I hope everyone has had a great week and you're all ready for another great weekend of football! We've got a few key match-ups, so I'll get right to my game predictions, enjoy!
Indiana at Northwestern
This doesn't really seem like a highlight game, but I think it will be an interesting one to watch. The Hoosiers are coming off two tough losses to Ohio State and Nebraska, so they will be looking to get back on track as the head to Evanston. The Wildcats are on the other side of the spectrum, as they have won two straight over Iowa and Michigan State (Division champs from a year ago). In the process of those victories, they have scored 92 combined points, after only scoring a combined 65 in their first four games. This new offensive explosion is lead by QB Clayton Thorson. He has been spreading the ball around very well, passing for over 1400 yards so far this season, and that has opened up the run game for star RB Justin Jackson. Jackson has nearly 700 yards rushing and 6 TDs so far this year, and his last two games have accounted for 359 of those yards and 3 of the TDs. Their offense will be tested this weekend though, because Indiana has arguably the most improved defense in the BIG 10. The slowed down two of the best offenses in the conference over the past couple weeks, and although they couldn't quite pull out the victory, they are keeping the Hoosiers in games. When you stick around in enough games, you'll start to win a few. Offensively, the Hoosiers should be able to move the ball fairly well. The Wildcats have some play makers, most notably Anthony Walker Jr., but they give up an average of 416 yards per game. I honestly expect a bit of a shoot out in this game, but if Indiana's defense makes a few stops or gets a couple of turnovers, they could finally get back on the winning track. With that being said, I'm going to stick with the Wildcats. Pat Fitzgerald has this team playing with a lot of confidence, and I'm not sure if their offense can be stopped right now with all the different weapons! Northwestern wins in a close one, 38-35.
#10 Wisconsin at Iowa (Battle for the Heartland Trophy)
These two rivals meet yet again, and will battle it out for a brass Bull. This rivalry is very tough to win in, proven by the 44-43-2 series record that Wisconsin leads. Iowa has not looked the best this season, playing tight games to some mediocre competition, and let's not forget the loss they suffered at the hands of the Bison from NDSU! However, they have been better over recent weeks, and have tried to get their running game started up again. Sadly for them, they have to play the Badgers now, and Wisconsin only gives up 106 yards rushing a game.... Plus they just lost a very close overtime game to the Buckeyes at home last week, so I doubt they are happy. The Badgers' defense has easily been one of the most impressive all season long, and I expect another big performance in Iowa City. Iowa's biggest advantage is playing at home (where NDSU won, that never gets old!) and the fact that Wisconsin's QB, Alex Hornibrook, is only a redshirt Freshman. He looked pretty good at home last week, even against the tough Buckeye defense, but his start previous to that was in the Big House, and he did not play well. Against the Wolverines, Hornibrook went 9-25 for 88 yards, 1 TD and 3 INTs. To be fair, the entire offense struggled against the stiff Wolverine defense, but an away crowd in Kinnick Stadium will be tough for the young QB. Look for Wisconsin to focus on their ground game, especially since RB Corey Clement ran for 164 yards against Ohio State last Saturday. Iowa's defense has been fairly tough throughout the year, and only give up an average of 150 on the ground, but Wisconsin is a much tougher opponent. I think the Badgers will show why they're still in the top 10, despite their two recent losses, and get the victory in Iowa City. Look for Hornibrook to struggle early, if he doesn't fix the issues early, Iowa could hang around. I'll take the Badgers 28-13.
Colorado at Stanford
The Cardinal are coming off a very lack-luster victory against the Irish last week, and are really hoping to get Christian McCaffrey back. McCaffrey may be their only chance to compete with Colorado, because I'm not sure if they battered Cardinal defense can keep up with the Buffs. Colorado averages 515 yards per game on offense, and Stanford gives up an average of 370. They've struggled to stop other high-powered offenses already this season, which has lead to blowout losses like 44-6 against Washington and 42-16 against Wazzu. The Buffaloes have a really good chance to win the South division this year, but will need to get by David Shaw first. It's never easy to win in Palo Alto, especially if McCaffrey comes back this week. However, with the offensive attack the Buffs are bringing in, I'm just not sure if Stanford can stop them. It hurts to say this, but I'll take Colorado over Stanford, 37-20.
