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Sacramento State (1-0) at
Colorado State (0-1),
3:30 EST
Why to watch: Colorado
State looks for the first win in
the Steve Fairchild era after
starting out with a 38-17 loss
to Colorado. The offense was
stagnant against the Buffs and
the defense was decent, but not
a brick wall. Now the Rams
should have their first win of
the season against a Sacramento
State team that's 1-0, but is
expected to finish at or near
the bottom of the Big Sky
Conference. The win came over
Humboldt State 45-13, and while
that was a nice start fro the
Hornets, the defense is about to
have a much tougher time.
Why Sacramento State might win:
The Hornets have a little bit of
talent in certain spots.
Linebackers Cyrus Mulitalo and
Mike Brannon are excellent,
while Bryan Hilliard and Evander
Wilkins each ran for over 100
yards last week. There are just
enough playmakers to put a few
scores on the board and keep
this close in the first quarter.
Why Colorado State might win:
Here comes the pounding. CSU
wasn't nearly as physical as it
needed to be against Colorado
with just 258 yards and one
offensive touchdown, and that's
about to change. The offense is
supposed to work around the
tough backfield and a pounding
offensive line, and now Gartrell
Johnson and Kyle Bell should be
able to pound out at least 200
yards on the undersized
Sacramento defensive front.
Who to watch: Everyone is
going to load up to try to stop
the Colorado State running game,
and QB Billy Farris has to make
teams pay. He completed 27 of 37
passes against Colorado, but
they only went for 187 yards
with a touchdown and two
interceptions. In a tune-up game
like this, Farris has to start
throwing deep.
What will happen:
Colorado State will crank out
well over 400 yards of total
offense, and that could all come
from the running game alone.
Fairchild will get his victory,
while the team will get two
weeks off before facing Houston.
CFN Prediction: Colorado
State 48 ... Sacramento State 17
... Line: NL
Must See Rating: (5
Entourage premiere -
1 One Tree Hill premiere)
… 1
-
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Consultants FREE selections
San Diego State (0-1) at Notre
Dame (0-0),
3:30 EST NBC
Why to watch:
After a long, long, long
off-season, Notre Dame is
finally getting back on the
field to try to erase memories
of the 2007 nightmare as soon as
possible. The off-season was
made a bit longer with an
off-week to start out the year,
and while head coach Charlie
Weis has said he wished the team
could've gotten up and rolling
last week, it gets another week
off to start the year against
San Diego State, who suffered
the indignity of being the only
FBS team to lose to an FCS team
last week. The Aztecs lost 29-27
to Cal Poly on a 21-yard field
goal with no time left on the
clock, and while the offense was
humming and there were were some
bight spots, it was still a loss
to a lower-tier school. A win
over the Irish would change all
of that, and after last season,
Notre Dame isn't going to take
anyone lightly.
Why San Diego State might win:
The passing game is working. It
might not be all that efficient,
and it's certain to be erratic
against the better teams, but
its' going to put up a ton of
yards and will keep the chains
moving just long enough to throw
a scare into a team like the
Irish. Notre Dame's pass defense
was better last year than it was
two seasons ago, but it's still
an X factor. It has to prove it
can come through.
Why Notre Dame might win:
Cal Poly 29 ... San Diego State
27. The Mustangs were able to
crank out 483 yards of total
offense and were great at taking
the ball away. Notre Dame might
not have the stiffest defense
around, but it should be even
better than it was last year
when it didn't receive enough
recognition or credit in the
nightmarish campaign. There's no
Aztec running game to worry
about.
Who to watch: It's all
about the Notre Dame offensive
line. The problems last year
stemmed from a lack of pass
protection. Brady Quinn was able
to handle the pressure two years
ago with his quick decision
making ability and good skill
players around him, but Jimmy
Clausen struggled when he didn't
have time to work. The Irish
front five has to be
night-and-day better or the
overall offensive production
won't dramatically improve. San
Diego State came up with three
sacks and five tackles for loss
last week.
What will happen: San Diego
State QB Ryan Lindley will have
his second straight 300-yard
passing day, but it won't be
nearly enough. Notre Dame will
rely on the running game early
on, while the defense will come
up with at least three takeaways
with one of them returned for a
touchdown.
CFN Prediction: Notre
Dame 37 ... San Diego State 14
... Line: Notre Dame -21
Must See Rating: (5
Entourage premiere -
1 One Tree Hill premiere)
… 2
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Click here to receive ATS
Consultants FREE selections
Air Force (1-0) at Wyoming (1-0),
3:30 EST CSTV
Why to watch: While it's
a stretch to call this an
elimination game in the Mountain
West race considering it's the
opener, the loser will hav a
huge hole to dig out of with all
the big boys left on the slate.
