College Football Week 10 Preview

Purdue @ Michigan, Saturday 12pm
Ahad: Purdue is still riding high after beating OSU. Look for them to keep it going. Pick: Purdue
Mike: Ahad, did Purdue ride that high right through the 37-0 loss in Wisconsin last week? This one could break the scoreboard. Michigan has given up 25.11 points per game, Purdue has given up 28. At least Michigan is scoring more points per game than their opponents (31.56). Although, if you take away the Delaware St game, those numbers are close to even. I actually don’t think Michigan’s offense isn’t that bad. This is also likely their only shot at a bowl with Wisconsin and Ohio State to go. Pick: Michigan
Matt: Oh boy, this game probably will be high scoring. Michigan has only beaten one Big Ten opponent, that being Indiana, and they barely pulled that one off. Purdue somehow beat Ohio State at home (I say somehow, but all those turnovers definitely helped). Mike, I noted that in your sentence about Michigan’s offense, you used a double negative. I am not sure if that was a typo, or you actually do believe Michigan’s offense is bad, but you just didn’t know how to say it. I think Michigan will regroup and play well at home. Pick: Michigan
Evan: I hate Purdue and Michigan, but I hate Purdue more because my high school baseball coach went there. I like it when Michigan is winning a little bit. Pick: Michigan

South Carolina @ Arkansas, Saturday 12:21
Ahad: This “northern yankee” is going to go with his gut again. Pick: South Carolina
Mike: Hopefully Evan can clear up what looks like a toss up to me. South Carolina seems to be able to handle any offense that comes their way. My concern is that Tennessee loss last week. I really thought Arkansas was going to have a better season after keeping pace with Georgia. You can’t really fault them for any of their losses. They may just be a .500 team, which isn’t a bad thing in the SEC. Pick: South Carolina
Matt: What is up with the 12:21 start time? I think that both of these teams are pretty good teams, but they play in a tough conference, so their records don’t appear that great. South Carolina has not impressed me that much, and Arkansas has played their opponents pretty tough all season. Pick: Arkansas
Evan: My SEC knowledge was once again legitimized by my Auburn over Miss St pick last week. This is a really tough game, I have been inclined to pick both teams in toss-up games this year. I’m going to go with the hometown Hogs. Spurrier is already thinking about his game against the Gators next week. Pick: Arkansas

Ohio State @ Penn State, Saturday 3:30pm
Ahad: This game is going to feature two great defenses. Beaver Stadium will be fired up for this one. Look for the hostile crowd to impact Pryor. The big question for PSU will be the offensive line. They will have to give Clark time to go through his progessions and open some running lanes for Royester. If they are unable to do this, PSU will have to rely on the defense to put them in positions to score. For Ohio State, the big question is Pryor. He is getting a lot of heat in Buckeye land about the poor games he has had lately, especially in their most recent loss. I expect this game to be very similar to last season’s matchup. PSU will come through in a close one. Pick: PSU
Mike: Penn State hasn’t been jumping ahead early. With Northwestern, they just wore them down. Iowa didn’t wear down. Ohio State won’t wear down. The Penn State line and LBs need to contain Pryor, which they can, but need to do better than they did against Northwestern. Poor angles and poor tackling keep Northwestern in the game early. The Penn State secondary is improving and needs to take advantage of Pryor mistakes. I really think this is the game PSU focused on all year. They know what they need to do and should come out strong. Pick: Penn State
Matt: There was definitely some poor play last week on the defensive side of the ball in the first half for PSU. They corrected that in the second half, but they need to play strong all 4 quarters like they did last year in this matchup. I think Penn State has the better and more talented team, so they just need to play their game and not turn the ball over. Ohio State should look to exploit the PSU defense the way that Mike Kafka did last week. Pryor and Kafka are different types of runners though, and Kafka is smarter than Pryor, so the PSU D should keep him in check. Like Ahad said, the big question will be the PSU offensive line. They did not play well at all against Iowa but have been improving since. They just need to keep it up and the game should come out in PSU’s favor. Pick: Penn State
Evan: I defer to all of you for your knowledge of the Big 10. Losing would sting Penn State more than it would Ohio State. Pick: Penn State

LSU @ Alabama, Saturday 3:30pm
Ahad: In my eyes this is the second best game of the week. Go ahead and call me a Big 10 homer. Bama has had some struggles on the offensive side of the ball but the defense has been top notch. LSU will not be able to generate pressure with only the front four which will open things up in the passing game for Bama. Pick: Bama
Mike: Looking at the results thus far, you can’t really count LSU out. LSU’s lack of offense (ranked #100) could be a bit of a problem seeing as they are going against the Bama defense (ranked #4). I’m thinking of a game similar to the UF game. LSU doesn’t score but doesn’t let Bama get away from them. Making you think they could take the lead with each possession in the 4th quarter. Won’t happen, but it will make you think. Pick: Alabama
Matt: Look for a low scoring game in this one. Both defenses are very good. Alabama has a better offense, though. That combined with being at home will give Alabama the edge. Pick: Alabama
Evan: Ahad – you are a big 10 homer. This is THE biggest game of the week. This will be a very close game. Wouldn’t be surprised if no touchdowns were scored. I’m looking for something like a 16-12 win for Bama. Pick: Tide

Oregon State @ California, Saturday 7pm
Ahad: Look for Cal to score early and often. Best will have a big day. Pick: Cal
Mike: Out of the decent games this week, I think this could be the best (Purdue/Michigan doesn’t qualify as decent). Oregon State should do what they do and put points on the board. I think Oregon State can keep Best from running all over them and putting them in a decent position. Pick: Oregon State
Matt: Cal is favored in this game, but I like what I have been seeing from Oregon State. They came close to knocking out USC again a few weeks ago. Cal has underachieved. This should be a good matchup of little running backs between Best and Quizz. I like the Quizz. Pick: Oregon State
Evan: I make a habit of picking against Ahad whenever it seems plausible to do so. Pick: Oregon State

Average Games
Duke @ North Carolina – Too bad Duke didn’t keep Paulus around for just this game. Although then Duke would be worse and this wouldn’t even be an average game.
Washington @ UCLA – Sounds like Locker is playing, not that I knew he was hurt.
Florida St @ Clemson – Never know what FSU team will show.

Standings
Matt 30-15 (3-2)
Mike 27-18 (3-2)
Evan 25-20 (4-1)
Ahad 24-21 (1-4)