Week 2 - Games to Keep an Eye On

We've got one week in the bag. Michigan was destroyed by Alabama. Southern Cal, Clemson, Tennessee all put on good shows. I was extremely impressed by Le'Veon Bell (Michigan State), Andre Ellington (Clemson), Matt Barkley (Southern Cal), Tyler Bray (Tenn.), Todd Gurley (Georgia), Marcus Mariota (Oregon) and T.J. Yeldon (Alabama). They all had monster week 1 games, and it will be fun to keep an eye on them as the year progresses.

With Week 2 upon us, let's dive into the key matchups.


Miami at Kansas State (Saturday Noon)

• Miami is coming off a pretty good road win to start the season. They beat up Boston College, but the game was a little sloppy and lackluster for my taste.
• Duke Johnson is the real deal for Miami. He blew it up last week (7 carries, 135 yards & 2 TDs).
• This weekend's matchup versus K-State is a much different animal. Remember K-State beat Miami last year, and they play much better ball the Boston College
• K-State has not been shutout in over 190 games (longest streak in BIG-12)
• Look for Kansas State to have their hands full, but to win this one by a field goal with solid D and a great running attack

(Photo courtesy Al Diaz)

Auburn at Mississippi State (Saturday Noon)

• These two programs really hate each other. Last year's matchup or the year before for that matter.
• Bottom line these games are always exciting and close
• Keep both eyes on this one
• Auburn got a little roughed up against a solid and not yet 100% Clemson squad last week in the Dome. Tackling was poor and the offense was pretty vanilla.
• Miss. State is fired up for this one and Dan is looking for Win #2 and with a solid QB in Tyler Russel at the helm, I can understand why
• I see Auburn going 0-2 and loosing this one by 7

(Photo courtesy of Vince Ferrara)

 

East Carolina at South Carolina (Saturday 12:30 PM)

• Scary news out of last week's game. Conner Shaw with a deep bruise on throwing arm. Look for more of the same as he really likes to run
• Lattimore is back and after a 1st touch fumbe he reeled of 2 TDs and 110 yards
• And boy did DJ Swearinger get away with a pass interference late in the game. Vandy would have had the ball late in the game on the other side of the 50 with less than 2 minutes to play down by 4. Deep sigh of relief USC fans the SEC officials had your back.
• South Carolina should be concerned in the big picture - I don't see anyone on the edge that scares me. Maybe a WR will step up in Alshon's absence...either way they've got Lattimore and a stingy defense up front
• South Carolina will pull away around halftime and never look back

(Photo courtesy of Streeter Lecka)

Florida at Texas A&M (Saturday 3:30 PM)

• Welcome to the 2012 season and to the SEC
• A&M did not play last week, so it's a blessing and a curse
• They have plenty of time to prepare for Florida, who really has nothing to game plan against since there is no relevant game footage of them, but they could come out a little rusty due to no live reps
• Florida looked rough against Bowling Green. For a second there, I thought we were going to have an upset. Florida is very bland on offense and lacking in confidence
• Driskel is the QB but I'm not so sure if it will not take him until mid-season to hit stride behind that shaky Offensive Line. Defense is pretty good, but there are holes.
• I'm looking for A&M to make a splash and pull an upset

(Photo courtesy of Sam Greenwood)

Washington at LSU (Saturday 7:00 PM)

• LSU trotted out ex-UGA quarterback Zach Mettenberger and he looked as UGA predicted pretty darn good.
• LSU's ground game and defense picked up right where they were last year and they played and all around solid game
• Washington will have their hands full in this
• Look for LSU to win by 4 TDs

(Photo courtesy of Richard Reddman)

Nebraska at UCLA (Saturday 7:30 PM)

• Taylor Martinez lit it up against Southern Miss. You might say well its Southern Miss. 354 yards passing and 5 TDs is stout whatever you're measuring against.
• Coach Pellini has Nebraska charting towards the top in almost every statistical category and I expect them to keep it up with solid play again on Saturday and lace up UCLA
• Nebraska has a solid ground game that balances everything out with Ameer Abdullah and Rex Burkhead in the backfield
• Look for Nebraska to win by 10