Air Force is trying to make
itself into one of the
conference's stars, but it has a
ton of rebuilding and reloading
to do. A 41-7 opening day win
over Southern Utah was nice, but
now the real work begins in a
beartrap of a road trip. Wyoming
is always a different animal at
home, and while the week one win
over Ohio wasn't a work of art,
the 21-20 victory was a decent
start. The BYU game is up in two
weeks, so the team needs to
sharpen up now.
Why Air Force might win:
The Wyoming offense struggled to
get anyting going against a
good, but not great Ohio
defense. The Air Force defense
isn't a killer, but it's good
enough to keep a middling Cowboy
attack under wraps. UW is trying
to find a steady passing game,
and this likely won't be the
week it comes through.
Why Wyoming might
win: The Wyoming run defense
was a brick wall against an Ohio
team that's been great under
head coach Frank Solich at
pounding the ball. The Bobcats
only came up with 39 yards
rushing, and considering Air
Force is all about moving the
ball on the ground, it's
strength on strength. The Cowboy
defensive line should grow into
one of the best in the Mountain
West
Who to watch: Air Force
still isn't without its
potential main weapon. RB/WR Ty
Paffett is out again as he's
still trying to get back and
healthy from a back injury,
while QB Eric Herbort is still
out of action working on his
studies. Once again, it'll be
senior Shea Smith running the
attack after completing 8-of-12
passes for 75 yards and a
touchdown, and he ran 16 times
for 91 yards and a score.
What will happen: Wyoming
won't be pretty and it won't
come up with any long, drawn out
drives, but it'll force a few
key Air Force turnovers and will
do just enough with the running
game to eeke out a tough win.
CFN Prediction: Wyomign
27 ... Air Force 23 ...
Line: Wyoming -3
Must See Rating:
(5 Entourage premiere - 1
One Tree Hill premiere) …
2
-
Click here to receive ATS Consultants
FREE selections
Texas A&M (0-1) at New Mexico
(0-1),
5:00 EST
Why to watch: While
Virginia Tech and Pitt are among
those battling it out for the
honor of being the biggest
disappointment of week one, but
under the radar, Texas A&M and
New Mexico came up with duds of
their own. The Aggies, in the
first game of the Mike Sherman
era, not only lost, but they
lost to a Sun Belt team at home
dropping a tough 18-14 battle
with Arkansas State. New Mexico
at least lost to a Mountain West
title contender and a potential
BCS buster in TCU, but the 26-3
home defeat was still a major
dud. All of a sudden, what
appeared to be a nice matchup
between two decent mid-level
teams in their respective
conferences becomes a battle of
desperation. New Mexico hosts
Arizona next week to end a
three-game homestand, and then
it's on the road for three of
the next four game. A&M gets an
improved Miami next week and
might be looking at an 0-3 start
if they crash and burn in
Albuquerque.
Why Texas A&M might win:
New Mexico is built on being
able to run the ball, and it ran
into a brick wall last week
netting 56 yards against TCU.
While Rodney Ferguson is one of
the Mountain West's elite backs,
he was held to 59 yards, while
the Lobo offensive line allowed
five sacks. The Texas A&M
defensive line was able to get
into the backfield against
Arkansas State, and it should be
able to do even more this week.
Why New Mexico might
win: Turnovers. A&M shot
itself in the foot last week
with two fumbles and two
interceptions, and while the
Lobos also had a hard time
hanging on to the ball, giving
it away three times against TCU,
they have good enough hitters to
force a few takeaways if the
Aggies get sloppy again. The
Aggies might want to get the
passing game going, but UNM has
the best corner tandem in Glover
Quin and DeAndre Wright that QB
Stephen McGee might see all year
long.
Who to watch: New Mexico
QB Donovan Porterie is supposed
to be on the verge of becoming
one of the Mountain West's elite
quarterbacks after two promising
seasons, but he had a nightmare
of an opening day completing
4-of-10 passes for 37 yards with
an interception before getting
knocked out with a neck injury,
but he's fine and practiced all
week. The offense will still try
to revolve around Ferguson and
the running game, but Porterie
simply has to be better.
What will happen: It's
not going to be pretty. The two
running games should finally get
going a bit for New Mexico,
while the secondary will keep
the Aggie passing game under
wraps. Which team will rebound
first? New Mexico, but if the
Aggie running game gets into a
groove and rumbles for 250 yards
or more, Sherman will get his
first win.
