Wednesday, Dec. 26 - Motor City Bowl

Purdue vs. Central Michigan

This game is a pretty easy one to pick given what happened Sept. 15 in West Lafayette when the Boilermakers hung 24 points on the defending MAC champion Chippewas in the first quarter on way en route to a 45-22 win. Still, looking at the stats from that game, Purdue still gave up 364 yards through the air to Dan LeFevour but limited the Central Michigan ground game to just 101 yards rushing. While on paper this is the same Purdue team, psychologically this could be a program in crisis. After losing the Old Oaken Bucket at the last second at Purdue, many Purdue fans have grown frustrated with starting QB Curtis Painter, play-calling and Joe Tiller’s subpar record in big games in recent years. Compound that with the late night arrest and dismissal of starting wide receiver Selwyn Lymon from the team after a second arrest this season and you have a team poised for an upset. If Central Michigan can run the ball more effectively and force turnovers (as they did in that early season loss, forcing four fumbles), Central Michigan could win this game. Given the margin of victory in their last match-up, I just can’t take the Chippewas in good conscious. I’ll take Purdue but by a much closer margin. As an IU grad, I won’t be at all disappointed if I’m wrong on this one.

Thursday, Dec. 27 - Pacific Life Holiday Bowl

Texas vs. Arizona State

For the past three or so years, the Holiday Bowl has been one of my favorites and it’s because it has had match-ups like the one it has this year. Dennis Erickson, Rudy Carpenter and the upstart Arizona State Sun Devils face off against the somewhat underachieving Texas Longhorns in this year’s Holiday Bowl. Texas came into this year poised to be one of the Big 12’s best and a contender for a National Championship, with Colt McCoy coming back for his second year in Austin. What followed was a series of missteps and near follies against Central Florida and TCU and the season was downhill from there, including losses to rivals Texas A&M and Oklahoma. Looking at Erickson’s Sun Devils, I am really unmoved by their schedule, particularly their inability to beat Oregon, with a healthy Dennis Dixon and USC, who blew out the Sun Devils at home on Thanksgiving. To win the game, Texas must control the line of scrimmage and get the ball in the hands of tailback Jamaal Charles, which will be easier said than done given that ASU is giving up a paltry 100 yards a game on the ground. For ASU, Rudy Carpenter will look to exploit a Texas secondary that has struggled against the pass all year, finishing second to last in the Big 12 in pass defense. I look for them to do just that, I’m taking Arizona State.

Friday, Dec. 28 - Champs Sports Bowl

Michigan State vs. Boston College

The Big Ten’s top scoring offense against the ACC’s top scoring offense. It should be no surprise to anyone that Boston College has one of the most explosive and efficient offenses in America, led by first round lock Matt Ryan at quarterback but Mark Dantoni’s Spartans have been flying under the radar and can put points on the board as well. This game is sure to be fought and won in the trenches for Michigan State. If they can control the line of scrimmage and get the ball to Javon Ringer early and often, they have a chance against the Eagles who, just last week were competing for the ACC title and a trip to a BCS bowl. Still, BC would be wise not to overlook the Spartan passing attack, junior quarterback Brian Hoyer has been finding wideout Devin Thomas in the end zone all year long (Thomas led the Big Ten in receiving yards and finished second in receptions). BC is going to score points on offense as they’ve done all year but the ability of the Michigan State offense to match them score-for-score will be huge if they intend to stay in this game. Dantoni’s Spartans are a much better team than their 7-5 record would indicate but I’ll take Boston College.

So far, I am batting two-for-two on my picks today. Central Florida and Central Michigan both won pretty big but my loyalty to Boston College may cost me as Sean Glennon just threw a touchdown pass to put the Hokies on top with about seven minutes left in the game. We will see if Matt Ryan can break Hokie hearts two times in a single season.

Tennessee just scored quickly while sporting what I can only describe as dreamsicle-colored uniforms.

UPDATE - 3:34 Lightning will not strike twice for Boston College as Matt Ryan throws a heartbreaking interception deep in Virginia Tech territory with two minutes left. The Eagles got the ball back with 30 seconds left but Xavier Adibi picked off a batted ball and took it to the house for six. The Bottom Line on Championship Saturday, 2-1.

UPDATE - 6:41 Well I could be wrong but LSU looks like they have survived a pre-game full of rumors that their coach is leaving to win the SEC Championship. I wonder where, in the spectrum of hated athletes at Tennessee, Erik Ainge falls after basically losing the ballgame for the Vols tonight. Twice, Ainge failed to read the defenders before throwing the ball and twice the Tigers defense made him pay. For me, this loss goes back to what I believed early this season about Tennessee – they have absolutely zero big play possibilities on that offense, opting instead to nickel and dime their way down the field and tonight two of those plays really cost them the conference championship. Ainge just has to see Daryl Beckwith underneath on that last interception. That turnover is inexcusable. The Bottom Line on Championship Saturday, 3-1.

