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Arizona (2-3) at Oregon State
(2-3)
4:00 PM
Why to watch:
While Arizona is showing hints
of turning the corner, Oregon
State has basically been
trampled since winning the
opener. The Wildcats earned
their version of a statement win
last Saturday night, pummeling
Washington State 48-20 behind an
offense that’s beginning to
excel in Sonny Dykes’ pass-happy
system. However, with four
ranked teams still left on the
schedule, they’ve got to build a
head of steam right now in order
to have any chance of finishing
with a winning record. Save for
a rout of FCS Idaho State on
Sept. 15, the Beavers have been
just deplorable this season,
collapsing in the fourth quarter
of last weekend’s 40-14 loss to
UCLA to slip below .500. Oregon
State continues to suffer from
self-inflicted wounds, blown
leads, and some of the least
efficient quarterback play in
the country. While the loser of
this game will almost certainly
be home for the holidays, the
winner can try to use it as a
springboard for the second half
of the season.
Why Arizona might win:
When Washington State dared the
‘Cats to run the ball last
Saturday, they unleashed true
freshman RB Nick Grigsby, who
bolted for 186 yards on 30
carries in his first career
start. When the Cougars
returned to their base
formation, QB Willie Tuitama
exploded for 346 yards and five
touchdowns on 22-of-31 passing.
Arizona is averaging 468 yards
over the last four games,
achieving a level of balance
that’ll give trouble to an
Oregon State defense that’s
allowed nine touchdown passes
and picked just two in four
games against FBS opponents. If
QB Sean Canfield and the Beavers
continue to turn the ball over
at an alarming rate, they’ll
have trouble winning another
game in 2007. Canfield again
won’t have his favorite safety
net, Sammie Stroughter, which
makes his job markedly tougher.
Why Oregon State might win:
The one thing the Beavers have
been doing right this fall is
winning the battles in the
trenches. On defense, they lead
the Pac-10 in run defense and
sacks, which will turn Arizona
back to a one-dimensional team
and force Tuitama out of his
comfort zone. On offense,
they’ll serve the Wildcats a
steady diet of RB Yvenson
Bernard, who’s gone over 100
yards in the last two weeks, in
order to keep the mistake-prone
passing attack from having to
win the game.
Who to watch: In an
effort to improve the play of
his secondary and get sophomore
CB Devin Ross on the field,
Arizona head coach Mike Stoops
is flirting with the idea of
moving All-American CB Antoine
Cason to free safety this week.
Cason is a defensive playmaker
wherever he lines up, and will
school a youthful Beaver
receiving corps that’s really
going to miss Stroughter’s
presence.
What will happen: Two
teams heading in opposite
directions will pull up a bit,
as Arizona’s defense will
struggle against the OSU ground
game, and the offense will
commit two more turnovers than
OSU’s will.
CFN Prediction:
Oregon
State 34 … Arizona 27
...
Line: Oregon State -4
Must See Rating: (5 Paris
on Letterman - 1 Singing Bee)
... 2.5
Stanford (1-3) at USC (4-0)
7:00 PM
Why to watch: On a
weekend when half of the top 10
lost for the first time, USC had
to be pleased just to get out of
Seattle with a hard-fought,
27-24 victory over Washington.
Still, it couldn’t mask the fact
that the Trojans were extremely
sloppy and continue to collect
injured bodies like an
infirmary. The school has as
much depth as any program in
America, but at some point,
casualties in the secondary and
on the offensive line could
become a problem. After losing
some of its sparkle, and a
well-documented spot in the
Associated Press poll, USC will
attempt to recapture some
momentum at the expense of
Stanford. After back-to-back
positive showings, the Cardinal,
too, regressed last week in a
41-3 loss to Arizona State that
was painfully reminiscent of
last season. Nothing went right
for Stanford, which goes out on
the road for the first time
without starting QB T.C.
Ostrander to face a Trojan team
intent on improving its sagging
image.
Why Stanford might win:
If the Cardinal can bring its
“A” game to the Coliseum, USC
has proven over the last year to
be vulnerable to lesser
opponents. The Trojans simply
aren’t playing crisp football
these days, making an average of
nine penalties a game, tops in
the Pac-10, and creating just
six takeaways in four games.
Even without Ostrander, who
suffered a seizure on Sunday,
sophomore Tavita Pritchard will
challenge a depleted USC
secondary by playing catch with
Richard Sherman, Evan Moore, and
Mark Bradford, all of whom have
the potential to play
professionally after leaving The
Farm.
