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Utah State (0-1) at
Wyoming (1-0)
2:00 PM
Why to watch: All of a
sudden, Wyoming went from an
afterthought in the upcoming
Mountain West race to a possible
contender after wiping away
Virginia 23-3. The Cowboys
showed good offensive balance,
tremendous defense, and good
special teams in a near-perfect
win over a name team. Road trips
to Boise State and Ohio are up
next before the Mountain West
opener against TCU. The Cowboys
need to keep improving before
the Horned Frogs come to town.
Utah State has lost seven in a
row and 12 of its last 13, but
it played relatively well, at
least defensively, in a 23-16
loss to UNLV last week. With
Oklahoma up next, the Aggies
need a positive performance to
avoid a brutal start to the
year.
Why Utah State might win:
Kevin Robinson. For Utah State
to pull off a shocking upset, it
needs help from everywhere
possible. Robinson is one of the
team's best all-around
playmakers as the top receiver,
but his real worth could be as a
kick and punt returners. He gave
the Rebels fits last week
averaging 23.5 yards per punt
return and almost 28 yards per
kickoff return, and he's going
to have to give the anemic
attack great field position time
and again for this to be close.
Why Wyoming might win:
Virginia relied on a mobile
quarterback and a slew of
running backs to try to beat
Wyoming. Utah State will rely on
a mobile quarterback and a slew
of running backs to try to beat
the Cowboys. USU starting QB
Leon Jackson isn't Jameel
Sewell, Virginia's starting
quarterback, and the Aggie
runners aren't nearly as strong
as Virginia's. If Wyoming could
hold Virginia to seven net yards
rushing, it should be able to
shut down USU.
Who to watch: Wyoming's
thunder and lightning tandem of
running backs worked together
perfectly against the Cavaliers.
Powerback Wynel Seldon ran for
74 yards, while speedster Devin
Moore tore off 125 yards
and a touchdown on just 18
carries. QB Karsten Sween is a
talent, but the more work done
by the running backs over the
next several games, the better.
What will happen: Wyoming
isn't going to let down now. A
tough team at home, the Virginia
win will only fire everyone up,
led by a defense that'll keep
Utah State from getting anything
going until garbage time.
CFN Prediction:
Wyoming
34 ... Utah State 6... Line:
Wyoming -24.5
Must See Rating: (5
Mad Men - 1 Chelsea
Lately) ... 1.5
Final Score:
Fresno State
(1-0)
at Texas A&M
(1-0) 3:30
PM
Why to Watch: O.K.
Fresno State, you want to get
back on the national map, right?
It's time to actually beat
someone. It's been six years
since the David Carr run that
brought wins over Colorado and
overrated Oregon State and
Wisconsin teams, and since then,
the program has failed to unseat
Boise State as the WAC's bright
light and can claim to coming
close to beating USC in 2005.
After a disastrous 2006, and a
lackluster 24-3 win over
Sacramento State to start 2007,
the Bulldogs need to do
something splashy. Texas A&M was
equally average in a
go-through-the-motions 38-7 win
over Montana State, and can't
take a rest of it'll get tagged.
There are still plenty of things
to work on, like ...
Why Fresno State Might Win: ...
pass defense. Of sure, Montana
State had to throw after getting
down, but it was still a ball
game going into the fourth
quarter. The Bobcats had little
problems moving the ball, and
had particular success through
the air. A&M's secondary isn't
going to be tested next week by
UL Monroe, so this game will be
the best early indicator of
where the defense is at. If Tom
Brandstater and the FSU passing
game can merely be efficient,
the Bulldogs will have shot.
Why Texas A&M Might Win: The
Bulldogs were sloppy in week one
with three fumbles. If A&M is +2
in turnover margin, this won't
just be an Aggie win; it'll be a
blowout. The Fresno State
defensive front is fine, but
it's nothing special, and it
should have problems, like
everyone does, with the
combination of talents in the
Aggie backfield. As long as QB
Stephen McGee isn't making
mistakes, and as long as Mike
Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane do
what they do, FSU won't have
much of an answer.
Who to Watch: A&M isn't the only
team with options for the
running game. True freshman Ryan
Mathews had a nice first game
for the Bulldogs with 77 yards
on 11 carries, while Lonyae
Miller, Anthony Harding and
Clifton Smith combined for 147
yards and two touchdowns. Fresno
State will try to connect on
several deep passes, but to beat
the Aggies, it has to beat them
at their own game and control
the clock on the ground. FSU has
to win the time of possession
battle.
What Will Happen: Fresno State
will prove to be tougher than
the Aggies might like. This
isn't going to be a shootout of
any kind in a grind-it-out
battle, but in the end, McGee
will outplay Brandstater just
enough for A&M to put it away
late.
CFN Prediction: Texas A&M 31 ...
Fresno
State 20..
