|
BYU (1-0) at UCLA (1-0)
6:30 EST
Why to watch: A couple of
programs that smacked around
second-tier Pac-10 teams on
opening day hook up for the
first time since 1993. UCLA was
supposed to beat Stanford, and
it did so in style, rolling up
624 yards and 45 points in Jay
Norvell’s debut as the offensive
coordinator. QB Ben Olson, who
originally signed with BYU in
2002 as a monster recruit, went
berserk in the opener (despite a
few too many misfires), throwing
for five touchdowns and 286
yards on 16-of-29 passing. If
this is the year that Olson
finally puts it all together,
the Bruins have the veteran
talent around him to be one of
this year's main contenders for
really big things. The Cougars
were almost as impressive in
Week One, stuffing Arizona,
20-7, in a game that was
considered to be a toss-up. Not
too shabby for a school that was
replacing QB John Beck with
untested sophomore Max Hall.
BYU has spanked Pac-10 teams in
its last two games, and won’t be
flustered by playing in
Pasadena.
Why BYU might win: The
Cougars are one of the only
teams outside of a BCS
conference that can go
toe-to-toe with UCLA in the
trenches. On the offensive
line, Sete Aulai and Dallas
Reynolds will help keep DE Bruce
Davis from going wild, while
creating some space for Fui
Vakapuna and Harvey Unga to move
the chains. The Bruin pass rush
wasn’t there last week, and if
its not humming, BYU will put up
yards and points in bunches.
Defensively, BYU is a
disciplined group that rarely
misses tackles, and held Arizona
to just 288 yards and one score
last weekend.
Why UCLA might win: Hall
is going to be a good one in
Provo, but it’s asking way too
much for him to beat this
speedy, experienced Bruin
defense in just his second
career start. The Cougars also
lack the burners at the skill
positions to break free from a
unit that closes fast and makes
a lot of plays for negative
yards. On offense, UCLA showed
hints last week of the big-play
ability that escaped them in
2006. Olson is poised for a
huge season, and Chris Markey
and Kahlil Bell combined for 266
yards on The Farm last Saturday.
Who to watch: Reggie
Carter is one of those UCLA
linebackers that gets to the
ball in an instant and plays
with outstanding range and
tenacity. Built like a safety
at 6-1 and 220 pounds, he began
his sophomore year with ten
tackles and two tackles for
loss, and will post similar
numbers against the methodical
Cougars.
What will happen: A visit from
BYU will be a great test for a
UCLA program that’s trying to
figure out if it’s a legit top
10 team or not. The Bruins will
pass on the strength of Olson’s
left arm and a stingy defense
that doesn’t quite get the
credit it deserves.
CFN Prediction:
UCLA
30 … BYU 16
... Line: UCLA -7.5
Must See Rating: (5
Mad Men - 1 Chelsea
Lately) ... 3.5
Final Score:
San Diego State (0-0) at
Washington State (0-1)
7:00 EST
Why to watch:
For almost three quarters,
Washington State hung with
seventh-ranked Wisconsin in
Madison before fading in the
42-21 loss. While no one in
Pullman cares to hear about
moral victories anymore, the
Cougars held up relatively in a
game they weren’t supposed to
win. Beginning with this week’s
annual pilgrimage to Seattle,
the key over the next two weeks
will be to pick up a couple of
wins and iron out some glaring
defensive breakdowns before
Pac-10 play begins. Wazzu won’t
have access to any recent film
of this week’s opponent since
San Diego State was idle last
weekend. Now in their second
season under Chuck Long, the
Aztecs will lean on the offense
early on as the defense adjusts
to wholesale changes. A Pac-10
road game will be a great
barometer of whether the program
is making any progress after
going a disappointing 3-9 in
2006.
Why San Diego State might win:
The Aztecs’ best reason for
optimism in 2007 is that
strong-armed QB Kevin O’Connell
is healthy again, and his
receiving corps has the size and
experience to be a very tough
assignment. Last year’s top
pass-catchers, Brett Swain and
Chaz Schilens, along with
converted quarterback Darren
Mougey will be a handful for a
retooled Wazzu secondary that
made Tyler Donovan look like a
Manning Award favorite last
weekend. A 6-6, 235-pounder
with good speed, Mougey figures
to be a match up nightmare for
the undersized Cougar defenders.
Why Washington State might
win: If San Diego State
couldn’t stop anyone last year,
what can be expected of a unit
that’s working in seven new
starters? The Aztecs won’t get
any breaks against a Washington
State offense that’s led by
senior quarterback Alex Brink
and has terrific speed at the
skill positions. With Dwight
Tardy busting through big holes,
Brandon Gibson and Michael
Bumpus schooling the Aztec
secondary, Darryl Blunt won’t
punt more than twice Saturday
night.
Who to watch: If San
Diego State commits too many
resources to Gibson and Bumpus,
Brink will make it pay by going
underneath to TE Jed Collins, a
6-2, 250-pound wrecking ball
with some of the softest hands
on the roster.
What will happen: San
Diego State will move the ball
this season, but it could take
all year to fix the problems on
the defensive side of the ball.
Washington State will capitalize
on the opportunity, cranking out
400 balanced yards en route to
its first win of the new season.
