Hawaii (9-0) at Nevada (5-4)
11:05 PM ESPN2
Why to Watch: The last
time the Warriors were
undefeated this late (9-0) in
the season was 1925, when they
finished 10-0 and were playing
the likes of the 11th Field
Artillery, Palama and the Pearl
Harbor Navy. In other words,
this is big-time stuff. Hawaii
has a meeting with Boise State
looming, but it had better not
look past this trip to the
mainland to take on the Wolf
Pack, which has already shown
this year it can put up some
points. Hawaii must remain
perfect to keep its hopes of
gaining a BCS bowl berth alive,
while the Wolf Pack is hoping to
close its season with three
straight wins and grab itself a
post-season spot.
Why Hawaii Might Win:
Even though Hawaii coach June
Jones says he won’t decide
whether QB Colt Brennan will be
playing until game time, the
senior QB, who suffered a
concussion in last week’s win
over Fresno State, has said he
feels fine and will play. If he
does, expect the usual
assortment of aerial fun and
games, with 50 or so passes
going through the air to a
variety of receivers. The Hawaii
defense, meanwhile, will attempt
to slow down Nevada runner Luke
Lippincott, something it has
proven capable of doing this
year.
Why Nevada Might Win: The
Wolf Pack is averaging 37.3 ppg
and has scored 30 or more in all
but two games this season.
Hawaii may have some solid
defensive numbers, but it has
been prone to surrendering some
points itself throughout the
year, especially lately, when
three of its last four opponents
have topped 30. Lippincott had
143 yards last week against New
Mexico State and carried it 30
times. Expect to see him with
the ball a lot this week, as the
Pack tries to keep Brennan and
company off the field. When
Nevada goes to the air, it does
so confidently with Colin
Kaepernick, who has thrown just
two picks against 13 scores and
had three TD throws last week.
Who to Watch: The names
Davone Bess, Ryan Grice-Mullen
and Jason Rivers are familiar to
most Hawaii fans, but a player
to look out for in the future –
and today – is sophomore wideout
Malcolm Lane, who has been
pretty productive of late. Lane
has returned two kicks for
touchdowns this year and has
averaged 19.3 yards on his 14
receptions this year. He’s in
the shadows now but could help
the Warriors win the field
position battle Saturday and
make big contributions down the
road.
What Will Happen: This
will be a big-time shootout with
Nevada playing well at home no
matter what Brennan’s status.
The Warriors will pull it out
late with its (gasp) defense
coming up with a strong late
stand.
CFN Prediction: Hawaii 41
… Nevada
35 ...
Line: Hawaii -6
Must See Rating: (5
On HBO, "Michigan vs.
Ohio State: The Rivalry"
- 1
Writer strike induced reruns)
... 3.5 |
|
Idaho (1-9) at Boise State (9-1)
2:00 PM GamePlan
Why to watch: Can it really
be a rivalry if one team gets
obliterated every year? There
was a time when Idaho was the
top team in the state, and then
Boise State cranked out eight
straight wins in the series
while winning in dominant
fashion. If Vandal head coach
Robb Akey is looking to change
things around, a monster upset
this week would be a huge start.
With Utah State coming up next
week, there's a change to end
the year on a big note, but
that's a tall, tall order
against a Boise State team
that's thinking BCS. The Broncos
are hovering around the outside
of the top 16 of the BCS
rankings, needing to extend the
eight-game winning streak this
week before going to Hawaii for
a showdown for the WAC title
(most likely) and an at-large
BCS spot. The defense has been
solid, the offense has had a few
big moments, and the punt return
game
Why Idaho might win: The
Vandals might have lost eight in
a row, but they have nothing to
lose and aren't playing nearly
as poorly as the streak might
indicate, thanks to Shiloh Keo,
is second in the nation. This
might be a rivalry game of
sorts, but Boise State will
likely be looking ahead to the
Hawaii showdown just a little
bit. Idaho has just enough
potential pop to the offense to
keep up in a shootout.
Why Boise State might win: The
Broncos haven't just been good
over the last few weeks, they've
been dominant beating San Jose
State and Utah State by a
combined score of 94-7 The
defense is the best in the WAC
led by a pass defense that's not
letting anyone get going through
the air. Idaho has a ground
game, but it's going to need to
throw it after the Broncos start
scoring, and that's going to be
ugly. Idaho is second-to-last in
America in passing efficiency.
Who to watch: Boise State
is known for Ian Johnson and the
ground game, but senior QB
Taylor Tharp has been a huge key
to the team's dominance in
recent weeks. He was nearly
perfect against Utah State
completing 26 of 29 passes for
283 yards and two scores, and is
completing 69% of his throws on
the year. He doesn't have to
bomb away deep to win this game,
needing to make the right reads
on third downs and keep the
chains moving. He'll leave the
home run hitting to the running
game.
What will happen: Boise
State will score early, often,
and in bunches as it rolls in
its final home game of the year.
With style points counting in
the human polls, putting a huge
number on the board will be
important.
CFN Prediction:
Boise
State 58 ... Idaho 20
...