Line:
Texas A&M -17
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men
- 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 2.5
Final Score:
New Mexico State (1-0) at New
Mexico (0-1)
9:30 PM
Why to watch: New Mexico
has won the last four in the
in-state rivalry, but New Mexico
State started to close the gap
last year in a tight 34-28 loss,
and now the Aggies are hoping
this is the season when things
change for good. Hal Mumme's
high-octane offense didn't
exactly explode as expected
against SE Louisiana last week,
"only" cranking out 442 yards,
but it showed more balance than
it has since the attack shifted
styles. A win over the Lobos
would mark the program's first
four-game winning streak since
2002, while New Mexico needs the
win before making the trip to
deal with Arizona. After losing
a tough, ugly 10-6 game to UTEP,
the Lobos can't afford a loss if
they have any real dreams of
going bowling.
Why New Mexico State might
win:
Does UNM have the firepower to
keep up if the Aggies go on a
run? Well, yes, but it's hit or
miss if all the parts are
working. Nothing clicked against
UTEP as the Lobos couldn't
generate any consistent offense
against a mediocre Miner
defense. While the Aggies aren't
going to stop anyone cold, they
had a nice first game with a
more aggressive style that got
into the backfield early and
often. At the moment, New Mexico
needs time for all the good
skill players to produce, and
NMSU might not provide it.
Why New Mexico might win:
With a strong secondary, a
decent pass rush, a pounding
running game, and big, fast
receivers, the Lobos have an
almost perfect combination of
strengths for a team like NMSU.
The Aggie offense is all about
controlling the tempo, but if
Rodney Ferguson and Donovan
Porterie are cranking out long
drives behind the big offensive
line, NMSU might have a hard
time establishing a rhythm.
Who to watch: All eyes
are on NMSU QB Chase Holbrook to
see if he can bounce back from a
mediocre outing. Yes, the Aggies
won with ease, and yes, Holbrook
threw four touchdown passes, but
he also threw four
interceptions. The running game
that was established last week
won't necessarily be there this
time around, so if Holbrook
isn't smoking, New Mexico might
have an easy win.
What will happen: New
Mexico's defense will force four
turnovers, and the the offense
will break out of its funk to do
just enough to overcome a late
Aggie rally. NMSU will have its
chances to pull it off late, and
will come up just short.
CFN Prediction:
New Mexico 31 ...
New Mexico State
27 ... Line: New Mexico
-10.5
Must See Rating: (5
Mad Men - 1 Chelsea
Lately) ... 2.5
Final Score:
San Jose State
(0-1) at Kansas State (0-1)
7:00 PM
Why to Watch: Kansas
State might have lost last week
to Auburn, and it might have
lost by blowing it late (helped
by forgetting to block Tiger DE
Quentin Groves), but it also
gained a measure of respect. The
young team went into one of
college football's nastiest
environments and almost pulled
out a win. A more experienced
team wins that game, and the
loss will likely be seen someday
as a step back to take a giant
leap forward. San Jose State
came into the year hoping to
build on a hot 2006, and then
went out and got blasted 45-3 by
Arizona State. The Spartans
didn't do much of anything
right, looking like the Spartans
of old, and they must quickly
come up with a good performance
or it might take a while to get
the mojo back.
Why San Jose State Might Win: While
it wasn't evident in the loss to
the Sun Devils, San Jose State
can play a little defense. The
Kansas State offense is going to
be hit-or-miss all year long.
Get QB Josh Freeman when he's
off, and you have a chance to
play a Wildcat team without an
offense. The Spartans have to
find a way to get into the
backfield and put continuous
pressure on No. 1, who says he's
fine, but suffered an ankle
injury against Auburn. Not
giving up anything deep is a
must. Freeman threw for 268
yards against the Tigers, but he
did it on 57 passes.
Why Kansas State Might Win: If
the defense plays like it did
last week, and if the San Jose
State offensive line plays like
it did last week, this will be a
brutally ugly blowout. The
Spartans failed to give QB Adam
Tafralis any time to work, and
did absolutely nothing for the
running game. Kansas State's
defensive front did a terrific
job of shutting down the Tiger
running game and didn't have
problems against the pass until
crunch time. San Jose State
isn't Auburn.
Who to Watch: While Auburn's
defense is gong to shut down
most running games, netting 27
rushing yards is still
unacceptable. The Wildcats all
but gave up on handing the ball
off, putting the entire game in
Freeman's hands. While it almost
worked, to have any hope of
winning much in the Big 12, the
ground game has to help the
cause. Leon Patton gained just
two yards on three carries,
while James Johnson led the team
with 14 yards on seven carries.
If they don't produce this week,
it'll be time for KSU to worry.
What Will Happen: San Jose
State's defense will play
night-and-day better than it did
last week, and it won't matter,
The running game will be MIA for
the second week in a row, and
KSU will come up with at least
three picks to make a close
first half game a runaway in the
second half.
CFN Prediction:
Kansas
State 27 ... San Jose
State 10...
Line:
Kansas State -16.5
Must See Rating: (5 Mad Men
- 1
Chelsea Lately)
... 1
Final Score:
WAC Week Two Fearless Predictions, Part
1
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