Georgia at Missouri (Saturday 7:45 PM)

• This weekend's marquee game of the day as Missouri is formally introduced with an in-conference matchup against Georgia.
• This is the 5 star take the phone off the hook game of the day
• Expect a lot of UGA fans to be in attendance (with the Falcons in KC on Sunday, many are making a big football weekend out of it)
• Missouri will be pumped and Franklin is an amazing dual threat QB
• Missouri also has a stud freshman in Dorial Green-Beckham, but don't get caught looking because WR Jimmie Hunt can get it done too
• If UGA's defense is up to the task they should handle business and come home with a W
• Aaron Murray is veteran at this point, Todd Gurley made a big Freshman splash last weekend
• UGA will have to play sound defense where they keep their lanes to mitigate Franklin's running out of the pocket
• Latest from the program is Alec Ogletree, Bacarri Rambo, Chase Vasser, & Sanders Commings will not play in Saturday night's game (all starters)
• All that aside, I like GA by 10+ in this one

SO CLOSE YOU CAN ALMOST TASTE IT

With the opening kickoff of the College Football 2010 season just weeks away its time to start breaking down games.


Let's start with opening night, Thursday September 2nd.

(All times are listed in EST)

Southern Miss @ South Carolina
7:30 ESPN
Both teams finished last season with a loss to end the season, and both finished 7-6 in their respective campaigns. But considering the tone that needs to be set early for this season, especially considering the way USC finished last season (they were sloppy and man-handled by UCONN in the bowl game), South Carolina should roll. They will be getting tuned up for the always important early season showdown with Georgia (9/11). The most intriguing aspects for me in this game will be the Offensive Line for USC and how well they protect (Sr.) Stephen Garcia. I am also very interested in seeing the crown jewel of Coach Spurrier's most recent recruiting class, Marcus Lattimore. Is he the second coming? Will he be the starter? Is he THE player that ushers in the balance that Coach has lacked since arriving in Columbia? Look for Carolina to come out gunning for the end zone, and expect Carolina to win by 21.



Marshall @ Ohio State
7:30 Big Ten Network
Ohio state is coming off an 11-2 season last year capped off by an impressive Rose Bowl victory over a very good Oregon team. Marshall on the other hand is coming off a 7-6 season, which they posted just 2 conference wins. I will be keeping an eye on Terrelle Pryor's surgically repaired right knee. He could be wearing a knee brace, and it is going to be a long season. So he might be handing off and focusing on pocket passing for the opener with VERY little scrambling. But let's be honest, running is in his blood and if it's 3rd Down, and he sees daylight and no one open, then there is a really good chance he could bolt. I just hope the body holds up (reference Colt McCoy in the Bama game). Marshall's Defense will resemble swiss cheese and The Buckeyes will roll in front of the home crowd. The Defense will be stifling, and OSU should win by 28.



Pitt @ Utah
8:30 Versus
Huge road test for Pitt. This is without a doubt the best matchup of the night. Both teams finished the season with 10-3 records, but take note: Utah went undefeated in conference play while Pitt dropped 2 games in the conference last year. Of course this is a non-conference game, but those are interesting numbers regardless, especially considering teams without a doubt should be getting up for the conference matchups. Pitt will be working out the kinks with a new QB under center, but look for them to handoff all night and rely on the strong D they bring to the table in 2010. Utah should be tough, but ultimately not have the answers to stop Dion Lewis and Pitt's ground game. Look for Pitt by 10.



USC @ Hawaii
11:00 ESPN
Southern Cal is coming an unusually crazy ride of an off season, and in my opinion get used to it as you, USC, officially signed up for it with Lane Kiffin and the Merry Pranksters. And for USC the hits keep coming as star freshman tailback Dillon Baxter will not be playing in the season opener. Either way usher in the Kiffin Era with a win. USC finished last year 9-4 and Hawaii subpar 6-7 record. Monty is one of the best in the business and the Defense will be stout. USC by 21.

Let me know what you think. How do you see the opening Thursday night festivities panning out?