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Eastern Michigan
at Pitt
6:00 PM
Why to watch:
Is this the season that
Pittsburgh finally turns a
succession of solid recruiting
classes into production on the
field and a bowl game? It
better be or else the heat could
become unbearable for head coach
Dave Wannstedt. There’s no
doubt the talent level has
improved since Wanny returned
home, but the Panthers begin
2007 without emotional leaders
Tyler Palko and H.B. Blades, or
leading receiver Derek Kinder,
who tore his ACL earlier this
month. While not overly sexy,
the program will be built around
solid line play and a physical
ground game. Playing Eastern
Michigan won’t tell Pittsburgh
much about itself, but it will
provide the right opponent for a
fast start. Even with a veteran
team, and coming off a 1-11
season that included a bunch of
close calls, the Eagles are the
heavy favorite to finish in the
MAC West cellar.
Why Eastern Michigan might
win: With tackles Josh Hunt
and Jason Jones shoring up the
interior and leading tackler LB
Daniel Holtzclaw providing run
support, the Eagles can slow
down the Pitt ground game,
forcing new QB Bill Stull to
play beyond his limits. Shifty
Eastern Michigan QBs Andy
Schmitt and Tyler Jones will be
able to move the ball on a
Panther D that’s replacing six
starters from a unit that
allowed more than 40 points in
last year’s final three games.
Why Pittsburgh might win:
Eastern Michigan might be able
to stall Pitt’s running game.
And it might have success in
pass defense. It won’t,
however, be able to do both
Saturday night. Behind
behemoths Mike McGlynn, assuming
his shoulder is healthy, and
Jeff Otah, this is Wannstedt’s
most formidable offensive line,
which will eventually wear down
an undersized Eagle defense.
The Panthers’ determination to
establish a ground game and
stable of backs that includes
LaRod Stephens-Howling, Kevin
Collier, and LeSean McCoy will
carry them to a comfortable win.
Who to watch: Obviously
it hurts to lose a proven
player, such as Kinder, but Pitt
is loaded at receiver and will
recover just fine this year.
Oderick Turner, T.J. Porter, and
Marcel Pestano are all capable
of being leading men at WR U.,
and TE Nate Byham is an
outstanding downfield threat
with substantial upside. All
four will help Stull make the
transition from clipboard-holder
to starting quarterback in 2007.
What will happen: Lots
and lots of young talent will be
on display for Pitt, as the
Panthers break in new starters
and try to erase the memory of
last year’s brutal 0-5 finish.
If not for the opponent, they’d
be vulnerable for getting picked
off in Week 1.
CFN Prediction:
Pittsburgh 38 ... Eastern
Michigan 13... Line: Pitt -20
Must See Rating:
(5 Hef wants you to take his
place on The Girls Next Door,
but you can’t because you have
to watch this game - 1
Cavemen) ... 1.5
Final Score:
Gardner-Webb at Ohio
7:00 PM
Why to Watch: Ohio
looks to get off to a hot start
with an apparent layup before
making the trip to UL Lafayette,
while Gardner-Webb looks to
build off a nice 2006 with a
good-looking veteran team
returning. The Bobcats match up
well with the Bulldogs, and if
they're planning on being a
threat to win the MAC title,
they need to show they can beat
up all the teams they're
supposed to. GWU is one of those
teams.
Why Gardner-Webb Might Win: GWU
has a high-octane passing attack
that should be able to bomb away
with Devin Campbell leading a
veteran offense with nine
starters returning. Campbell
will throw plenty of
interceptions, he tossed 17 last
year with eight in the final
three games, but he'll also have
a few moments when he'll push
the Bobcat secondary deep.
Defensively, ten starters
return, but ...
Why Ohio Might Win: ... will the
experience matter? GWU couldn't
stop anyone's running game, and
few teams are able to pound the
ball like the Bobcats. Kalvin
McRae should be able to crank
out yards in chunks, while on
the other side of the ball, the
defense should be able to force
several mistakes. GWU was awful
last year at hanging on to the
ball and is all but certain to
lose the turnover battle.