CFN Prediction: New
Mexico 23 ... Texas A&M 20 ...
Line: Texas A&M -3
Must See Rating:
(5 Entourage premiere - 1
One Tree Hill premiere) …
3
-
Click here to receive ATS Consultants
FREE selections
Stephen F. Austin (1-0) at TCU
(1-0),
7:00 EST
Why to watch: TCU made a
major statement in the Mountain
West race with an opening day
26-3 win over New Mexico that
was even more dominant than the
final score. The Horned Frogs
stuffed the Lobo running game
while doing just enough
offensively to get by, and while
BYU and Utah are getting all the
conference love, this was a
statement to show that there's
another team to consider in the
hunt. Considering Stanford's
resurgence, next week's date
with the Cardinal isn't the
layup originally expected, but
the schedule is light enough to
hope for a 4-0 start before
going to Oklahoma. Stephen F.
Austin kicked off its season
with a 56-19 win over Langston,
however, this should be the
worst team in the Southland
Conference. This shouldn't be
pretty.
Why Stephen F. Austin might win:
SFA spreads it out and chucks it
around, and while this isn't
exactly Texas Tech or Hawaii,
the passing game has the
potential to be relatively
effective. If put up 285 yards
last week and was tremendously
efficient, and while there isn't
enough in the bag
Why TCU might win: TCU
destroyed the New Mexico passing
game and it should be able to
get into the backfield early and
often enough to keep the SFA
passing game in check. The
Lumberjacks only ran for 19
yards; there's nothing to fall
back on once the TCU defense
becomes a brick wall against the
passing game.
Who to watch: TCU came up
with five sacks and ten tackles
for loss in the win over New
Mexico while limiting Lobo
quarterbacks to a 7-of-24,
130-yard, two interception day.
It was a combined effort with
Matt Panfil coming up with a
huge day getting to the
quarterback. The Horned Frog
defensive front should be
dominant.
What will happen: TCU
will keep the Lumberjacks to
under 200 yards of total offense
in an easy rout.
CFN Prediction: TCU 48
... Stephen F. Austin 0 ...
Line: No Line
Must See Rating: (5
Entourage premiere -
1 One Tree Hill premiere)
… 1
-
Click here to receive ATS
Consultants FREE selections
UNLV (1-0) at Utah (1-0),
8:00 EST
Why to watch: Now Utah is
on the map. Yeah, many out there
(including us) had the Utes
beating Michigan, but it wasn't
a strong pick because no one
really knew what the Wolverines
were going to bring. Utah came
out of the Big House with a
25-23 win that should've been
far easier than it was
considering several drives
resulted in field goals instead
of touchdowns. Now Utah gets
into the BCS buster talk and has
the national ranking, and while
it might be tempting to think
UNLV would be a team to look
past after such a big win, think
again. The Rebels won just two
games last year. One was a win
over Utah State, the other 27-0
pasting of the Utes. Can history
repeat itself? UNLV started off
the year with a 27-17 win over
Utah State, but the Mike Sanford
era might be able to turn a
corner if his team can go into
Salt Lake City and come away
with a win in the Mountain West
opener.
Why UNLV might win: As
much as Utah might be saying all
the right things about being
fired up for this game after
what happened last year, there's
bound to be a bit of a letdown
problem after all the hype and
excitement about the Michigan
win. The Rebels might have
finally found their right
combination of players with Omar
Clayton now firmly entrenched as
the starting quarterback and
with a good group of skill
players around him. In other
words, this is an experienced,
decent offense that could give
the Utes problems.
Why Utah might win: The
lines. The stunning aspect of
the win over Michigan was the
way the Utah lines handled the
Wolverines throughout the game.
The run defense stuffed the
Michigan ground game, and the
offensive line held its own,
even if there were a few
problems in pass protection.
UNLV's lines are nothing
special; Utah should be able to
outphysical the Rebels up front.
Who to watch: Is Clayton
really ready to become a
Mountain West spread star? He
completed 17-of-29 passes for 192
yards and three touchdowns in the win over Utah State and didn't make many
mistakes. Utah QB Brian Johnson
is one of the best in the
league, a veteran who has seen
it all and is doing it all.
Clayton has to be a good
counterpart.
What will happen: UNLV
will play well and make this a
battle for three quarters, and
then the Utah offensive line
will dominate in the fourth.
CFN Prediction: Utah 31
... UNLV 17 ... Line: Utah -21.5
Must See Rating: (5
Entourage premiere -
1 One Tree Hill premiere)
… 3
-
Click here to receive ATS
Consultants FREE selections |