Commentary: Alright, its rivalry week. Throw out the records, forget what's happened before, and get ready for heartache from one side and joy from the other. Bragging rights are on the line.
Cheering for:
-The underdogs: Its great when the little school comes up with the victory against the bigger ones during rivalry week. We've already seen Vanderbilt smash Tennessee this season and it has sent shockwaves through Knoxville.
Laughing at:
-Miami: All that work just to give it away. Oh well, I'll take the trip to Charlotte, thanks Miami!
Feeling sorry for:
-Southern Miss: a one point loss to UTEP last week keeps them winless. There is one chance left: this week at 3-8 Memphis.
Top 25:
1 Notre Dame
2 Ohio State
3 Florida
4 Clemson
5 Rutgers
6 Alabama
7 Georgia
8 Oregon
9 Oklahoma
10 LSU
11 Nebraska
12 South Carolina
13 Texas A&M
14 Florida State
15 Kansas State
16 Louisville
17 Stanford
18 Louisiana Tech
19 San Jose State
20 Michigan
21 Ball State
22 Northern Illinois
23 Oregon State
24 Mississippi State
25 Cincinnati
The picks:
-TCU at Texas: Now that A&M is gone off to the SEC, this will have to do for Thanksgiving night. Both teams have had disappointing seasons. Both are bowl eligible but that's about it. Texas is the better team here, should win at home tonight. Texas by 10.
-LSU at Arkansas: Both teams had great expectations this season. LSU fell slightly short after losing to Florida and Alabama. Arkansas came nowhere close. A big "what if" can be asked about Petrino if he hadn't been sent packing and stayed for the entire year, but we'll never know. LSU finishes off the season with a big win, wins by 14.
-Washington at Washington State: Mike Leach's first year at Washington State definitely hasn't gone as planned. There have been a few highlights but quite a few disppointing Saturday's in Pullman. Washington comes in needing to finish off a good year, not a great year as had hoped. Washington wins by 15.
-Arizona State at Arizona: A four game losing streak brough Arizona State's season to a resounding thud. Thankfully for them the streak ended with a win over Washington State last week. Arizona has been more consistent throughout the year however. I think that makes the difference here in a battle between first year coaches. Arizona by 4.
-Georgia Tech at Georgia: I'd love to see it happen. I'd love to have bragging rights for the year. I'd love to see all hopes for the DWAGS slim national championship chance vanish this Saturday in Athens. I just don't see how it could happen. GT's best hope is to outscore the DWAGS in a shootout, but UGA's defense will probably prevent that. GT has never beaten a top 10 UGA team when coming into the game unranked. For the most part, GT has not done well against a ranked UGA team at all when unranked themselves (2-22 all time). Tech's defense relies on the other team making mistakes, instead of forcing them to make mistakes. That won't happen much this Saturday. UGA by 10.
-Michigan at Ohio State: It is sad that Ohio State isn't eligible for the postseason this year, but it is their own fault for it. Last season could have been handled much better than it was. Urban Meyer has the team rolling and rolling well. Urban Meyer simply does not lose to rivals often. At Florida he never lost to Tennessee, lost to UGA once in six years, and lost to Florida State only once as well. It doesn't get any bigger than this on a national stage either. Michigan comes in playing well, not a pushover at all. Ohio State seems to have it together more than Michigan though. Ohio State by 7.
-Virginia at Virginia Tech: Virginia Tech owns the series as of late, and needs the win to be bowl eligible. UVA is done after this. I get the feeling that VT will be playing this tougher than usual out of necessity. VT by 10.
-Indiana at Purdue: Indiana had a better season that most expected, Purdue did not. That being said Indiana is done after this game, Purdue needs the win for bowl eligibility. Purdue should win this game out of necessity, Indiana just wants the bragging rights for once. Purdue by 3.
-Baylor at Texas Tech: How does Baylor follow up after last week? Texas Tech has been on a free fall losing three of the last four, with the victory being an overtime win against Kansas. Baylor is in line for a letdown, and this is not a team to do that against. Texas Tech by 10.
-Oregon at Oregon State: And it all came crashing down for Oregon last week. The Ducks were in line for the national championship game, the offense was humming along with little issue, they just had two tough games left before the PAC 12 Championship. Stanford stuffed them, quite literally stuffed Oregon's offense. Now the Ducks aren't even in control of their PAC 12 destiny. And now we have the Civil War coming. Oregon State has had quite a nice year, for awhile I had them ranked #1! Two losses have left them with little to fight for, but this is one of them. Bragging rights are on the line and Oregon comes into Corvalis limping a bit. Oregon State will take advantage of that. Oregon State by 6.
-Florida at Florida State: This might be the best game of the weekend. Both teams come in with one loss each. This almost reminds me of the 90s when these teams were always near the top of the rankings. Due to the bad loss on FSU's resume I don't have them ranked as high as the BCS does, but I think that tells me something as well. There was no reason for FSU to lose at NC State. Florida's loss was to a much better team in UGA. That will be the difference. Florida by 4.
-Oklahoma State at Oklahoma: Both teams have had good years, both wanted great years. There will be a lot on the line in Norman when this game kicks off. Oklahoma owns the series as of late. The Cowboys' win last year was nice, but only once. Oklahoma by 10.
-Auburn at Alabama: I have to put the Iron Bowl on this list just due to the intensity of the rivalry. Auburn flat out stinks this year. Alabama is still in control of its own destiny. Alabama by 25.
-Stanford at UCLA: Stanford can win the PAC 12 by winning this game and winning the 2nd PAC 12 Championship. UCLA can win the PAC 12 by winning next week. That's right, if Stanford wins this week the Cardinal will play UCLA again next week for the PAC 12 title. I'm guessing the conference heads didn't see this coming. Stanford is playing well, but is due for a letdown after last week. UCLA by 3.
-Mississippi State at Ole Miss: This should be quite a good game. Ole Miss can win this and go to a bowl game, a loss ends the Rebels season. Mississippi State has had no issues beating Ole Miss lately, and that streak should continue this year. Mississippi State by 10.
-South Carolina at Clemson: Both schools have had wonderful years. A combined three losses coming in between the two teams makes this game bigger than it has ever been. Clemson's offense against South Carolina's defense should be fun to watch. The other side of that won't be too shabby either. South Carolina is a bit tougher here and has three wins in a row against the Tigers. South Carolina by 7.
-Notre Dame at USC: USC has been disappointing lately with little to cheer for. Notre Dame just needs this win to play in the BCS Championship Game. Notre Dame has faced tougher challenges this season and won, so I doubt there will be too much to worry about for the Irish here. Notre Dame by 14.
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