Who to Watch: The key for the
Bulldogs to stay in the game is
field position, and outside of
turnovers, they should have it
thanks to punter Michael Henna,
who averaged over 43 yards per
punt. He has to pin the Bobcats
deep over and over again. Ohio's
offense knows it can run, but
can it throw when needed? Theo
Scott is a good runner who could
add a nice change of pace when
McRae gets tired, but Brad Bower
could grow into the better
option. He's a better passer and
gives the offense a
sorely-missed dimension.
What Will Happen: Ohio will
convert four turnovers into
points, while the defense will
limit the GWU passing game from
getting any meaningful big
plays. The Bobcats should be
well ahead by the time Campbell
gets going.
CFN Prediction:
Ohio 34 ... Gardner-Webb 10... Line:
No Line
Must See Rating: (5 Hef wants you
to take his place on The Girls Next
Door, but you can’t because you have
to watch this game - 1 Cavemen)
... 1
Final Score:
Army at
Akron 7:00
PM (played in Cleveland)
Why to Watch: It's
the first game of the Stan Brock
era as he tries to take over for
Bobby Ross and move Army
forward. It could be a long and
rough task with a team that
needs some seasoning and
retooling after several rough
seasons. It's going to be a
while before the Black Knights
can reasonably dream about a
bowl game, but with Rhode Island
up next, a 2-0 start is likely
with an upset win in Cleveland.
This is a must-win for an Akron
team that has to go on the road
to face Ohio State and Indiana
before kicking off the MAC
season with Kent State. For a
team looking to win its second
MAC title in three years, or at
least be in the hunt, this is
the type of game it has to win
to show it's good enough to
considered a threat.
Why Army Might Win: If Army's
defensive front is ever going to
come up with a big game, this
would be the week against an
Akron offensive line that'll
need several games before it's
ready for prime time. If the D
can dictate the action, and make
a few plays behind the line,
something it wasn't able to do
throughout last year, the
still-developing Zip passing
game could struggle. Injuries
were a problem for the Zips this
summer; they didn't get nearly
as much time as they'd have
liked to come up with a starting
quarterback.
Why Akron Might Win: Yeah, Akron
has offensive line problems, but
Army really has problems
up front. Only one starter
returns, and while there's size,
finding a starting five, much
less any developed depth, has
been tough. Considering the
offense struggled to produce,
the Zip defense, that returns
eight starters and should be
among the best in the MAC.
Forget about running on the
Akron line with good size and
strength against a mediocre
ground game.
Who to Watch: Each team is still
dealing with quarterback issues.
Army's most talented player, at
least the one with the most
potential, is sophomore Carson
Williams, a prototype passer who
has yet to find any consistency
in practices. Senior David
Pevoto is a big, strong passer
with more mobility, and he has
the experience to potentially
bridge the gap until Williams is
fully prepared to be the
franchise. For Akron, the
quarterback battle came down to
Carlton Jackson and Chris
Jacquemain, with Jacquemain
winning the job because the
coaching staff felt he'd screw
up the least. While he won't
bomb away, he won't force throws
and won't turn it over.
What Will Happen: Akron's defense
and running game will be too
much for Army to handle. The
Black Knight offense won't be
consistent enough to crank out
enough big drives after the Zips
get up early.
CFN Prediction:
Akron
27 ... Army 14
... Line: Akron -5
Must See Rating: (5 Hef wants you
to take his place on The Girls Next
Door, but you can’t because you have
to watch this game - 1 Cavemen)
... 1.5
Final Score:
Central Michigan at Kansas 7:00
PM
Why to Watch: The
last time Kansas played a MAC
team, it got tagged in a
stunning double-overtime loss to
Toledo. Now the Jayhawks have an
even tougher task against the
defending MAC champion with
enough talent to not only
repeat, but to give KU a
nightmare of an opener. CMU new
head coach Butch Jones has a
loaded team with 14 starters
back including the league's best
group of skill players. If
Kansas can get by the opener,
and doesn't get tripped up again
by Toledo, it'll almost
certainly be 4-0 going into the
Big 12 opener at Kansas State.
