WAC
Boise State
| Fresno
State | Hawaii
| Idaho
| Louisiana Tech
Nevada
| New
Mexico St |
San Jose
State | Utah State
- Past WAC Predictions:
Week 1 |
Week 2 |
Week 3 |
Week 4
Week 5 |
Week
6 |
Get
Tickets for These Games
How are the picks so far? SU 35-6 ATS
21-13
WAC Game of
the Week
Hawaii
(3-2) at
Fresno State
(1-4) 5:00 PM EST
Gameplan Saturday October 14
Why to Watch: Since a win over
Boise State last season, Fresno State is
a disastrous 1-8, including the shocking
loss at Utah State last week 13-12 to
hit rock bottom. Yet, it can still run
the table and win the WAC for the first
time under Pat Hill if it can turn that
frown upside down and start playing up
to its talent level. However, the road
to the top is a lot tougher when it
includes a battle against the pass happy
Warriors who are bombing away on
everyone. June Jones’ Warriors kept
Nevada out of the end zone late in the
game to win a 41-34 shootout, picking up
their first WAC win of the year in the
process, and has an offense playing as
well as any in the country. Playing at
home suits Hawaii well, going 3-0 at
home this season and averaging 43 points
per game, and now it has to prove it can
win on the road after losing at Alabama
and Boise State early on.
Why Hawaii Might Win: Is Fresno
State going to stay in its funk? The
Bulldogs should've been able to walk on
the field without pads on and beat Utah
State; to lose that game suggests a
mental block that the team might not be
able to overcome. QB Colt Brennan
continues to light up the sky averaging
385 yards passing per game along with 18
touchdowns and only five interceptions,
and he has the potential to run the
Bulldogs out of the building right off
the bat. Fresno State couldn’t stop
Utah State freshman QB Riley Nelson last
week, so facing Brennan and the run and
shoot is going to be a nightmare.
Why Fresno State Might Win: The
good news about hitting the bottom is
that there’s nowhere else to go but up.
The Bulldogs have gotten solid rushing
performances from RB Dwayne Wright,
who’s seventh in the nation in rushing
averaging 133 yards per game, and a pass
defense that's not all that bad. Hawaii
has struggled stopping the run and could
get knocked off its rhythm if Wright
controls the clock and the tempo. Forget
about FSU QB being under any pressure.
The Bulldogs don't allow sacks, and
Hawaii has no pass rush.
Who to Watch: NFL scouts think
that CB Marcus McCauley is due to be a
first round NFL draft choice come April,
but the hype won’t help him this week
against the Hawaii unless he comes up
with a marvelous game when locked
one-on-one with Davone Bess, the
nation's leading receiver. Last year,
Bess caught 14 passes against the
Bulldogs for 158 yards, while Brennan
sliced them up with 327 yards.
What Will Happen: Brennan will
continue to use the run and shoot as a
controlled offensive weapon to pick
apart the Fresno State defense.
However, the key to Brennan’s success
should be RB Nate Ilaoa, who had 151
yards rushing against Nevada. He won’t
run wild, but he’ll keep the Bulldog
defense honest and off-balanced.
CFN Prediction: Hawaii 34 …
Fresno State 21
... Line: Hawaii -6.5
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Class) ...
2.5
Idaho
(3-3) at
Louisiana
Tech (1-4) 7:00 PM
EST Saturday October 14
Why to Watch: The Vandals were
1-3 after their four non-conference
games and didn’t appear to be a true
threat for a WAC championship. Now, all
of a sudden, they're tied for
first place in the conference thanks to
wins over Utah State and New Mexico
State. Yeah, Dennis Erickson's club
might have beaten the dregs of the
league, but being .500 overall for the
first time since 200 is a big
accomplishment. Louisiana Tech, on the
other hand, hasn’t been as fortunate
going through a brutal three game
stretch losing to Texas A&M, Clemson and
WAC foe Boise State by a combined
score of 151-28. The Bulldogs finally
get a chance play a home game, but they
can't assume this will be a walk in the
park. An Idaho win sets up a first
place battle against rival Boise State
next week, while a Louisiana Tech win
leaves the Broncos alone in first place
in the conference.
Why Idaho Might Win: The Vandals
needed QB Steven Wichman to have a huge
game to knock off NMSU and he gave them
that, and then some completing over 70%
of his passes for 298 yards and two
touchdowns. Considering the fact that
the Bulldog defense is ranked 93rd in
the nation against the pass, Wichman
stands to have another strong passing
performance and should be able to keep
the chains moving.
Why Louisiana Tech Might Win:
The experience of playing some of the
nation’s upper echelon teams has to pay
off for Louisiana Tech. After taking on
Nebraska, Texas A&M, Clemson and Boise
State, the Bulldogs should be prepared
to play the game at a much faster rate
than Idaho. That difference in speed
should manifest itself in the passing
game, where Bulldog QB Zac Champion will
face an awful Idaho secondary that
hasn't slowed down anyone so far.
Who to Watch: Although Idaho RB
Jayson Bird, if his shoulder is healthy
enough for him to play, will continue to
be the workhorse for the Vandals, Brian
Flowers ran for 91 yards and two
touchdowns last week against New Mexico
State. The JUCO transfer has scored
three rushing touchdowns in the last two
games and his slashing style complements
Bird’s power running extremely well.