UPDATE - 7:45 If you like two teams just blowing each other up, I hope you are watching the Big 12 Championship right now. Missouri and Oklahoma have been trading blows for most of the first quarter and the winner of this game could turn out to be the team with the most starters still conscious. I like the way Oklahoma is playing on defense. Nothing that Missouri has tried on offense so far has been even remotely successful. We could be in for a good one. Oh and for the record, Missouri wide receiver Jeremy Maclin is as fast as any player I have seen this year. He is so explosive. If Mizzou wins this game, it will be on the legs of Jeremy Maclin.

UPDATE - 8:16 Oklahoma just came up huge on third and goal from the 2 and forced another Missouri field goal. Mizzou has gotten some questionable pass interference calls on third down on two scoring drive so far and this game really reinforces my belief that I could never be a head coach. When a referee throws a flag for defense pass interference well after the play (as was the case on both of those pass interference calls), I would likely strike said referee with the nearest blunt object. Apparently, this is not acceptable in the coaching profession, something about assault with a deadly weapon makes some athletic departments squeamish.

UPDATE - 8:22 Is it just me or does Missouri quarterback Chase Daniel look like Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger after a horrible beekeeping accident?

UPDATE - 9:44 Pitt has West Virginia on the ropes but the officials appear to be keeping West Virginia in the game. Two bad holding calls and a no-call on obvious pass interference call has Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt fuming. Pitt has outplayed West Virginia the game and it would be a shame to see them robbed of the upset because of poor officiating but so far that appears to be the case. Elsewhere, Oklahoma scored a big touchdown to take the lead again against Missouri.

UPDATE - 9:51 All Pitt needs is a first down to pull off an enormous upset after Pat White soars the ball over the head of his receiver on 4th and long. The officials continue to be atrocious after flagging a Pitt corner for unnecessary celebration for doing absolutely nothing. ESPN announcer Mike Patrick accurately said the officials were sucking the joy out of the game. Oklahoma goes up 14 after an interception by Oklahoma linebacker Curtis Lofton lead to a Sam Bradford touchdown pass. Chase Daniel is really beginning to show his frustration. I think the BCS may need to find two new teams for its championship when the night is over.

UPDATE - 9:56 See ya, West Virginia. Pitt has done it and the Mountaineers are out of the national championship after dropping to the Panthers, a 28-point underdog, at home.

UPDATE - 10:45 Adios, Mizzou. What Oklahoma proved tonight was that Missouri was a complete fraud as the number 1 team in the country and  that Chase Daniel never belonged in the Heisman conversation with McFadden and Tebow (I would argue that McFadden does not belong in that conversation either). Oklahoma hit him early and often and Daniel folded like a cheap card table. I will give Daniel a pass on the game-changing interception, he did throw behind tight end Martin Rucker but it is hard to blame a quarterback for an interception off a deflected pass. So where does that leave us now? Presumably, Ohio State is in but who is number 2? Is it Georgia? Is it the famous undefeated-in-regulation Tigers of Louisiana State? Is it the recently resurgent Trojans? I have no idea. My hunch is that we will see Georgia in there, given that they are number four in the BCS standings at this moment but with this system, it is anyone’s guess. I will agree with Kirk Herbstreit when he said that its a shame that Mizzou will not get into a BCS bowl and Kansas will given that the Jayhawks never had to play Oklahoma. I hope that Kansas and Hawaii get put in the same bowl so I can completely avoid having to watch both teams altogether. If all of the great games today are proof of anything, it is that nothing — and I mean nothing NFL execs — beats college football.

In honor of this weekend of weekends, where it appears the stars have aligned and I will not be leaving my couch at all Saturday, I’ve decided to pick all of this weekend’s conference championship games.

MAC CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIP - Miami (OH) at Central Michigan - 12:00

I’ll take the defending MAC Champion Chippewas and QB Dan LeFevour in this one. LeFevour recently won the MAC Offensive Player of the Year award after setting school records for completions, attempts, yards and total offense this season. Still, the game could be interested. Miami of Ohio does possess the conference’s best passing defense, best rushing and scoring defense. The question will be if the Redhawk offense, which ranks 10th in the conference in scoring, can put points on the board. I’ll take CMU.

CONFERENCE USA CHAMPIONSHIP : TULSA AT UCF - 12:00 P.M.

Tulsa has one of the best offenses in the country and UCF has one of the best running backs in America. I’ll take UCF in this one for any number of reasons, not the first of which is that my girlfriend is a Knight. The game is being played in Orlando, at their new Bright House Networks Stadium on campus so for that reason alone, I’ve gotta go with George O’ Leary’s squad. Not to mention that last week, Tulsa gave up over 700 yards of total offense, 541 threw the air. This could be a shoot out and is definitely worth your time. I’ll take the formerly Golden Knights of Central Florida.

