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Nebraska (1-0) at Wake Forest
(0-1) 12:00 PM
ESPN
Why to Watch:
It’s news enough that the
Cornhuskers are coming to little
Groves Stadium to take on the
Deacons, but this one has gone
from a Nebraska layup when the
contract was signed a couple
years ago to an intriguing
intersectional matchup after
Wake Forest stunned the world
with an ACC title, and looked
awfully good in a 38-28 loss to
Boston College last week.
Nebraska has been pointing
toward this season for a while
and hopes to return to
preeminence now that coach Bill
Callahan has had three years to
put his system into place.
Meanwhile, the Deacons will try
to rebound from last week’s
tough loss, and will look to
avoid a three-game losing streak
without quarterback Riley
Skinner (separated shoulder).
Why Nebraska Might Win:
The I backs weren’t dashing
across the plains as in days of
old, but any time you pile up
413 yards rushing, you’re doing
something right. Give credit to
tailback Marlon Lucky (233
yards), but more hosannas should
ring down on the Nebraska
offensive line, which is leaner
and faster this season after
years of not being up to Husker
snuff. The front five paved the
way for 625 yards of total
offense in the rout of Nevada.
And while new starter (and
Arizona State transfer) Sam
Keller was average in his debut
(14-of-25, 193 yards), he’ll
face a Wake defense that
surrendered 408 yards and five
scores to BC’s Matt Ryan.
Meanwhile, the Nebraska front
seven will face a Wake ground
attack that produced a mere four
yards last week. If the Huskers
don’t make mega-mistakes,
they’ll win.
Why Wake Forest Might Win:
Could the Huskers be looking
ahead to USC? Their heads might
be back in Lincoln worrying
about next weekend's epic clash
with the nation's best team.
This week, t Deacons will likely
be without Skinner, but redshirt
freshman Brett Hodges showed a
good command of the offense
under tough circumstances. If
the short passing game
crackling, the Cornhusker
secondary may find itself in
one-on-one matchups that it
might not win; the Wake
receivers are better than given
credit for. Defensively, the
Deacons must force Nebraska into
passing by crowding the box and
forcing Keller to make plays.
Possibly a bit rusty still,
Keller is more likely to make
mistakes than the Husker running
backs will.
Whom to Watch:
Hodges has a bit of an advantage
heading into this game since
Nebraska won’t have a lot of
film on him, as they would have
had on Skinner. That said,
coming into a relief situation
is one thing; starting against a
nationally-ranked club is quite
another. Hodges needs to trust
the system, be precise with his
throws and get rid of the ball
quickly. If he does that, Wake
will have a chance. If not, it
could get uglier than a Phyllis
Diller marathon.
What Will Happen:
Wake’s home field energy will
keep it close for a while, but
in the end, Nebraska will wear
down the lighter, thinner
Deacons.
CFN Prediction:
Nebraska
31 ... Wake Forest 20 ... Line:
Nebraska -7.5
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 4
Final Score:
Fresno State
(1-0) at Texas A&M
(1-0) 3:30 PM
Why to Watch: O.K.
Fresno State, you want to get
back on the national map, right?
It's time to actually beat
someone. It's been six years
since the David Carr run that
brought wins over Colorado and
overrated Oregon State and
Wisconsin teams, and since then,
the program has failed to unseat
Boise State as the WAC's bright
light and can claim to coming
close to beating USC in 2005.
After a disastrous 2006, and a
lackluster 24-3 win over
Sacramento State to start 2007,
the Bulldogs need to do
something splashy. Texas A&M was
equally average in a
go-through-the-motions 38-7 win
over Montana State, and can't
take a rest of it'll get tagged.
There are still plenty of things
to work on, like ...
Why Fresno State Might Win: ...
pass defense. Of sure, Montana
State had to throw after getting
down, but it was still a ball
game going into the fourth
quarter. The Bobcats had little
problems moving the ball, and
had particular success through
the air. A&M's secondary isn't
going to be tested next week by
UL Monroe, so this game will be
the best early indicator of
where the defense is at. If Tom
Brandstater and the FSU passing
game can merely be efficient,
the Bulldogs will have shot.