CFN Prediction:
Washington State 42 … San
Diego State 23
... Line: WSU -16.5
Must See Rating: (5
Mad Men - 1 Chelsea
Lately) ... 2
Final Score:
Northern Arizona (1-0) at
Arizona (0-1)
9:00
EST
Why to watch: The Arizona
football program and head coach
Mike Stoops are at a crossroads
after getting beaten by BYU in a
game that was far more lopsided
than the 20-7 score indicated.
This was supposed to be the
year, Stoops’ fourth in Tucson,
that the Wildcats started
turning the corner and heading
toward a post-season game, but
the opener painted a very
different picture. The ‘Cats
struggled in pass protection,
failed to execute in Sonny
Dykes’ new spread offense, and
allowed way too many yards to a
first-time starting
quarterback. Arizona has just
two more weeks to prepare for a
trip to Cal and the start of the
Pac-10 schedule. Northern
Arizona is a borderline Top 25
team out of the Big Sky
Conference with a pair of
potential All-Americans in WR
Alex Watson and CB Ricky
Wilson. The Lumberjacks opened
2007 with a tidy 47-0 disposal
of Western New Mexico.
Why Northern Arizona might
win: While the ‘Jacks don’t
have the athletes or depth of a
Pac-10 team, their offense is
actually further along and more
polished than Arizona’s. The
Wildcats have a long way to go
in Dykes’ system, needing to
create more holes for RB Chris
Jennings and give QB Willie
Tuitama an extra tick to find
his receivers. If Arizona
stumbles on offense again this
week, Northern Arizona has
enough firepower to engineer the
upset.
Why Arizona might win:
There’s a sense of urgency in
Tucson that’s trickled down from
the executive board room to
every player on the roster.
Arizona must begin executing
better in all phases beginning
with this Saturday’s visit from
Northern Arizona. The Wildcats
will blanket Watson with CB
Antoine Cason, eliminating the
Lumberjacks’ most dangerous
offensive weapon. Against a
decidedly weaker front seven,
the offensive line will get a
push and give Tuitama enough
time to connect with Mike Thomas
and Delashaun Dean downfield.
Who to watch: No matter
how poorly Arizona plays, LB
Spencer Larsen is the one
constant that never seems to
have an off day. In the loss to
BYU, he was everywhere,
collecting a game-high 14
tackles and a fumble recovery in
the start of what will be
another All-Pac-10 season.
What will happen: The visit from
Northern Arizona couldn’t come
at a better time for a
distressed Arizona squad. The
‘Cats will use the home opener
as a chance to work on the
passing game, while nabbing
their first victory of 2007.
CFN Prediction: Arizona
31 … Northern Arizona 9
... Line: No Line
Must See Rating: (5
Mad Men - 1 Chelsea
Lately) ... 1
Final Score:
Colorado (1-0) at Arizona State
(1-0)
10:15 PM
Why to watch:
Appalachian State was not the
only “ASU” making noise in
college football on the opening
weekend. Arizona State, with
Dennis Erickson making his debut
in Tempe, completely dismantled
a decent San Jose State team
48-3. The Sun Devils outgained
the Spartans 520-115, displaying
a physical demeanor on both
sides of the ball that was
lacking throughout the Dirk
Koetter era. With similar
results against better
competition this week, you can
start seriously debating whether
Arizona State can be the next
best thing to USC in the Pac-10
this season. After going 2-10
in Dan Hawkins’ first season at
the helm, Colorado got exactly
what it needed to start the
year, a win over intrastate
rival Colorado State. The Buffs
came from behind late and won in
overtime in the type of game
that a young team can feed off
as the schedule gets tougher.
The 31 points Colorado scored in
the opener was well above last
year’s average, largely due to
the efficient passing of rookie
QB Cody Hawkins, the head
coach’s son.
Why Colorado might win: The
Buffs boast an underrated
defense that’s tough against the
run and experienced from front
to back. They were at it again
last Saturday, registering nine
tackles for loss and three
sacks, and holding Ram runners
to under three yards a carry.
With DT George Hypolite getting
a push up the middle and LB
Jordon Dizon tackling everything
in sight, Arizona State will
find moving the ball a whole lot
tougher this week than a week
ago.
Why Arizona State might win:
Senior Ryan Torain is a bona
fide workhorse back who'll pound
away at the Colorado defense
25-30 times, controlling the
clock for the Sun Devils. And
just when Colorado over commits
to the run, a more confident and
comfortable Rudy Carpenter will
play-action his way to long
gainers. Defensively, Arizona
State is on the verge of doing a
180 from last season, which is
bad news for a Buffalo offense
that’s still a
work-in-progress. With DE
Dexter Davis providing pressure
on the outside and LB Robert
James attacking from the
weakside, Hawkins won’t have
much time to set his feet or
locate open receivers.
Who to watch: At 6-4 and 208
pounds with great bounce,
Michael Jones is flashing signs
that he’s about to become the
next dynamite receiver to play
for Arizona State. He had four
receptions for 63 yards and a
touchdown in the opener, and is
going to command the attention
of Terrence Wheatley, Colorado’s
best cover corner. The more the
defense will have to worry about
Torian, the more single coverage
Jones will see.
What will happen: Cody
Hawkins has not lost a football
game since the sixth grade.
Arizona State will end that
individual winning streak,
getting 125 yards and two scores
from Torain, and a second
straight solid effort from its
improving defense.
CFN Prediction:
Arizona
State 37 ... Colorado 17... Line:
ASU -14
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men - 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 3
Final Score:
Pac 10 Fearless Predictions, Week One, Part
1
|