Line: Boise State -34
Must See
Rating: (5
On
HBO, "Michigan vs. Ohio State:
The Rivalry"
- 1 Writer strike induced
reruns) ... 1.5
Utah State (0-10) at New Mexico State (4-7)
2:00 PM
Why to watch: In a battle to
stay with Idaho for the race to
finish in the WAC cellar. Utah
State comes in on a 16-game
losing streak, and with losses
in 22 of the last 23 games as it
tries to get past a 52-0
shellacking to Boise State to
find something positive out of
this year. The team it beat 23
games ago at the start of the
ugly string was New Mexico
State, who's making slow strides
under head coach Hal Mumme. A
three-game losing streak has put
a damper on a promising year,
but with two home games to close
out, facing Fresno State next
week, there's a chance to change
things around going into the
off-season.
Why Utah State might win:
New Mexico State's offense
hasn't exactly been New Mexico
State's offense over the last
few games. It's been fine, but
it hasn't been the juggernaut it
probably should be at this point
in the year. USU needs several
huge breaks to have a chance,
and it could come up with them
with one of the nation's best
return games and with NMSU's
penchant for giving the ball
away. Can USU take advantage of
all its chances?
Why New Mexico State might win:
Utah State has a nightmare of a
time with decent passing games,
ranking 117th in the nation in
pass efficiency defense. Boise
State's Taylor Tharp completed
26 of 29 passes last week
against the USU secondary, and
NMSU QB Chase Holbrook should
have similar success. The NMSU
offensive line won't have too
much of a problem keeping
Holbrook upright.
Who to watch: Holbrook
has been somewhat quiet in what
was supposed to be an
unstoppable season after
throwing for 4,619 yards and 34
touchdowns with nine
interceptions last year. He has
been fine, but he's been forcing
more throws, with 16 picks on
the year, and he hasn't been the
yardage matching he was expected
to be. That could quickly change
this week.
What will happen: It's
the surest bet of the college
football season. The Aggies will
win.
CFN Prediction:
New Mexico
State 48 ... Utah State
30
...
Line: New Mexico State -9
Must See
Rating: (5
On
HBO, "Michigan vs. Ohio State:
The Rivalry"
- 1 Writer strike induced
reruns) ... 1.5
San Jose State (4-6) at
Louisiana Tech (4-6)
7:00 EST
Why to watch: The winner
between San Jose State and
Louisiana Tech will remain
mathematically alive for one of
the WAC’s four automatic bowl
tie-ins, especially if either
Hawaii or Boise State qualifies
for a BCS bowl game. The
Bulldogs failed to earn the
respect of LSU a week ago,
losing to the top-ranked Tigers,
58-10, to snap a two-game
winning streak. Tech comes into
this week’s game battle-tested,
having faced three teams from
BCS conferences, but needs to
quickly shake off last week’s
beat down in Baton Rouge if it’s
going to reach .500 in Derek
Dooley’s rookie season. While
the Bulldogs were ending a
winning streak last Saturday,
the Spartans were snapping a
three-game losing streak,
pounding New Mexico State
51-17. San Jose State and
Louisiana Tech are two of the
nation’s best defenses at
picking off passes, so QBs Zac
Champion and Adam Tafralis would
be advised not to force any
throws.
Why San Jose State might win:
With little help from his
running game, it’ll be up to the
veteran Tafralis to move the
chains on the Louisiana Tech
defense. He’ll fare well
against one of the WAC’s worst
pass defenses, playing
pitch-and-catch with WR Kevin
Jurovich, who’s playing his way
onto the postseason honor roll.
With ball hawks Dwight Lowery
and Christopher Owens patrolling
the secondary, San Jose State is
always one errant throw from
changing the tenor and tide of a
game. The Spartans are No. 8
nationally in turnover margin,
an important edge in a game that
figures to be tight.
Why Louisiana Tech might win:
While San Jose State has been
competitive at home, it has been
downright abysmal on the road,
going 1-5 and averaging only
eight points a game. Louisiana
Tech will pound away at the soft
Spartan front line with the
combination of Patrick Jackson
and Daniel Porter, who’ve both
run for the more than 500 yards
this season. Only when San Jose
State begins to press up to stop
the run will Dooley turn loose
Champion, who’ll be looking for
budding WR Phillip Livas, while
avoiding Owens and Lowery.
Who to watch: If Louisiana
Tech is going to establish the
running game up to Dooley’s
liking, the linemen better get a
hat on San Jose State LB Matt
Castelo, a proverbial tackling
machine who’s never far from the
ball. Although Castelo doesn’t
look the part, he sheds blockers
well, and is 13th in
the country with 107 tackles.
For the Bulldogs to have success
on offense, No. 35 must be
accounted for at all times.
What will happen: Behind
a steady diet of Jackson and
Porter on the ground, Louisiana
Tech will add to San Jose
State’s road woes in the final
home game for the Bulldog
seniors.
CFN Prediction:
Louisiana Tech 34 … San
Jose State 24
...
Line: Louisiana Tech -6
Must See Rating: (5
On HBO, "Michigan vs.
Ohio State: The Rivalry"
- 1
Writer strike induced reruns)
... 1.5 |