ACC Championship - Virginia Tech at Boston College - 1:00 p.m.

I’ve been on the BC bandwagon and I don’t intend to get off despite that they face off against a much better Virginia Tech team than the one the Eagles beat earlier this year in Blacksburg. I think the game will ultimately come down to how well Tyrod Taylor/Sean Glennon is able to lead the Virginia Tech offense against an underrated and fast Boston College defense. If VT is able to move the ball effectively, it could be lights out for BC’s BCS dreams but I don’t anticipate that being the case. I’ll take the Eagles in a close one.

SEC Championship - Tennessee at LSU - 4:00 p.m.

In what could be Les Miles’ last SEC game as the head coach of LSU, I’ll take the Bayou Bengals coming off a heartbreaker last week against Arkansas. Tennessee has been one of the most hideously inconsistent teams in the SEC and I don’t think that the UT offense has what it takes to hang with the hard-hitting, lightning-quick LSU defense. LSU had better get creative on offense and not rely on the Hester up the middle, Keiland Williams to the outside, Matt Flynn on QB Draw that we’ve seen too many times this year. They need to spread the field and keep the ball away from Tennessee freshman cornerback Eric Berry who makes his Atlanta homecoming Saturday. I’ll take LSU by at least 10. The Tigers are just thankful they’re not playing Georgia.

Big 12 Championship - Missouri at Oklahoma - 8:00 p.m.

There’s an awful lot riding on this game for Missouri. For Mizzou QB Chase Daniel, it’s his chance to snatch the Heisman Trophy away from Tim Tebow, who’s been sizing up a place on his mantel for it for weeks. A great performance in a win against Oklahoma and the award for the nation’s best college football player is his. Bigger than that is that Missouri is playing for the national championship Saturday night. Beat Oklahoma and they’re in. I was asked earlier today by our publisher who I liked in this one. I explained that I would have taken Oklahoma had it not been for the announcement earlier this week that Sooner running back DeMarco Murray is done for the year with a dislocated kneecaps. Murray was the team’s most consistent running back and best offensive player, save wideout Malcolm Kelly. The key for Oklahoma will be forcing turnovers and getting on top early. If Mizzou gets in an early hole, maybe 10 or 14 points, I’m not sure they can come back from that against a pretty tough Oklahoma defense. Sam Bradford’s performance is huge for the Sooners. If he gets careless and starts throwing Favre-ian interceptions, it’s over for Oklahoma and we are looking at a Missouri-West Virginia National Championship. I am going to take a flyer on Bob Stoops and the upset-minded Sooners.

Sorry, Andre Woodson. Enjoy the NFL next year, Darren McFadden. There’s always next time, Tim Tebow. This year’s Heisman is going to Boston College’s Matt Ryan.

Simply put, Ryan is filthy, clutch and money. If you caught any of that drizzly, ugly BC/Virginia Tech game last night, you probably didn’t miss much. But if the bit you caught was the final 2:11 minutes of the game, you know the part where Ryan led his offense, an offense with a line that couldn’t protect him all night and receivers that allowed themselves to be swallowed up by VT’s defensive backs (and occasionally linebackers), down the field twice on scoring drives, then you saw Ryan win the Heisman. Going on the road to hostile environments and winning big games is what great players do and while those of us who knew Matt Ryan was great weren’t surprised by what we saw last night, many of us didn’t know whether or not he had “it.” Well, as last night’s game indicates, the Boston College senior has “it” in bunches.

How else do you explain going 9-for-15 with two touchdowns on in the final two minutes and change of the game, including throwing the game winning touchdown with 11 seconds left? I’m not convinced that BC won’t lose a game this season but the win Thursday night is validation that the road to the ACC Championship certainly runs through Chestnut Hill.

Upsets are fun to watch but are absolutely brutal on my college football picks and subsequent winning percentage. There were some upsets that surprised me over the weekend (Auburn, Iowa) and some that didn’t (Kentucky, UCLA). A little bit on UCLA before the notes. Why was this team ranked in the top 15 to begin with? Make no mistake, the Bruins appearance towards the top of the polls was undeserved and based solely on their win against a sleeping USC team in the last week of the regular season. I, like everyone, was surprised that Utah came out and had the offense day they had after they struggled to score points against Oregon State and Air Force. UCLA still has the potential to be a dangerous team but their loss to the Utes in Salt Lake City shouldn’t have been all that surprising.

