky's third straight bowl appearance. They look to erase the devastating loss to Washington State by getting a chance to end the season on a positive note in Las Vegas. UW was outlasted by the Baylor Bears 67-56 in last year's Alamo Bowl. IT was ugly in the Bowl game last season and they'll be better prepared here. Washington has the defense and tough corners to keep the Boise WR's in check. 5*

Louisiana-Lafayette once more has a possibility at a 9th win after 3 successive victories to end the season. Mark Hudspeth

The bowl game will also be Central Florida head coach George O

The BYU Cougars finished their regular season by demolishing the New Mexico State Aggies 50-14. It was a career day for two BYU offensive players: WR Cody Hoffman and QB James Lark. All Coffman did was pull in 12 catches for 182 yards and he 5 of the 12 grabs were touchdown receptions. Coffman's regular season numbers were impressive as he had 1,134 yards receiving and 11 touchdowns. The BYU team is very balanced and smooth and doesn't make mistakes or hurt themselves with penalties. San Diego State

Toldeo hasen

The 2012 New Mexico Bowl features two of the nation's best running backs in Arizona's Ka'Deem Carey and Nevada's Stefphon Jefferson. The Arizona Wildcats have won 3 of their last 5 games and played a very tough schedule this season. The Nevada Wolfpack have dropped 4 of their last 5 and is really fortunate they started the season with 5 straight wins making them eligible for a bowl game. Obviously defense is a questionable factor in this contest in which 76 is the current total. Arizona's D is young, mixed with walk-on athletes adn well rested, and very excited and motivated to be here!
Bowl games are as unpredictable as March madness at times, but I don't see the Wolf Pack hanging on down the stretch. Arizona is the better team and their powerful offense will outlast and out score Nevada. Ka'Deem Carey gets his yards and a win and pull away in the 2nd half comfortably
5*

I'm playing on ARMY. I won with Army in last year's game. While they couldn't break through with an outright win, the Knights fought hard the entire way and earned the cover, losing by six. Last year's 26-20 setback was the Knights' 10th straight loss in the series. I believe that the talent gap has really lessened and Army off a 31 pt drubbing to Rutgers is hungry to get back on the field Army is much improved and was in every game into the 4th quarter so throw out the teams records here. With both teams having beaten Air Force, the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy is in play, making the prospect of a victory even sweeter. Air Force was arguably the best team that Navy beat all season and the Midshipmen needed OT to win that one. Army will be ready and focused here on Saturday afternoon and I'll back them plus the 7 points. 5*

Texas has used David Ash at quarterback for a majority of the season, but when he's been ineffective the Longhorn staff hasn't wasted time trotting Case McCoy out to take his place. With Ash nursing sore ribs from the TCU game (listed as questionable), the Wildcats will likely face both of them on Saturday. After watching the Kansas State defense get carved apart by Baylor (342 yards rushing, 580 yards total), this game may turn into a track meet and the last tem with the ball might have the advantage. I believe this spread is way too high. Texas has played some tough road games this year (at Okla. St, at Ole Miss., at Texas Tech) and won them all straight up, you can almost make the argument that they play better away from the pressure of the Austin crowd. I doubt the Longhorns can steal one in Manhattan, but I don't think they'll lose by double digits and Kansas St is still trying to figure out how they still aren't undefeated. 10* UNDERDOG SLAMMER!

Saturday's College Football pick is on Nevada plus the points over the Broncos, taking the points. This is the best offense that Boise state has faced on the season. With a monstrous running attack led behind Stefphon Jefferson, it will test J.C. Percy and Jeremy Ioane of Boise all day. Nevada has lost 3 out of 4 games and has not been playing defense well, but they carry on scoring pts. Boise state comes in with a tremendous defense and continued excellence as a program, but with a fragile SChedule this season, this will be a better game than I think some expect and a fg game. Play Nevada here on Saturday. 5*

The Horned Frogs' defense should slow down the Oklahoma fast paced offense to some extent here as they played great defense in their last 2 games against Texas and Kansas State. TCU is very balanced with the run and the pass which could possibly present problems to that struggling Sooners defense. For TCU to come out on top, freshman QB Trevone Boykin needs to have a big day. TCU's offense runs the ball fairly well between the tackles with tailbacks B.J Catalon and Matthew Tucker. Therefore Boykin has to step up and make plays down the field in the passing game to keep pressure on the Sooners secondary that has been burned in recent weeks. The TCU defense has 20 INTs this season, so they will contain the OKL passing game. Play on TCU plus the points early afternoon on Saturday. 10* GAME OF THE WEEK!

Teddy Bridgewater Louisville

5*

Rutgers is 5-0 in Big East play, but QB Gary Nova is looking very shaky these days and it

The Sun Devils snapped a four-game losing skid and became bowl eligible with last Saturday

The LSU Tigers had a rough showing last week defensively and you can bet that they are angry and look to rebound with a better defensive showing in this one. Last year LSU beat Arkansas 41-14 and the Razorbacks had a much better team than they do this year. Arkansas has just 2 SEC wins this year and they were vs Kentucky and Auburn, which are two of the worst teams in the league. Now they have to line up against a big, fast, LSU squad that doesn

The winner of this game locks up the Pac-12 South -- adding an element of intrigue to what has been a one-sided rivalry of late. The Bruins are ranked ahead of USC for the first time since 2001, led by redshirt freshman quarterback Brett Hundley. UCLA is very explosive this year and playing with HUGE revenge from a 50-0 loss last year. Jonathan Franklin is the Bruins' top threat on the ground, ranking third in the conference with 1,270 yards while averaging 6.4 yards per carry and totaling 10 TDs. Defensively, UCLA is among the conference leaders in takeaways with 25 -- including 13 interceptions while USC leads the conference in turnovers with 26 and very sloppy. Look for UCLA to get the win here at home as they are playing the better ball this season. 10* UNDERDOG GAME OF THE MONTH!

Heading into this game the Bulls arrive with both the better offense and the stingier defense as they take on a Miami team that is in serious need of playmakers. Yes, the Canes are riding a 4-0 ATS streak into this non-conference clash and can claim the ACC Coastal with a win at Duke next Saturday. But the combination of a look-ahead and lousy defense is a bad pairing for a substantial 7-point favorite. South Florida is rested and playing with revenge and Holtz improves to a whooping 16-1 ATS in his career as a dog against .500 or less opposition here on Saturday afternoon. 5*

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