What Will Happen: Although Tech
finally gets a home game, the Vandals
have too much balance for the 118th
ranked Bulldog defense. Bird, if
healthy, and Flowers will combine for
150 yards rushing, while Wichman will
have another stellar day, helping keep
the Vandals in first place.
CFN Prediction: Idaho 31 …
Louisiana Tech 27
... Line: Louisiana Tech -2
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Class) ...
2
Utah
State (1-5) at
San Jose State
(3-1) 6:00 PM EST Saturday October 14
Why to Watch: The Spartans are
the only WAC team that hasn’t played a
conference game yet, but they’ve had two
weeks to prepare for Utah State’s visit
to get off to a solid start. With three
straight wins and looking for the
program's first four-game streak since
1991, Dick Tomey has his made this team
one of the big surprises so far. The
Aggies, on the other hand, have a streak
of their own to protect winning one in a
row after shocking Fresno State 13-12
with a freshman QB starting for the
first time. As strange as this might
sound, beating San Jose State would be a
huge leap forward for Brent Guy's
struggling program.
Why Utah State Might Win: After
not scoring an offensive touchdown for
four weeks, just getting on the board
last week against FSU seemed like a
task, much less winning, but behind
freshman QB Riley Nelson, the Aggies
posted one of the biggest upsets of the
first half of the season. Nelson threw
the game winner with 55 seconds left in
the game, and the confidence gained
might turn the team’s fortunes in the
positive direction. Nelson’s
effectiveness in the passing game helps
take the focus off of RB Marcus Cross,
who faces a Spartan defensive unit
ranked 105th in the nation
stopping the run.
Why San Jose State Might Win:
The Spartan offense makes it
exceptionally difficult to focus solely
on either pass or run. San Diego State
slowed down RB Yonus Davis and the
running game holding SJSU to 136 yards
rushing, but QB Adam Tafralis completed
over 80% of his passes for 234 yards and
two touchdowns. When Tafralis has
struggled, Davis has dominated running
behind his offensive line. The
versatile Spartan offense shouldn’t have
much trouble against a Utah State
defense that is ranked 103rd
in the nation in total defense
Who to Watch: San Jose State CB
Dwight Lowery leads the nation with
seven interceptions and will be a huge
thorn in Nelson’s side. The rookie may
not want to test the JUCO transfer
Lowery and become another notch on his
interception belt on his way to what
should be a few Midseason All-America
nods.
What Will Happen: The euphoria
of last week’s upset win for Utah State
will be replaced by the reality of
having a freshman quarterback at the
helm. Nelson ran the ball well against
Fresno State and that’ll help his
confidence early in the game, but the
Spartans will force the youngster into
turnovers when pressing with the passing
game. The Spartan offense will get
another productive performance from
Tafralis, who'll throw for over 300
yards.
CFN Prediction: San Jose State 34
… Utah State 13
... Line: San Jose State -14
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Class) ...
1.5
Boise State (6-0)
at
New Mexico State
(2-3) 8:05 AM EST ESPN Sunday Oct. 15
Why to
Watch: With a national television
audience tuning in and the undefeated
Broncos coming to town, Hal Mumme’s
Aggies have a great opportunity to turn
the WAC upside down in what should be a
blast of an offensive game. NMSU is
coming off of a tough loss 28-20 at
Idaho last week, but return home to Las
Cruces where it's outscored opponents
106-63 so far and has the firepower to
make this interesting. However, the 20th
ranked Broncos present a multitude of
problems for the Aggies averaging 44
points in their last three games against
Hawaii, Utah and Louisiana Tech and
don’t appear to be slowing down any time
soon. This will be fun.
Why Boise State Might Win: Pick a
weapon, any weapon. RB Ian Johnson
continues to run amok averaging 134
yards per game behind an offensive line
that's dominating in every phase, but
the attack will go to another level if
QB Jared Zabransky continues to play as
he did last week against Louisiana
Tech. The senior QB threw for two
touchdowns, completed over 60% of his
throws, and ran for two scores. On the
other side of the ball, the secondary,
long a sticking point, is playing better
than it has in years. It had a few
issues with Hawaii's passing game, but
it held up well until late.
Why New Mexico State Might Win:
The Aggies are clearly a one-trick pony
at this point, but that pony is pretty
good with the nation's best passing game
averaging 422 yards per game. Behind
the leadership and production of QB
Chase Holbrook, who has thrown for 2,053
yards and 16 touchdowns in five games,
the Aggies have an offense built for
shootouts and comebacks. Yes, Boise
State kept Hawaii's passing game in
check for about 45 minutes, but Colt
Brenan still finished with 388 yards and
five touchdowns.
Who to Watch: Boise State WRs
Jerard Rabb, Legedu Naanee and Drisan
James often get lost in the shuffle when
discussing the Boise State offense, but
this trio can blow this game wide open.
The Aggies have one of the worst pass
defenses in the nation (112th
in the nation) and should have a
nightmare of a time keeping the Bronco
passing game in check. That'll only
allow for bigger holes for Johnson to
run through.
What Will Happen:
Zabransky will continue to spread the
wealth, but he’ll also attack the weak
New Mexico State secondary deep
downfield. On the other side of the
ball, the Broncos will get maximum
pressure on Holbrook and force three
turnovers that’ll end the competitive
phase of this game after the first half.
CFN Prediction: Boise State 50 …
New Mexico State 21
... Line: Boise State -26.5
Must See Rating: (5 skip the
birth of your first born - 1 The
Class) ...
2