Game of the Week - Tennessee at Florida

No big plays. When I think about this game and why Tennessee lost, in deciding fashion, to the Gators in 2007, those three words will ultimately come to mind. I’ve watched the Vols play twice this year and twice they’ve lost for the same reason. Against a team with superior speed and athleticism on defense, they’ve tried to quick slant, bubble screen and 5-yard comeback route their way to victory. And twice they’ve gotten absolutely destroyed. In the first half Tennessee was plagued by a chronic inability to finish drives and put points on the board. On one such drive with 10 minutes to go in the second quarter, Florida countered with two touchdown drives of their own. Finally, the UT offense showed a sense of urgency, like they emerged from their coma and realized that they were down 28-6 and were able to punch in a score at the end of the first half. The second half began promising enough for the Vols after true freshman Eric Berry picked off a pass and took it to the house for six. I’ll say this about Tim Tebow, he’s a heck of an athlete but a terrible open field tackler. He just totally whiffed on Berry. And then there was the fumble. I wonder at what point you have to sit Erik Ainge because he can’t make the exchange to the team’s tailbacks. You can’t have a quarterback that can’t hand the ball off. It’s really that simple. To have Ainge backhanding exchanges is unacceptable and in this case, costs Tennessee the game. I think there is a growing fissure on the Volunteers between the offense and the defense. After Ainge throws that ball into Arian Foster’s chest, the defense appeared to be just demoralized and realized that no matter what they did unless Eric Berry picked the ball off and took it the distance four more times, there was nothing they could if the offense wasn’t going to put up points. But the story of the game for me was Florida’s ability to make big plays. Just to paint the picture for you, Florida was average more than 8 yards per offensive play and more than 21 yards per reception. I am not yet ready to put Florida in the top 3 with Oklahoma, LSU and USC but the Oct. 3 matchup between the Gators and Tigers in Baton Rouge promises to be epic but I think the development of Riley Cooper and Louis Murphy as legitimate scoring threats alongside Tebow and Percy Harvin is a scary proposition for the SEC and the rest of college football. For Tennessee, there were just too many blown opportunities and missed chances. The real low point in an otherwise pretty entertaining game for me was the mind-numbing interview with that balding midget Kenny Chesney and his cheesy, fratty faded Red Sox hat. A die hard Red Sox fan from Tennessee? Take a trip to Southie and see how that works out. And while we’re on the subject, can we vote to do away, once and for all, with the celebrity fan interview and cameo and the girlfriend/father/mother/brother/cousin cam?

Overrated win of the week: Alabama

For the true Alabama football fan, not the starved-for-recognition-and-for-God’s-sake-a-win-against-Auburn Alabama football fan, you have to know that you didn’t deserve that one. If you need two questionable pass interference calls on the final drive at the end of a game at home to win, that win has to feel a little hollow. Let’s be honest for a second Tide fans. Well if we’re really being honest, those Houndstooth baseball caps are just horrifyingly tacky and secondly, if this game were being played in Fayetteville instead of Tuscaloosa, you probably don’t get one or both of those calls. At the beginning of that game, there was a lot to feel good about if you’re an Alabama fan. The defense created turnovers, the normally deer-in-headlights John Parker Wilson looked good in the pocket and picked apart a ghastly Arkansas secondary. But then there’s that second half. You know, the whole blowing a 21-point-lead in the second half at home thing. Against a better team, a team who’s best player (who also happens to be a Heisman Trophy candidate) isn’t on the sideline cramping, you get beat and beat soundly when you give up that kind of a lead. No doubt the win against Arkansas is the first significant win of the Saban-era Tide but this isn’t the signature win this program needs to return to its former glory. My hats off to Houston Nutt and the Razorbacks for not giving up when everyone, myself included, thought they were destined for a blowout.

Best Win of the Week: Kentucky

This upset really wasn’t a surprise to anyone who knows anything about college football. Rich Brooks has this program on the way up and given that Andre Woodson, the SEC’s best quarterback, has an array of weapons including Jacob Tamme, Rafael Little and Keenan Burton to throw to, you knew the Cardinals were in for it at Commonwealth Stadium Saturday night in Lexington. In addition to proving that last year’s 8-4 record wasn’t a fluke for Brooks and Kentucky, the win against the number 9-ranked Cards proves that the Big East really is a laughably weak football conference. When your best (or second best, let’s not split hairs) team is getting beat by the 6th or 7th best team in the SEC, you have no claim to the national championship as a conference. The Big East is continuing its tradition as a second-rate Thursday night football conference.

