Last weekend, we had a crew at Sam Houston State to help me celebrate my pending retirement. It was a great day, if a little cold. Well, for the native Texans it was very cold. For the transplants from North in our group, it was standard fall football weather. I will finish my review on the Bearkat experience in a week or two since I am about four reviews behind right now. Suffice it to say, we all had a very good time.
My picks did not go nearly as well as the weekend. South Carolina got absolutely hammered by Florida. The Sam Houston State Bearkats were down 14 points less than two minutes in. It did not end well. Iowa State managed to not close out another game so I picked up a win as the Pokes won that game. I needed the Horned Frogs to cover against the Longhorns. It was looking good until Texas had a late pick six to cut the TCU lead to seven. And there it was, a push for my last game of the night and I finished 1 – 2. I don’t feel too bad. It was a crazy weekend with upsets all over the place. Some other random thoughts on the weekend:
- I was right about Ohio State as they covered the 40 points and UConn was so hot they did beat Liberty. I was also right about Alabama taking it to Ole Miss. I was only wrong about Tulane beating UCF, but it was close.
- It looks like the PAC-12’s playoff hopes are dashed with UW upsetting Oregon. No conference wants a 12 team playoff more than the PAC-12.
- With Illinois losing to Purdue, the Big Ten West conference is in disarray. I bet the conference leadership wished they had ditched the whole division concept and simply had the two best teams play for the championship. Sure, it may be Michigan and Ohio State every year but it beats seeing another blowout.
- Remember when Northwestern upset Nebraska in the Dublin season opener. Apparently it was the luck of the Irish because the Wildcats haven’t won since.
Surprisingly, I feel good about this week’s picks. UConn has been hot as of late. Getting 10 points against Army is the gift that will keep on giving. Virginia Tech has struggled all year. As an adopted Hokie fan, this is an emotional hedge taking Liberty with the full understanding that the Flames are the better team. I can’t believe Wyoming is getting 14 points at home against Boise State. That margin is a crazy given this is rivalry game. I don’t love Colorado State, but again the 22 points seem too much ignore. And again, it is kind of a rivalry game.
Other random observations for this week:
- The PAC 12 is where it is at this week. A couple of tasty games: USC vs UCLA and Utah vs Oregon.
- TCU continues to get no respect. Only a 2.5 point favorite against a 6-4 Baylor?
- It would be a shame if either Ohio State or Michigan lose this weekend before their big game. Can you say trap game Maryland and Illinois?
- Some cupcakes this weekend for sure – Austin Peay (at Bama), East Tennessee State (Miss State) and UMass (Texas A&M). Well, the way the Aggies are playing maybe that’s not such a cupcake this year.
Lastly, our review of Texas Tech is in. Check it out here.
That is all I got, enjoy the games.