I....just....can't....do it. I want West Virginia to beat the Bearcats sooo badly. I really do, but I just can't pull the trigger. I think that West Virginia is a good football team with a nice offensive system based around a multi-purpose QB and a RB in Noel Devine that is as fast as any other tailback in the nation. I just don't think that they will be able to hang on to beat Cincinnati on Friday night. They will hang tough until the final few minutes, but I see West Virginia turning the ball over to allow Cincy to stretch their lead just enough to put the game out of reach. The real test for Cincinnati: taking on Pitt.
Cincy- 34
WVU- 24
#16 Utah @ #4 TCU-
It is one of only two non-BCS schools to win a BCS game (over Pitt and Alabama since 2004) taking on a team that is looking to join the elite status of Boise State and Utah as teams who have crashed the BCS party. Automatically you would think that TCU has this game locked up and, well, you are correct. They are by far playing some of the best football in the country right now, and Utah is just a solid Mountain West team. The Utes will play in a nice bowl game and will probably win, but they aren't going to stay on the same field with TCU beyond a half of play -- three quarters at best. The Horned Frogs are legit and will be in a BCS bowl.
TCU- 41
Utah- 28
Stanford @ #9 USC-
Question: how is Southern Cal ranked ahead of Oregon in the latest polls? That doesn't make any sense to me, considering how Oregon is firmly in control of the Pac 10 race, while Arizona even holds a higher position in the conference standings than the Trojans do. Sigh. Moving on, USC has looked lackluster for two straight weeks, including a blowout loss to Oregon and a game in which they barely beat Arizona State. You would think a statement game is coming up. Well, don't look now but the Stanford Cardinal are pumped, motivated and red hot after hanging 50 + points on Oregon this past weekend. If Oregon killed USC, and Stanford beat Oregon, does that = a Stanford victory? Not quite. I think USC will take care of this game in the second half, but it will certainly be entertaining for at least one half of play. I love Jim Harbaugh as a head coach, by the way. Great hire for Stanford.
Southern Cal- 25
Stanford- 13
Big Ten Rundown:
It is as simple as it sounds, guys. If Ohio State beats Iowa, the Buckeyes go to the Rose Bowl and clinch at least a share of the Big Ten championship. If Iowa wins, they do the same. I even figured that out and I placed into remedial math. Figure that one out...
#10 Iowa @ #11 Ohio State- TBA
#20 Wisconsin over Michigan (Badgers = good. Michigan = terrible to watch)
#18 Penn State over Indiana (PSU will rough up Indiana after losing to OSU)
Michigan State over Purdue (Purdue is playing better, but I like the Spartans)
Northwestern over Illinois (I like how Illinois is playing, but the Cats are better)
Minnesota over South Dakota State (Yawn....Minnesota wins)
Current Big Ten Standings (* = clinched bowl berth)
1. Iowa (9-1, 5-1)*
2. Ohio State (8-2, 5-1)*
3. Penn State (8-2, 4-2)*
4. Wisconsin (7-2, 4-2)*
5. Northwestern (6-4, 3-3)*
6. Michigan State (5-5, 3-3)
7. Purdue (4-6, 3-3)
8. Minnesota (5-5, 3-4)
9. Illinois (3-6, 2-5)
10. Michigan (5-5, 1-5)
11. Indiana (4-6, 1-5)
Wow. In a year where the Big Ten was supposed to make a comeback with Ohio State, Illinois, Penn State, Wisconsin, Iowa and Michigan State were all going to be good, with Michigan showing many signs of life early on in the season, the conference is just flat out BAD.
I think OSU is hitting their stride, while Iowa's defense can keep them in any game and PSU and Wisconsin can hold their own against most people but other than that, really???? It is baaadddddd right now for this conference.
I'm growing more and more impatient with the state of the Big Ten. Oh, and while it warms my heart that the Wolverines suck, PLEASE get better. You are an embarrassment to the game of football and the concept of playing defense. No, you don't total up the amount of points you score and give up to see who wins the game. It's kind of like golf when it comes to defense: less is more. They'll get the hang of it someday. Hopefully....
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