Win of Affirmation: USC

Saturday night confirmed what many of us already knew: USC is a pretty good football team. There were moments during Saturday’s game in Lincoln against the Huskers that USC looked a little sloppy, played a little undisciplined and John David Booty proved that he is not the Heisman trophy winner, playing more like a game manager than a game changer. But USC is still really good. Nothing that Nebraska tried on offense was the least bit successful and there was nothing the Blackshirts could do to prevent Stefon Johnson (who looked like LenDale White only skinnier and faster) and C.J. Gable from running all over them. You’re not going to beat too many Div. 1-A teams giving up 313 yards on the ground and over 8 yards a carry. Nebraska, meanwhile, will likely win the Big 12 North by default but will get absolutely annihilated by Oklahoma, who has one of college football’s most exciting young tailbacks in Demarco Murray, in the Big 12 Championship. I will say that Sam Keller’s demeanor during the game was impressive to me. He never seemed to get too up or too down but I don’t think he ever recovered from the first interception he threw. I am not convinced that during the course of a game Keller can keep things from going from bad to worse. Many across the country, particularly in the South, were looking for a reason to vault LSU up to that top spot but the Trojans proved that they were worthy of all the preseason hype by beating Nebraska in convincing fashion.

Team I will never pick against for the rest of the season: Boston College

Make that three ACC wins in three consecutive weeks to open the season for Boston College. Matt Ryan, to put it simply, is the truth. Ryan carved up the much-hyped Georgia Tech defense to the tune of 435 yards on 30 of 44 completions for a touchdown and no interceptions in Atlanta. He seems to be right at home in new head coach Jeff Jagodzinski’s offense and any Heisman conversation that doesn’t include Matt Ryan isn’t a serious one. The Eagle defense stepped up Saturday night as well and held Georgia Tech running back Tashard Choice, who ran all over Notre Dame and Samford, to just 31 yards on 15 carries. Though the game finished 24-10, BC had a 21-0 lead going into the fourth quarter. At this point in the year, Jagodzinski is my pick for coach of the year and his Eagles have to be the favorite to win the watered-down ACC. The rest of the Eagles schedule reads like a Who’s Who of teams that were supposed to be great but for one reason or another are just average after three weeks of play. The Eagles still have to travel to Virginia Tech, to Maryland and to Clemson and must host the Miami and Florida State. I don’t think this time will run the table and go undefeated, there is at least one landmine in there somewhere but winning Saturday in Atlanta against Georgia Tech is a big win for this football team.

Most Disappointing: Auburn

Everyone knew how good USF was and anyone who was surprised that Matt Grothe, Jim Leavitt and the Bulls traveled up to Auburn and beat the Tigers hasn’t been paying attention to the recent rise of that program. But to get beat by the Fighting Crooms the following week at home is unbelievable. Lest we forget that this was a Mississippi State team that tallied a grand total of 41 yards through the air and just over 170 on the ground. How did this happen? Well quarterback play. Or in the case of Auburn bad quarterback play. Brandon Cox got the hook after his first two passes were picked off and his replacement, freshman Kodi Burns, didn’t fair much better and threw an interception of his own. Many believed that this team would only go as far as Brandon Cox could take them and we have found out just how far that is. You can’t turn the ball over 5 times and expect to beat anyone in college football and if Auburn doesn’t learn how to take care of the ball, they could easily fall short of six wins and be home come December. One could argue that this is a Auburn team that could still feasibly upset someone later on in the year but given their turnover problem and now there are issues at quarterback, I just don’t see that happening. This could be the year that Alabama finally bests Auburn.

This is when things start to get really interesting. Week three of the college football season is here and with it come some very interesting non-conference matchups and some early season conference showdowns and rivalry games.

Game of the Week - #22 Tennessee at #5 Florida - 3:30 PM ET - CBS

In conversation, a friend of mine asked me the other day how good Florida really is? I thought for a moment and realized that no one had any idea how good college football’s reigning champions actually were given the opponents they faced in weeks 1 and 2 (Western Kentucky and Troy). We know far more about their opponent this week, Phillip Fulmer, Erik Ainge and the #22 Vols, than we do about the Gators at this point in the year. If I were a Tennessee fan what would concern me most about this game isn’t where it’s being played, playing on the road in the SEC is difficult regardless of whether you’re at Georgia, Florida, Arkansas, Alabama, Auburn.. you get the point. Crowd noise is crowd noise is crowd noise in the SEC. The players should be used to it. What would concern me most is Florida’s speed. The Vols frankly had no match for Cal’s speed in their week 1 drubbing at the hands of the Golden Bears and the Gators are every bit as fast particularly on the outside with Percy Harvin. Thankfully the Gators offense isn’t anywhere near as effective on the ground as California was with Justin Forsett and freshman Jahvid Best and so pressuring Tim Tebow in the pocket and making him as uncomfortable as possible will be huge for John Chavis and this Tennessee defense. This game is the first in a long line of SEC matchups with potential National Championship implications.

