Game of the Week:
#7 Florida @ #1 Alabama
The last time these two teams met was in the 2009 SEC Championship Game that Alabama won and sent them on to a National Championship. This time around there is a new QB John Brantley in charge of the Gators. This will by far be the biggest challenge of young Brantley’s collegiate career on the road in Tuscaloosa. The Gators have struggled offensively ranking in the bottom third in passing and in the middle of division 1 in rushing. The defense has not ranking 15th in the country in points against. The Gators will need the running game to step up in order to help young Brantley, we saw the struggles that one of the top QBs Ryan Mallett who struggled in the second half against a strong Alabama defense. RB Jeffrey Demps is out of his walking boot and should be good to go for the game Saturday.
Alabama enters the game coming off an emotional come from behind victory over Arkansas last week. The Tide proved that even with a young defense they can cause chaos for even the best of quarterbacks. This week will be no different as the Tide bring the #1 points against defense in the country back home. The Alabama defense caused 3 INTs last week. As good as the defense the best thing going for Alabama has to be the running attack. I’ve talked about this for three weeks and I will again today. I still think that RB Trent Richardson could be a #1 back on just about any team in the country but there is no replacing Mark Ingram. Ingram has come back bigger and stronger than before and is proving that he could have a shot at back to back Heisman Trophies. Ingram will once again head up the running game that I feel will wear down the Florida defense.
My Prediction:
I think the Tide are hands down the best team in the country and Florida will just be another team in the way. The running game of Tide is what separates them from most of the country. The physical nature that the Tide play with will control both sides of the ball. The defense will cause young Brantley to struggle and the Tide roll fairly easy at home 34-17.
#9 Stanford @ #4 Oregon
The Cardinal enter the game doing something they are not use to that’s scoring a lot of points through the first four weeks. The Cardinal are 4th in the country averaging 48 points a game and they are doing it on the ground more so than through the air. I think most of else felt with Toby Gerhart moving on to the NFL that the Cardinal would struggle a little running the ball. Not so fast as my friend Lee Corso would say the Cardinal are averaging 223 yards a game on the ground. The Cardinal still have the big play ability with first round pick QB Andrew Luck. Head Coach Jim Harbaugh continues to implement a hard nosed physical type of team out in Palo Alto. The Cardinal even went for two up two touchdowns last week against Notre Dame. This will be the best offense the Cardinal have faced this season. You have to wonder if they have the speed to keep up with the Oregon Ducks.
Oregon enters the game coming off a nice win in their Pac-10 opener over Arizona State on the road. The Ducks as always are based around the spread attack of Head Coach Chip Kelley. The Ducks lead the country in scoring points 57 per game and 4th in rushing at 316 yards per game. The numbers could be a little skewed with two games against Portland State and New Mexico. The top running back for Oregon is LaMichael James who served a one game suspension but since then has racked nearly 500 yards through 3 games. This may be the first time where the Ducks need their QB Darron Thomas to make big plays to keep drives arrive. The Sophomore Thomas is completing 50% of his passes and has accounted for 10 TDs on the season.
My Prediction: I know this game is @ Oregon, which means one of the loudest small stadiums in the country Autzen Stadium, but I like the upset. The Cardinal are the type of team that I think will give the Ducks trouble. A running hard nosed team that will not be affected by the atmosphere. The Cardinal carrying the same personality as their head coach and I fully expect them to control the ball and limit the possessions of the Oregon Ducks. Stanford wins 31-28.
Other Notable Games:
#21 Texas vs. #8 Oklahoma: The Annual Red River Shootout lost some luster with the loss by Texas last week. This is one of those rivalries that we can throw out the records. Oklahoma has not been a great road team which is good because this is a neutral site game in Dallas. The Sooner’s offense has definitely been the better side of the ball for Oklahoma over the first four weeks. I expect Landry Jones to exploit a very young Texas defense. Texas needs to figure out what type of team they want to be this season. They still have not been able to establish a running game nor has Gilbert been very good. The offense of Oklahoma will allow the Sooner’s to score to many points for the Longhorns to handle, Sooner’s win 35-24.
#11 Wisconsin @ #24 Michigan State: The Badgers have not been overly impressive so far this season but the Badgers can do one thing well and that is run the ball with RB John Clay. Clay has accounted for 6.5 yards per carry and six touchdowns. The Badger defense has held opponents to an average of 14 points per game. The Spartans will have an emotional return of Head Coach Mark Dantonio who will coach from the box for the first time since his heart attack. Like the Badgers, the Spartans have relied heavily on the running game with two back Edwin Baker and Le’Veon Bell. The backs have the Spartans ranked 17TH in the nation in rushing. This is going to be a classic Big Ten battle with two teams that want to establish the run. I like the Badger’s QB Scott Tolzien to make a difference, Badgers win 24-17.
#22 Penn State @ #17 Iowa:
Both teams are looking for a big win after suffering early season defeats in non-league action. The home field advantage will be huge for the Hawkeyes. Once again this will be a tough road game for Penn States Freshman QB Robert Bolden. Bolden will face another tough defense in Iowa. For Iowa Rickey Stanzi needs to bounce back from a rough game @ Arizona. Iowa will look to run the ball more than they did against the Wildcats. I think Iowa uses the home field advantage and a stingy defense against a young QB to beat the Nittany Lions 28-17.
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