CMU has to face Toledo next
week, while anything less than a
great performance this week will
be a big disappointment for the
MAC, as well as the Chippewas.
Why Central Michigan Might Win:
Is the KU pass defense going to
be any better? The Jayhawks
allowed way too many yards and
only gets a few starters back in
the back seven. CMU has the
receivers to test out 2006's
worst pass defense from the
start, while the speedy running
combination of Ontario Sneed and
Justin Hoskins should be
effective. Basically, QB Dan
LeFevour and the boys should
make this a shootout.
Why Kansas Might Win: Central
Michigan's defense wasn't
anything special last year, and
even though it'll be decent at
times throughout this year,
it'll bend and bend and bend
some more. If the KU offense can
click right away, which isn't a
given considering all the
turmoil in the depth chart up
until this week, it should be
able to put up points and yards
in bunches. Defensively, the
small, quick KU linebacking
corps should be able to generate
decent pressure into the CMU
backfield.
Who to Watch: Is the KU backfield
finally settled? The
much-publicized quarterback
battle between Todd Reesing and
Kerry Meier was won by Reesing,
but head coach Mark Mangino has
never been afraid to switch
around his quarterbacks if the
results aren't there. Meier has
all the skills, but has been
mistake-prone throughout his
career. Reesing isn't big, but
he can run and has a decent arm.
Also getting a starting nod will
be sophomore Jake Sharp as the
team's tailback. He's a
speedster who could potentially
crank out home runs, but the
power will come from Brandon
McAnderson, the starting
fullback who was also in the
hunt for the starting tailback
job.
What Will Happen: Don't expect
much in the way of defense.
Central Michigan will get just
enough from its veteran D,
especially up the middle with a
big game from the tackles, to
pull off the upset. Expect
plenty of fireworks, lots of
home runs, and momentum swing
after momentum swing. This might
be a case of the last team with
the ball getting the win.
CFN Prediction:
Central
Michigan 34 ... Kansas 31
... Line: Kansas -7.5
Must See Rating: (5 Hef wants you
to take his place on The Girls Next
Door, but you can’t because you have
to watch this game - 1 Cavemen)
... 3
Final Score:
Purdue at
Toledo
7:00 PM
ESPNU
Why to Watch:
This is a dangerous game for the
Big Ten. Purdue won't be looking
ahead to Eastern Illinois, but
it might not be taking Toledo
completely seriously despite
losing the final two games of
last year in a slightly
disappointing season. The
Rockets know all about
disappointment after finishing
5-7 in what should've been a MAC
title contending season. Toledo
is a lot better this year and
has a shot against a big name
its house for the first time
since last year when it came up
with a double-overtime win over
Kansas in the Glass Bowl. Now
the Rockets hope they can keep
up in a shootout to start the
season off with a
confidence-builder before next
week's showdown against
defending MAC champion Central
Michigan. Purdue needs all the
early wins it can get with a
tough midseason stretch starting
at the end of September.
Why Purdue Might Win: If the
Toledo corners aren't
night-and-day better than last
year, this could be really,
really ugly. The safeties are
tremendous, but the Rockets need
plays from the outside after the
corners came out of 2006 without
an interception. Purdue's
receiving corps might be the
best in America, at least it's
among the deepest, and it should
be able to come up with plenty
of big plays if the Rocket
defensive front doesn't generate
any pressure.
Why Toledo Might Win:
Toledo might have concerns at
corner, and the defense might
not be a brick wall, but
Purdue's defense has been MIA
for years. The run defense has
been shoved around by anyone who
tried to run the ball, and the
Toledo offensive line, led by
All-American John Greco, is good
enough to control the line of
scrimmage from the opening snap.
The Rocket receiving corps has
been a disappointment, but it
has the size and potential to
light up the Purdue secondary if
it's not far better than last
year.
Who to Watch: And the Toledo
starting quarterback is ... ?
Actually, sophomore Aaron Opelt
is the likely number one, with
junior Clint Cochran No. 1A.