O.G.I. - OTHER GAMES OF INTEREST

#1 USC at #14 Nebraska - 8:00 p.m. - ABC

Gameday will be in Lincoln and Husker Nation is frothing at the mouth to get a shot to knock off the nation’s best team. In fact, the nation’s top ranked team has not made an appearance in Lincoln as the visiting team since Oklahoma visited Memorial Stadium in 1978. For many college football fans, this game will be their first exposure to the much-hyped Trojans who played Idaho in week 1 and were idle last week. Many will tune in to see just how good USC is and if they are worthy of the top spot in college football as Oklahoma and USC turn up the heat at the top of the polls. From watching the Nebraska game last week at Wake Forest I can tell you that I don’t think the Huskers are ready to beat USC. Sam Keller who, despite taking an 18-point lead into the locker room against the Bush-Leinart Trojans in 2005, was picked off five times en route to a 28-38 loss will be looking for revenge. And if you’re a Husker fan the idea of Sam Keller trying to be the hero has to scare you to death.

#21 Boston College at #15 Georgia Tech - 7:00 p.m. - ESPN2

Two weeks, two ACC victories and Boston College goes to Atlanta looking for their third against a wildly overrated Georgia Tech team who’s ranking is inflated largely by their 33-3 stomping of an atrociously dreadful Notre Dame team. Nonetheless, Georgia Tech gets a chance to show that last year wasn’t a fluke and they have what it takes to be a powerhouse in the watered-down ACC for the second consecutive year. For Matt Ryan, the game could be a chance to cement his Heisman candidacy after two big games against NC State and Wake Forest. Ditto for GT running back Tashard Choice.

#16 Arkansas at Alabama - 6:45 p.m. - ESPN

This game is a tale of two coaches. Arkansas’ Houston Nutt has found himself firmly on the hot seat after the world’s worst offseason despite coming off an SEC West championship a year ago. Nick Saban on the other hand, after beating Western Carolina and Vanderbilt, finds himself a college football deity in the state of Alabama and a God amongst men with the goofballs and fratboys wearing houndstooth baseball caps demographic. The keys for Saban’s Tide will be stopping the run with Darren McFadden and Felix Jones in the backfield and watching out for that Wildcat package where McFadden lines up under center and not being fooled by any trickery.

#9 Louisville at Kentucky - 7:30 p.m. - ESPN Classic

After seeing Louisville give up 42 points last week to Middle Tennessee at home, I am none too confident about their ability to stop Andre Woodson, Rafael Little and Keenan Burton. For Rich Brooks and the Wildcats, the game against Louisville in Lexington presents the perfect opportunity to assert to the SEC and the rest of college football that Kentucky football is on the rise. Brian Brohm will be Brian Brohm and put up gargantuan numbers but the Louisville defense will have to make Woodson’s life difficult and exploit Kentucky’s weak offensive line if they’re going to win this one. This could be the year that Kentucky bests Louisville.

Under the Radar Game of the Week - #12 Ohio State at Washington - 2:30 - ABC 

Tyrone Willingham was able to coach up his Huskies last week and end Boise State’s 14-game winning streak but the test of just how far this program has come — and where it could be headed — will be tested big time when Jim Tressel and the Buckeyes head to Seattle for this afternoon game. This will be Ohio State’s first real test of the season after beating up on Akron and seemingly perennial punching bag Youngstown State at The Horseshoe. Aside from the coaching matchup, the game pits sophomore quarterback Jake Locker against all-universe linebacker James Laurinaitis, Vernon Gholston, Malcom Jenkins and the Buckeye defense and could be the proving ground for first year starter Todd Boeckman at quarterback. Look for the Buckeyes to use Beanie Wells to control the tempo of the game by pounding the ball and letting their huge offensive line lean on and wear out the Huskies defensive front, keeping Locker and the offense on the sideline for as long as possible. At game’s end I would anticipate the Buckeyes to have a distinct advantage in time of possession and the win. If you don’t feel like watching Florida/Tennessee, this game could be worth your time.

Thankfully, week one is college football is devoid of the time conflicts that make the middle of the college football season so wonderfully excrutiating for the avid college football fan. No having to choose between a battle of the Big Ten’s best and a showdown between the SEC elite inexplicably both scheduled at 3:30 in the afternoon. But that is not the first week in college football. For all the hype and the 25-hours of pre-game madness ESPN will be spewing all day, week one consists mainly of powerhouse schools paying for their Division 1-AA brethren to come on down to Columbus, Ann Arbor, Gainesville and Tuscaloosa for a proper, if not agonizing to watch, butt-kicking.

That being said, there are some games worth watching and TiVo’ing, some early season conference showdowns and even a couple non-conference games worth keeping an eye on.