Why USC might win:
Pritchard has a bright future
and throws a nice deep ball, but
he can’t be effective from his
back. The Cardinal allowed six
sacks to Arizona State a week
ago, which will crank up
Lawrence Jackson, Sedrick Ellis,
and the rest of the hungry
Trojan front seven.
Offensively, USC will have no
problem running the ball against
the league’s worst run defense,
while using an inferior opponent
to develop some rhythm between
John David Booty and his young
receivers. The stretch run for
the Trojans is brutal, so
they’ll utilize games like this
to open up the playbook in order
to see what works.
Who to watch: After just
three games, is it too soon to
expect Patrick Turner to be
USC’s next big thing at wide
receiver? He showed signs of
breaking through last week with
six catches for 87 yards and a
touchdown, but TE Fred Davis
still leads the team in
receptions. Against a Cardinal
secondary that’s given up 10
touchdown passes in three Pac-10
losses, this could be the week
that Turner taps into his inner
Mike Williams.
What will happen: At
Media Day this summer, Stanford
head coach Jim Harbaugh opined
that this year’s Trojans could
be the best team in college
football history. At least for
one day, the Cardinal is going
to make its leader look like a
prophet in an ugly, one-sided
loss that’ll be over before
halftime.
CFN Prediction: USC 48 …
Stanford
13 ...
Line: USC -38
Must See Rating: (5 Paris
on Letterman - 1 Singing Bee)
... 2
Notre Dame (0-5) at UCLA (4-1)
8:00 PM ABC
Why to watch:
The Notre Dame horror show goes
on location this week with the
first of two trips to the West
Coast, its final road game until
the regular season finale at
Stanford. The Irish may be 0-5
for the first time in school
history, but there seems to be a
sense that the worst of this
abominable season is in the rear
view mirror. Notre Dame was
more competitive in the last two
games, climbing within a
touchdown of Purdue in the
second half before falling
33-19. While QB Evan Sharpley
played well in the loss, Jimmy
Clausen is expected to continue
his education as the starter
upon his return to his home
state of California. Since
getting shellacked by Utah on
Sept. 15, UCLA has regrouped
nicely with wins over Washington
and Oregon State, meaning the
goal of playing a home game in
January remains intact. The
Bruins will have revenge on
their minds this Saturday after
losing a heartbreaker in South
Bend last season. Although QB
Ben Olson has been a microcosm
for the program’s helter-skelter
ways, he’s coming off a solid,
two-touchdown effort in
Corvallis.
Why Notre Dame might win:
UCLA proved in Salt Lake City
two weeks ago that it can
implode without any warning.
The Bruins have schizophrenic
tendencies on both sides of the
line, but especially with a pass
defense that was lit up for four
touchdown passes in back-to-back
games with Utah and Washington.
The Irish have yet to win a game
in 2007, but the team did get a
spark last week, rallying from a
23-0 deficit to put a scare into
the Boilermakers. The young
receivers, comprised of
sophomores Robby Parris and
George West, and freshmen Duval
Kamara and Golden Tate, are
growing up quickly, presenting a
challenge for the UCLA
secondary.
Why UCLA might win: Who
is going to block DE Bruce
Davis, or the other members of a
Bruin defense that’s 16th
nationally in sacks, after
turning the heat up over the
past few weeks? The Notre Dame
line has allowed a nation’s-high
29 sacks through five games,
which will have Davis and his
linemates licking their chops to
get a piece of Clausen. The
Irish defense has allowed at
least 30 points in every game,
doing a particularly feeble job
of stopping the run. It’s going
to have its hands full the
one-two punch of Chris Markey
and Kahlil Bell, who’ve rushed
for 926 yards and seven
touchdowns between them.
Who to watch: Bruin CB
Trey Brown has been everywhere
for the defensive backfield this
year, making big stops, batting
away balls, and picking off
opposing passes. He’ll be a
four-quarter nuisance for
Clausen, who’s going to spend
much of the evening scrambling
out of the pocket and putting
passes up for grabs.
What will happen: Leaning
heavily on the defense and the
running game, UCLA will add to
Notre Dame’s misery, while
getting revenge for last year’s
last-minute loss to Brady Quinn
and the Irish.
CFN Prediction:
UCLA
40 … Notre Dame 17
...
Line: UCLA -20.5
Must See Rating: (5 Paris
on Letterman - 1 Singing Bee)
... 2.5 |