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West Virginia (6-3) at
Louisville (5-5),
12:00 EST, ESPN
Why to watch: In any
other league, losses to East
Carolina, Colorado, and
Cincinnati would nullify a
program from BCS bowl
contention. This, however, is
the Big East, where a school
like West Virginia has as many
lives as a tabby. The
Mountaineers can still defend
their league championship by
sweeping the final three games
and getting a Bearcat loss along
the way, most likely this week
against Pittsburgh. Mired in a
three-game losing streak,
Louisville is running out of
chances of becoming bowl
eligible. The Cards have been
stuck on one win away, but
they’ll probably need to upset
both West Virginia and Rutgers
to be assured of landing one of
the league’s automatic bowl
berths. Although the
administration recognizes Steve
Kragthorpe inherited a
challenging situation, it also
wouldn’t be happy with
back-to-back bowl-less
Decembers.
Why West Virginia might win:
Things won’t get any easier this
week for Louisville’s fading
offense. Turnover-prone and
struggling on third down, the
Cardinals must now face the Big
East’s stingiest defense.
Equally tough against the run as
the pass, the Mountaineers are
allowing just 16 points a game,
yielding just three touchdown
passes over the last six games.
West Virginia hasn’t thrown with
much success this year, but
that’ll change Saturday
afternoon. Louisville is last in
the league in pass defense and
has no sacks during the
three-game skid, which will be
the impetus for QB Pat White to
loosen up his left arm.
Why Louisville might win:
While West Virginia is at its
best when the running game is
humming, that could be a problem
at Papa John’s. The Cardinals
boast the nation’s No. 8 run D
and a veteran, Earl Heyman-led
line capable of solving the
Mountaineer front wall. If West
Virginia has problems springing
White and RB Noel Devine, it’ll
have no choice but to bank on
the nation’s 109th-ranked
passing game. The ‘eers need to
somehow address the country’s
worst kick return defense if
Louisville is to be kept from
having great field position all
day.
Who to watch: West
Virginia’s versatile Jock
Sanders figures to once again
play an integral in the
offensive gameplan. A Devine
clone, he can be used as a
receiver or on inside handoffs.
As long as he’s getting the ball
in space, he’ll be a threat to
torch a suspect Louisville back
seven. Sanders has eight
touchdowns on the season, and
will be especially dangerous
once he gets matched up with the
beatable Cardinal secondary.
What will happen: Ever
since losing to Syracuse at the
beginning of the month,
Louisville has had the look of a
program headed in the wrong
direction. Sure, the Cardinals
would like to play in a bowl
game, but that won’t be enough
motivation to defeat a
well-rested West Virginia still
thinking about a Big East crown.
Turnovers will once again haunt
Louisville, which will wilt in
the face of the Mountaineer
pressure.
CFN Prediction: West
Virginia 30 … Louisville 21 ...
Line: Northern Illinois
-3
Must See Rating: (5
Valkyrie – 1 Paris
Hilton’s My New BFF) … 2.5
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Army (3-7) at Rutgers (5-5),
12:00 EST, ESPN GamePlan
Why to watch: If there
was any question who’s the
hottest Big East team heading
down the stretch, Rutgers
answered it with last weekend’s
49-16 thumping of South Florida
in Tampa. Now riding an
impressive four-game winning
streak, the Scarlet Knights have
climbed all the way back to .500
and into the postseason chase.
Heck, the way this team is
playing on both sides of the
ball, it would be the league
favorite if not for a horrible
first half of the season. Greg
Schiano is doing the best job of
his coaching career, keeping his
kids motivated when they could
have bailed on him weeks ago.
Army comes out of its off week
hoping to build some momentum
before the annual clash with
Navy. Although it doesn’t show
in the record, the Black Knights
have made progress under Stan
Brock, playing more competitive
than in recent years, and darn
near knocking off Texas A&M and
Air Force along the way.
Why Army might win: When
the Black Knights running game
is clicking, they’re a dangerous
squad that’ll shorten the game
and wear down opposing defenses.
Army is No. 7 nationally on the
ground, getting a tremendous
season from 250-pound RB Collin
Mooney. Prior to getting
bombarded by Rice, an underrated
and fundamentally sound Knight
defense had gone eight
consecutive games without
allowing more than 28 points.
Why Rutgers might win:
During the current four-game
winning streak, the Scarlet
Knights have done little wrong.
QB Mike Teel is having the best
stretch of his career and the
defense is generating a slew of
sacks and turnovers. Linemen
Peter Tverdov and Jamaal
Westerman, and linebackers Kevin
Malast and Ryan D’Imperio are
consistently getting the kind of
push that’ll help slow down the
Army option before it reaches
the second line of defense. This
is a completely different team
than the one that lost to Navy
in Annapolis two months ago.
Who to watch:
Record-breaking Rutgers WR Kenny
Britt has begun toying with
defensive backs, much the way he
did throughout his sophomore
season. He’s gone over 100
receiving yards in five of the
last six games, and should have
no problems beating an average
Army secondary. Only a junior,
Britt has the size, speed, and
huge mitts to give serious
consideration to declaring early
for the NFL Draft.
What will happen: A
reflection of its no-quit head
coach, Rutgers will continue to
forge ahead in the hopes it’ll
be rewarded with a fourth
consecutive bowl invitation. As
confident and crisp as they’ve
been in some time, the Scarlet
Knights will zip past Army,
getting a short touchdown from
bruising RB Joe Martinek and
another big day from the
Teel-to-Britt connection.
CFN Prediction: Rutgers
37 … Army 17 ... Line:
Rutgers -17
Must See Rating: (5
Valkyrie – 1 Paris
Hilton’s My New BFF) … 2
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Big East Fearless Predictions,
Nov. 22, Part 2 (UConn vs. USF)
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