Why Texas A&M Might Win: The
Bulldogs were sloppy in week one
with three fumbles. If A&M is +2
in turnover margin, this won't
just be an Aggie win; it'll be a
blowout. The Fresno State
defensive front is fine, but
it's nothing special, and it
should have problems, like
everyone does, with the
combination of talents in the
Aggie backfield. As long as QB
Stephen McGee isn't making
mistakes, and as long as Mike
Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane do
what they do, FSU won't have
much of an answer.
Who to Watch: A&M isn't the only
team with options for the
running game. True freshman Ryan
Mathews had a nice first game
for the Bulldogs with 77 yards
on 11 carries, while Lonyae
Miller, Anthony Harding and
Clifton Smith combined for 147
yards and two touchdowns. Fresno
State will try to connect on
several deep passes, but to beat
the Aggies, it has to beat them
at their own game and control
the clock on the ground. FSU has
to win the time of possession
battle.
What Will Happen: Fresno State
will prove to be tougher than
the Aggies might like. This
isn't going to be a shootout of
any kind in a grind-it-out
battle, but in the end, McGee
will outplay Brandstater just
enough for A&M to put it away
late.
CFN Prediction:
Texas A&M 31 ...
Fresno
State 20.. Line:
Texas A&M -17
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2.5
Final Score:
Missouri
(1-0)
at Ole Miss
(1-0)
6:00 PM
Why to Watch: Which
Missouri team will show up? Will
it be the one that was on its
way to a blowout over Illinois,
or the one that almost choked it
away in the 40-34 win? This is
one of the most talented teams
in the Big 12 North, and it
needs to get as many
confidence-boosting wins before
facing Nebraska in early
October. A loss to the Rebels
wouldn't be a total disaster,
but for a team that's as flaky
as they come, it could set the
wheels in motion for a
disappointing year. Ole Miss
hung on to pull out a tough
23-21 win over Memphis. A home
win over the Tigers would be the
biggest in the Ed Orgeron era
and would be a huge boost going
into the SEC season with
Vanderbilt, Florida and Georgia
coming up over the following
three weeks. Consider this a
bowl game for the Rebels.
Why Missouri Might Win: The
Ole Miss offense appears to be
better than last year, but it's
still not going to hang up 45
points on the board. This isn't
an Illinois-like offense with a
slew of young talent to come up
with a big comeback; if Mizzou
gets up early, it'll stay there.
As Memphis tried to come back on
the Rebels last week, QB Martin
Hankins threw the ball at will.
Tiger QB Chase Daniel should be
able to do the same if ...
Why Ole Miss Might Win:
... his offensive line doesn't
get him killed. The Tigers
couldn't run the ball on the
Illini thanks to a lousy day
from the offensive line, while
Daniel was sacked twice and
under pressure all game long.
Ole Miss might not have the most
disciplined, stout defense, but
it can get into the backfield
and it'll be disruptive. Mizzou
has problems when it becomes one
dimensional. Take away the
ground game, and things become
interesting.
Who to Watch: The big question
all off-season for Ole Miss was
whether or not the passing game
could be any better. Brent
Schaeffer struggled way too much
last year, and senior Seth Adams
had the spotlight squarely on
him going into this season.
While he wasn't out of this
world, he completed 19 of 30
passes for 201 yards and a
touchdown against Memphis, doing
enough to force teams to worry
about more than just RB
BenJarvus Green-Ellis. Against
Missouri, he won't have to match
Daniel yard for yard, but he'll
have to be efficient and he
can't make mistakes.
What Will Happen: Missouri will
have to withstand an early surge
of emotion as the Rebel defense
will come out roaring. After
about 20 minutes, the Tigers
will hit on a big pass play to
change the momentum, and then
will get a crushing score that
Ole Miss won't be able to
answer.