Opelt has all the talent to run
the Toledo spread offense the
way it's supposed to, with a
great combination of passing and
running skills. As good as he
was as a freshman, he didn't
lead the offense to enough big
drives. Cochran is a good passer
who has to stay healthy. Each
will likely see time early on
this year. Trying to stop the
Rocket passing game is a Purdue
secondary that gets all four
starters back, but needs to be
far, far tighter. Corner Terrell
Vinson has to make a few big
plays early on to cut off one
side of the field for the Rocket
quarterbacks.
What Will Happen: Lots of yards,
lots of points, and lots and
lots of big plays. This should
be a wild shootout with several
momentum swings. Purdue will
have more offense and will get a
good game from QB Curtis Painter
on the way to a hard fought,
exciting win, but Toledo will
have its chances to pull off the
upset.
CFN Prediction:
Purdue
38 ... Toledo 30
... Line: Purdue -7
Must See Rating: (5 Hef wants you
to take his place on The
Girls Next Door, but you
can’t because you have to watch
this game - 1 Cavemen)
... 3
Final Score:
Bowling
Green at Minnesota
8:00 PM
Big Ten Network
Why to Watch:
No one's quite sure what to make
of new Minnesota head coach Tim
Brewster, but if nothing else,
he'll sure make things
interesting. A true rah-rah type
of college coach, he's all
energy and all fire, but he's
also not allowing his team to be
anything less than great right
off the bat. This begins a
two-game series against the MAC
for the Gophers, with Miami
University coming up next week,
and along with a date against
Florida Atlantic, they must
sharpen up in a hurry to take
advantage of a relatively easy
start to the Big Ten season.
Bowling Green, who's also
breaking in several new coaches,
gave Wisconsin all it could
handle in last year's season
opener, and with an improved
team and good options on
offense, it could pull off the
upset with the right breaks.
Why Bowling Green Might Win: BGSU
is one of the few teams that
should be able to run with the
Gophers. With a great backfield
trio of Eric Ransom, Chris
Bullock and Dan Macon, the
Falcons could control the tempo
against a decent, but not
sensational, Gopher defensive
front. After the way Minnesota
blew the Insight Bowl against
Texas Tech, all the pressure
will be on the Maroon and Gold
side to win and win big. The
longer this stays close, the
tighter the collar will get.
Why Minnesota Might Win: Bowling
Green has a quick, athletic
defensive front that'll
emphasize making big plays, but
it's not all that big and could
get pushed around by the better
offensive lines. This might not
be the Gopher front five of
recent years, but it's more than
good enough get the spread
offense working with enough
athleticism and quickness to
open some big holes for the
shifty running backs. While
there might not be a lot of
pounding, the ground game will
be more effective than Bowling
Green's.
Who to Watch: Each team is still
trying to figure out its
quarterback situation. Anthony
Turner was Bowling Green's main
man last year and appeared to be
the main man going into spring
ball but Tyler Sheehan was a
little bit better and now
appears to have an inside line
on the job. Sheehan is a big
passer who should get the Falcon
air attack going again, while
Turner is more mobile. For
Minnesota, it's whoever runs the
spread better. Junior Tony
Mortensen has a wee bit more
experience and is getting every
chance to start, but the more
mobile redshirt freshman Adam
Weber appears to be the favorite
for the most playing time early
on, and the better fit, after
mostly practicing with the first
team this summer. While both
Bowling Green quarterbacks might
play, Brewster has stated that
whoever's the starter will be
the starter without changing
things around.
What Will Happen: It might not be
a pretty game, and if you're
into big passing numbers this
won't be for you. Minnesota's
offensive line will be the
difference, but Bowling Green is
good enough to make this a fight
for three quarters.
CFN Prediction:
Minnesota
31 ... Bowling Green 14
... Line: Minnesota -16.5
Must See Rating: (5 Hef wants you
to take his place on The
Girls Next Door, but you
can’t because you have to watch
this game - 1 Cavemen)
... 2
Final Score:
MAC Week One Fearless Predictions |