Game of the week: #15 Tennessee at #12 Cal -8:00 p.m. ET - ABC

In what was one of the most unconvincing performances by a fashionable preseason national championship pick, Cal and head coach Jeff Tedford went to Knoxville and got it handed to them last year. The defense made then-junior quarterback Erik Ainge look like the greatest Tennesee quarterback since… Tee Martin? Tedford put the game in the hands of sophomore Nate Longshore, hands which were apparently lubed with mayonnaise before kick-off. Longshore stunk on ice.  This year, the Vols travel west to play the Golden Bears in Berkeley in what is, without a doubt, one of the best non-conference match-ups of the season. If you can’t watch it, I’d suggest taping it or erasing some episodes of Boy Meets World to find some space on your TiVo for this one.

GAMES FOR MEN WHO AREN’T AFRAID TO CRY 

Week One also begins on a somber note for two schools. First Virginia Tech opens its season at home against East Carolina in the first football game for the Hokies since a gunman killed 33 people this April. While I think people, myself included,  intend to overestimate the importance of sports in our culture, I do understand its undeniable power to help those struggling with grief and tragedy to find some sense of normalcy. What happened at Virginia Tech can never be undone, let alone by a silly football game, but maybe the game will grant that campus and that community a much-welcomed respite from the unspeakable horror of lives shattered and changed forever by a random act of violence on a blustery April morning in Blacksburg. East Carolina at Virginia Tech - 12:00 p.m. ET - ESPN

Saturday night will also be the first game back for my alma mater Indiana following the offseason death of head coach Terry Hoeppener. The Hoosiers open the season with Indiana State and my guess is that there won’t be a dry eye in the house. The game will begin with a gut-wrenching video tribute to Coach Hep that will have the toughest of tough guys biting their lower lip with clenched, quivering jaws with a ceremony with Hoeppner’s family to follow. As I wrote this, the Indiana media guide landed on my desk. The first five pages of the guide are dedicated to the memory of Coach Hep. In just three years, Hep came to symbolize hope for the Hoosier faithful who put off thinking about basketball season in late October to see if this would be the year that their beloved Hoosiers would play in Nashville, San Antonio, Orlando, Detroit or Tampa over Christmas break. Unfortunately, we will never have that year under Coach Hep but his memory and his legacy lives on in the hearts of the Indiana University family. Indiana State at Indiana - 8:00 p.m. ET - The Big Ten Network. 

O.G.I. - OTHER GAMES OF INTEREST

Georgia Tech at Notre Dame - 3:30 p.m.  ET - NBC 

Charlie Weis is keeping his starting quarterback a secret and I must say that it’s nice of sportswriters to humor him and act like they give a crap or don’t believe it’s going to be freshman Jimmy Clausen. None the less, this will be a watchable, if not, unspectacular game but you can’t deny the power of South Bend on a Saturday. I hate Notre Dame and I’ve been on that campus on gameday and it’s unlike any other place on Earth. In two words, goosebump-inducing.

Wake Forest at Boston College - 3:30 p.m. - ABC 

An early season showdown between two potential ACC powers in ‘07. Last year’s Cinderella, Wake Forest, heads to Chestnut Hill to face quarterback Matt Ryan and Boston College. Ryan is one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the league and the game could be the perfect opportunity for him and the Eagles to make a statement and start the season off on a good note.

Oklahoma State at #13 Georgia - 6:45 p.m. ET - ESPN2 

I’ve got to hand it to Georgia, Tennesee and Auburn and applaud all of them for going out and not scheduling tomato cans (*ahem* Florida) in the first week. Most people, myself included, think that there’s no conceivable way that Georgia is the 13th best team in the country and the Cowboys and wide out Adarious Bowman, who some believe to be the best receiver in the country, pose a very interesting matchup to the Bulldogs in week one. The game will also serve as a pretty good indicator of how true sophomore Matthew Stafford will play this year. Will he be the gun-slinging, interception-prone quarterback of his youth or will he emerge matured and ready to be crowned the SEC’s best quarterback? We’ll see at 6:45 p.m. Between the Hedges.

#19 Florida State at Clemson - 8:00 p.m. ET - ESPN

Who’s ready for the Labor Day installment of the Bowden Bowl?!!? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller? For Florida State fans, the week one clash at Death Valley will be an early test of how frustrating it will be to watch Drew Weatherford all-season. For Clemson, the strategy should be simple. HAND THE STUPID BALL OFF TO JAMES DAVIS AND C.J. SPILLER! None the less, it’s the best game on Labor Day so it’s worth watching, unless you got Heroes Season 1 on DVD.

UNDER THE RADAR GAME OF THE WEEK 

Arizona at BYU - 5:30 p.m. - VERSUS 

Of all the games that I picked this week, it was this game that  was the most difficult to pick. If I were able to pick “push,” I would have. This game poses some very interesting questions. Will this be the year that Bob Stoops turns Arizona around and makes them relevant in the Pac-10? Can BYU’s offense be effective without quarterback John Beck? Unfortunately, this is probably the fourth best game on in its time slot but it could be a heck of a game when it’s all said and done.