CFN Prediction:
Missouri
27 ... Ole Miss 17
... Line: Missouri -5.5
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2.5
Final Score:
Northern Iowa
(1-0) at
Iowa State (0-1)
7:00 PM
Why to Watch: Ever
FCS team will forever point to
Appalachian State's win over
Michigan as reason to hope for
an upset over an BCS league
team. Northern Iowa vs. Iowa
State isn't the same thing; UNI
might actually be better. The
Panthers are among the top
ranked FCS teams in the country
and coming off a 41-14 stomping
of Mankato State. Iowa State was
lousy in the home opener of the
Gene Chizik era losing 23-14 to
Kent State. Last year, the
Cyclones beat the Panthers 28-27
for the oasis in a brutal losing
streak that led to the end of
Dan McCarney's reign.
Why Northern Iowa Might Win: Iowa
State didn't do much of anything
right against Kent State. The
Cyclones didn't move the ball
consistently, struggled against
the Golden Flash running game,
and failed to do much on the
lines. Since KSU doesn't throw,
the ISU secondary wasn't tested.
It will be this week against
Eric Sanders and a passing game
that won't be afraid to take
shots deep.
Why Iowa State Might Win: Because
it's against an in-state school,
Iowa State takes this game
seriously anyway, and now it'll
be extra pumped up after the way
it played last week. The overall
talent might not be in place
compared to the rest of the Big
12, but there's enough speed and
experience to be far better. The
Cyclone line did a decent job of
paving the way for J.J. Bass,
who should pound away for 150
yards without a problem.
Who to Watch: Sanders might be
the better of the starting
quarterbacks. On the Walter
Payton Award Watch List, the
senior comes into the game with
6,485 career yards with 54
touchdowns and 18 interceptions.
While not necessarily a runner,
he's mobile and needs to be
accounted for when things break
down. For Iowa State, Bret Meyer
has to be better. The senior has
been around too long to be as
awful as he was against Kent
State, completing 14 of 23
passes for 148 yards with a
touchdown and two interceptions.
What Will Happen: Iowa State will
come out roaring, but it might
not matter. The offense will be
more explosive with UNI having
to key on Bass. If the Cyclone
passing game doesn't take off
this week, it isn't going to.
CFN Prediction: Iowa State 27 ...
Northern Iowa 23... Line:
No Line
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2
Final Score:
SE Louisiana (0-1)
at Kansas (1-0)
7:00 PM
Why to Watch: Oh
this won't be pretty. SE
Louisiana is on a five game
losing streak dating back to
last year, and while it wasn't
bad against New Mexico State in
the opening day 35-14 loss, it
was saved by a slew of
takeaways. Kansas was one of the
nation's most impressive teams
last week, thumping defending
MAC champion Central Michigan
52-7. Everything worked. The
passing game was efficient, the
ground game tremendous, and the
defense a rock. CMU was supposed
to be the challenge early on.
Now it's easy sailing to 4-0
before facing Kansas State.
Why SE Louisiana Might Win: There's
still a question mark about the
Kansas pass defense. Horrible in
2006, it gave up a few too many
yards last week, even though
most came after the outcome had
been decided. The balanced SELA
offense should have a few good
drives if KU is patting itself
on the back for last week.
Why Kansas Might Win: This is an
awful Lion team. Ever since Hal
Mumme left for New Mexico State,
the program hit the skids losing
10 of its last 12 games. Kansas
doesn't have to play at a high
level to win by 30. This is
still Kansas; it's not going to
take anything for granted quite
yet. Several players are still
fighting to keep a starting job,
and the maximum effort will be
there.
Who to Watch: How was Kansas
going to replace RB Jon Cornish,
arguably the Big 12's best
player last year? At least
against Central Michigan, the
problem appeared to be solved
with speedy Jake Sharp running
for 106 yards and a touchdown,
averaging 7.1 yards per carry,
and the pounding Brandon
McAnderson averaging 6.9 yards a
pop with 110 yards. The longer
these two are effective, the
less Todd Reesing, who cemented
himself in the starting
quarterback job over Kerry
Meier, will have to press.
What Will Happen: Kansas will
have this wrapped up by
halftime. Don't be shocked if
the Jayhawks go five-for-five on
touchdown drives to start the
game.
CFN Prediction:
Kansas 55 ... SE Louisiana 10... Line:
No Line
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 1
Final Score:
Big 12 Fearless Predictions,
Week Two, Part 2
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