TCU at #12 West Virginia
The Mountaineers really surprised me last week, holding the high-flying Red Raiders to just 17 points on their own turf. They remained unbeaten, and return home to Morgantown to take on the Horned Frogs. This looks to be another classic shootout in the Big XII, but after last weeks performance, I think the Mountaineers might have one of the tougher defenses in the conference. Texas Tech had scored 50+ points in 9 straight games at home coming into last week, but were held to only 17 points and an astonishing 379 total yards (they average over 500 in just passing alone per game). TCU has not looked the most impressive all season, but they are never a team to discount. Kenny Hill is completing over 63% of his passes, but has a 12:8 TD to INT ratio. West Virginia hasn't been the best at creating turnovers, but look for them to get some pressure on Hill today. I'm taking the Mountaineers in another impressive game, 40-23.
#6 Texas A&M at #1 Alabama
The Aggies have been one of the few teams to cause Alabama headaches over the past few seasons, so this is always an intriguing match-up. We all know what Bama is going to bring to the table, so let's focus on the Aggies and see where their strengths lie. Texas A&M has played very well throughout the year, mostly because of QB Trevor Knight. He may only have a 53.5% completion rating, but his 510 rushing yards and 9 TDs on the ground make him very difficult to stop. Knight has been a master at keeping both plays and drives alive with his legs. Alabama has had issues with dual threat QBs in the past, but handled Joshua Dobbs well last week. Look for Trevor Knight to be the focal point of this game. If he can keep drives alive and keep the ball away from Bama's deadly offense, A&M could pull the upset. I think the Tide's defense will be to much in the end, and they will continue to roll. I wouldn't be opposed to the upset, but I'm sticking with Bama 38-28.
#17 Arkansas at #21 Auburn
This will be a fun game to watch down in the SEC because Arkansas is coming off of a big win against Ole Miss, and Auburn's offense is looking to continue improving after their BYE week. These two teams both score a little over 30 points per game, so I expect this one to be fairly close. There should be a fair amount of offense in this game because both defenses give up a large amount of yards, and both offenses average 445 (Arkansas) and 480 (Auburn) for yards per game. QB play will be huge in this game, especially with the Hogs being on the road. Austin Allen looked very impressive last week, and I expect him to lead the upset against the Tigers. Razorbacks 34, Tigers 30.
Purdue at #8 Nebraska
The Huskers return to Lincoln to take on the Boilermakers, and since losing to Purdue last season, Nebraska is 10-1. The Huskers are looking for revenge, and even though they are beaten up still, expect a fired up team. Nebraska needs to find its ground game again, especially with Purdue giving up 365 yards rushing a week ago to Iowa. Expect Newby to continue to carry the work load, but I expect Ozigbo to be back and all of our running backs to be used in this one. The offensive line has some question marks with all the injuries, but they will need to step up and gain some confidence in this game before traveling to Madison next week. They looked very poor against the Hoosiers last week, so look for them to be a focal point of the game. Another big focal point will be penalties. Nebraska had a number of dumb penalties last week, and I know that was a big issue on Coach Riley's list to fix this week. Defensively, Purdue QB David Blough will be the focus. Last year, Blough ran for 82 yards and 1 TD on the Blackshirts, and passed for 274 and 4 TDs. Based on the improvement in the secondary this year, I expect Purdue's passing game to be contained fairly well, but we cannot let David Blough run. Much like Clayton Thorson of Northwestern, he's a tricky QB for Nebraska to tackle, and often keeps plays and drives alive with his feet. Look for a lot of blitz packages to cause pressure and keep Blough away from scrambling.
Overall, I really don't think Purdue should cause Nebraska too many issues this year. The Huskers know not to overlook them, and they're dealing with the firing of their head coach while coming to the most intimidating place to play in the Conference, arguably the nation. I think Nebraska bounces back and hopefully gets Ryker some playing time late in the game to make amends for last season. Nebraska wins 45-14.
Some other big games to watch are Ohio State at Penn State (not a big upset possibility, but I think Penn State hangs around early, look for Saquon Barkley to have a big night), Oklahoma at Texas Tech, and Ole Miss at LSU. Thanks for reading and GO BIG RED!
#CollegeFootballKnowItAll
Alex Fernando
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