Yes, I know it’s more than two weeks from the official start of the 2007 college football season but I’ve already printed out the schedule for week 1 and will soon set my TiVo. When we get closer to the start of week one, I’ll pick a game of the week and a list of winners of every game over the weekend to track how I’m doing throughout the season.

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UCLA at STANFORD - 3:30 p.m. 

It’s the official beginning of the Jim Harbaugh/Captain Comeback era at Stanford and this game will prove a very interesting test for the Cardinal, and the Bruins in week one. This is sort of a baptism by fire for Harbaugh, who will be forced to show if he can actually coach or if he’s just good at spreading rumors about Pete Carroll leaving USC and lobbing grenades at this alma mater.

WHO YA GOT? The Ben Olson/Chris Markey combination on offense will be too much for Stanford’s porous defense.. even at home. I’m taking the Bruins.

GEORGIA TECH at NOTRE DAME - 3:30 P.M. 

Charlie Weis is still posturing that he’s not going to start Jimmy Clausen in week 1 against Georgia Tech but my guess is that this game will be the beginning of the Clausen era in South Bend. The Irish defense will need to stop Tashard Choice and the GT running game. On the other side of the ball, with senior quarterback Reggie Ball gone, this will be the first real road test for first year starter Taylor Bennett,

WHO YA GOT? Gotta go with the Irish at home. Even though Notre Dame lost Brady Quinn, Darius Walker, Rhema McKnight and Jeff Samardjiza, none of those losses offset the impact Calvin Johnson leaving GT early will have on that Georgia Tech offense. With CJ, this is probably a Georgia Tech win but without him, I got the Irish by at least 7.

WAKE FOREST at BOSTON COLLEGE - 3:30 p.m. 

Jim Grobe and last year’s Wake Forest team was college football’s best Cinderella story last year and this early season Atlantic division matchup at Chesnut Hill will show if the stage coach turned back into a pumpkin. Both squads return competent signal callers in Riley Skinner and Matt Ryan. This is a huge game for Jim Grobe’s team as far as confidence building is concerned and a win on the road at BC, who is favored to win the Atlantic, would be huge for the Demon Deacons. but I don’t think that’s going to happen.

WHO YA GOT? The BC defense is very tough and very seasoned and I don’t anticipate them having a tough time throwing blitz packages at Riley Skinner and confusing him into throwing a bad interception or two. I’ll take the Eagles by at least 7.

MISSOURI AT ILLINOIS - 3:30 P.M. 

Ron Zook surprised the college football universe last year when he snagged some of the nation’s top recruits, specifically wide receiver Arrelious Benn. I don’t see this game even being close. Missouri is a far better team than is Illinois and I expect Mizzou QB Chase Daniel to have a big game against a weak Illinois secondary. I will be very interested to see if Zook opens up the offense and lets QB Juice Williams air it out to Benn a couple times and give the Illini faithful something to look forward to.

WHO YA GOT? A no-brainer. Mizzou by at least 10.

TENNESSEE at CAL - 8:00 P.M. 

I don’t think I saw a worse performance by a quarterback in a big game last year than Nate Longshore’s tank job at Rocky Top. Defensive coordinator John Chavis called one of the best defensive games of the year last year confused and frustrated Longshore and stopped future first-rounder Marshawn Lynch essentially snubbing the running back’s Heisman hopes in week one. Back for the Golden Bears are Longshore, running back Justin Forsett and wide receiver DeSean Jackson. This year’s game could make for one of the year’s best.

WHO YA GOT? This is one of those games that you hate to prognosticate because you know whoever you pick, you have a substantial chance of being wrong. I’m still going with Cal at home. I think what happened last year was a total embarrassment to Tedford and to the program and they’ll be hungry to exact some revenge. It will be a very tight game could be decided by 3 points or less.

FLORIDA STATE AT CLEMSON - 8:00 P.M.

When I interviewed Bobby Bowden a couple months ago, he cited the week 1 game at his son Tommy and the Clemson Tigers at Death Valley as the most important game of the year for his ‘Noles. And it is. Forget that FSU opens the season against a conference foe on the road, the game will be a crucial game for Drew Weatherford/Xavier Lee/Jimbo Fisher and the Florida State offense. Equally as important is the FSU defense who will be handed the dubious task of stopping James Davis and C.J. Spiller, one of the nation’s best running tandems.

WHO YA GOT? Feeling pretty good about Florida State in this one. Clemson starts its third quarterback in as many years and lost a good portion of its defense and won’t be able to match the firepower that Florida State will bring with them from Tallahassee.